Early Childhood

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The Preschool program offers a warm and nurturing play-based curriculum that serves as a foundation for later academic success. The importance of free play is a guiding principle within the Waldorf perspective of Early Childhood Education. The classroom’s homelike environment supports the child’s home to school transition and the open-ended toys and materials encourage the use of their imagination. Through their imaginative forces, the children transform the room and imitate the world around them.

Preschoolers are immersed in a daily consistent rhythm that supports their sense of independence and confidence. The outdoor environment offers the children many opportunities for running, climbing, swinging, digging, pumping and hauling water.  They enjoy tending to the chickens and the garden while exploring and being in contact with nature. Interactions during indoor and outdoor play encourage socialization and collaboration among the students for healthy social-emotional development. During this age, children naturally move from parallel play to associative play.

Seasonal stories and circle time are embedded in the rhythm of the day to stimulate the children’s cognitive development and sensory integration. Practical work, snack preparation, and self-care are also part of the rhythm of the day to support the development of their will forces and their sense of industry. Some of the practical work that the children do includes washing napkins by hand, polishing wooden toys, sweeping, raking leaves, churning butter, chopping vegetables, and baking.

Note: Minimum age is two years nine months by September 1, and children must be potty-trained.

Play-based Kindergarten nurtures essential foundational skills for academic success, while emphasizing social-emotional learning through engaging, hands-on experiences.

Children thrive through active, sensory engagement, and imitation. Our Kindergarten classes invite them into meaningful tasks that connect them to their environment and foster a sense of belonging, for example, baking, cleaning, washing and folding, and preparing meals. In addition, handwork, such as finger knitting, sewing, or felting, helps build fine motor skills, laying the groundwork for writing, while also sparking creativity. 

The outdoor play yards offer sand pits, a cozy playhouse, and a garden the children tend—all under the protective branches of stately trees. With stumps to climb and sit on, the space encourages imaginative play. Separated from the older students’ area, it’s a haven for children to explore and engage in free play.

Teachers led daily circle journeys, where children enter into rich narratives, sometimes acting out stories to deepen their connection to the tales and their lessons. Therapeutic movement and attention to the development of the lower senses are woven into these activities while also fostering language development, memory, and repetition.

Seasonal rhythms are integral to kindergarten life. Each morning begins with a lively campus walk, where children follow their teacher through trees and across bridges, soaking in nature and moving their bodies in ways that support healthy sensory integration, large motor skill, as well as vestibular and proprioceptive skills.

Whether churning butter for bread, folding napkins, or tending the garden, the children joyfully participate in the work of daily life. These class experiences foster responsibility and prepare them for the structure and learning of the grades, while grounding them in a world rich with imagination and purpose.

Note: Children must be 4 years old by June 1st to enroll in Kindergarten.