Waldorf Education

WALDORF EDUCATION

RUDOLF STEINER

Student:

Waldorf Education

"Give me a fish and I eat for a day. Teach me to fish and I eat for a lifetime."

Chinese Proverb

Waldorf school

Began in 1919, when Emil Molt, owner of the Waldorf-Astoria cigarette factory in Stuttgart. Germany asked Rudolf Steiner to establish a school for the children of his workers.

Waldorf Education

Developed by Rudolf Steiner in 1919, Waldorf Education is based on a profound understanding of human development that addresses the needs of the growing child. Waldorf teachers strive to transform education into an art that educates the whole child: the heart and the hands, as well as the head.

The basic principle in Waldorf Education Method is to enable students to develop a

sense with a view to understanding their own manners and their position in the world. It aims

at enabling the child to attain evoked and developed skills instead of a coercive teaching

method regarding an intellectual content.

Waldorf Curriculum

The Waldorf education is highly attuned to the developmental needs of children at specific ages. However, the curriculum for children involves equal instruction in the arts, music, foreign language and academics as opposed to a focus on academics with brief “specials” in traditional education.

Rudolf Steiner sees the path from childhood to youth, from kindergarten to high school, as unfolding in three approximately seven year steps or phases, each manifesting an age specific approach to learning

These steps are:

1. Birth to the age of 7

2. From 7 to 14 years

3. High school years

Teacher in Waldorf School

Teaching methods

Singing Storytelling Scheduling Modelling Painting Questioning Recalling

Dayli Plan

9:00-9:30 Language activity (book reading)9:30-10:00 Art activity10:00-10:15 Clean-up time10:15-11:30 Snack time11:30-12:00 Outdoor activity12:00-12:30 Lunch12:30-15:00 Uyku15:00-16:00 Free play time

Waldorf school

When you enter a Waldorf school, the first thing you may notice is the care given to the building. The walls are usually painted in lively colors and are adorned with student artwork. Evidence of student activity is everywhere to be found and every desk holds a uniquely created main lesson book.

Waldorf Class

Another first impression may be the enthusiasm and commitment of the teachers you meet. These teachers are interested in the students as individuals. They are interested in the questions:

How do we establish within each child his or her own high level of academic excellence?

How do we call forth enthusiasm for learning and work, a healthy self-awareness, interest and concern for fellow human beings, and a respect for the world?

How can we help pupils find meaning in their lives?

Waldorf in the world

The Waldorf education is the biggest independent education movement in the United States and Europe with over 900 schools and over 1500 kindergarten currently teaching the Waldorf methods.

In Romania there are 23 schools and kindergarten that teach Waldorf method.

End…..

“What the teacher is, is more important than what he teaches.”

Karl Menninger

Reference list:

Easton, F. (1997).Educating th Whole Child, “Head, Heart, and Hands”: Learning From the Waldorf Experience. Theory into practice

www.whywaldorfworks.org www.waldorf.ro