Tuesday 27 February 2018

The First Waldorf School



Steiner's ideas  


 




The original Waldorf School in Stuttgart 
 

Steiner insisted upon four conditions before opening:
1. that the school be open to all children;
2. that it be coeducational;
3. that it be a unified twelve-year school;
4. that the teachers, those individuals actually in contact with the children, have primary control over the pedagogy of the school, with a minimum of interference from the state or from economic sources.


In which ways is this similar to your school and in which ways different?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of each system? 


How the schools spread

1919 – Stuttgart School opened
1923 – one opened in Holland.
By 1952, despite many being closed during World War II, there were 65 throughout the world
Now over 1,500 in 80 countries and it is the biggest private school system in Germany   

Steiner schools today 

The Waldorf School today 

 

The aim is to educate: head, heart and hands. Steiner said "imagination, a sense of truth, and a feeling of responsibility — these three forces are the very nerve of education.” 

The curriculum for Year 9

  • History - the Industrial Revolution to the present day
  • Geography as related to World Economics
  • Physics: Acoustics, Thermodynamics, Mechanics, Electricity and Magnetism, Hydraulics, Aerodynamics, Meteorology
  • Ecology
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Physiology
  • Mathematics: practical applications of arithmetic, algebra, and geometry, graphing, geometry: measurement of surfaces and volume
  • Singing and Orchestra: Elizabethan Music, American Music, Symphonic Form
  • Handwork: Machine Sewing, Darning, Artistic Hand-Sewing Projects ,Soapstone Carvings,  Carpentry
  • Eurythmy: poems with contrasting moods
  • English: the short story, persuasive writing, famous speeches, letters, Shakespearean drama
  • Foreign Language
  • Painting: highlights and shadows in portraits and landscapes
  • Sports
 
Is this similar to what you do? 

  

 

Saturday 10 February 2018

Places that Clara Lehrs knew



 Mecklenburg

Flat country side: ponds and marshes 
Jews living there: bankers, lawyers, doctors, rabbis 
Germans: poor
Clara lived in the Schwerin part of Mecklenburg.
There is a beautiful castle in Schwerin  






Berlin

Clara enjoyed café society.
She took the children riding on the trams.
She lived there at the time of the ‘belle époque.”
Lots of green space was created in Berlin.
It changed a lot in the 30 years she lived there. 





Lauenstein

This was a residential centre for children with severe learning difficulties.
Clara was house-keeper.
It was in Jena.
Her daughter and son-in-law also lived in Jena.
It was based on Rudolf Steiner’s ideas. 




Stuttgart

Clara sold her pearls to help finance the house on Schellberg Street.
It was used to board students and teachers of the first Waldorf School.
It was called the “little Goethenaum”.
She allowed a class of disabled children to meet in her cellar.
There is a”Stolperstein” outside the house now.