A Waldorf School Education

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The First Waldorf School in Stuttgart      

T      This opened 1919

·         By 1924 it had twelve year groups

·         The children of workers at the Waldorf-Astoria Cigarette Company came in response to the initiative of founders Emil and Berta Molt.

·         When Hani joined the school in 1931 it had several classes in each year group.   

·         Steiner wanted the school to be in the direction of independence of the economic, governmental and cultural realms.

Discuss with other in your groups why such a school needed to exist in those days in Germany and why Hani’s parents wanted her to join it. Report your conclusion to the rest of your class.

Educational principles in the Waldorf School

Steiner insisted on the following for his schools:  

1.      The school should be open to all children;

2.      It should be coeducational;

3.      It should that it be a unified twelve-year school;

4.      The teachers, those individuals actually in contact with the children, should have primary control over the pedagogy of the school, with a minimum of interference from the state or from economic sources.

Discuss in your groups how this compares with your school. Are the differences important? You may need some help with number 4.  Talk to your teachers.  

The Waldorf School Day

The Waldorf school day is divided up into three main parts: head, heart, and hands. The Head lesson is also referred to as the Main Lesson and is done first thing in the morning. After a break, the Heart subjects follow. Heart subjects include drawing and painting, drama, foreign languages, music, and so on. The afternoon is reserved for Hands. This is PE, dance, handwork (knitting, woodworking, etc.), gardening, and other physical activities.   

Were your primary school days like this? Can you rearrange your present school timetable according to this? Does it fit?  What are the advantages and disadvantages of this?