This is the first of many open house reports. We will only report on schools we have actually visited, either when attending an open house or taking a private tour. This is meant to be a snapshot of a school and will not be exhaustive. These reports should not substitute for a visit to the school being reviewed. We will try our best to simply report facts and our impressions without too much subjective opinion injected in these entries (as much as possible). Reviews will mainly contain positive aspects of the schools. Simply because a school is reported on does not mean that we recommend any given school.
The school supports bringing things from the natural world to children. For example, in one of the Kindergarten classes, you will not only find soft dolls and wooden blocks, but baskets filled with seashells and rocks, and large tree trunks for children to explore. The Waldorf School also truly values the importance of giving children exposure to the outdoors. The children are outside for at least an hour a day in ALL weather, whether they are playing on the playground or roaming around the field and trees on the beautiful grounds of the Covenant campus.
The Waldorf School of Philadelphia is for children pre-K through 8th grade. Waldorf education originated in Germany by Rudolf Steiner and is increasing in popularity here in America. This method of educating children is very different from other schools and there are many sources out there to investigate in order to learn more about this form of education, so make sure to be informed and read all you can.
Whether you agree with Steiner's ideas or not, there are some aspects of the Waldorf School of Philadelphia that we can probably all agree on. First of all, the building and classrooms are beautiful. The school is located in an old, stone, castle-like building on the Covenant campus in Mt. Airy. Each classroom is painted a different, warm, color and is filled with high-quality wooden furniture, play spaces, and toys.
The school supports bringing things from the natural world to children. For example, in one of the Kindergarten classes, you will not only find soft dolls and wooden blocks, but baskets filled with seashells and rocks, and large tree trunks for children to explore. The Waldorf School also truly values the importance of giving children exposure to the outdoors. The children are outside for at least an hour a day in ALL weather, whether they are playing on the playground or roaming around the field and trees on the beautiful grounds of the Covenant campus. One unique quality of a Waldorf education is that, starting in 1st grade, teachers travel through the grades with students. This means that your child will have the same teacher from 1st-8th. The school stresses that this causes children and teachers to truly know each other and grow together. The faculty believes that children only learn well from those they truly know and care about.
Homework is not a big part of The Waldorf School of Philadelphia. Younger students might be asked to go home and explore a particular item in nature or in their neighborhoods, but there is not usually formal homework to be done. Some homework starts around 4th grade, but the volume will still not be substantial. No letter grades are given, with the exception of 7th grade, purely because students are applying to high schools at this point and many require grades. Children are assessed, but not in letter or number form.
The school is very non-violent, teaching children to respect and care
for one another. Instructors strive to teach a child's "head, heart, and hands." The arts are stressed, with a lot of time spent on teaching children to do such things as knit, bake, play instruments, do woodworking, etc. Spanish and German are also taught. Each year has a central theme such as fairy tales, bible stories, fables, etc. Early reading and writing is not taught; students are not taught these things formally until the 1st grade. The Waldorf philosophy is that children will learn these things, but need to just learn through play and exploration in the early years.
Students do go on field trips. In the lower grades, they stay close to home, going on hikes and walks in the area. As they get older, they venture farther out, such as spending a few days at a farm and visiting museums. Graduates of The Waldorf School of Philadelphia attend many area high schools, with most attending charter schools.
Some arguments against Waldorf education in general (that you can research further if you wish) are: (these are not necessarily our opinion)
*"Bullying sometimes thrives because of a lack of discipline."
*"Students are not being prepared for the 'real world,' since they are not exposed to technology etc." (the use of T.V.s and computers are even discouraged for parents at home)
*"Students may be "stuck" with a teacher they don't click with."
Your Turn: What do you think of Waldorf eduction and this school? Do you have a child enrolled? What has been your experience? Click on the pencil below to comment.
Our Next Report Coming Soon: Plymouth Meeting Friends School
2 comments:
I visited Waldorf's open house last fall when I was beginning the search for pre-schools for my son. While I really like some aspects of the school - the focus on the natural environment, the play centered education - overall the whole vibe of the school felt far too puritanical for me. Spending a few hours in that building and amongst the children who attend feels so far removed from the world outside the school's doors that I can't imagine a child spending significant schooling time there and feeling prepared for life in mainstream society. For sixth grade children to be doing woodworking is fantastic but for them to be focused solely on woodworking as a major project spanning the entire year with no emphasis on learning other important skills such as technology related skills just doesn't seem realistic to me in this day and age. In pre-school the focus was very much on play, which I like, but there was also a very dogmatic approach that precludes the inclusion of BOOKS in the preschool classroom. Apparently the school's philosophy is that children at this age should create their own mental models of stories rather than have a prescribed illustration in a physical book. For children in the 3 - 4 year range who love books, and are beginning to try to read, I believe that this philosophy could ultimately be very damaging. I came away from open house feeling like running theme was a resolution to cling to belief systems that don't seem very productive or healthy for the children they purportedly serve. I want my child to be exposed to the arts and to be in an environment that values play and imaginative skills but I also expect my child's school to provide him with practical skills that he can apply to the real world. I don't believe that Waldorf can do this and it is the number one reason why my son will not be attending the Waldorf School.
I am a parent of two Waldorf School of Philadelphia children. I have a daughter who graduated just last year and now attends public high school (The Waldorf School of Philadelphia goes up to eighth grade), and I have a son who is currently in the sixth grade. Both of my children have been enrolled there since kindergarten. We enrolled my daughter after first having a disappointing experience in a traditional kindergarten.
Here’s what I can say to prospective parents, who wonder about whether Waldorf education is right for their children. First, there is no “one-size-fits-all education.” None.
That said, here’s what the Waldorf approach has offered my children and what I believe it can offer yours:
1. Age-Appropriate Learning:
This is a biggie. In short, it’s a recognition that you walk before you run. More precisely, it’s a recognition that a child’s motor skills, emotional intelligence, comprehension and critical thinking skills all have developmental benchmarks. Waldorf seeks to align what’s being taught – and when – with these physical, emotional and intellectual developments. So, for instance, finger-knitting isn’t taught because it’s artsy; it’s taught because it develops fine motor skills at a time when fine motor skills are developing in the body of the child. Waldorf Schools tend to express this concept as “Head, Heart and Hand.”
2. Confidence & Deeper Learning:
In Waldorf schools children learn by doing and by interacting rather than by wrote memorization. This actually has two effects. One is that they learn deeper. That is to say, because almost everything they learn is in a hands-on way, they take the subject in more deeply and in a more personal way than they would by only reading about it in a book. The goal is to (ultimately) develop in children the capacity to be creative problem solvers and critical thinkers. To synthesize all that they’ve learned through all their various interactions with the subject, and to own it. That’s why Waldorf children make their own textbooks, for example (or Main Lesson books, as they’re called). The second effect is confidence. Because they spend their K through 8 years creating and synthesizing for every subject they study, they tend to emerge with a sense that they can handle whatever comes their way. That’s not to say that they swagger. Rather, they’re just comfortable figuring things out.
3. A Love of Reading:
First, it’s often stated that Waldorf schools wait a little bit longer to teach reading. This is not quite true. Rather, over the past decade, public schools have emphasized teaching reading earlier and earlier as a way to overcome the poor reading scores of graduates. In this regard, as in all others, Waldorf approaches reading in a developmentally appropriate manner; first developing an interest in storytelling, then in a familiarity with the distinct sounds of letters, then an appreciation of words, and so on. In other words, Waldorf takes a more deliberate approach. As for the outcome, I can tell you what I have observed in my own children and in their friends and classmates – an actual love of reading. My daughter can absolutely lose herself in books. And while my son would certainly rather get covered in mud, he too loves reading. It’s really a refreshing thing to experience.
4. Boundless Creativity:
Growing up, my children never uttered these words: “I’m bored.” Never. It’s incredible, but from an early age Waldorf children learn to create their own play. They learn to be comfortable occupying their hands and their minds. And when you see all the things that fill their school day – chorus, orchestra, two languages (German and Spanish), handwork (knitting, clay sculpting, sewing, etc.), woodworking, games and eurythmy (movement arts) – not to mention all they do for their main lesson work, culminating in all the observations, writings and artwork they create and compile in their Main Lesson Books (text books) for subjects ranging from geometry and physics to astronomy and language arts to ancient civilizations (or any of the many historical epochs they study) – no wonder they’re creative. They’ve been nourished. And it shows.
5. A sense of Community:
Waldorf schools nurture in children a real feeling of community – the individual’s responsibility to the betterment of the group, and the group’s responsibility to the betterment of the individual. Throughout their education, they work on projects that give back to the surrounding community. In my daughter’s case, it culminated in a class trip where she and her classmates volunteered their time on a Navajo Nation reservation. Last year, my son’s class helped to remove dead overgrowth and plant new trees along the Wissahickon. Further, the school itself provides the parents with an unparalleled sense of community with one another – much more so than I’ve seen on any PTA.
6. A Wonderful Family Life:
The simplest and yet most profound thing that Waldorf education has provided our family is a close-knit family life. It has simply given us more opportunities to come together in family rituals and celebrations – both large and small – on a daily basis. Of course, just as in other things in life, how much your family gets out of it depends on you. But overall, it’s given us more opportunities to share close moments together.
Finally, I’d like to touch on a few of the things “Anonymous” mentioned in his or her post:
Puritanical and Dogmatic?
No. Absolutely not. Waldorf children certainly aren’t cloistered. As mentioned above, they are in fact community-minded as well as open-minded. The school community itself is diverse, and the curriculum exposes them to more points of view than many other schools offer. The philosophy is carefully thought out and practical. Everything is done for a well-founded reason. Not dogma. The goal, in fact, is to produce creative thinkers who fully participate as citizens of the world. This may be one reason why Waldorf education is widely considered one of the most progressive forms education today, and why it’s the fastest growing education movement worldwide.
Closed up inside a building?
Hardly. Waldorf schools, in fact, emphasize a strong relationship with nature. Have you noticed, that huge, tree-filled field outside our school? That’s our children’s playground. They revel in it. Also, from first grade all the way up to eighth grade they go on nature walks. In our school’s case, our proximity to Fairmount Park and the Wissahickon couldn’t provide a more wonderful relationship with the natural world.
Technology:
Yes, it’s true that many schools today are emphasizing computers in the classroom. And some of them do so at a young age. Waldorf schools introduce computer usage in 9th grade because of the high school child’s developmental readiness for it. So some schools employ computers in first grade and Waldorf schools wait until high school. This makes some parents nervous, but here are two thoughts to take with you. First, don’t confuse computers with education. Computers are tools – nothing more. If your child does not learn how to use a computer in grade school, don’t panic. He or she will not “fall behind.” Again, from personal experience, my daughter did not touch a computer until the end of eighth grade. Now she’s in a public high school where they use computers all the time and she’s doing just fine. Besides, as long as there are things like Facebook and iChat, chances are your child will become computer savvy in no time flat. Practical Skills. Waldorf schools employ a high degree of artistic and creative thinking techniques to all the subjects children study. But make no mistake, Waldorf schools are not art schools. The children who attend Waldorf Schools receive the equivalent of a modern day Renaissance education. They are well versed in two languages, mathematics, science, English, history, geography and more. The academics are intensive, and all the more so because they are taught using a block system for each subject. In 7th & 8th grade, students are required to take the Iowa Test, a standardized test for private schools, and accepted by private and public schools alike. Generally, Waldorf students perform quite well. In my experience, and in the experience of other parents I know, Waldorf students are enthusiastically welcomed by teachers in public and private schools alike precisely because of the robustness of Waldorf Education.
Lastly, I’m sorry “Anonymous” came away with a less than satisfactory impression. As I mentioned, there may be no such thing as “one-size-fits-all education.” But my children and my family have benefitted enormously from Waldorf education. And I believe yours will too.
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