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Waldorf education is a unique and distinctive approach to educating children that is practiced in Waldorf schools worldwide. Waldorf schools collectively form the largest, and quite possibly the fastest growing, group of independent private schools in the world. There is no centralised administrative structure governing all Waldorf schools; each is administratively independent, but there are established associations which provide resources, publish materials, sponsor conferences, and promote the movement. www.steiner-australia.org

Frequently Asked Questions About Waldorf (Steiner) Education Located at

 Steiner Schools in Australia

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What is Waldorf Education?

What is unique about Waldorf Education? How is it different from other alternatives (Public Schooling, Montessori, etc.)?

The best overall statement on what is unique about Waldorf education is to be found in the stated goals of the schooling: "to produce individuals who are able, in and of themselves, to impart meaning to their lives".

The aim of Waldorf schooling is to educate the whole child, "head, heart and hands". The curriculum is as broad as time will allow, and balances academics subjects with artistic and practical activities.

Waldorf teachers are dedicated to creating a genuine love of learning within each child. By freely using arts and activities in the service of teaching academics, an internal motivation to learn is developed in the students, doing away with the need for competitive testing and grading.

Some distinctive features of Waldorf education include the following:

Academics are de-emphasized in the early years of schooling. There is no academic content in the Waldorf kindergarten (i.e. pre-class 1) experience (although there is a good deal of cultivation of pre-academic skills), and minimal academics in class 1. The letters are introduced artistically in class 2, with the children learning to read from their own writing in class 2 or 3.

During the primary school years (classes 1-8) the students have a class (or "main lesson") teacher who stays with the same class for (ideally) the first eight years of their schooling.

Certain activities which are often considered "frills" at mainstream schools are central at Waldorf schools: art, music, gardening, and foreign languages (usually two in primary grades), to name a few. In the younger grades, all subjects are introduced through artistic mediums, because the children respond better to this medium than to dry lecturing and rote learning. All children learn to play recorder and to knit.

There are no "textbooks" as such in the first through fifth grades. All children have "main lesson books", which are their own workbooks which they fill in during the course of the year. They essentially produce their own "textbooks" which record their experiences and what they've learned. Upper grades use textbooks to supplement their main lesson work.

All children learn a stringed instrument from class 3 onwards. This often includes one-on-one tuition as well as orchestra.

Learning in a Waldorf school is a non-competitive activity. There are no grades given at the primary level; the teacher writes a detailed evaluation of the child at the end of each school year.

The use of electronic media, particularly television, by young children is strongly discouraged in Waldorf schools.

What is the curriculum at a Waldorf School like?

The Waldorf curriculum is designed to be responsive to the various phases of a child's development. The era of human history being studied corresponds in many ways with the stage of development of the child. For example, pre-class 1 children are presented with fairy stories matching their dreamy state of consciousness, class 4 study the Vikings and Norse mythology which suit their war-like feelings, class 5 learn of the Greeks at the time their intellect is awakening and their sense of fair play is becoming obvious, and so on.

The main subjects, such as history, language arts, science and mathematics are, as mentioned, taught in main lesson blocks of two to three hours per day, with each block lasting from three to five weeks.

The total Waldorf curriculum has been likened to an ascending spiral: subjects are revisited several times, but each new exposure affords greater depth and new insights into the subject at hand.

A typical Lower School curriculum would likely look something like the following:

Primary Grades 1 - 3

Pictorial introduction to the alphabet, writing, reading, spelling, poetry and drama.

Folk and fairy tales, fables, legends, Old Testament stories.

Numbers, basic mathematical processes of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

Nature stories, house building and gardening.

Middle Grades 4 - 6

Writing, reading, spelling, grammar, poetry and drama.

Norse myths, history and stories of ancient civilisations (e.g. Greek, Indian).

Review of the four mathematical processes, fractions, percentages, and geometry.

Local and world geography, comparative zoology, botany and elementary physics.

Upper Grades 7 - 8

Creative writing, reading, spelling, grammar, poetry and drama.

Medieval history, Renaissance, world exploration, history and biography.

Geography, physics, basic chemistry, astronomy, geology and physiology.

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