Founder Rudolph Steiner, a scientist and philosopher, wrote in the early 1900s that “Waldorf school education is not a pedagogical system but an art - the art of awakening what is actually there within the human being." Schools are focused on a play-based approach and offer children a dependable routine where certain days of the week are set aside for activities like baking or gardening. They also follow a similar approach to classroom composition as Montessori schools: mixed-age classrooms with the same teacher for multiple years. According to Waldorf Canada, for students to be successful, contributing members of society, children will need to develop into multi-faceted individuals with the desire and drive to always be learning. For this to happen, and allow for success and self-fulfillment students need to develop creative thinking that is imaginative, flexible and focused; build emotional intelligence, empathy and self-esteem; physical vitality, stamina and perseverance; and a passionate connect, appreciation and responsibility to nature, work and the society of men, women and children around them.
The Waldorf school philosophy is unique. Moreover, it provides the basis for its classroom policies and practices. Below, we outline some of its main classroom policies. Note, though, not all schools have all these policies. Policies tend to vary between different schools and levels of education, in Canada and elsewhere.
The Waldorf curriculum responds to the growing child. The subjects, as well as how they’re taught, evolves over the years. The student-teacher relationship also evolves over time. While different schools have different curricula, there’s also some common points of reference. Most schools focus on certain core subjects and skills through the years, though children learn them in different ways. According to Waldorf Answers, some of the main areas schools cover through the years are as follows.