Is anybody familiar with "Waldorf schools"?

[AlCzervik]

i'm checking out different schools in my area when i came across the Waldorf school and i wondered if anyone here ever went to one and what they thought about it.

[grace0418]

1. My niece went to one in Chicago and loved it.

She had such a happy high school experience. Pretty much the exact opposite of mine, which is great because she and I are so similar. I think the child has to be really self-sufficient and naturally curious t get a lot out of it.

[FuzzySlippers]

2. Google it and you'll get an eyefull.

It's based on a pretty weird philosophy.

http://www.waldorfcritics.org/

http://skepdic.com/steiner.html

[yellowcanine]

6. Different but I wouldn't call it weird. That 1st link is to a group that

basically makes it their life work to trash the Waldorf School. So they are not a fair test, imo. Here is a telling quote:

"Even so, because they are not taught fundamentalist Christianity from the Bible, Waldorf schools are often attacked for encouraging paganism or even Satanism."

You can bet it is the fundies that want us to think there is something weird about this technique. My only personal experience with it is that one of my daughter's kindergarten teachers had been trained in this method and she was one of the best teachers my daughter had. Their idea of not teaching children to read until 2nd grade may be a little rigid but it is better supported by science than those trying to get kindergarten and even preschool kids reading. I have a story about my daughter in first grade. She and two or three of her classmates who had the Waldorfian K teacher did not know how to read and the 1st grade teacher was appalled. By Christmas those kids were ahead of the rest of the class in reading skills and all of them scored high enough on a test to qualify for the Talented and Gifted program of the county school system. Now maybe they were just smart kids but I don't think so.

[Arugula Latte]

3. I'm sort of familiar with it.

It's very arty, very anti-corporate, very "granola," as far as I've heard. I like that they stress those types of values, but I think some people think they take it a little too far -- e.g. kids can't bring a lunchbox w/ a character on it, they must bring a basket or something. Atleast, that's what I've heard about the Waldorf schools here in Portland.

[LeftyMom]

4. I appreciate the granolaness

emphasis on art and age-appropriate learning but there's a strong luddite streak and I don't care for the authoritarianism (way too many directives about how to raise the kid outside school for my taste) or the animal products used in the handicrafts (a lot of wool felting, beeswax crayons, etc.)

If leftykid had to go to school outside the home :scared: this would be my first choice: http://www.sacval.org/

[underpants]

5. They read astorias there

Waldorf Astoria for those of you keeping score at home.

[flamingyouth]

7. One of my friends sends her daughter to one here.

Her daughter is autistic and has really done quite well there. In fact, it's amazing to see her progress over the past couple of years. That's really the only experience I have with it but I'd be interested to learn more. :hi:

[cally]

8. I know several families who have sent their kids to Waldorf

(There was a Waldorf school a few doors down from my old house.)

I like that the kids are very creative and not pushed too early into academics. The kids learn music, dance, art and have much time for creative pursuits. The kids don't learn to read until 7. That works for some students but would be disastrous for a dislexic child who needs early intervention.

It's true that the kids carry baskets to school, are discouraged from using computers or any electronics. That's good in some respects but it does have somewhat of a cult feel. The neighborhood kids tended to not associate with the Waldorf kids when young because they were so different.

One significant weakness is that the child stays with the same teacher in all years at our Waldorf school. Kids tend to have gaps in their education depending on what their teacher emphasizes. I've seen kids with gaps they need to struggle to overcome when they hit public schools. Again, average kids or kids with learning disabilities have a very difficult time.

I knew two adults who had gone all through Waldorf. They had gone on to great colleges and graduate schools. They plan to send their kids to Waldorf.

I considered Waldorf for my kids. I'm glad I didn't send them although I think some of the emphasis is fantastic.

[tigereye]

9. I looked into it for my son

but picked a more traditional private school because of the reading approach and some of the avoidance of real world culture. I'm not sure I agree with all of their educ/philosophical structures, although it sounds like a great environment for some kids. I have met folks who loved it for their kids.

[grace0418]

10. I don't remember my niece being told to shun computers, in fact

she now dabbles in web design. I did notice that she and her friends didn't have cell phones surgically attached to their heads like other teenagers these days. They used them to check in and make plans, but often commented on how rude cell-phone-aholics are. If that's the kind of technology avoidance Waldorf schools teach, then I'm ALL for it.

Anyway, she's incredibly bright, went on to excel at UC Santa Cruz and is now the head of the set building department at UCSC with plans to run an organic farm. I think she's a really freaking cool chick and feel like her Waldorf school played a big part in giving her the confidence she needed during those dicey teenage years. Like I said, she and I are similar in a lot of ways and I feel like my life today would be very different if I had gone to a school like that instead of being tortured in a soul-sucking suburban hellhole for four years.

[XemaSab]

11. Check PM's

:)