“I am struck by the fact that the more slowly trees grow at first, the sounder they are at the core and I think the same is true of human beings.
We do not wish to see children precocious, making great strides in their early years like sprouts, producing soft and perishable timber, but better if they expand slowly at first, as if contending with difficulties, and so are solidified and perfected.
Such trees continue to expand with nearly equal rapidity to extreme old age.” ~ Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

Why Waldorf?
Waldorf education aims to nourish the whole child through artistic, domestic, and meaningful tasks. Nurturing the Head, Heart and Hands. With technology taking on the form of human contact and interactions, we believe that children are compromising the true nature of their beings leading us into a spiritual, emotional, and psychological crisis for the 21 century.

Education towards freedom, according to Waldorf founder Rudolph Steiner, is the combination of human wisdom and experience with that of nature in the process of growth.

The child’s desire for knowledge comes out of a strong feeling of belonging and being part of the world. The classroom is an extension of the family experience, an intermediate step for the child between home and formal schooling. The feeling of warmth and security is created by the warmth and heart force of the teacher and by using natural materials like wood, silk, cotton, and wool in the classroom. Stimulating the imagination through folktales, fairy tales, puppetry, and storytelling helps the child’s true temperament unfold.

Young children love to help and are fascinated by things grownups do. They love to do supervised chores and can work alongside the adults. I encourage families to bring back the art of homemaking and bring joy and care into domestic activities at home by doing small tasks TOGETHER..

The following links open in new browser windows…
Association of Waldorf Schools of North America (AWSNA)
Wikipedia entry on Waldorf education
Wikipedia entry on Rudolph Steiner
Portland Waldorf School
Cedarwood Waldorf School