WISH Pentathlon 2008

Ok, so I am a bit late in getting all this posting done! But I figure there are a number of folks out there who might like to know just HOW a Waldorf-inspired homeschool group CAN do a Pentathlon -- and include EVERYONE -- not just the 5th grade!

First, we set up a training schedule -- 1x per week for about 3 months or so. You have to have at least 1 adult to lead this who has had some training. In our case, I had the training at the "Art of Teaching Grade 5," at Rudolf Steiner College (with Edmund Knighton) during the preceding summer. It helped SO much that the instructor e-mailed a lovely, HUGE packet of info so we would not forget all that we had learned!

The children (and their parents) MUST commit to the training. There are a number of safety issues involved and proper training is paramount.

Younger children who want to participate? This is tricky. In Waldorf schools (and most schools), age segregation is such a "norm," that many do not think outside of that box. In home education, however, everything is 'out of the box'! Some folks come to Waldorf after a long foundation of home education which tends to value family and doing things together over any designated curriculum. We had one family with an older girl (about 12) and a very active and enthusiastic younger brother (about 9). In this case, the family was not supportive of the sister participating without her younger brother who very much wanted to participate. So we agreed that he could do so if he went to all the training, etc. He did great and was really quite capable, even with the more challenging events like the discus!

Another boy about the same age wanted to participate as well. He did not make it to the initial trainings for the discus or the Greek wrestling, and it was impossible to 'catch him up,' so he did not participate in those events.

As we got closer to the date, we recruited 2 parents of younger children and 1 whose daughter had returned to school, to be our judges: the gods! Below is pictured Zeus, to his right, his "wife" Hera, and to his left, Aphrodite. These also arrived to the Games with their cherubs in tow -- dressed for the occasion. In addition, anyone with younger children was invited to have them dress as cherubs, too.










Again, my handouts from Edmund Knighton proved to be invaluable in training the judges! The handouts included all the information on exactly WHAT to look for in the judging of each event. I think I somehow made score sheets for them as well -- I don't exactly remember! Also, a key part of the judging is to award not only the fastest or the one who threw the furthest, but also the athlete who demonstrated the most BEAUTY and GRACE in each event.

Here are the athletes relaxing before the games with plates of grapes and nuts for nourishment.

The athletes listen to Zeus's address before the games begin.

We borrowed discuses (disci?) from a nearby school teacher. If you can get at least 2.

Getting ready to throw. This event takes a lot of practice and you have to break it down into several steps.

Watching it fly. The mom in the background was one of the ones who helped with the training. She and I did most of the measuring, etc., and then reported to the judges. You don't want your judges to have to run around measuring. Just let them watch for the beauty and grace. They will record the numbers as you tell them.

You can have the kids make their own javelins (or buy them but they can be quite expensive). We found very nice dowels at Home Depot. The children carved the points and sanded them down. You can experiment with adding a weight if you'd like, although I think we ended up NOT using the weights. Pieces of copper tubing might work. You can use some felt if they are too loose and maybe a glue gun.

"Draw back & aim."

"Fire when ready!"

The Greek wrestling was definitely the highlight of our Games! We designed an elaborate Tournament schedule, where each person was matched with every other person for Round 1. (It was truly a mathematical feat for me!) But do whatever works for your group.

The circles that you see on the grass we made from flour! It looks like that chalk dust they use on baseball fields, but flour works well, too! We used the flour anywhere we needed lines on the grass.

Always shake your opponent's hand before beginning!

Recruit one or two parents to be the time keepers. I don't remember how long each round was -- maybe 30-60 seconds. For the semi- finals and final rounds, they were longer.

Hardly anyone stepped out of the ring (an automatic loss), so the judges had to really focus on form and beauty to determine who made it to the semi- and final rounds. Lots of girls did!


Location: find a park with lots of green grass. We also looked for one with a big sand pit. In this case, it was a sand volleyball court. This is great for the running long jump. You want them to land in sand! (The sand pit was also a great place for the younger children to play if they got tired of watching the big kids at the different events. I brought some buckets and shovels to keep them busy.)

The mom on the left did the measuring. The dad on the right raked (or swept?) the sand smooth after each jumper.

Little kids! ALL children love to run and jump, so we allowed all of them to participate (even without training! it's something they just DO anyhow, right?) in these 2 events. It helped them to feel included and part of the festivities.

At the end, we had an awards ceremony. You can find lots of interesting things for medals at your local craft supply store.

Oh, the athletes wore white t-shirts and light colored shorts. One family had a great idea of slipping a piece of string or yarn through each sleeve and up through the neck and tying it; it shirred up the sleeves and made it look very "Greek."

Of course, we finished off with a fabulous Greek Feast (potluck!). We continued the day into the afternoon with lots of fun relay races for all of the children, some with water balloons and a fun water balloon fight.

Some pictures of 5th Grade India Block

For many years, we attended Ananda Church of Self-Realization, based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda, so this block was very, very special to me and I drew much of my inspiration for it from all that I had learned at Ananda. Our family still feels a very deep and meaningful connection to Ananda -- sort of a second home to us -- but we are attending a unity church closer to home with a very good program from middle and high school-aged children right now.

I mixed this block with a fair amount from Live Education as well; they truly seem to capture the essence of Ancient India with their lesson plans.

"Hymn to Brahma" -- often chanted at the beginning of a Kirtan ('singing to God') with beautiful music.




"O God Beautiful" -- one of our favorite chants and so easy to relate to!











A story from the life of Krishna.





The Yuga Cycle. This is covered in Live Ed in usual manner that it is taught. However, I chose to use the interpretation of Swami Sri Yukteswar as the basis of our understanding of the Yuga Cycle. My son LOVED this lesson and was fascinated by it.


We also wrote the Gayatri Mantra in Sanskrit; it is hard to see, but if you click on it, you'll get a much better look (as with all the other photos).

WISH Camping Trip -- June 2009: Mount Tamalpais

This year, we chose a campsite fairly close to Sacramento: Mount Tamalpais. It was nice because it was close to the beach. One day, we took the 'big kids' on a fairly long hike. We didn't make it to the waterfall that meets the ocean, but we did get to the lake. Just as it began to rain, one at a time they got ready to swim. Luckily, it only rained for a few minutes! But what a great experience.










At dinner time, we had potlucks preceded by a circle and food blessing.









One of my favorite things about homeschooling is seeing the older and younger children play together -- they learn SO much by being able to mix with different ages.

"Non"-Waldorf Resource: IEW

For the past year or so, we have been using I.E.W.'s (Institute for Excellence in Writing) program to support our home education endeavors.

IEW's program is great for "Waldorfers" or others who want to use their own source material. In fact, IEW strongly suggests you use your own material. It is a writing program that is based on imitation -- sounds a bit like Waldorf, right?

So for instance, we studied Roman times last year (6th grade). I read to my son from Kovacs' book. Then, I would go to www.mainlesson.com and find something along the lines of what we were reading about -- this was the "source" text that my son would use for the writing via IEW's methods. IEW recommends that the source piece be slightly below your child's reading level.

The program begins by teaching how to do a 'key word outline.' From there, different stylistic techniques are introduced, such as using -ly words and strong verbs.

From the IEW perspective, this program can be started as early as 2nd grade and used all the way up to high school. However, from a Waldorf, developmental, Moore or just customized homeschooling perspective, I would have to say it just depends on your particular child. We did not begin this until 6th grade. Some may be ready at 4th or 5th grade, but I wouldn't really think before 3rd grade.

This year, we moved on to Medieval Times and I did purchase the Medieval Book from IEW. The themed books are very nice saving you the time of finding a source text. All of the IEW stylistic techniques are integrated into the program.

For more info, go to http://www.excellenceinwriting.com/. At first, the range of products may be a bit overwhelming. However, it is recommended that you start with the Teaching Writing: Structure and Style. This is designed for the teacher to view/learn. They have a student program as well, but I did not purchase it as I knew I wanted to use my own source text from our Waldorf-themed studies. They do, however, have a number of theme-based books (such as the Medieval one) that dovetail nicely with Waldorf curriculum themes.

Update/Dealing with Challenging Times

Overall, 6th grade is going well. I am finding that the format we are using this year is supporting us well, especially since it has been a challenging year for us. Like so many others across the country, we have had our share of financial difficulties and stressors! Happy to say, however, that we seem to be over the bulk of those challenges although there is more work to do.

For others out there going through stressful times, I encourage you to find ways to simplify your schedule, your life, your home education. Do NOT give up! Our children learn SO much from us by watching us go through challenging times and seeing how we cope with it. These are the REAL lessons that will stick with them through their entire lives.

Waldorf ideas have definitely been a blessing to us. However, with the more intense academics of Grade 6, moving toward a more Charlotte Mason-style of scheduling has eased the burden tremendously. Also, using supportive materials like the writing program from IEW has lightened the load. We also ended up dropping Making Math Meaningful (the Waldorf Middle School math curriculum) and switched to Math-U-See, just about completing the Epsilon book. This was a lot of review for my son, but also a firm "grounding" in some basics. Having just switched back to MMM, we will most likely complete the year using both programs, moving to Zeta of MUS as a support when more direct instruction is needed. Again, easing the workload for mom has been key! MUS has a wonderful instructor via DVD which has been a tremendous help.

Sixth Grade Plan – So Far – Change is Inevitable!

Below is my plan for Sixth Grade -- mostly Waldorf-inspired, but also informed by Charlotte Mason and Classical Education (via Climbing Parnassus and The Latin-Centered Curriculum).

I have a modified/alternate plan for those weeks when we will go more in-depth in our Science curriculum (a la Waldorf). During those weeks (3-week blocks), the Composition lessons will mostly be replaced with a longer Science Main Lesson (other items will shift so Science all comes at the same time). For the ongoing schedule (as shown below), the Science text I plan to use is one recently recommended by Catherine Levison when I heard her speak at the HSC Conference: The Sciences, by Edward Holden. I have also ordered Physics is Fun! from Rudolf Steiner College bookstore.

This year, I plan to keep the history narrative running throughout the entire semester (more of a CM approach). It is so rich and full that I find it hard to limit it to the block rotation. We are beginning with Charles Kovacs' Ancient Rome for the first semester. By the second semester, we will most likely move into Medieval History.

For Composition, we are using IEW's
Teaching Writing with Style and Structure. This approach is very similar to Waldorf and makes it simple to use your own content material from History, Literature or Science, so I am anticipating a well-integrated writing program, immersed in our rich content.

We are also using IEW's spelling program and poetry memorization program. I heard Mr. Pudewa (from IEW) speak last summer and was inspired!

For Latin, we are using Lively Latin! This is a great program -- integrating language, grammar and history. We are taking it slow, just a few minutes a day. I think the grammar portion is so strong that I am not using any separate program for grammar. I am anticipating a much deeper relationship with language, overall, increasing vocabulary and knowledge of roots, word history, etc. Also, the author mixes in lots of Roman History, re-enforcing our studies.

For Math, I have ordered Making Math Meaningful from Rudolf Steiner College bookstore. It seems to be an integrated, comprehensive program that will help bring together all that we have been studying the last few years, while laying the foundation for pre-/Algebra.

My husband and I are students of A Course in Miracles. While I don't really think a direct study of this material is appropriate for a child of this age, I DO think there are many, many excerpts from ACIM that are appropriate. I have copied and pasted numerous such excerpts (from an online version) into a Word document and have made a booklet from which my son can do his Copywork 2 x per week. This is a short, practice period for handwriting advocated by CM. Catherine Levison suggested just 5 minutes a day will do it!

An interesting side note is that Andrew Pudewa (of IEW) made a point about handwriting, spelling and composition all coming from three separate places in the brain. Until the child is able to do the handwriting and the spelling with fluidity, it is helpful to keep them as separate "lessons," and not worrying about the spelling or handwriting when they are working on the composition. Sure, in the final draft, I think asking for their "neatest" writing is appropriate, and by then all spelling errors should have been corrected.

Spanish is via Rosetta Stone (once I get the program working again). Picture Study will be very short (a la CM). Geometric drawing will be in the Waldorf vein.

Not shown is cello practice (afternoons) and lessons (2x per week), "Fall" ball (baseball), 4-H activities and watercolor painting (1x per week) time yet to be determined with instructor.

Time	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
9:00	Copywork	Mental Math	Chores	Copywork	Mental Math
9:05	History (& narrate)	History (& narrate)	Geometric Drawing	History (& narrate)	History (& narrate)
9:30	Latin	Latin	Picture Study	Latin	Latin
9:45	Poetry	Poetry		Poetry	Poetry
10:00	Math	Math		Math	Math
10:15	Break/ Snack	Break/Snack		Break/Snack	Break/Snack
10:30	Composition	Composition	Nature Walk/ Notebook	Composition	Composition
11:00	Literature	Literature		Literature	Literature
11:20	Handwork	Spelling		Handwork	Spelling
11:35	Science	Spanish		Science	Spanish
12:00	Lunch	Lunch	Park with WISH	Lunch	Lunch
12:30	Chores	Chores		Chores	Chores
1:00	Free time	Free time		Free time	Free time

Waldorf and Charlotte Mason -- Alike or Different?

Typically, I consider myself a "Waldorf-Inspired" home educator. However, I have spent a fair amount of time researching other methods. When one comes to the idea of Waldorf home schooling, it is not long before the reality that Waldorf was designed for a classroom setting hits home -- no pun intended! There are a number of things in the Waldorf approach that just don't "fly" when you are working one-on-one (or on-two or -three, etc.!).

Early on, I read about Charlotte Mason (CM) and her approach to education. She was a late 19th Century educator who lived in England and designed an approach to education specific to the home environment. I even checked out several volumes of her Home Education series from the library. In so many ways, her approach to children is similar to Rudolph Steiner's. The clearest difference, from the outset, however, is CM's use of short lessons vs. Steiner's idea of the "main lesson," (ML) which in a "regular" classroom, lasts one to two hours, depending on the ages of the children.

Yet, on closer observation, the ML reveals some interesting similarities to CM's short lesson approach. The ML actually involves several components, that when looked at individually are in actuality -- "shorter" lessons! First there is the opening verse (less than 5 minutes for sure!); there is singing (maybe 10 minutes?); there may be flute playing (another 5-15 mins.); there is movement (15-30 minutes or so); there may be mental math (about 5 mins.), etc. Then there is the "work" -- artistic, or written, or project-based -- this can be 20-60 minutes long, depending again on the age of the children. The story portion of the lesson, often near the end of ML, and then the "meat" for the work the next day, will be perhaps 10-20 minutes.

Now, in a ML, these are all woven together beautifully, with a unifying theme --typically the story genre or history period that is being studied, or it may be a science block.

As home educators, this may or may not work for you and your children. I had read of the CM approach back when my son was in kindergarten. However, I didn't really try it in earnest until he was in third grade. MLs were beginning to feel very much 'dragged out' and by the time we were done, there wasn't much energy left for any shorter lessons. Switching to more of a CM lesson length made a tremendous difference! My son was much more alert and enthusiastic about his lessons. He knew how long each would be and he was ready to move on to the next lesson. I have found that this approach can be successfully interwoven with Waldorf themes and ideas. To varying degrees, you may or may not be able to keep the lessons tied to the unifying "block" theme. And of course, some things are not necessarily going to tie to that theme, such as mental math or tongue twisters.

One mustn't be fooled by the idea of short lessons, however. The intent is to have 100% focus -- without any "dawdling," as CM called it. Also, as the children get older, the length of the lessons do increase. So subjects that may have started out to be 5-10 minutes long will grow to be 20-30 minutes long as the children get older. By high school, the students may work as long as 45-60 minutes per subject.

CM also advocated for lots of time out-of-doors; she understood the healing, nurturing and educational benefits of simply immersing ourselves and our children in nature. Waldorf, too, cherishes this aspect of education, even bringing bits of nature in to the home or classroom, often with a Nature Table.

CM also valued handwork and "handi-crafts," suggesting that the afternoons be reserved for this type of more leisurely activity, while the mornings were used for the more mentally active pursuits of reading, writing and arithmetic.

One difference to the CM approach was her 1x per week lesson called "picture study." This was when the children were exposed to a print of an artist's work -- say Rembrandt or Van Gogh. The children were given a few minutes to look at the print, and then it was put away. They were then asked to narrate what they had seen. This was an exercise in the power of observation. CM thought it important that we train children to focus their attention. At the same time, the children "learned" about famous artists -- not because the teacher instructed them as such -- but more because they were simply exposed to the artist (sticking with the same artist for a month or so). The teacher did not lecture or giver her interpretation, etc.

On the other hand, this type of exposure to famous artists is not found in Waldorf schools, until high school. However, CM's gentle, simple approach can be a nice addition to your home education efforts should you feel so inclined. Listening to Catherine Levison and her experience with this approach has inspired me to try taking it up this year with my almost-12-year-old son.

"Narration" is another aspect of the CM approach that is similar to Waldorf. In Waldorf classrooms, the children "drink" in the story, sleep on it, and then re-tell it the next day. The "sleeping" on it is seen as an important aspect of the approach. In the CM approach, the children listen to the story or other material (from a "living" or "whole" book), and then narrate back what they have heard, typically right after the listening period. They are not urged or questioned or coached in this re-telling. They tell what they know or remember. In the beginning, they may not be able to narrate much of it back. But over time, and as they learn to pay attention, more will come.

Both approaches lead the child gently into the realm of written composition/narration, by first exercising his powers of oral narration. Learning to put the pieces of the story in place, in sequence, and pulling out the highlights are all integral aspects of learning to write well.

I have tried both of these approaches to "re-telling" with my son. I'm sure there are lots of folks in the Waldorf camp who will give many good reasons for the "sleeping" on it approach. I suggest you try both ways -- not flip flopping day to day of course! But perhaps a few weeks one way, and then a few weeks the other.

Intuitively, I think the sleeping on it approach is better for young children. They are really drinking those stories in to their soul lives deeply and I sense that working with them during sleep time is a significant part of the process. But now my son is approaching age 12, and we have moved from the Ancient Mythology of Greece to actual Ancient Greek History, and will begin Ancient Rome this week. We are clearly moving out of the realm of dreami-ness into the solidity of actual history, events and people. There is a feeling of "awakeness." So I have taken to more of a CM approach with narration. I am learning to 'bite my lip' and not urge him on or give him little hints. I find that when I am simply silent-- and patient, he eventually says more and more.

There is a lot of food for thought in both of these approaches. I suggest reading up on both CM and Steiner's reasons for their approaches, experimenting a bit, and noticing the effects on your children. CM focuses quite a bit on the child's ability to "pay attention." She says that when we repeat information over and over again, the child learns not to pay attention as well, knowing that the information will be given again (much of mainstream education works in this way). They learn to be lazy. In fact, I have found at least one Waldorf ancient mythology/history author DOES often repeat what he's have said at the beginning of each new chapter -- much in the way a class teacher would remind the children of what they have just learned the day before. I don't claim to know the answer to this seeming controversy! I think there is merit on both sides and will continue to explore these two modes of narration.

For more information on the CM approach, take a look at: www.amblesideonline.org, www.pennygardner.com/ and http://charlottemasoneducation.com/.

There are many, many resources on Waldorf Education, and many folks who design and sell "Waldorf" curriculum for home educators. Many of these can be quite helpful. But I suggest reading from the Foundations of Waldorf Education series, translated from Steiner's many lectures; ingest his thoughts and ideas, and use your inner guidance in applying his ideas to your home education environment.

Latin? Greek? In a Steiner Approach?

A couple of months ago, I was having a conversation with a good friend of mine about our favorite topic -- what else? Home education! We hadn't spoken in a while and she shared with me how she was mixing in some Classical Education with her Waldorf flavored approach. Of course I had heard of CE, but had basically put it down as too heavily academic and an out-of-balance approach. However, after talking a bit, I was intrigued. So naturally, I picked up one of the best known recent authors on the subject -- Susan Wise Bauer's The Well-Trained Mind.

I knew there was something to the of specific types of learning being well-suited to specific stages of development -- an idea not unlike what is found in Waldorf education. However, I had a hunch that Susan's age/stages were off. So I began to dig deeper -- to other authors of CE. I now understand that Susan and several others actually practice and preach what is known as "neo-classical" education. (And yes, I found that not all authors agree with Susan's age breakdown. It seems that her age breakdown simply "fits" into a 12-year traditional education which nicely divides into three four-year rotations of history -- her chosen centerpiece to this educational approach.)

My research led to Tracy Lee Simmons’ Climbing Parnassus. By tracing the history and roots of original CE, what you find in Mr. Simmons’ book is that he actually traces the history of education in general. CE WAS the only choice in education for eons; although it did not necessarily have the title.

Many people seem to think that "modern" educational ideas and innovations came around the mid-20th century. However, it really began around the mid- to late 1800s. Before that, if you were a student, you received CE. Also, Mr. Simmons helps to define exactly what CE is. While SWB places history as the centerpiece of CE, Mr. Simmons traces the roots of CE to the study of just that: the classics, meaning the Classical authors in their original languages of Greek and Latin. He connects the study of the ancient texts, in their original languages, as a key link to all of Western civilization as we know it. Over and over, he indicates that this connection to tradition, to our roots, is inseparable from our understanding of ourselves. So much of what I read echoed the ideas conveyed in much of the Waldorf literature.

In fact, Simmons' many references to Truth, Beauty & Goodness, led me right back to Steiner, where I found a number of references in his lectures to Latin and Greek. He refers to them in such a matter-of-fact manner that one gets the impression that these subjects were a "given" in the education. Also, on the Waldorf Curriculum wall chart, copyrighted 1991 by David Mitchell, under languages, you will find Latin and Greek, starting with fifth grade and up through high school.

However, an online search for a Waldorf school in the states that offers Latin & Greek, turned up only one school, but they do have since dropped these subjects other that the little bit that is mixed into the Main Lesson.

For nearly 20 years, the subject of Waldorf education has been near and dear to my heart. And I am fortunate enough to live near Rudolf Steiner College in Fair Oaks where I have attended a number of lectures and programs. There are also a number of Waldorf schools in our area and my older son attended two of them. Yet not once have I heard the study of the classical languages mentioned. Yes, the tales of the classics are talked about, as well as the history, but not the languages themselves, nor the study of the original texts in the original language.

The importance of studying a text in its original language recently hit home when I viewed a movie set in Germany near the end of WWII. A German woman ends up with both German and American soldiers in her home on Christmas Eve. An American soldier notices a copy of Huckleberry Finn in her son's possession; his mother is a teacher and has taught him English. As the soldier questions the boy about his studies, I recognized just how difficult it would be to convey the nuances of a story like Huckleberry Finn in a foreign language. Only the original text, in the original language, could offer the reader all that this book has to offer. Similarly, the ancient texts, like any text, lose something in translation.

So how does this relate to Steiner and his educational approach? In Steiner's time, I do not know that CE was referred to as CE. I think that some institutions had become stale or rigid in their approach to education (what we would call CE). As a response to the seeming lackluster approach of traditional education, innovators brought in new ideas and methods, much of it influenced by the Industrial Revolution and the need to turn out "workers" rather than "scholars," especially once education was seen as something for the masses, rather than just for those who could afford it.

Steiner clearly recognized the varying needed outcomes of education. He knew that even though not all children were destined for the university, there was no need to sacrifice a balanced full, education for that of a vocational education. He held in high esteem the beauty and truth of what might be considered "classical education" (with the intent to "improve" the man, the character), along with the "practical" aspects the innovators were striving to find a form for. Both of these aspects are found in the attention paid to literature and the arts along with the practical arts of handwork, woodwork, and the basic knowledge of how mechanical devices are made, etc.

It is clear that Steiner accepted Latin and Greek as a core piece of the education. However, it seems all but dropped from modern day Waldorf schools. Climbing Parnassus gives overwhelming reasons as to why this is a critical piece of education. I believe that Steiner agreed with this and that is why he saw no need to remove it from his approach. Furthermore, Simmons makes many references as to the original intent of CE: to make a better person, to improve the person, citing the ideas of Truth and Beauty as critical pieces to the development of the Good. This, of course, sounds so much like what we hear in Waldorf circles. Another point to keep in mind is that Steiner often used the phrase "a renewal of education," indicating not a new-fangled approach, but rather a connection to the original intent of education. This intent had become lost in both the stale, rigidness of CE gone dry, and the well-intentioned methods of the "new" educational approaches and the emphasis on vocational education.

At one point, Steiner mentions that it would be perhaps better if Greek could be introduced before Latin. Since we are going to be studying ancient Greece this year, I am starting my son now on Greek. He practices 2x per week in a book called A Greek Hupogrammon, by Harvey Bluedorn, a modern CE author. This is basically a copybook for writing the letters in and it provides exercises in recognizing the letters in context (using original Greek bible passages). We also have Mr. Bluedorn's companion book A Greek Alphabetarion, although we have not used it that much yet. With this approach, the student becomes well-grounded in the Greek alphabet before moving on to other aspects of the language. Next year, we will continue with Greek and also bring in Latin, in conjunction with the study of Rome in the 6th grade.

I am interested in hearing about others' experiences of working the Classical languages into their Waldorf-inspired home education!
Copyright 2008 by Sandra M. Russi. Reprint, or re-use, only with written permission of author.

Fifth Grade Curriculum / Resources

We are using a variety of materials for our home education. I have always been quite dedicated to the Waldorf approach, but also appreciate other methods as well. For instance, Charlotte Mason's approach was designed specifically for home education, and I have found much of her approach not only blends well with Waldorf but also works well for us. I am also doing much in-depth research on Classical Education. Interestingly, this has sent me straight to Steiner for more in-depth research! Studying the history of CE (as opposed to simply neo-CE) has helped me to understand the entire history of education and how (and perhaps why) the various methods came about.

• Cradle Tales of Hinduism, Nivedita -- for much of our India block -- especially the stories of Krishna
  
• Notes from attending Rudolf Steiner College weeklong course: "The Art of Teaching Grade 5"
• Ancient Mythlogies, Charles Kovacs
• Recorder by Peter Gelling -- for use with our C-flutes; this is a very nice music book as it gives lots of music theory. It also has a number of nice duets -- great for home schoolers! But if you are using a C-flute, be sure to use the fingering chart that comes with the C-flute (diatonic).
• "Botany" by Donna Simmons
  
• Key to Decimals
• Key to Fractions (began in 4th grade; completed during 1st sem. of 5th grade)
• Live Education!
• The Children's Material -- A Complete "Miracles" Course for Children, Bette Jean Cundiff; we use this as our "spiritual works" material, a la Charlotte Mason, reading it typically at the breakfast or dinner table.
  
• The "Write" Approach Book 1 -- Form Drawing for Better Handwriting by Joen Gladich and Paula A. Sassi; we are revisiting this book to help improve fluidity of handwriting; we originally used it in Grade 3 for many weeks before introducing the Vimala alphabet
• A Greek Alphabetarion and A Greek Hupogrammon both by Harvey Bluedorn. Yes we are learning the Greek alphabet and basic Ancient Greek! I know you will not find this subject on many Waldorf curriculum lists. However, my research of CE drove me deeper into Steiner and I found that at the first Waldorf school(s), Greek and Latin were indeed taught! Through my study of CE, I have found many, many good reasons to teach these languages. My plan is to begin Greek this year, since we will be encountering Ancient Greek mythology soon and Latin next year. And by the way, the old Waldorf curriculum wall chart does indicate Greek and Latin. Does anyone know of any Waldorf schools teaching these? I think I only found one in the states. If so, please let me know!
  

The above are mostly our Waldorf-inspired curriculum choices. The following are our literature selections -- I suppose they can be called "Charlotte Mason" selections or simply "free reading." These I read to my son.

Heidi
A Christmas Carol (well we didn't actually finish it and it is rather challenging, but we will read it again next year and hopefully see the play)
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

On his own this year, he has read Harry Potter books 1-3 (saving the others until he is a bit older) and is currently reading Farmer Boy.

Other selections from our loosely CM piece of home education:
The Story Book of Science, Jean Henri Fabre (I read; he narrates back)
By Pond and River, A. Buckley (my son reads this aloud and narrates it back)
Home Geography for Primary Grades, by C.C. Long; I originally found this at Project Gutenburg, but click here to see & download a PDF including original illustrations and cover. My son has enjoyed this book very much and it would make a lot of sense to use it in fourth grade as well. I think you will find the opening section written "To the Teacher," to ring of Waldorf ideas and approaches to this subject. (I read; he narrates)

Geometry and Integrating Subjects

We are thoroughly enjoying our first geometry block! We are using LE Geometry and finding it an inspiring, intriguing approach. Today, we did an interesting activity drawing first two parallel lines. As soon as I find the camera, I will post a picture.

Using Rudolf Steiner's idea of economy in teaching, we are pulling spelling words from the Geometry lessons. Here is a partial list of words from the last week or two:

geometry
triangle
Euclid
scalene
right
angle
isosceles
equal
equilateral
obtuse
parallel

We now have shorter Main Lessons, integrating a bit Charlotte Mason style. So instead of belaboring whether and what and how much writing to do each day, I simply set the timer for 15-20 minutes and "copywork" (or dictation) may or may not be related to Main Lesson, especially since we are currently in a math block. So for instance, my son has written a couple of passages that are related to this block (one on Euclid and one on the 3-4-5 triangle). On other days, to keep the writing practice going, I will pull a particularly beautiful passage from one of the books we have recently read, or maybe from a poem.

The more I read directly from Steiner, the more I am encouraged. When he spoke of "economy" of teaching, I do not think he meant for this to be as labor intensive as we often make it!

I am finding some of what "Steiner said" to be startling!! -- in a good way. In future posts, I will share some of my discoveries. In the meantime, I highly recommend Practical Advice to Teachers, and The Kingdom of Childhood.

Our Advent Spiral

Our home education group, W.I.S.H. (Waldorf-Inspired Sacramento Homeschoolers) celebrated our 5th annual Advent Spiral Sunday, December 9. We held the event at the Sacramento Yoga Center where I am a part-time instructor. The room was spacious and nearly square, creating an ideal setting for our gathering.

This year, we decided that the older children could help be the "keepers of the magic" and so they participated in setting the room. To protect the floor, we first laid down large canvas painters' drop cloths, and covered them with white sheets. We then found the center and marked it with a stool. We built the spiral from the outside with freshly cut evergreens. After laying a basic spiral path, we added more greens. Then we placed beautiful, large shells, crystals and stones along the path near the greenery. Finally, cut-out golden stars (made of thick cardstock; check your local craft store) were strategically placed along the spiral where the children would later set their candles.

After cleaning up the left over greens, we placed chairs around the perimeter along with folded yoga blankets for the children to sit upon the floor. The room was completely dark except for the one large candle at the center of the circle on the low stool. All entered the room quietly while my son played a gentle advent song on the pentatonic harp. (He's a big 5th grader now!) After all were seated, we sang a simple song that our family learned from Ananda years ago: "Give me a Light to light my way; Truth is a Light so wise men say." This helped to further set the hushed mood. Then I read a simple Advent story.

Our Angel, the oldest girl in our group -- now almost 13! -- was the first to walk the spiral. As each child walked, we sang another simple song: "Johnny is walking to get his little light. All the stars are watching him by day and by night. (lights candle) Now he has his little light and his face is shining bright. Carefully he's walking home to keep it by his side." This year we were quite spontaneous and rather than letting all the children walk first, some of the adults walked in between the times of the children. Rather than singing, my son resumed playing the harp for the adults. This created a nice balance between voice and instrument to accompany the walking.

Afterwards, we sang the "Give me a Light" song for a few more rounds before everyone quietly left the beautifully lit up room. After all had exited, our Angel brought the apple-candles out so that everyone could take one home.

One of our moms graciously prepared the apple candle-holders. This is a simple project. All you need are some beautiful red apples and short candles. The white 4" emergency candles work well. Just cut into the core/stem section of the apple enough to insert the base of the candle. Each child holds his apple/candle and walks the spiral to the center Light. After lighting his candle, he walks back out of the spiral, bringing his light and finding his star on which he places his apple/candle. Slowly the entire room lights up!

We have also done this event outdoors and I have found that it works beautifully out-of-doors as well. In some ways it is easier to do this outdoors because there you have an advent garden growing (in a spiral shape, perhaps some herbs). You can always add more greens. The nice thing is you do not have to worry about cleaning up everything right afterwards. You can simply leave the greens in place and everyone can quietly leave the beautiful scene. Of course, someone needs to stay behind to release the candles!

Blessings on this last week of Advent! You can also keep a simple Advent Wreath in your home the four weeks before Christmas. The first week, light just one candle; the second week, two and so on. Here is a little verse that you can say to accompany the lighting of the candles. Starting with the first week, display your precious crystals, shells; the second week, small plants or flowers; the third week, carved animal shapes, etc.

The first light of Advent is the light of stones.
Stones that live in crystals, seashells, and bones.

The second light of Advent is the light of plants;
Plants that reach up to the sun and in the breezes dance.

The third light of Advent is the light of beasts;
Swimming, flying, leaping, running . . . the greatest to the least.

The fourth light of Advent is the light of Man;
The light of hope that we may learn to love and understand.

Blessings on your Advent season. Enjoy this special time!

"Spiritual Works"

It's been about a month now and things are going well. I have *tweaked* our schedule several times and think we have working pretty well. Noah is enjoying the short lessons, especially when it comes to some of the things he has had resistance to, such as writing. He is also enjoying all the extra reading that he gets to hear.

Charlotte Mason was a Christian woman who believed in training the child in spiritual and moral values (not unlike Rudolf Steiner!). In her school schedule, reading from the Bible was pretty much a daily occurrence. Now, I do not have anything against the bible. I just think that my son may get more out of it when he is a little older. Besides, as this is third grade, the Old Testament stories are already a part of the curriculum and he is getting plenty of nourishment from them.

However, I still liked the idea of having a reading period dedicated to "Spiritual Works," but it had to be something that the child can relate to. So I searched my bookshelves. In our spiritual life, we value the teachings of masters from both the East and the West, and most especially, the teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda who sought to show the unity of all religions. So, I found a book on my shelf called The Flawless Mirror, by Kamala, one of PY's early disciples. It is written in a beautiful, easy-to-read narrative style, telling of many of PY's lectures, travels, and correspondence with Kamala in the 20s and 30s. What's more, she mentions many places that my son has been to such as Santa Barbara and Pismo Beach, which makes it all the more relative to him. There are passages, I know, that go "above" him, about some of the loftier spiritual goals. However, as I was reading recently of R. Steiner, that it is good for them to not "get" everything we bring -- that it will still go in -- and then later in life it will be there when needed, or called into consciousness. Noah enjoys these stories of Swami. I think next we may read the book about his childhood.