Today my son is working independently -- and I am very pleased! I can fold laundry, pay bills, make phone calls and whatever other household tasks I need to accomplish without feeling like I am interrupting the flow of our schoolwork.
But it wasn't always like this! I think for many of us, starting out with the idea of pursuing a Waldorf-based home education for our children, we can often be led down a path of more dependence rather than less. Why? Because so many of us (and more so with those who were previously involved with Waldorf schools --like myself!) begin this path striving to very closely emulate what goes on in the Waldorf classroom. Waldorf is a rather teacher-intensive approach to education; the teacher does a LOT of prep work in order to bring the subject matter to the students in a lively, imaginative manner.
However, when coupled with the home ed environment, especially with a single child, the student usually has a lot more access to his or her teacher. Over the years, this can turn into an overly dependent situation. In contrast, in a Waldorf classroom, the students typically have a fair amount of time to work independently; the student: teacher ratio simply will not allow for that type of easy and constant access to the teacher.
Seeing this coming, over the last year or two, I began looking for ways to move my child away from me as the constant in his education. So for instance, in 6th grade, I let Noah start with a computer program for Spanish. He has been using Rosetta Stone, a well-known good program.
Noah also wanted to learn to type. Now I am a firm believer in the student being able and comfortable with handwriting, but looking forward, I could see the practicality of him being able to type his papers by the time he gets to high school. (Even his best friend who is at our local Waldorf high school has the option of typing his papers.) So we agreed that he would still continue with handwriting, some copywork and some running forms to keep his hands in that approach as well. (I'm also a firm believer that if kids ARE going to use the computer, they should know how to type -- not just hunt and peck.)
Then since I wanted to be sure that his math was aligned with state standards (again, looking ahead to high school -- whether he ends up public, private or still at home), we went ahead and signed up for the ALEKS program. It is completely self-paced and standards-aligned. Noah can also see his progress on a daily basis and choose what area of mathematics he wants to work on for the day.
Science is an area that is not really my strength and we found another program with which Noah can work independently called Intermediate Science by Experiential Education. It is very complete with all the kits needed for the experiments, a Student Log book where the student questions and learns to write lab reports with a very middle-school appropriate set-up, and a Teacher's Manual. And yes, it comes with a CD-Rom with instructions to lead him through the concepts, activities and experiments.
We still do lots of reading, history, literature, writing and more together. He also reads literature and biographies on his own. Overall, I am very pleased with his progression to becoming a more independent learner as he prepares for high school.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
Our Advent Spiral
W.I.S.H. (Waldorf-inspired Sacramento Homeschoolers) celebrated its 7th Annual Advent Spiral this past Sunday, December 6 at the
Sacramento Yoga Center. Here are a few pictures from our event.
Setting up the spiral. 3-5 Adults and/or 'big kids' are needed. Someone needs to collect the boughs; get some big sheets or painters' drop cloths to cover the floor (for easy clean-up). Carved wooden animals and/or large shells, crystals, etc., add a nice touch. Get some golden stars from your local craft store to put along the path where the children will set the candles. A large stump in the middle is nice for the center candle.
We moved the yoga mats, etc., out of the corner to make it a bit more aesthetically pleasing.
These "after pictures" were taken after all the children and their parents had left. You don't want cameras flashing at such an event!
Below is a close-up of one of the animals that 2 children chose to put their candles near. Someone will need to purchase enough apples and white candles for the event. The 4" 'emergency' candles sold at hardware and drug stores work well. Just carve enough out of the core section to hold the candle tightly.
Here is a beautiful large shell. This child didn't quite get the apple on the star. The stars help to collect any dripping wax. Try to place them near the beautiful shells, crystals and animals so that when the room lights up they can be seen!
Sacramento Yoga Center. Here are a few pictures from our event.
Setting up the spiral. 3-5 Adults and/or 'big kids' are needed. Someone needs to collect the boughs; get some big sheets or painters' drop cloths to cover the floor (for easy clean-up). Carved wooden animals and/or large shells, crystals, etc., add a nice touch. Get some golden stars from your local craft store to put along the path where the children will set the candles. A large stump in the middle is nice for the center candle.
We moved the yoga mats, etc., out of the corner to make it a bit more aesthetically pleasing.
These "after pictures" were taken after all the children and their parents had left. You don't want cameras flashing at such an event!
Below is a close-up of one of the animals that 2 children chose to put their candles near. Someone will need to purchase enough apples and white candles for the event. The 4" 'emergency' candles sold at hardware and drug stores work well. Just carve enough out of the core section to hold the candle tightly.
Here is a beautiful large shell. This child didn't quite get the apple on the star. The stars help to collect any dripping wax. Try to place them near the beautiful shells, crystals and animals so that when the room lights up they can be seen!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Advent coming soon!
My favorite of all the Waldorf-type festivals is Advent! (We call them Waldorf . . . but they are definitely NOT just Waldorf festivals -- mostly European, yes!)
Maybe it is so special to me because I will never forget the way my oldest son placed his candle on the star on the floor and had to actually then touch the star for himself before retracing his steps out of the spiral. . . such a sweet, poignant moment.
Indeed, observing the way our children approach and walk the Spiral can allow us to “see” them in ways we may not typically notice. With the appropriate mood set in the room, it is a sacred time where our inner faculties of observing our children are heightened.
I was told many years ago that the Advent Spiral is symbolic of our path in life, our journey. We go to the center to get the Light and that Light serves us on our path. This is also symbolic of going into the dark time of the year and receiving the light to take us through the dark times (inwardly and outwardly!). Of course, none of this is discussed with the children – we just let it “be” with them and let them receive all of this symbolically or even archetypically, letting it work on the inner recesses of their minds/souls.
If you have a little community, I strongly encourage you to create an Advent Spiral event. And if you are in an isolated area, you can still do this just with your own family. Our first year homeschooling, we made a very small spiral and just our family walked it. It was very special and memorable.
The time of Advent begins 4 Sundays before Christmas Day. So the first Sunday of Advent is typically the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Creating a simple Advent Wreath for your home can help you and your family to stay centered in the spirit of the season. Each Sunday a new candle is lit so that by the time the 4th Sunday comes all 4 candles are burning -- at different heights, typically. You can say this little verse with your children, adding on one verse each week with the additional candle:
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.
Sometimes we don't always light the candles every night . . . but Sundays we are sure to -- adding the next candle. You can also add little stones, plants (or just the greenery) and little animal figures corresponding to the verse for each week.
Here is a bit more background information from Rudolf Steiner:
http://wn.rsarchive.org/Lectures/SignSymbols/19041219p01.html
Thursday, September 03, 2009
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.
We borrowed discuses (disci?) from a nearby school teacher. If you can get at least 2.
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.
"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.
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.)
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.
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).
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 g
et 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.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
"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.
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.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
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.
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.
Saturday, September 06, 2008
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/ | 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 |
Monday, September 01, 2008
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.
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.
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