Unsure of my exact destination and uncertain about my upcoming meeting, I felt vulnerable and queasy as the bus lurched around the sharp turns on the descent from Yerushalayim, but I soon arrived at my stop. Alighting, I surveyed my surroundings. I was a few minutes walk from Ramat Motza, a small, pretty neighborhood right outside the entrance of Yerushalayim, directly below Har Nof. I navigated to the address I was given with help from my trusty old Moovit navigation app.
The
green-fenced courtyard of the gan
(preschool) looked welcoming. A wooden playhouse stood in the middle along with
the sandbox and slide typically found in every Israeli gan I
have seen. Chatter and laughter came from all corners
of the courtyard as I stepped through the gate into outdoor playtime. I
explained to the woman who opened the gate that I had come to meet Chen, the
leading gannenet (preschool teacher).
I
found Chen sitting on the slide with some kids and was invited to sit alongside
them. Her friendly, warm smile was reassuring as I broke my teeth chatting in
the limited Hebrew I knew at that time, shortly after my aliyah. Well, that was my meeting, quite informal and much more
pleasant than I had anticipated.
The
next day, I immediately accepted the job I was offered. I had fallen in love
with the sweet three- to six-year-old children in this Waldorf gan. I still did not know what Waldorf
(otherwise known as Steiner) education was, but the warm vibes emanating from
the place and the old-style school building left me excited to work
in its environment.
* * *
It has been five years since
my first job in a Waldorf-style gan:
five years of enrichment and wonder at this form of education, which I had not
been privy to before. What I learned has led me to open a private daycare for
small babies in my
What is Waldorf education people ask? No, it is not
about a salad or the luxurious Waldorf Astoria. In fact, it has a great
emphasis on simplicity and nature. This method of education originated with the
Austrian-born Rudolf Steiner. One of Steiner’s followers in
It is important to note that Steiner, as a social reformer,
architect, and founder of a spiritual-philosophical movement, Anthroposophy, delved
into spiritual matters, and his spiritual beliefs are woven into his
educational ideas. Care must be taken to separate his religious/spiritual
ideas, which are contrary to the Torah, from his educational methodology. Like most
of the other Waldorf schools in Israel, I certainly do not promote the false
spiritual elements that Steiner taught but, rather, the beauty of his
educational model, without any connection or reference to spirituality.
* * *
According to Steiner, children
develop in three stages, each one consisting of about seven years. Age infancy
to six are the primary years, a foundational time to softly awaken the child to
his new entry into the world. As an infant, the senses are developing, and
careful attention must be placed on allowing the infant a natural calm
environment in which to explore and grow.
Preschools
offer multi-age programs for three- to six-year-olds. These years are devoted
to allowing children to be children. Instead of sitting for hours at a desk and
learning the Three Rs, they get many hours of free play, both inside and
outdoors. They immerse themselves in creative play, to stimulate their imagination. In addition, children in the preschool
years learn by example; they have circle time and assist the teachers in the
daily functional activities such as cooking and cleaning.
Once a
child enters elementary school at age seven, he has entered the second stage of
development, which, according to Steiner, lasts until he is 14. In this period,
the child is finishing
the process of losing his baby teeth, which is an
indication of his maturity, independance, stronger memory, and readiness for
learning. According to Steiner’s outlook, teaching a child to read and write at
an earlier stage would cause undue pressure to his as-yet developed mind and
lead to all kinds of learning difficulties, which are in fact rampant in
today’s world. An emphasis is placed on the child’s emotional life and
imagination as he learns through a variety of multi-sensory and engaging
mediums, such as art, storytelling, movement, and musical instruments.
In the final stage of development when a child
begins high school at age 14, he is now sufficiently ready for abstract
thinking for he can use his own judgment. Greater focus is placed on academic
studies, while still pursuing music, art, and physical education.
* * *
According to Steiner’s
holistic perspectives, there are common threads in each of these stages that
weave through the child’s life. A healthy natural lifestyle is encouraged in
every realm. Natural materials, such as wood and fabric, play a large role in
creating a Waldorf-style atmosphere, with plastic generally not used. Walls are
painted in soft pastels, and dim lighting from lamps and candles create a relaxing,
warm environment. Neutral colored rugs and wooden partitions with soft,
non-eye-catching color fabrics placed over them section off parts of the
classroom or daycare room. These partitions have an additional purpose in the
preschools, where they can be arranged
to form little “houses” during free play for a small number of children to play
inside. In an authentic Waldorf building, the architecture is distinct, too. As
opposed to sharp corners of standard building walls, the Waldorf approach is
for the walls to be built in flowing curves or circular shapes to create a
non-rigid, softer environment.
Another
commonality seen in the different stages of development in Steiner education is
an appreciation and respect for nature. Allowing great amounts of time to
explore nature and to work in the garden assist a child to understand and
connect with the world around him. During the time I spent working in a
Waldorf-style gan in Yemin Moshe, I
would go for walks to a grassy area with the children, usually in small groups
of five or six kids. Along the way, the children would sing cheery songs about
nature, the seasons, and wildlife. I always got a kick out of it when they
would teach me the Hebrew names of the flowers, plants, or birds. For them,
this was part of their life. The first time I saw the children run over to some
tall stalks with yellow flowers and start to suck on them, I just about freaked
out, concerned that it may be poisonous. But then I saw the other teacher
sucking on these plants too. She explained that they had a sour taste, and not
a trip would go by without us all plucking a handful and sucking out the stems!
* * *
An important part of Waldorf
education is the family-like atmosphere. This can be attributed to the manner
of the teacher, who speaks to the children with a soft and respectful demeanor,
as well as the consistency the child receives. Typically, a child will stay in
the same daycare setting until age three and then continue to the next level of
preschool until age six. The teachers stay with the same group, learning to
know each child very well and creating a strong bond of familiarity between
themselves and the children. The same teacher also stays with her class during
the elementary years, serving as a role model to her students. In the high
school years, other teachers are brought in to teach more specialized subjects.
I look
forward to sharing more attributes of Waldorf education with the readers of the
