Articles

by David Nikias
Originally published in Pacifica Journal, #45, Vol. 2, 2014
Download the article: Waldorf Education in India

India is a richly diverse country of deep mysteries, endur­ing cultural traditions, and striking contrasts where the western imagination is easily stirred by the vivid colors, fragrant aromas, and haunting sounds. Twenty-first century India is a rapidly developing country with a increasingly large global footprint and what has been primarily an agrarian society is experiencing significant growing pains with the transition into the digital age. The often romanticized western picture of mystical India and bucolic village life is undergoing rapid changes and the country has seen a tremendous migration of its population to urban areas, significantly straining the limits of the infrastructure and available resources.

Modern India
Our state of Andhra Pradesh and in particular, Hyderabad, is widely acknowl­edged as a major IT hub of the country and continues to experience staggering growth rates averaging 10% a year, ever expanding city limits, and increasingly ambitious con­struction projects at every turn. The steadily growing numbers of mostly unskilled labor­ers migrating from rural districts and the rise of an affluent and educated middle class have led to widespread cultural changes in all levels of society. The dynamic of rapid, unchecked urbanization seen in Hyderabad is shared throughout the country.

When Waldorf teachers say their curriculum is developmentally appropriate they mean it! But Waldorf educators understand child development in a unique way. Child development in the Waldorf plan is very specific. The decisions about the curriculum are based on exactly what is happening in the child’s physical, and emotional development and also in the development of the child’s consciousness.

The interest in the specific developmental steps a child takes during the unfolding of a fully developed human being is linked to a wish to avoid skipping any “building blocks” in the child’s wholesome development. These might not be visible at the moment they are missed, but they could become stumbling blocks at a later phase of development. Likewise, to push a child’s development, to “hurry it up,” might look successful in the moment, but can cause trouble later on. Seemingly capable of wondrous things in a moment, the child might experience anxieties, or physical ailments, or even heart problems or nervous disorders in middle age!

 Waldorf High School Suggested Summer Reading List, Berkshire Waldorf High School

Berkshire Waldorf High School – New Summer Reading List

We have revised and updated our summer reading list to include authors and narratives that more
accurately reflect the realities of the society and world in which we live.

FICTION:
Abdel-Fattah, Randa. Does My Head Look Big in This?
Acevedo, Elizabeth. The Poet X or Clap When You Land.
Achebe, Chinua. Arrow of God or others.
Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi. Half of a Yellow Sun, Americanah, We Should All Be Feminists, or The
Thing Around Your Neck.
Allende, Isabel. The House of the Spirits or Inés of My Soul.
Alvarez, Julia. In the Time of Butterflies, How The Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, or others.
Anderson, Laurie Halse. Speak, Chains, or Twisted.
Angelou, Maya. And Still I Rise or others.
Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice or others.
Baldwin, James. Go Tell It On the Mountain, Another Country, The Fire Next Time or others.
Borges, Jorge Luis. Collected Fictions.
Burns, Olive. Cold Sassy Tree.
Butler, Octavia. Kindred.
Cather, Willa. My Antonia or others.
Cela, Camilo José. The Family of Pascual Duarte.
Chopin, Kate. The Awakening.
Coates, Ta-Nehisi. Black Panther: A Nation Under Our Feet. Cofer, Judith Ortiz. An Island Like You:
Stories of the Barrio. Dimaline, Cherie. The Marrow Thieves.
Donoso, Jose. The Obscene Bird of Night.
Ellison, Ralph. Invisible Man or others.
Erdrich, Louise. The Beet Queen, Four Souls, or The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse.
Gansworth, Eric. Give Me Some Truth or If I Ever Get Out of Here.
Garcia, Christina. Dreaming in Cuban.
Grimes, Nikki. Bronx Masquerade.

This article is a compilation of articles from Gateways, the Journal of the Waldorf Early Childhood Assn. and is available as a reprint from Waldorf Publications.
Download the article: Waldorf Kindergarten

The early years of childhood provide the foundation for a healthy life. Everything is important: the warmth of adults, the tone of voice, the aesthetics of the environment, to name a few aspects. This is the age when seeds are planted for a lifetime of adventure through learning. How this is brought to the child is crucial.
The following two essays by Waldorf educators provide a snapshot to help parents determine if this education is the appropriate one for their family. I say family because the two triangles of parent–child–teacher and home–classroom–professional educator should be in complete alignment.

An extensive, international, free music library of sheet music, lyrics and MP3’s. 
On this website you’ll find more than 1,400 beautiful, fun, appealing songs in every imaginable genre; whether you’re interested in browsing, looking for new sources of inspiration, keen on listening to new arrangements, or eager to explore, this site is full of free songs to download.

A source of inspiration and an indispensable guide for everyone who sings with children and adults.

Please go to Waldorfschoolsongs.org

By George Eastman
Published in Renewal,A Journal for Waldorf Education, Volume 5, #1 (Fall/Winter 1996)This article covers some interesting aspects of how to view Waldorf tuition payments.
Download the article: Waldorf Tuition: Gift or Investment or Something In-between?

Strong gusts of wind  drive sheets of rain against the rhythmi­cally moving wind­
shield wipers as Brenda and I drive from Cambridge to Lexington. We are going to an open meeting at the Lexington Waldorf School to discuss school finances. The meeting is to be chaired by the president of the Board, and in attendance to answer questions will be the school's Finance Committee. Siegfried Finser is a guest and will open the meeting with some thoughts on Waldorf financing Brenda is the full-time director of development at the school, and I am a parent of a third-grade boy and a kindergarten girl. My wife is at home, tending to the important bedtime hour. We take turns going to meetings, and this one seemed more in my domain of interest.