Happy to be homeschooling waldorf

[spiritofthings]

Okay, so here's a funny thing... I have been in love with my local Waldorf school for a long long time. So have been torn as to whether to send my oldest son to kindy there next year, or whether I should homeschool, waldorf-style.

Today I go to the Winter Faire at the school and somehow, inexplicably, I'm over the drooling-over-the-waldorf-school-phenomena! Maybe it's because so many things about waldorf schools have been kind of de-mystified... particularly now that there are so many books on waldorf education and so many great bloggers who explain each and every little thing, from how to make window stars to wet-on-wet watercolor painting to multiplication clapping games, you know? I don't know. I tried to imagine sending my kids to school there, year after year and for some reason I could only think of the cost and whether I'd be content, knowing it costs an arm and a leg year in year out. I'm kinda thinking it'd be a more economical thing to try and create some waldorf magic at home. Anyway I'm over the thrill of the waldorf school. Don't know why. It just happened. Don't get me wrong, I still think these schools are enchanting, amazing environments for learning. Always will. Right now though I'm happy (and excited) to be homeschooling waldorf (or enki), ya know?

Anyone sort of got over their love of their local waldorf school too to the point whether they preferred to homeschool?

[waldorfknitmama]

Yippie for homeschooling Waldorf style! I am doing just that, for reasons beyond cost, I WENT to a Waldorf school and it really isn't that big of a deal (the school and all) and ya know what beyond the beautiful walls (and they ARE beautiful!) things happen there that happen at every other school in America. . . bullying, teasing, clics, envy, rich kids, poor kids, happy kids, sad kids, good teachers bad teacher ect. Why not learn the things that interest you and recreate them at home?

We watercolor, play with beeswax, sing, bake bread, do chores, play, do the window stars, and just recently we remodeled our basement into pure Waldorf heaven! I learned to lazure and everything. We are loveing being at home experiencing Waldorf at our own pace w/o all the other distractions that come with a Waldorf school.

Good luck!

[zoebird]

i am vascillating between homeschooling vs sending him to school.

i'm so unschooling-focused, but waldorf inspired, and then i really like the waldorf schools that i've seen. . .it's hard for me to say what i want to do. lol

i guess i have to wait and see. he's only 15 mo.

[zoebird]

i want pictures of your waldorf heaven. we are also considering making a waldorf heaven in our (future) home.

[calynde]

I taught at a Waldorf school for a while (high school) and my son went to a Waldorf kindergarten, but in the end we decided to homeschool Waldorf style and we're a half year into first grade now and soooo glad we decided to do this. Cost was not our issue, but the fact that it's still a school, with all the good and bad that comes with it. I knew plenty of kind and well-trained but seriously burned out teachers when I worked there. It's hard with the standard teacher student ratio. Waldorf lends itself extremely well to the home environment, and you can tailor it to your child and your interests. It's fantastic!

[zoebird]

can i ask how you, specifically, handle social interaction?

i have no problemgoing into mixed-parenting environments, but i think it would be nice to also be around others who are ismilar to us.

are you connected to and do you do festivals and related with a local waldorf or anthroposophical society? do you belong to another ap-like crunchy homeschooling group? do you belong to a "regular" mixed homeschooling group or have connections with the public or other schools?

i'm just curious because my guy is social. he's also very physical and active, so forest school is a good plan for him (even if it is homeschool based).

and i think it would be cool for him to be around others who do the interesting waldorf-y things that we do, in addition to being around those who are different.

so, i'm just curious.

[spiritofthings]

Thanks everyone for your responses.

Naturalmamaof1 , thank you for demystifying things further because at some point, in a large group setting, there surely will always be issues arising that occur at any other public or private school right?

I have heard of bullying in waldorf schools. And I kinda wondered about peer pressure and the like, especially in the older grades from middle school up. I'm just feeling quite settled now to homeschool. Feel at peace! Thank you for your refreshing insight that these schools are, in a way, also like any other school. Calynde had sort of reinforced that with the heavy burden that teachers can take on. Appreciate it.

It's a huge decision for me, you know, to work out whether I'm really gonna homeschool or whether I'm gonna be harboring desires for the local Waldorf school! I'm so glad that y'all have cemented things for me further. Thanks for the encouragement and enthusiasm. I bet your basement Naturalmamaof1 is wonderful. I too have partially converted the basement, but hey why not lazuring the walls?!! Love that.

[calynde]

Originally Posted by zoebird

can i ask how you, specifically, handle social interaction?

This is very much still a work in progress for us...we just don't know how it will all play out! We live where almost nobody homeschools, most have never even heard of it, and the most frequent question I encounter is "that isn't legal, is it?"

My ds only just turned 7 and is by local standards in first grade, so it hasn't been a huge issue for us yet. We have two other unschooling families with similar aged kids in our town, but we mainly see them for birthday parties and other "special" things as everyone is so busy. DS had a friend down the street that he played with often, but he moved away a few weeks ago. We have homeschool project day once a month and most months another homeschool meetup at a museum or something. These things plus tennis class have kept us from feeling isolated, but it's a long way from ideal I'll admit. Things may very well have to change as DS gets older, for now it's ok.

We live near where Waldorf began, and most things that people in the US consider waldorf are actually just central European in origin, so we don't have to look far to find others living like us. It's the homeschooling thing that rather sets us apart. All the holidays and festivals are normal here and we celebrate them with family and friends. The only connection we have to the Waldorf school now is for their little shop when we go to get art supplies and books, and we also go once a year to the Christmas bazaar.

[lauren]

Moving to Learning at Home and Beyond

[cagirlintexas]

Originally Posted by spiritofthings

Okay, so here's a funny thing... I have been in love with my local Waldorf school for a long long time. So have been torn as to whether to send my oldest son to kindy there next year, or whether I should homeschool, waldorf-style.

Today I go to the Winter Faire at the school and somehow, inexplicably, I'm over the drooling-over-the-waldorf-school-phenomena! Maybe it's because so many things about waldorf schools have been kind of de-mystified... particularly now that there are so many books on waldorf education and so many great bloggers who explain each and every little thing, from how to make window stars to wet-on-wet watercolor painting to multiplication clapping games, you know? I don't know. I tried to imagine sending my kids to school there, year after year and for some reason I could only think of the cost and whether I'd be content, knowing it costs an arm and a leg year in year out. I'm kinda thinking it'd be a more economical thing to try and create some waldorf magic at home. Anyway I'm over the thrill of the waldorf school. Don't know why. It just happened. Don't get me wrong, I still think these schools are enchanting, amazing environments for learning. Always will. Right now though I'm happy (and excited) to be homeschooling waldorf (or enki), ya know?

Anyone sort of got over their love of their local waldorf school too to the point whether they preferred to homeschool?

I have been in love with Waldorf school ever since my son was little and couldn't wait till he was old enough to send him. Recently though I am seriously contemplating if Waldorf is the best environment for my son. I am trying to get a better grasp of the discipline procedures used but from what I have currently seen they might be the wrong thing for my son. I am starting to think that homeschooling might be a much better environment for my son.

[counterGOPI]

: great thread!

[Madame Pomfrey]

Thanks everyone. It's just one of those days when I needed some support and here it is! For 10 years we've been homeschooling Waldorf and loving it. We've chosen the parts we like and dropped the parts we didn't. I love the way my boys are growing up and feel great about their spiritual balance. That doesn't mean we're perfect.

On the social front, we've moved often and have been part of groups everywhere we went - from Waldorf homeschool kindergarten groups with lots of structure to our playgroups and homeschool groups that meet each week or month. They take work but are worth it. The boys have lifelong friends from each town they remember and we are currently making more in scouts, sports, and our community through giggles, games, and helping each other.

To me, homeschooling is about choices and one part of the choice is committing to being social secretary to your kids for several years - to ensure that they get out and that they have plenty of chances to make friends, to be in plays, to play games & sports, and sing, etc. Yes, we have had and still have festivals and I;m often the one who organizes them - you just do what you have to.

My kids have experienced bullying at scouts, snobbishness from some other homeschoolers, and classroom settings at church and museum classes. I'm not sure what they've missed out on - if anything - but I like what we've had.

I think the socialization that so many school kids miss out on is the day-in day-out getting-to-spend-every-moment-with-people-who-really-really-love-you part of homeschooling. We don't always get along, like today, but we always know we won't be rejected or ostracized by our family. My boys squabble, but they are also best friends.

Are they social butterflies? No, certainly not my shy eldest, but my second son can literally make friends in a chaotic crowd. He also tends to be aggressive and I'm certain would have been prone to being a bully if put in our local public school (where apparently you either get bullied or you bully). Yet they can talk to adults and other kids and really enjoy their company. So often I sense with schoolkids that a conversation with an adult is a foray into "enemy territory." My eldest is actually more comfortable with adults sometimes, he's just grown into a really serious kid.

Homeschooling Waldorf has allowed each of my boys to grow up comfortable with being himself.

One challenge as your kids get older, it gets harder and harder to find non-sport extracurricular activities outside of school for preteens and teens. It's just a reality if you homeschool in jr high or high school.

Appreciating the chance to sit back and evaluate things for a moment,

Lucie

[dandelionmom]

We also live near a Waldorf school (that also had its WinterFaire on the 6th...maybe the same school!) and we love homeschooling using the Waldorf method. Our oldest daughter attended the school for 3 years before we decided to homeschool her, and our youngest, full-time.

Our oldest has mild aspergers, so being in a classroom setting was extremely difficult for her socially. Homeschooling with Waldorf has been wonderful, and living 10 minutes from a Waldorf school is great because we can attend all of the festivals and events without having to worry.

I find that working on making the home similar to the school really helps...for example creating seasonal tables, getting a chalkboard and drawing the chalkboard drawings like in the classroom, educating myself on how to teach the methods, songs, and lessons, decorating with baskets, wooden items, silks, and natural materials...all of these things help bring the "feel" of a Waldorf school into the home.

I recommend watching some of the Waldorf education DVD's from the Waldorf in the Home conferences. They explain step by step how to teach the drawing, painting, knitting, math, etc...I found this extremely helpful. I also use Live Education curriculum, which I find to be very in line with a traditional Waldorf school.

Are you new to homeschooling? I think you may be in my area...could you PM me because we have a nice-sized homeschooling group out here, so if you are where we are it is helpful to connect with other Waldorf homeschoolers in the area.

Blessings,
Kelly