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Waldorf Homeschool Kindergarten Year One

This year we are have embarked on our first year of kindergarten!!!! Because we are using a Waldorf inspired approach, we will do two years of kindergarten. Typically Waldorf kindergarten year one is the year the child is five for most of the year and kindergarten year two is the year when they are six most of the year. Then they begin first grade I their seventh year. This year my daughter is four and will be turning five this month. So if she were in public school she’d be considered pre-k, and starting kindergarten next year. However, for some children, kindergarten year one would be during the traditional year for kindergarten while kindergarten year two would be during the year they would be doing first grade in a traditional school. 


Another big difference between Waldorf kindergarten and traditional kindergarten is that Waldorf does not introduce “academics” suhc as writing and reading (I could easily write a whole post about what this means) until first grade. And actually because of academic push down, public kindergarten today is really closer to what first grade used to be. When I went to kindergarten in the 80s (because I’m that old) kindergarten was a half day program that was mainly play and some basic "abcs" and "one-two-threes." In some ways that is actually  what Waldorf first grade is, although it overlaps with traditional first grade (an beyond on some content areas) as well.


Even though I have always been  sold on play based learning in the early years, at first, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to really follow a strictly Waldorf method for kindergarten. I have been blending Waldorf and Charlotte Mason (with a little of this and that) for a while with my older kids and originally planned on doing something  similar with my younger ones. However, since I "discovered" Waldorf about five years ago, I have learned so much about the methodology and philosophy behind it, and the more I truly learn, the more it resonates with me. This year, my youngest child was born in early November. So while we did some homeschooling at the beginning of the school year, we mostly focused on getting  ready for the birth and baby and  the last few weeks of the pregnancy I was just exhausted all the time and wasn’t doing much of anything extra. 


Now that the new baby is here and the first six weeks have passed, we’re gradually finding our rhythm again. In addition, her  arrival has  really reignited my passion for studying and caused me to refocus on my “why” not only for homeschooling but for the particular way I have chosen to educate my children. As a part of this, while resting up and recovering as well as getting into a good feeding schedule, I have cracked open many of the beautiful books I got when first discovered Waldorf homeschooling, many of which I ended up shelving as “resources” that I never really made time to utilize thoroughly. As I spend time poring over these books, I have found myself falling in love all over again with the simplicity and beauty of Waldorf homeschooling.

Books that I am Using to as a Guide for Waldorf Kindergarten this Year

One thing I want to point out is when it comes to creating a great Waldorf homeschool, is the importance of finding good sources and actually doing the reading. Its easy to see all the cute crafts and cozy decorations and kind of jump in with both feet without finding out the "why." There is nothing wring with this, and for a long time I was more in the place of wanting to sort add in that "Waldorf flavor" along with a lot of other approaches, (and I may be there again at some point, as I am a huge believer in taking what works for you and leaving the rest). That said, if you are hoping to implement Waldorf to any degree, the deeper understanding is so important as it can make all the difference as you choose what you do want to include and what you don't. For this reason, I highly recommend getting a good source book as soon as (or even before) you even get started. My favorite one so far has been Heaven on Earth by Sharifa Oppenheimer. A book like this will help guide you not only in homeschooling, but in creating a family culture and way of doing things that will be your framework for home education for years to come.


I’ve also found some great YouTube videos (like this one) from educators who are not only only Waldorf educators, but Waldorf Homeschoolers. I think this has been a key part of the renewal of my conviction about Waldorf homeschooling.  The truth is I’ve struggled with a perfection mindset over the last few years that has made me feel intimidated by the thought of fully making a truly Waldorf homeschool experience happen-  in some ways I was even more intimidated after I attended some Waldorf trainings.  However, hearing from others who do this at home rather than in a professional setting has helped me feel that having a beautiful Waldorf kindergarten year at home with my child is something I truly can accomplish. If you are a Waldorf or Waldorf inspired homeschooler, I highly recommend that in addition to content created by Waldorf teachers, you also find some good sources for inspiration from Waldorf homeschoolers, as it really does make all the difference. Two of my favorite Waldorf homeschoolers to follow are Donna Simmons of Christophorus Homeschool Resources, and Melisa Neilson of Waldorf Essentials. While both of these sites sell ready made curriculum, they also have a wealth of information available and both have made some wonderful videos bout getting started with Waldorf homeschooling.


So here's what I have planned for the rest of this year, and while I am sure this will continue to evolve as we go, I am so excited to implement some fresh ideas and inspiration from the resources I have shared with you. As the year goes by I hope to continue to document our journey and hope you will follow along!


Rhythm:

As I said, we’re gettin back to the basics with Waldorf kindergarten. So we’re beginning with really honing a strong daily rhythm. I have to say this is something that truly clicked for me for the first time just this year. Rhythm really isn’t a schedule- and even the word routine falls short. It’s the way you go about doing things. It’s having an order that happens in little moments in time. Yes when  you string these together these do comprise a routine of sorts but that’s not all there is to a good rhythm. Starting with the small moments (like this video talks about) is by far the best tip I have received that's made implementing a rhythm possible.


Verses and Songs:

With that in mind I’ve been reading and rereading A Child’s Seasonal Treasury by Betty Jones. I have rediscovered so many verses and songs that will help guide us through our day. I’ve also decided to add a separate time to our day devoted to movement in particular. So I have also been internalizing those verses and songs, along with the accompanying motions. I have to say A Child’s Seasonal Treasury is just such a great resource. Not one that should just be sitting on the shelf for sometime, but really is central in creating an authentic Waldorf homeschool experience. Not only does it contain so many great verses and songs to guide you through the day, it also includes art and handwork as well as recipe ideas. If this is the only book you get, you can pretty much build your entire curriculum from this one resource.

Storytelling set-up from the Story of the Selkie Maiden form earlier this year

Stories:

I recently rediscovered this article about how to choose stories for children in the early years (ages three to six). And realized I was way over thinking this aspect of Waldorf kindergarten. I found a great article about choosing stories for children and pretty much plugged in the suggested list for younger children for the rest of the year and our stories are all taken care of. This list is simple tales and nature stories.  Next year I plan to basically go by the list for five and six year olds which is more traditional fairytales. One thing I was really hoping to find as I did my reading was more concrete direction on how long to tell the same story for. But as far as I can tell this doesn’t exist, and each teacher and probably each particular  story is told for a different length of time. While some stories are told for about a week,  others may be repeated  for a month or longer. I do think in general, stories are retold more times, the younger the child or group of  children is, and as children approach the end of kindergarten a story may be retold for a shorter period of time. With this in mind,  I decided  for this year to plan four stories for each season (three months). So that would mean spending an average of about three weeks on a story. However, I imagine we will spend different lengths of time depending on the story. This is going to look like spending a few days telling the story from memory (or perhaps reading it  without pictures) and sometimes integrating it into our daily activities as well, then a week or two with puppets or other props and finally a few days to a week where we will reenact the story together. Since we are focused on simple tales and nature stories this year, I will be mostly be using the book, The Nature Corner: Celebrating the Year's Cycle with a Seasonal Tableau by M. V. Leeuwen to get ideas and inspiration for creating story props and puppets, and will probably create some of my own as well. 


Daily Work and the Lively Arts

This is another thing that I have found hard to schedule (how often should we paint, what craft should we do etc) I ended up deciding I was not I’ve again overthinking. Looking through my resource books for Waldorf kindergarten, there really are five main activities that Waldorf kindergarten teachers use  (which corresponds perfectly with the five days in a learning week!) these are wet on wet watercolors, handwork, modeling, baking and cooking, and drawing with beeswax crayons. Additionally, Waldorf kindergarten teachers do “housework” type tasks even at school like folding laundry, cleaning, and working on their own handwork projects. I decided to basically go through  the outline I just listed above by doing one activity each day, and also following my regular weekly rhythm of household tasks. However, there is room for flexibility as some weeks we might bake more or spend most of the week on seasonal crafts in preparation for a festival or another special event.


Our basic framework is Monday is laundry day and water coloring painting day (we have been doing this for years and it works really well). We are painting our way through the colors of the rainbow according to the seasons like it talks about in Heaven on Earth. We painted with first yellow the red this fall then mixed them, we will continue with blue for winter, then add red to blue to make purple, in spring we will mix yellow and blue and will end the year working with the three primary colors. Tuesday is handwork day which also includes modeling wax sometime. This is also be my organizing, mending and sewing day and our “soup day.”


Experimenting with mixing red and yellow this fall

Wednesday has been and will continue to be our baking day, Thursday I have added in drawing with beeswax crayons (before this was something we did spontaneously, and it wasn't part of our arts rotation). This year with my daughter turning five, she is ready for more representative pictures, so we will be drawing from the story every few weeks. While continuing with free drawing time as well. Thursday is also a bit of a free day for household tasks. I’m considering using it as a day to make freezer meals and do food prep. Friday is cleaning day and will also be a day we can do additional baking and cooking such as making fun holiday treats or special festival preparations. Thursday and Friday are also the days we tend to do things out of the house so I think keeping those a little more open is a good idea. For our handwork and arts and craft activity ideas, in addition to the ideas in a Child's Seasonal Treasury, I have decided to use the book Earthways: Simple Environmental Activities for Young Children by Carol Petrash. I own several Waldorf seasonal craft books, but this one is my favorite and in the interest of simplicity I am trying to limit myself.

Meals and Snacks:

In Waldorf schools snack time is an important part of the day and can even be more like a full meal.  I have revisited the grain of the day and the color the day and will be working those into our weekly menus. I tend to incorporate the grain of the day into breakfast or lunch and we mostly have fresh fruit and vegetables for snacks, but we’ll be incorporating the color of the day for fruits and vegetables and I will also be  letting my daughter choose some of her favorites to have for snacks. I really like how in Waldorf schools the children often bring the fruits of vegetables from home for snack and soup day. My goal is that my daughter will be involved in choosing and preparing snacks and also help with meal preparation at least once a day including "soup day." We’ve already started with her having a counter space where she works and a small cutting board and being involved with food preparation. I am using The Waldorf Kindergarten Snack book by Lisa Hildreth as my main resource. This book not only has a great collection of recipes, but includes guidance for things like "the grain of the day" and integrating more "Waldorf" into your daily cooking and eating.

A Simple Seasonal Table From a Waldorf Program I Visited Last Year

Nature table, Walks and Seasonal Celebrations:

Nature appreciation is an important  theme in Waldorf kindergarten as well as being aware of, and celebrating the changing seasons with festivals and a little seasonal display (also called a nature table). After doing more reading, I was reminded that  this begins with a simple daily walk in nature where you and your child(ren) tune in with your senses, collect little items, and bring them in reverence to your seasonal table. The seasonal table doesn’t need to be fancy or have a bunch of expensive items on it. It’s really a candle, a vase of seasonal cuttings some small figures such as animals, gnomes or fairies, and perhaps a colored scarf and a seasonal postcard.  I’m going to also be using The Nature Corner: Celebrating the Year's Cycle with a Seasonal Tableau by M. V. Leeuwen  for ideas of what to put on our seasonal table. We will be lighting the candle and saying a few verses as we add items and also using  it for telling simple nature stories. For example, after the winter solstice and Christmas, king winter will make an appearance and I will be telling a very simple story about him. The seasonal table will also help create a festive mood and will mark the various celebrations we are looking forward to. This month we’re making gnomes and adding evergreen sprigs  as well as some stars to mark the advent season leading up to Christmas and the winter solstice. As an interfaith family, we celebrate the major Judeo-Christian holidays and then we mark the seasons with the solstices and halfway points which also correspond with many American holidays like Easter, Saint Patrick’s day, imbolc (which is centered as groundhog day) May Day, etc. I really enjoy celebrating these days with something very simple like a special meal, lighting a candle or having a fire outside when weather permits,  saying a verse together  and perhaps signing a song. We also enjoy the baking the festive treats and making decorations during our art and handwork time. Having these festivals be something we celebrate as a family on the weekends or in the evenings, with extended family, friends and our community when possible, really helps to connect our learning with our larger world.


A Bonfire with Friends Over the Summer

I want to close out by saying that in addition to study, I have once again seen  how vital it is for a homeschooling parent to plan, plan, plan. I think of the phrase, “ if we fail to plan, we plan to fail.” I believe  (and I hope I can say this as a curriculum creator) this can be a downside of using a pre-made curriculum. Even if someone planned for you, you almost have to do all the work over for yourself and make it your own. You need to take the material on the page into your heart so you can bring it to life for your child.


I’d love to hear about your own adventures with homeschooling this year! How are you doing? Are you needing a winter refresh as well? If so, I hope this post inspires you on your own learning journey, and I look forward to being inspired by you too! 


A Fall Scene I Needle felted

A note on the Small Folk Curriculum: When my four year old was about two years old,  in preparation for her preschool year, I started creating the Small Folk Learning series with the idea that I would use the curriculum for her and then publish the units as I went. However this ended up being a huge undertaking and I am still not finished with it. As the years have gone by I have utilized parts of the curriculum, but have found myself focusing more on the “Waldorfy” parts and skipping anything else. As of right now I am still planning on finishing up the units that are already almost complete, but am strongly considering redoing it and releasing a “second edition” that will be much simpler (and thus will be offered for much less money), and then creating an add on for those who want to add in some of the more traditional preschool and kindergarten elements from the original version. If this is something you are interested in, or are really hoping for the complete original version, feel free to message me and let me know as this will help me decide where to direct my efforts and I can keep you in the loop as I have it available!



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