Grade School Curriculum

Language Arts

The study of language in Waldorf Schools begins with the spoken word. Before the first grade there is no formal instruction on the alphabet or writing. But there are daily stories and puppet shows presented by the teachers, plenty of songs sung together, and many, many other opportunities for the children, through their own creative play, to increase their linguistic abilities naturally. In the first and second grades, tales and verses, heard, retold and recited, become the foundation of writing and reading instruction.

The alphabet is introduced through a series of stories that kindle the imagination. Instead of reading from commercial textbooks, each child creates personal books which they illustrate themselves, writing down the stories they have heard from the teacher. This becomes their first primer. Children take great pride in the large, beautiful lesson books which they will continue to create every year through the eighth grade. The third and fourth grade curriculum addresses the revolution in the child’s consciousness called the “nine-year change.”

The spoken word is still emphasized in verses, choral readings, and songs, but there is more time spent on strengthening the children’s reading and writing abilities. Original compositions and grammar are a part of the curriculum through the upper grades. The children are assigned demanding literature and are asked to write reviews and think deeply about the content.

Literature as a window into the breadth of human emotion is emphasized. In their writing, stylistic concerns become the focus as ever greater demands are placed on their reports, stories, poems and essays. Oral presentations are also a part of the upper grades curriculum. By the eighth grade Waldorf students are experts in the written word and have no equal in their ability to memorize, recite, and speak in front of a group.

Another aspect of the language curriculum is the class play, one of the highlights of the year for the children. Typically each class will perform a play each year, which in the case of the first and second grades, is a simple choral reading of a fairy tale with a few children taking a solo part. The eighth grade class celebrates the end of their many years together with the production of a classic play, often a Shakespeare comedy.

World Language

French is taught in grades one through eight. Native-speaking World Language teachers inspire students to embrace a culture as well as a language. In the early grades, language is brought to the children in the way they will be most receptive: by imitation. The teacher speaks in French almost exclusively and the children’s powers of imitation, which are so strong in the early years, enable them to imitate what they hear in a seemingly effortless manner.

The teacher avoids written work and keeps the class focused on reciting and gradually speaking. In the fourth grade, reading and writing are introduced, but the emphasis on the spoken word continues with new songs, poems, and often plays every year through the eighth grade. The rudiments of grammar are brought in for the first time by the end of the fourth grade. In the upper grades work with vocabulary and grammar are stressed to an increasing degree.

Occasionally older classes have gone on a winter trip to Quebec so that students might experience first-hand the French language in one of the countries where it is spoken.