I often get emails from moms trying not to be frantic over a child that just isn't "getting it".  I think we've all been there  - whether it be with reading, spelling, long division, algebra... (insert your topic here) - the key really is to keep ourselves in a spot so we don't panic.  Two things come to mind with this -#1: keep reading Steiner (or start if you haven't) and #2: meditation and prayer over the situation and the child.

When I am faced with resistance, I do a few things.

First, I stand back and look at if it was a just a bad day - those happen!  Either I am not on my game or my child might just be off.
Did they get enough sleep? 
Do they need to eat?
Do I need to eat?
Is it time for a break? 
I really believe in preserving the relationship so I do my best not to loose my temper (I am NOT always good at this!) - I would rather have the door still open and have to move the lesson to another day than slam the door and cause trouble with the subject down the road.  Sometimes ...

I recently had a chat with a mom new to Waldorf.  She has older children and was worried about the placement of her daughter in grade six.  She was worried about the fact that she wasn't up to speed with her math or writing, and questioned if her daughter should go back to grade five or even four to get the entire curriculum.

This is a good question and one that I get often.  I assured her that Waldorf education is so different than anything else whether in the homeschool or public school arena.  With Waldorf, you can keep a child at grade level developmentally and work independently on their other skills.  The method of presenting subjects and the sequence of presenting them is directly in line with the development of the each child's being.  A child of 12 years could be studying Rome (grade six) and understanding the concepts and stories while working to strengthen their writing and math skills of previous years.  It is as much a journey for them as it is for us.  We must remember t...

Often moms will say that their child doesn't like the review or refuses to do it and so they will let it go.

Let me back up... just which review am I talking about?  In general, we tell a story or discuss theory (for older children) then we do something active or artistic and then allow it to sleep for a night, then reviewing this the next day and including some sort of writing element.  While the whole process doesn't need to be story/draw/sleep/write/move on, there does need to be an element of review. 

This review can come in many forms and the artistic portion can come in many forms.  The early grades, 1st and second especially can seem repetitive if you don't change things up so maybe one week you really focus on drawing skills for your artistic development, another painting, another modeling or another baking - keeping these alive.  Don't forget the review!  I hear moms often say "It is like pulling teeth" or "once I start the review the tears come"  - I am not sure how things ...

If you are like many homeschooling moms, you are looking at what you haven't finished yet for the year and starting to feel a bit frustrated... frustrated at yourself maybe for not staying disciplined enough or frustrated at the events that came up that took you off course or even just frustrated that you want to be done and don't feel like you can be... but that sun calls you to be outside... parks seem to be begging to your children... and popsicles sound much more fun than poetry! 

I totally understand!  Sometimes life gets in the way...one thing I have realized is that even when I plan (and you all know how much I preach about planning!) it can be hard to take all scenarios into consideration!  We had a couple of those this year and so it has me standing at what is the end of the year for many of my homeschooling friends and pouting!

After I decided pouting wouldn't get me very far, I decided to make a plan - something I am good at - a plan that would work for all of us and not h...

I often get questions about whether or not Waldorf can work with unschooling, Charlotte Mason homeschooling or Thomas Jefferson methods at home.  I hope this response is received in the light it was intended.  Blessings.

I have consulted with many families over the years - unschoolers, TJ Ed'ers, Charlotte Mason families and of course Waldorf ones.  I have some background in CM and TJ.  Erik also wrote a research paper for school on a comparative of Steiner, CM and TJ educational methods.  I strongly believe that while CM and TJ have great thoughts about education, no one comes close to Steiner.  People get the idea that following Steiner means you have to follow the Waldorf schools... that's Steiner Waldorf... Steiner's indications stand regardless of the method.  

Do I think you can work these other methods in conjunction with Steiner?  It depends.  On what?  How much more work you want to do!  There are beautiful things in the other methods... Steiner has it all together in one me...

"An Art of Education that is at the same time a cultural Therapy-this is what Rudolf Steiner has bequeathed to us. It is permeated with those Divine powers that are revealed, in Art, in their garb of Beauty. It leads to those sources of life whence health and healing flow to the growing human being. In this educational activity, as a member of the community of artists in life, the teacher may feel himself in all humility, to be priest and healer as well."

What a quote!  This comes from the article "Education as a Healing Agent" by Caroline von Heydebrand.

This is one of those gems. This article reminds me that this education was intended for all and that there are some wonderful WHYs behind the HOWs and WHENs.  This article confirms that the first schools worked with children that didn't fit the "perfect child" mold - this is something harder and harder to find among the younger schools in the movement.  I fear it is a sign of the times - the movement is growing and more and more tea...

I rarely use the word punishment with my children because with very rare exception, the consequence always fits the situation. i.e., not finishing school work timely will mean we will not have time at the park/friend's house, etc. so one directly affects the other. Even when they are small, keeping the boundary firm with that mindset of consequences helps you to not use a ton of words. Toddler hitting or hurting someone? Remove toddler. Preschooler won't clean up toys? Remove toys. I will say that not all children need the toys taken away so most will opt to help clean up.

Experiencing authority helps us to see commonality. This is just my take on it. I will preface this with my own experience. I have been asking God to help me understand people more... I need to be more careful what I ask for! I keep getting into very interesting and sometimes stressful learning situations! 

Case in point, our time in our community. We lived in co-housing. I understand that some co-housing is VERY g...

This post is for the masses... for mamas that are contemplating divorce and for those who have to report to the government each year.

First... those contemplating divorce... look at your state laws.  What do you currently have to do for homeschooling?  If you live in a state that requires you to report then you are probably well covered in a divorce situation, the law already requires that you inform the state of your actions, this will likely help you in court, just know the law and be prepared for a judge that doesn't so that you can quote it to him or her should you need to.  This becomes an issue when soon-to-be ex's are getting cranky about homeschooling.  If the state requires you to report, I suggest you just give your ex a copy of everything you are handing in for the state. Make your life easier.

Now if you live in a state where there are no laws, you also need to be ready to let your judge know. Many just assume that homeschooled children take the same tests that their scho...

I get this question a lot.  My answer is yes and no.  You don't HAVE to read Steiner in order to have a Waldorf inspired homeschooling experience. BUT, to begin to really understand the work of Waldorf from a spiritual aspect and even from a practical aspect after the first few years, you will need to begin to delve into some of his actual writings. They aren't scary - I promise! 

One of the things I get very troubled about is those who tend to take Steiner out of context or even take things a bit too far.  I know Waldorf appeals to many faith bases, from a very loose base of those who do not walk a structured religious path, to those who have a pretty rigid path.  Interestingly, both extreme ends have trouble with a lot of Steiner's work.  As we learn to walk with an open heart though, we can begin to see his truths within our own lives and children.  In order to do this we must be open to hearing and seeking to understand a message that we may not agree with - you don't have to agre...

Penmanship

My oldest, now an adult was my first experience with teaching handwriting. Those were some frustrating days.  He has ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and while you wouldn't know it now to look at him, talk to him or have him teach you something, if you look at his handwriting you might wonder. Mainstream society would feed us a line of "oh boys typically have poor handwriting."  While this is the case, in general, is that an excuse?  They are male so they should write sloppy? My dad has beautiful handwriting - in fact so much so that my mom makes him address the holiday cards! 

Handwriting is a will based activity.  Having good handwriting takes time and practice.  What happens though if you have a child with poor muscle tone and writing seems almost painful?  This is often the case with many autism spectrum children. I was really trying to think about how we did things in those early days with my son.  I stumbled upon one of my planning journals from his grade 1 year - he w...