my daughter, Iuliana, is going to begin Waldorf kindergarten soon. she came to us via adoption last fall. i'm a librarian and pretty heavily invested in books and reading so was surprised to learn that reading is not encouraged and developed in children until 3rd grade and after. my older daughter began reading at 3 years of age and i've carried this conception in my mind that reading at a young age is a good thing if a child loves the world of books and reading. i support the idea of encounter and experience as initial steps of knowledge but am wondering whether developing reading skills in Waldorf-schooled children is really a no-no and what experiences you may have had in that area either as a parent or as a child or as a teacher.
blessings, owlyn
blessings, owlyn
posted by:
|
Unsubscribed |
-
Re: young children , reading, and Waldorf
Wed, August 11, 2004 - 10:23 AMOwlyn, I, too, have a passion for books and began reading at a very young age. My five year old will be going back to Waldorf this year and will be in Kindegarden. I agree with many Waldorf ideas on education. Children should not be forced into academics until such point that they are ready (including reading) and that the imagination, fostered through oral storytelling, is an essential part of a holistic life. However, I do not agree with the philosophy of withholding knowledge that the child is seeking. When my daughter expressed an interest in learning her letters and in learning to write this past summer, I did not hesitate to help her. I simply followed her cues and didn't pressure her. I think the most important thing to remember is not to push the kiddos. -
-
Unsu...
Re: young children , reading, and Waldorf
Thu, August 12, 2004 - 7:13 AMThank you, Sarah. I appreciate the wisdom of your reflections and experiences. Waldorf-based education allows our family the opportunity to nurture our daughter's education without the achievement/failure fear factor that is common to other educational settings. There were a few months after she came from Romania to be with us when my partner and I felt some internal and external pressure to "train" her to be conversant in English and to learn many of the pieces of knowledge that 3 and 4 year olds in this culture normally have. She learned English when she was ready though and her love to communicate verbally as well as her curiosity have carried her well in this. I'm glad we have chosen Waldorf. -
-
Re: young children , reading, and Waldorf
Mon, August 16, 2004 - 4:57 PMI am begining my 3rd year of Teacher training to be a waldorf teacher, and my 12 year old is going into 7th grade at a Waldorf school, she's been there since kindergarten.
I find Waldorf education to be so amazing, I am glad you have chosen it for your child :)
I wanted to take a moment to comment on the "No reading until 3rd grade" myth, In waldorf education we do not begin reading in Kindergarten as they do in public education, but the children are developing rich and wonderful vocabulary and language skills from the stories they are being told. I think of it as the naming phase, they will come out of kindergarten with an extraordinary vocabulary.
In First grade they begin learning letters, writing,sounds, and words. By third grade, even though they have started learning letters a year later than they do in a public school, they are reading at the same level as third graders in a public school. They are ready, physically and mentally when reading is introduced to them, so they get it and go with it.
So that is what is refured to when people say that the kids don't red until 3rd grade, they are "cought up" with public school by third grade.
As far as reading at home, Enjoy reading with your child, and spending time with them in as many ways as possible.
If your child asks about letters feel free to give them the experience of letters and words. Just remember that we're in no rush to learn these things, childhood is a journey not a race :)
Good luck, and have fun
~J -
-
Re: young children , reading, and Waldorf
Fri, July 29, 2005 - 7:13 PMI have been fortunate enough to find Waldorf education. My daughter has attended two years of preschool at Summerfield in Santa Rosa, CA. She is compassionate, intelligent, and has an amazing vocabulary, not to mention that she has already a great gift of story telling and artistic ability. While I'm certain that my husband and I have something to do with this, we have learned quite a lot of parenting skills from the community as well as sharing in.
We've also had the benefit of getting to know other families with multiple children enrolled and thus being able to see what blossoms when the children get to the reading age. My friend's son is 8 or 9 and lately every time I see him he has a new book that's nearly 3 inches thick and he can't put it down.
Call me a sucker, but I'm impressed. My daughter will be entering Kindergarten this fall and we hope to continue to be able to afford going. She is asking about letters and numbers and things of a scientific nature, so we'll see if it continues to be stimulating enough. That could just be a product of summer boredom. :) -
-
Unsu...
Re: young children , reading, and Waldorf
Sun, July 31, 2005 - 9:57 AMI am beginning my 12th year as a Waldorf teacher. This myth about Waldorf Schools and reading/not reading would be kind of funny if it weren't misunderstood by so many people. I'd like to supply a few quotes from a standard Waldorf Curriculum book---'Toward Creative Teaching---
"Reading
Class 1
...Throughout Class 1, reading is largely based on the children's own writing. though those who progress would obviously not be discouraged from printed texts. The point being that reading is taught from the children's writing. This does not limit what they might read. The children learn to read whole sentences before focusing on individual words or letters within each word....It is important that children master this complex process at their own pace without pressure. In Class 1 we should expect a wide range of abilitites in reading and writing since many children simply need more time than others."
The point here is that children are not held back from reading, they are simply not pushed into it. At this point I have just finished a first grade and about 1/2 the children were reading picture books with great with enjoyment, a few were reading chapter books, most of the rest were reading at a beginning level and 2 were just not ready. I have never had a student not learn to read well and have come to trust the method so clearly as I have had the opportunity to see it work over the years. In second grade we will have reading groups, individual reading time, paired reading and whole class reading. We will also begin to work on phonics and whole word recognition as well as the use of context cues, rhyming and letter patterns. Learning to read is a huge part of the curriculum in the early grades, it is just done differently. I have often seen many children who were not interested in reading until 3rd or even a few at 4th grade, suddenly pick up a chapter book and begin reading a t a fluent level, with joy and intense interest. Most children in the W system learn to read quite well by the end of 2nd. Yes, it is sometimes nerve wracking when a child takes longer in this hurry up society, but is the point how long it takes or simply that they do so with pleasure and joy. Yes, we need to monitor each child to make sure there is no hinderance to why they are not reading, but that is what teachers do!
I hope my little soap box has been helpful.
-
-
-
-
-
Re: young children , reading, and Waldorf
Tue, September 27, 2005 - 5:08 PMOne thing to remember, in addition to all of the comments from the rest of the group, is that while Waldorf education does not sit down with the child and begin to teach reading "officially" until third grade does not mean that the child will not know how to read. As both a Waldorf student and a Waldorf teacher I have seen children initiate their own reading careers and found teachers, parents and the community receptive to the obvious need on the child's behalf to read.
The point of not reading in Waldorf schools before third grade is multi-layered but should not be interpreted as dogmatic and definite. This a creative education that responds to the student's growing self. If a child feels inclined to read then it is up to us to build on that growing experience to read to the child, in addition to allowing the child to read to us. All the while remember to still tell stories so that the imagination is active!
