One of the basic principles of early childhood in Steiner education/Waldorf Education is the recognition that young children readily learn about the world through their interaction with their environment. Thus, young children are guided in a playful activity both within the classroom and the outdoors.
A integral part of the Steiner preschool program is the outdoor playtime. Regardless of the season, children are encouraged to do meaningful tasks to encourage an appreciation for the natural world. When the children are out of their classroom, nature can provide the toys. The bark of the trees can be made into a boat that can float in a puddle; the leaves and twigs are used to make houses for the little ants to take shelter, the pebbles and rocks are built to make tiny bridges. All of these nature constructions help develop the young child’s fine motor skills by practicing delicate finger movements.
Aside from playing, work also plays an important role in the child’s development under the care of a Steiner preschool. With the teacher, the young children are engaged in meaningful work that is done as part of the rhythm for the week. There is a day for baking, for making soup, for doing crafts. There is also a day when the children would do some laundry washing, plant some seedlings, water the plants, weed some grass. The involvement of the children in various activities exposes them to different dimensions and aspects of their lives important for their older years.
The children experience joy and enthusiasm as they take part in the rhythm of caring for their health (cooking, baking, preparing meals), their peers (working and helping each other, older kids guiding younger ones, sharing toys and eating together), taking care of the seedlings they planted (raking the soil, watering the plants) and taking part in nature’s rhythm of growth and abundance (singing and storytelling about nature and seasons, playing under the sun or in light rain, nature walks).
The more they get exposed in these activities, the more the children develop a connection with the real world. The rhythm and activities also help them become more imaginative and inspired, kindling a love for learning and laying the foundation for creative thinking and love for learning. These, more than memorization of facts and figures, are the true foundation for the kind of learning necessary to prepare them not only for later educational challenges but for life.
The Kolisko School for Steiner Education will hold public orientation on the following dates: February (sat) 21, 9-11am, March (sat) 7, 3-5pm and March 21 (sat) 9-11am at #10 Alabama St. Brgy Kristong Hari, New Manila, Quezon City. RSVP, inquiries and visiting schedules call 710-5279.
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Izza Pascual is one of the co-founders of The Kolisko School and is presently the Main Teacher of the Bahay-Bahayan Preschool Program. She is an artist, a teacher and currently pursues her MA in Education major in Steiner Education at St. Scholastica’s College
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