Class One
The Class 1 child is at their peak of observation of the outer world. The children are awakening through the wonder of pictures, stories, and rhythmic movement.
- Through stories, the children are introduced to the letters of the alphabet
- Form drawing develops dexterity of the hands and mind, which leads to the writing of letters
- The four process of math are introduced through story
- French is introduced through songs, games, and stories
- As fingers become adept, so does the mind, and students learn to knit
Children of this age still live in a dreamy consciousness and therefore much learning is garnered through activity and imitation.
Class Two
The Class 2 child continues with the foundation of their first year in elementary school, but with more complex stories that focus on the child’s moral life.
- Students explore their sense of adventure through stories of saints and animal fables
- Printing and cursive writing are practised as students fill out their Main Lesson books
- The place value of numbers is explored, while daily rhythmic activities and help to reinforce number facts and times tables.
- Music and movement are integrated daily
- Knitting skills progress as students learn math fundamentals through sequencing, patterning, and more
The children become increasingly aware of what goes on around them and there is a corresponding increase of alertness to the outside world.
Class Three
Class 3 students are leaving the dreamy world of fairy-tales and fanciful animals behind. They have entered a new phase of life, that of practical work. They see the world as a concrete stable place.
- Class 3 students learn skills of building, farming, gardening, cooking, and weaving
- Silent, independent reading and more complex arithmetic are taken up with joy
- Visual arts and form drawing explore tones and shades, and the metamorphosis of shapes
- Crochet is introduced in Handwork, and students begin to practice reading music
Often the Class 3 children have their first overnight trip, usually at a local farm. This fosters a feeling of independence and can be a milestone for many. The experience of working together on the many group projects possible, from building to gardening, helps transform the feeling of ‘separateness from the world’ to a feeling of ‘responsibility for the world’.
Class Four
Class 4 children become more independent and begin to understand similarities and differences. Class 4 students are on the threshold of inferential thinking. They are now able to meet the world with new capacities of thinking and feeling.
- The Class 4 curriculum focuses on the environment, through local and regional geography, and a study of the animal kingdom
- First Nations history and Norse myths are explored as examples of adapting to the environment
- Students practice drawing braided and woven forms, and emphasis is placed on patterns
Cognitively, Class 4 students are better able to understand questions and phenomena in a realistic and reasoning way. There is a greater sense for empathetic feeling and a new clarity of thinking enables even more cultivation of personal responsibility and a reasoned sense of right and wrong.
Class Five
The Class 5 child continues to move from pure imagination towards critical thinking. The children are not only learning their place in the world, but for the first time they are able to observe the world as something linked to, but also apart from themselves.
- Students study botany, decimals, and the Ancient world
- There is a focus on beauty and form, not only in the students’ academic work, but in their movement and inner development as well
- Students participate in The Greek Olympics, a sporting event in which Waldorf schools across the region participate
- The world of harmony opens up to the students, both in singing and recorder playing
In Class 5, we observe a balance between their mental, emotional, and physical growth. For this reason, this time is often called the “golden age of childhood.” The child attains a certain ease and grace of movement intrinsic to the age.
Carlisle Beresford
Class 1/2 Teacher
Nancy Liknes
Class 3 Teacher
Caitlin Venditti
Class 4/5 Teacher