Introduction
The following describes courses of study that are available for teachers who wish to study the Waldorf approach. The approach is divided into three areas (Child Development, Methodology of Teaching and The Waldorf Curriculum). The first two of these concentrate mainly on theory, the third on practice although all courses are “hands-on” and are practical in design and execution.
All courses concerned with the Waldorf curriculum incorporate non-intrusive techniques for monitoring students’ progress.

All courses are based on 15 hours or one unit of university credit. The content is however in modular format enabling teachers to select subject matter according to their specialism or areas in which they require training.

Introduction to Waldorf Education 15 hours 1 unit

Stages of Child Development 15 hours 1 unit

Methodology of Teaching - The Temperaments 15 hours 1 unit
Structure and Organization 15 hours 1 unit
Storytelling - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit
(Storytelling also available as 3 or 6 Units courses)

The Waldorf Curriculum - Overview 15 hours 1 unit
Learning to Write and Read 15 hours 1 unit
Teaching Arithmetic - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit
Teaching Geometry - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit
Teaching History - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit
Teaching Language Arts - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit
Teaching Science - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit
Teaching Art, Craft and Music - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit
Environmental Arts 15 hours 1 unit
Sequences in Nature 15 hours 1 unit
Kindergarten - The Waldorf Approach 15 hours 1 unit

Independent Study (in 3 unit blocks) 45 hours 3 units

Introduction to Waldorf Education (15 hours - 1 unit)
This unit provides an overall view of the Waldorf approach to teaching and learning. It enables the student to experience individual aspects of the approach within the context of the whole. As such it provides a brief overview, detailed examination of each separate aspect of content is made in other units.

It is recommended that when participants plan a course by selecting from the various units offered, that they select and study this unit first.

Historical Background.
- Current position, particular emphasis USA.
- Research and outcomes; examining research from Europe and looking at outcomes.

Aspects of the Pedagogy.
- Breadth in learning; a thematic and cross-curricula approach.
- Curriculum content and its relationship to students’ inner experience, needs and interests.
- Outline of the approach; division into three areas - Stages of Child Development, Methodology of Teaching, The Waldorf Curriculum.

Stages of Child Development.
- The three stages of child development.
- The subdivisions of these stages.

Organization and Structure.
- The "Main Lesson".
- "Block Periods".
- Main Lesson Book and its relationship to textbooks and assessment.

Further Aspects of the Approach.
- Discipline and punishment.
- The gifted child.
- The less able child.

Methodology of Teaching.
- Temperaments and personality types.
- The influence of methodology on the preparation of lessons.
- The influence of methodology on teacher interaction with students.

The Waldorf Curriculum.
- What, when and how should content be taught.
- Relationship between curriculum and stages of child development.

Perspectives on the Waldorf approach in terms of present day educational practice.

Monitoring Students’ Progress.
- Assessment procedures, grade by grade, for literacy and numeracy.
- Authentic assessment as it finds expression in the Waldorf approach.
- Descriptions of a non-intrusive approach to monitoring students’ progress.

The workshop will be a balance between the sharing of information about the Waldorf approach, and the participation in various activities through which the content will be examined. Content is, therefore, not only examined cognitively but is "experienced" by the students through different activities. As such it is an example of cooperative learning and also mirrors the way in which students learn through the Waldorf approach.


Stages of Child Development (15 hours - 1 unit)
The Three Stages of Child Development.
- A study of the three stages of child development as they relate to mental, physical and social development.
- An examination of the relationship between the mental, physical and social.
- Study of the physical changes that indicate the transition from one stage of development to the next.
- Detailed description of the stages - birth to seven; seven to fourteen; fourteen to twenty-one.
- Description of stage subdivisions.
- Timeline of the stages and subdivisions.

Evaluation of Stages.
- Comparisons of the stages with the theories of other educators and psychologists e.g. Piaget, Erikson, Bruner.

The Relevance of the Developmental Theory in the Context of the Elementary School.
- Extended study of the second stage of child development.
- Interrelationship between physical growth and mental attributes.
- Descriptions of the cognitive, affective, psychomotor with regard to stages and subdivisions.
- Descriptions of the elementary school students’ thinking; pictorial, uncritical and unspecialised.
- Comparisons and contrasts between elementary school students’ thinking and adults’.

Relevance to the Curriculum.
- Relevance of these stages to the content of the curriculum.
- Relevance of these stages to the methodology of teaching.

Methodology of Teaching - The Temperaments (15 hours - 1 unit)
Historical Background.
- Historical outline.
- Basis for the methodology.

Formation and Growth of Temperament.
- The way temperament is formed.
- Descriptions of the relationship between physical organism and mental faculties.
- Growth of temperament through the three main stages of child development.
- Strength and weaknesses of each temperament.

Teaching and the Temperaments.
- Teaching according to the personality or temperament of each child.
- Teacher's temperament and her/his interaction with students of each temperament.
- Classroom organization.
- Seating according to temperament.

Lesson Content.
- Preparation of lesson content in relation to the temperaments.
- Recognising inner needs.
- Balancing outcomes and motivation according to temperament types.
- Storytelling and the temperaments.

Structure and Organization (15 hours - 1 unit)
Organization of the Day.
- Starting the day; circle time, music and verse, rhythmic activities.
- The daily timetable.
- Completion of the day.

Aspects of Structure.
- "Block Periods".
- The "Main Lesson".
- Main Lesson Book and its relationship to textbooks and assessment.

The Rhythmic Aspect.
- Building a rhythmic aspect into the lesson plan, the lessons for the day, program for the week and year.
- “Inbreathing” and “outbreathing”.

Classroom Organization.
- The physical organization of the classroom.
- Considerations concerned with planning student groupings.
- Awareness of ambience and atmosphere in the classroom.

Storytelling - The Waldorf Approach (15 hours - 1 unit)
Historical Background.
- Importance of storytelling throughout history.
- Qualities of a good storyteller.

Storytelling and the Waldorf Approach.
- Overall view of the relationship of storytelling to the curriculum.
- Story content vis a vis particular age groups.
- Exploration of available literature suitable for storytelling.

The Skills of Storytelling.
- An examination of the techniques and skills needed to tell stories.
- Guidance and practice in story writing.
- Guidance and practice in storytelling.
- Group and self-assessment of skills.

Storytelling and areas of the Curriculum.
- The relevance of storytelling in history/social studies.
- The relevance of storytelling in the introduction of mathematical concepts.
- The relevance of storytelling in science.
- The relevance of storytelling with regard to behavioral changes in groups and individuals.

The Waldorf Curriculum - Overview (15 hours - 1 unit)
Historical setting.
- The first Waldorf curriculum.
- Application and adaptation to modern day setting.

Determinants of the Curriculum.
- Main determinants of the curriculum.
- Detailed examination of the balanced development of the affective and cognitive faculties as it relates to curriculum content.

Waldorf Curriculum and the First Stage of Child Development.
- Imitation and the expression of psychomotor skills or "willing" consciousness.
- Stages of the development of memory.
- Storytelling, repetition and prediction.

Waldorf Curriculum and the Second Stage of Child Development.
- Forces of growth and "awakeness" (mental maturation).
- Rhythmical processes.
- Development of feeling and imagination.
- Inbreathing and forgetting.
- "Main lesson" subjects for the elementary school child.
- Description and evaluation of overall curriculum content for each grade.

Learning to Write and Read (15 hours - 1 unit)
Preparatory Work.
- Straight and curved lines.
- Exercises and activities for kindergarten and 1st grade children designed to develop spatial relationships.
- Imitative powers of action.
- Appealing to feeling and imagination.
- Place of theoretical and cognitive.
- Movements concerned with straight and curved lines.
- The place of "Form Drawing" in prereading.

Introduction to Decoding.
- Storytelling and image making in the introduction of the consonants.
- Artistic element in introducing the consonants.
- Introducing the vowels.
- Creation of students’ first readers.
- Working from the whole to the parts.
- Examining an eclectic approach to the teaching of reading.
- Examining an approach which develops reading skills within the context of the students’ experience.

Development of Reading.
- Individualised reading programs.
- Child-centered approach to the teaching of phonics.
- Development of the different reading skills.
- Temperaments and reading.
- Monitoring and assessment.

Teaching Arithmetic - The Waldorf Approach (15 hours - 1 unit)
Initial Contact.
- First contact, a twofold process.
- Content and rhythmic processes.
- Rhythmic processes and becoming numerate.
- Pedagogy and its relationship to motivating students.
- Introducing the four processes.
- Presentation of material so that it is in harmony with the student's global, pictorial view of the world.

Curriculum Content.
- Examination of content according to each grade.
- Arithmetic in a cross-curricula approach.
- Development of reading skills in the content area of mathematics.

Methodology.
- Arithmetic and its relationship to main lesson, block periods and subsidiary lessons.
- Storytelling and the introduction of new concepts.
- Importance of imagery and pictorial representation in the understanding of mathematical concepts.
- Rhythm and learning.
- Efficacy and outcomes.

Monitoring Students’ Progress.
- Assessment procedures, grade by grade, for numeracy.
- Authentic assessment as it finds expression in the Waldorf approach.
- Descriptions of a non-intrusive approach to monitoring students’ mathematical progress.

Teaching Geometry - The Waldorf Approach (15 hours - 1 unit)
Basis for Teaching Geometry.
- Beginning with inner not outer perception.
- Form and symmetry.
- Students’ innate feeling for form and symmetry.
- The subject area of "Form Drawing" and its relationship to the teaching of geometry.

Examination of content through grades - Phase 1 (Grades 1-3).
- Form drawing exercises as foundation for later study (grade 1).
- Form drawing exercises to include repetitive patterns (grade 1).
- Extension of form drawing exercises to include symmetrical forms and mirror images (grade 2).
- Free artistic form drawing with emphasis on the circle, the triangle, the square (grade 3).

Examination of content through grades - Phase 2 (Grades 4-5).
- Initial teaching of formal geometry.
- Construction of simple geometrical figures.
- Inter-relationships between the forms (grade 4).
- Introduction of more complicated shapes such as ellipse & ending with the theorem of Pythagoras (grade 5).

Examination of content through grades - Phase 3 (Grade 6).
- Geometrical proofs.
- Simple projections.
- Building mathematical knowledge (proofs and principles) upon previous knowledge acquired by observation.
- History of geometry to include Babylonian, Egyptian and Roman history.

Methodology.
- Examining an approach which begins with inner perception, moves to artistic expression, finally develops understanding and skills for abstract analysis.
- Biographical detail as part of methodology.

Teaching History - The Waldorf Approach (15 hours - 1 unit)
Objectives in Teaching History.
- Nurturing and developing the affective nature for the various historical periods.
- Studying the balance between teaching discrete areas of knowledge and transmitting a feeling for human development as a whole.

Content.
- Examination of curriculum content through each grade.
- Teaching local history.
- An approach to teaching the Ancient Civilizations with special reference to Mesopotamia, Egypt, Kush, Greece, India, China, Rome.
- Development of reading skills in the content area of history.

Methodology.
- Teaching through biographical Studies.
- The role of storytelling.
- A cross-curricula approach.
- Knowledge of temperament and its relationship to the teaching of history.
- The Waldorf main lesson as a technique for teaching history.

Empathy and Perspective.
- Study of history as a means of developing moral judgement and respect for human endeavor.
- Study of history as a means of developing perspective and counteracting egotism.
- Examining the balance between experiencing historical events and gaining a cognitive understanding of the historical process.

Teaching Language Arts - The Waldorf Approach (15 hours - 1 unit)
Content.
- Examination of curriculum content through each grade.
- The Waldorf Approach to the teaching of grammatical structures and spelling.
- Examination of descriptive material which should appeal to student's imagination and feelings.
- Detailed study at each grade level of appropriate student literature.
- Grade by grade analysis of teaching for the development of verbal skills and confident public speaking.

Methodology.
- The Waldorf methodology for the introduction of formal grammar.
- Use of innate rhythm and movement in the teaching of parts of speech in younger elementary school students.
- Place of analysis and abstraction in the older elementary school student.
- Studying an approach which emphasises that subject matter should be taught so that it directly relates to the inner experience of children.
- Application of the concept of the three day cycle involved in the learning process.
- Classroom organization conducive to successful language development.

Monitoring Students’ Progress.
- Assessment procedures, grade by grade, for literacy.
- Authentic assessment as it finds expression in the Waldorf approach.
- Descriptions of a non-intrusive approach to monitoring students’ reading progress.

Teaching Science - The Waldorf Approach (15 hours - 1 unit)
Introduction.
- Overall view of content of science curriculum grade by grade.
- Hierarchal structure of various subject areas studied under the umbrella of science.
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Home Surroundings.
- Study of Home Surroundings as a prelude to the later specialised subject areas in science.
- Study of, and practical activities in, farming, gardening and house building.
as a prelude to the later subject of environmental studies.

Natural History and Nature Study.
- How, when and why of teaching nature study.
- Comparing and contrasting the human, animal, plant and mineral kingdoms.
- Interaction and dependency of different kingdoms with each other.
- How, when and why of teaching botany.

Physics.
- How, when and why of teaching physics.

Methodology.
- Role of stories, biography, music and poetry in the study of science.
- Importance of developing in-depth observation.
- Value of cross-curricula approach in the teaching of science e.g. the study of acoustics bringing together physics, music and physiology amongst other things.
- Use of imaginative and pictorial methods.

Teaching Art, Craft, Music - The Waldorf Approach (15 hours - 1 unit)
Art.
- Study of an approach which considers that an experience of color in the early grades is more important than the development of outer perceptions and the creation of form from these perceptions.
- Role of artistic expression in the main lesson.
- Expression of inner perception through painting and drawing in all subject areas and in all grades e.g. mathematics, social studies and so on.
- Learning the techniques and gaining experience in the use of water colors.
- Learning the techniques and gaining experience in line and shaded drawing.
- Pedagogical study of color.
- Implications of the study of color when applied to the classroom environment.
- Importance of developing a knowledge and deeper awareness of color in students.
- Need to work with color in a systematic way through each of the grades.
- Study of therapeutic benefits of color.
- Relationship of color to the different temperaments.

Craft.
- Examination of the craft curriculum grade by grade.
- Understanding the pedagogical background of curriculum content.
- Place of craft in the overall curriculum, both as part of the main lesson and also as a separate subject area.
- Importance of the choice of raw materials used in craft lessons.

Music.
- Examination of the music curriculum grade by grade.
- Understanding the pedagogical background of curriculum content.
- Place of music in the overall curriculum, both as part of classroom activity and also as a separate subject area.
- Specific instruments and their role in curriculum and structure of the day.