Primary
Our Primary Program
Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.
We strive to create a classroom culture that embraces diversity, fosters inclusion, and promotes equity. We celebrate every child and their differences including but not limited to gender expression, race, religion, economic status, neurodiversity and ability. These topics will be discussed in the classroom in a developmentally appropriate manner.
Back to School
The early weeks of school represent an enormous change in a young child’s life. The relaxed rhythms of summer give way to September’s schedules. Time spent alone or with family gives way to a full morning at school with new children and adults, new experiences and rhythms. It is important not to underestimate the toll this can take on children. The change of season and cooler weather affects them as well. Whenever possible, we strongly recommend that children spend a quiet afternoon upon returning home for the first four or six weeks of the year, depending upon the age of the children and their own personal needs.
We go out of doors nearly every day all year long. We like to go out on rainy days. In the winter we play in the ice and snow.
For the young child, birthdays are among the most special days of all. Your child’s birthday will be celebrated in the primary with a special snack, handmade gifts and story.
We eat our snack and lunch together each day, sharing conversation and observation, and helping to form the classroom community. Our eating rituals encourage children to approach their mealtimes with reverence and awareness. We encourage them to listen to what their bodies are telling them, and provide some opportunities outside of communal eating times to eat more should they still be hungry.
Daily Rhythm
The primary day follows a rhythm of breathing out (child-directed activity) and breathing in (teacher-directed activity), through play, story, movement, and focused activities. Most days, primary children start the day outdoors playing and working in a variety of weather in our playground. They have time indoors, playing and engaging in artistic and domestic work. Along with painting, drawing, and beeswax modelling, primary offers an introduction to handwork and woodwork through creating simple, useful things by finger knitting, sewing, sanding, sawing and hand drilling.
Three times a week, primary children have time with a specialist teacher in French and physical education. Twice a week, they will have music class with a specialist music teacher. The class will participate in seasonal circles and stories of increasing complexity.
After lunch, children have time to rest quietly in a quiet, cozy space. Some children sleep, but this is not an expectation. This gives children an opportunity to digest their busy morning, to pause for a moment and breathe, and to experience stillness and quiet. The afternoon is a quiet time, where sleeping children are allowed to rest, and the rest come to the table to draw, look at books, hear a story, or do other quiet work.
After our closing circle, we head outside again and dismiss from the playground.
Handwork
The product of the head, heart and hand is a thing to be loved.
Handwork in primary can include finger and hand knitting, felting, sewing, woodworking and more. This work engages children’s head, heart and hands. Physically, they are practicing fine motor skills, doing precise and repetitive movements. Cognitively, they are figuring out how to repeat patterns and recreate the movements modelled by the teacher. They are also producing something beautiful they have made themselves, helping to foster confidence and pride. The whole process requires determination and perseverance to succeed, both important qualities to develop for future educational endeavours.
Science and Numeracy
Everybody starts out as a scientist. Every child has the scientist’s sense of wonder and awe.
In primary, math and science learning draw on the child’s natural sense of curiosity about the world around them. Observation and connection to the natural world are vibrant parts of Primary life, and Mother Nature is the greatest science teacher of them all. Spending time outdoors every day in all kinds of weather allows children to experience nature first hand, helping them to understand the change of seasons, temperature and different weather and learn about the plants and animals living in their environment. The rhythm of the year, week and day help them to learn about sequencing, and seasonal festivals, songs and verses bring the cycle of the year into the classroom. Circle time also brings in counting and pattern recognition through different songs, verses and games, including clapping games. Activities like cooking and baking use measurement, chemistry, parts of a whole, temperature, and time. This experiential learning allows them to internalise their discoveries, forming a strong foundation for more formal lessons starting in the grades. Casual math happens every day in moments like “We have 9 children in the class, and 2 are absent today. How many placemats need to be taken from the shelf to be laid on the table?”. That same placemat may become a way of learning about fractions as it is folded into quarters, and the child has the opportunity to enter into a doing relationship with the math, instead of being instructed about an abstract concept. The foundations for division become an inseparable part of social-emotional learning (“Everyone wants to use the gems from the basket. How do we divide them up evenly to make it fair for everyone?”). There is quite a lot of learning about physics involved in an elaborate block tower!
Language and Literacy
We are storytelling creatures, and as children we acquire language to tell those stories that we have inside us.
Our curriculum lays a strong foundation for literacy skills encompassing reading, writing, listening, speaking and more. New vocabulary and concepts are introduced through oral story- telling, puppet plays, poetry, and song, strengthening comprehension, listening and attention abilities Our curriculum stories are chosen with care to meet the unique social, emotional and developmental needs of the class. We strive to bring cultural images that are both familiar and new to our class community. Stories become longer and more complex; they are brought first orally and then with puppetry and/or pretending. The curriculum also prepares for writing proficiency through a variety of hands-on activities that utilize both fine and gross motor skills, including drawing and finger-knitting. Supported by current research, this approach engages the whole child and supports them in their literacy development. Our goal is to nourish the child’s love of learning that will continue for a lifetime.
Links for further reading:
Literacy: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220228-the-best-age-for-learning-to-read
Primary learning: https://penniebrownlee.weebly.com/uploads/1/0/4/3/10437917/getting_ready_for_school_2.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1k-PzDBfdRKGAPAgw6QqQZHTOohG4hX4PFruL-LrMknqeQdDLInmiwOsA Math and Science::https://lifewaysnorthamerica.org/math-and-science-in-the-kindergarten-waldorf-early-childhood-settings/?fbclid=IwAR10iaql4lAtJGwnUtq2bdSCegy7bqHZQXhw1p41j8SbiH4Kk 9NczNXURn4
Early academics: https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/freedom-learn/201505/early-academic-training-produces-long-term-harm
Rest: https://www.sparrowschool.org/blog/2022/2/12/the-importance-of-naptime-in-a-waldorf-kinde rgarten?fbclid=IwAR2qPhkdXiSJazuN1Cfy2PQ3zjLeti2iMCyH6RpEsi_zliyfhIiAEqvfOTg
Play-based Learning: https://theconversation.com/play-based-learning-can-set-your-child-up-for-success-at-school-and-beyond-91393
https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/play-based-learning/
https://teachertomsblog.blogspot.com/2021/11/play-is-most-rigorous-curriculum-known.html? fbclid=IwAR1VWNeWYBBywrqUBoT5fJ-jF7Hja0zbfD06RCcVW4skxi_kbuKP8HqPTcc#.YY5 wl7va_F4.facebook
https://hechingerreport.org/twenty-six-studies-point-to-more-play-for-young-children/?fbclid=I wAR3FZXXgm4-E1pZw6yY_xkUmjNc2olsb9P0ZfxzCOdA7Jvjx6EXskpdGnU