Reckless endangerment of impressionable children

[Maddy]

The Waldorf schools are not for everyone.
They require manners, discipline, respect, commitment, serious parent involvement, focus on academics,languages animal husbandry, gardening, outdoor activities, the arts, learning woodworking, needledwork, some horsemanship, athletics, and drama. I know I missed a few.

You are there to learn, to grow, to have fun and enjoy your experience. What a novel idea for a school.
The "cult"of learning.
You can go to school without fear of being beaten, gang raped, shot. No one is passing you some crack cocaine. There is no loud obnoxious music, no Ipods hanging out of the ears, and no chatting on cell phones. No chance of being on Headline news tonight.
College admission-not to worry
SATs-not a problem

BUT...it surely isn't for everyone. It's way too much work (the four letter word) for some, and it costs a few bucks. The woman whose two boys were ousted has not much good to say about it. For some strange reason the Waldorf faculty did not tolerate repeated disruptions in the classroom. Another novel idea.

Not every W school is the same. I can only speak for the one I am familiar with and there is no doubt in my mind that these parents are getting their money's worth and the kids are getting a mighty fine education.

They are not abused, tormented, or exposed to life threatening situations. In fact, they are very well cared for and cared about.

If any doubt, go introduce yourselves and have a chat. You would be welcome and the public is invited to the Shakespeare festival and other festivities throughout the year. It might be a real education.

 

[TrishandAlex]

The Waldorf schools are not for everyone.
They require manners, discipline, respect, commitment, serious parent involvement, focus on academics,languages animal husbandry, gardening, outdoor activities, the arts, learning woodworking, needledwork, some horsemanship, athletics, and drama. I know I missed a few...

If any doubt, go introduce yourselves and have a chat. You would be welcome and the public is invited to the Shakespeare festival and other festivities throughout the year. It might be a real education.

Maddy, you are implying that anyone who does not send their children to a Waldorf school does not deeply care about the above values.

I personally know of several wonderful families who pulled their kids from Waldorf because there was rampant bullying (teachers refused to get involved..."kids need to work it out for themselves")...and the teachers were adamant about the kids memorizing prayers to fairies and Waldorf-specific deities.

Alex and Sage both went to a Waldorf camp for a week the past summer...our friends were going and they wanted company, figured one week wouldn't hurt...they both came home confused as to why the teachers would only talk in sing-song voices, why Alex was told that reading was bad for her at this age (she's been a natural and avid reader since the age of 3), and they were both publicly scolded for not wanting to recite religious prayers before lunch (this is supposed to be a SECULAR institution).

Waldorf seems to work for many families...great. It does NOT work for many others.

The ONE thing I DID like was the outside time....except when the kids were told they MUST look for fairies...

The one thing I wish all schools would take from Waldorf is the mandatory outside time (minus the fairy aspect). Kudos to them for that, if nothing else.

 

[gaiagirl]

This is not an ad for the place where I work, but instead an acknowledgement of the schools where I do programs and the teachers that work there --- The public schools in Bartlett, Jackson, Center Conway, Tamworth and on and on all are committed to getting kids outside and learning science, literature, writing, math, you-name-it, in a hands-on, authentic and active way; all without mandatory prayer, singing, or being made to feel somehow less if your lunchbox isn't filled with home-made organic treats or if you sometimes watch TV.
The teachers I work with care deeply about the kids and the school-level administrators generally care about more than test scores and budget bottom-lines.

I won't say anything specifically about Waldorf education, because frankly, it could get me into trouble.

Enough said.

 

[Maddy]

Maddy, you are implying that anyone who does not send their children to a Waldorf school does not deeply care about the above values.

I personally know of several wonderful families who pulled their kids from Waldorf because there was rampant bullying (teachers refused to get involved..."kids need to work it out for themselves")...and the teachers were adamant about the kids memorizing prayers to fairies and Waldorf-specific deities.

Alex and Sage both went to a Waldorf camp for a week the past summer...our friends were going and they wanted company, figured one week wouldn't hurt...they both came home confused as to why the teachers would only talk in sing-song voices, why Alex was told that reading was bad for her at this age (she's been a natural and avid reader since the age of 3), and they were both publicly scolded for not wanting to recite religious prayers before lunch (this is supposed to be a SECULAR institution).
Waldorf seems to work for many families...great. It does NOT work for many others.


The ONE thing I DID like was the outside time....except when the kids were told they MUST look for fairies...

The one thing I wish all schools would take from Waldorf is the mandatory outside time (minus the fairy aspect). Kudos to them for that, if nothing else.

Now Trish, we can't be too hard on the "fairies". I know lots of kids who enjoy fairies.Outside time really if terrific but we have all come across those who think it's cruel to bring children out in adverse conditions. You mentioned meeting people who I believe judged you harshly for having Alex out in inclement weather. There is always a mix. I have met some folks who don't want to expose their children to anything "make believe", not even Santa. They want to eliminate the poor guy.

I don't know which W school you had exposure to but to the best of my knowledge the one in our area is terrific.
I'm sure they are not all perfect. There are bad apples everywhere but overall I think they do good work.
I was not implying that "anyone who does not send their children to a Waldorf school does not deeply care about the above values." The values I wrote about are those that are developed, fostered ,cultivated, fertilized, allowed to grow, at a Waldorf school. If you are a real slacker and like to cause trouble, you would be asked to leave. This was not meant to be interpreted as everyone else in the world does not have these same wonderful values, and obviously some more than others. There are also those who have questionable values, and some who appear to have none at all, or they keep them very well hidden. I never went to a Waldorf school and I think I have decent values.

I do know the young woman who attends the school and her mom. She was in my knitting class. The little girl started school there at about age 4. As recently as two weeks ago she was not, nor were her parents, talking fairies or worshiping Waldorf deities. She is the one who has no TV and they do a lot of reading in the evening.

I'm sorry that your friends had a horrible experience at one particular school and that the problem could not be resolved in a peaceful manner. It's also a shame that Alex had such negative experience at their camp.
I will use NOLS and OB as examples. Some people are asked to leave courses because of their behavior, and there are those who hate the experience and outright quit. It's not for everyone but it does not mean that they are not great institutions. You can still be a great person even if you never attended one of their courses, if you quite, or were told to leave.

The W experience most definitely is not for "everyone". Their curriculum is very different from that of our local public schools, as is their method of teaching. Their are lots of schools out there using varied methods and having good success. Outward Bound has "experiential" schools here in the US. We each have to find our own niche in life and hope that what we do works well for us, but if by chance it doesn't their are lots more to choose from.

 

[Stash]

reverting to ...when I was a kid.

..I try to imagine a modern parent (including me) allowing their 10 year old row his 8' skiff a few miles up the bay to see a friend. Life jacket? I can swim...

 

[sardog1]

I'm reporting this thread to the moderators and asking for it to be closed. The offenders will know why.

 

[Chip]

We used to play army in neighborhood "new construction" with BB guns and fire crackers. We used to run through the swamp and light bogs on fire. We used to try to ride the old farmers' cows across the street by climbing an apple tree and dropping down on the cow when it walked underneith. We trespassed CONSTANTLY. We raided neighbors gardens. We played hockey on partially frozen ponds. We rode our bikes and skateboards down steep hills with no helmet. We broke into the elementary school on the weekend to screw with some poor kids science project. We built tree forts on other people's property. We didn't release the fish we caught in the neighbors pond we didn't have permission to be on.

I haven't let my boys do any of these things. Not saying it's right or wrong, I was actually considered to be a "good kid" in my neighborhood. Times are different. My boys are better campers, musicians, athletes and students than I was at their age, that's for sure.

 

[Maddy]

I haven't let my boys do any of these things. Not saying it's right or wrong, I was actually considered to be a "good kid" in my neighborhood. Times are different. My boys are better campers, musicians, athletes and students than I was at their age, that's for sure.[/QUOTE

....and I think they might had "DAD to thank for that!
Strong work, Chip!!!

 

[David Metsky]

Mod hat - I think we've gone far afield (sorry) from any subject that relates to VftT.

-dave- (who walked to school as a kid, in 20 below temps, uphill both ways)