Calgary Waldorf School

Calgary Waldorf School is different than a traditional school. Our Preschool and Kindergarten programs invite children into imaginative discovery and immersive play. Simple, natural materials create a warm, magical world filled with wonder and beauty. Outdoor exploration and seasonal festivals cultivate a strong connection to the natural world. Through our unique approach to nurturing childhood, our programs develop creative and social skills that set the foundation for future academic success. On September 19, 2019, Waldorf education celebrated 100 years. Across the globe, Waldorf schools are engaging in creative, social and environmental actions. With these initiatives, Waldorf communities are seeding the future. 100 years is only the beginning.

There are many things that make the Calgary Waldorf School different from other independent and public schools. In addition to the points below, a visit to our school will provide a tangible experience of our difference. Please join us for a tour or special event. Some of the ways Waldorf Education will provide an extraordinary experience for your child and your family:

• Waldorf methodology helps develop an internal motivation to learn by freely using arts and activities in the service of teaching academics.
• The curriculum directly reflects the developmental stages of childhood.
• Academics are de-emphasized in the early years of schooling. The Waldorf Kindergarten experience focuses on the cultivation of pre-academic skills. Literacy readiness begins in Kindergarten with formal reading instruction beginning in Grade One.
• The class teacher stays with the same class for several years developing a strong educational bond as the teacher gains an indepth understanding of each child’s unique learning style.
• Certain activities, often considered “frills” at mainstream schools, are central to the curriculum at the Calgary Waldorf School: art, music, handwork/woodwork, outdoor activities, and two foreign languages.
• There are no “textbooks” in the first through fifth grades. Children learn from lecture and observation and develop “main lesson books”, workbooks in which they record their experiences and learnings.
• Learning in a Waldorf school is a noncompetitive activity. The teacher writes a detailed evaluation of the child at the end of each school year.
• The use of electronic media, particularly television, by young children is discouraged in Waldorf schools. So too is the over-emphasis of commercialism and busy extra-curricular schedules. The importance of a balanced and strong family life is emphasized, encouraged and supported at our school.

The Calgary Waldorf School’s holistic education blends a unique approach with the provincial curriculum, ensuring provincial funding and full accreditation by Alberta Learning. Graduating students make successful transitions to a variety of public and private senior high schools, with most going on to post-secondary studies. Our dedicated and caring faculty weave together academic achievement with hands-on experience in an artistic environment, integrating. The curriculum is delivered through innovative teaching methods designed to engage the growing child:

• In pre-school and kindergarten through imitation and guided creative play
• In elementary school through imaginative and artistic presentations by the class teacher
• In junior high through challenging students’ awakening capacity for independent thinking

By nourishing the mind and senses through imaginative play and gently guided activities, the Calgary Waldorf School Early Childhood Program fosters the development of the whole child and provides a solid foundation for future academic study. A focus on play rather than strict academic study in early childhood provides the child with time to develop creative and social skills.

Our Preschool and Kindergarten rooms are filled with simple, natural materials which invite imaginative discovery. Each day the teacher greets the children, welcoming them into a warm, magical world. Children’s creativity is stimulated as they transform wool and silk cloths, wood pieces and sand, and shells and rocks into costumes, toys and settings for play and adventure.

The Kinder-wing is busy with activity but unhurried as children follow the rhythm of the day. Watercolor painting, beeswax modeling, crafts and baking develop children’s artistic and fine motor skills, while fairy tales, puppet plays and songs nourish their language development, self expression and feeling life. Seasonal festivals and outdoor exploration cultivate a connection to the natural world and lay the groundwork for future scientific studies. The child’s days are filled with both structured and unstructured activities that exercise their fresh and dynamic powers of imagination.

Preschool and Kindergarten are environments of love, warmth, and harmony, allowing a gentle transition between the security of home and the coming elementary school years. The Calgary Waldorf School offers an Aftercare program for children enrolled in our Kindergarten, Preschool and Grades One to Three programs. If you would like to register for the program, please complete the Aftercare Registration Form and include it with your Application for Admission. Spaces are limited.

At this stage in their development, all children have inherent creativity. These creative interests are enlivened when academics are delivered through carefully structured lessons enriched with choral singing, story telling, rhythmic activities and dynamic discussion.