Curriculum

Video of a 1st Grade French Class

created by Karl Schurman and 10th grade student, Cyrus Fenderson

Language Arts

To help students become fluent in the language of their culture, the curriculum emphasizes creative writing, speech, reading, spelling, grammar, handwriting and drama. These elements are interwoven throughout the curriculum and emphasized in specific blocks.

Humanities

The humanities curriculum draws on rich and diverse cultural sources, with a progression from fairy tales, fables and legends and Old Testament stories in the early grades to study of Norse mythology and the ancient cultures of India, Persia, Egypt and Greece. By the end of 8th grade, students have journeyed through Roman and medieval history, the Renaissance, the Reformation, the age of Exploration, the Industrial Revolution and up to the present.

Sciences

Zoology, botany, mineralogy, astronomy, chemistry, environmental studies, biology and basic physics are all covered in the grade school science curriculum. Students begin with nature stories and experience outdoors, then are introduced to scientific concepts that promote an integrated understanding of the whole.

Mathematics

During the grade school years, students attain a strong foundation in numbers, basic math, fractions, geometry, algebra, graphing and ratios. Children first encounter the world of numbers through stories, musical rhythms and artistic activities, before gaining skills in abstract reasoning.

Foreign Languages

The foreign language program begins in kindergarten with two languages, French and German, chosen for their contrasting language structure and cultures. The languages are taught through songs and games in the early grades, and through grammar, reading, writing and dramatic plays in the higher grades. The goal is to open the child’s mind to the culture embodied in these different languages and to foster greater flexibility of thinking.

Music

Music is emphasized for its power to create and nourish a sense of community. Children sing every day in the early grades, and more formal choral singing is part of the 5th through 8th grade curriculum. In the 1st grade children learn to play a pentatonic flute and in 3rd grade they advance to a soprano recorder. In the 4th and 5th grades all students receive instruction in a stringed instrument (violin or cello). Students in 6th, 7th and 8th grades elect to participate either in the orchestral ensemble or the bell choir. Musical performances are part of school assemblies and seasonal celebrations.

Fine Arts and Practical Arts

Artistic activity is an integral part of the curriculum. Students have many opportunities for creative expression through watercolor painting, drawing, modeling and puppetry. Instruction in practical arts is intended not simply to teach skills, but to support each student’s unfolding as a well-balanced, self-confident individual. Over the course of eight years, every student learns to knit, crochet, embroider and sew, as well as model with clay and work with wood.

Movement

Spatial awareness, strength and coordination, healthy social interaction, and a joy in movement are the goals of classes in movement and spatial dynamics. These classes take place mostly outdoors. Games and sports such as volleyball, basketball, archery, Ultimate Frisbee and cross-country skiing are coeducational and stress teamwork rather than competition. Students learn juggling and other circus arts.

Eurythmy

An art of movement developed by Rudolf Steiner, eurythmy attempts to make visible through movement the forms that sounds create in the air. Students progress from simple clapping and walking in different rhythms to group exercises that require considerable skill and timing. Through eurythmy, students gain social sensitivity, a heightened awareness of each other’s place in the group, and new capacities for academic learning.

Return to Top