The Eugene Waldorf School is home to three kindergartens (with children ages four through six combined) and one preschool (for children who are three and potty trained). We gather to play and work together from 8:30 till 12:30 in the kindergartens, and from 8:15 to 12:15 in the preschool.
In Waldorf education for young children, great emphasis is placed on the development of a strong and deeply-rooted creative capacity. The seeds for truly creative thinking in later life begin with the imagination.
A Natural Environment for Growth
In the Kindergarten, the overall environment, the unique play materials, and the chosen activities all contribute to fostering the child's natural powers of wonder and fantasy. The room is beautiful and aesthetically ordered. The softly tinted walls are painted with warm, transparent colors, the wooden tables and play structures are hand-crafted, and the room is softened by colored cloths and draped play areas. The world of nature and the rhythm and beauty of the seasons enliven the classroom environment. In this way, the child's senses are nourished, and the joy and wonder of childhood are kept alive. The play materials are chosen so as to allow the greatest amount of the child's own imagination to come into play. When the child is required to really "clothe" his or her play materials with his or her own powers of imagination, the work of childhood play is at its best. Rudolf Steiner stressed that our creative capacities are actually built up and exercised like any muscle: with use, they grow strong and vital. The young child naturally applies these forces with complete joy and devotion.
Strengthening Creativity and Imagination
Through artistic work, the child's creative process is also strengthened through rich experience with color and form. Through the interaction of simple, primary colors, the child sees the whole spectrum emerge on paper. The children also color with special beeswax crayons shaped like small blocks. These crayons are easy to hold, and with them, broad sweeps of color are used to create the image rather than sharp, thin lines. Beeswax has a warm and living quality that makes it suitable also for the young child to model with. The children's warm hands soften the wax, and when the form is complete, the wax hardens again as it cools.
Another important aspect in the development of a strong imaginative life is the use of fairy tales. The art of storytelling is alive in the kindergarten through oral storytelling, and fairy tales provide inner nourishment through archetypal truths about the world in picture form. In the stories chosen, we have wonderful pictures of what it is to be human, and of the work and good will that we can bring into the world.
Come and experience this world for yourself! See the calendar for the next open house or call our enrollment coordinator to set up a tour.
