Waldorf School of Baltimore
The Waldorf School of Baltimore is an independent, co-educational school that was established in 1971 under the name New Morning School,located in the Cold Spring Newtown community, Baltimore, Maryland. The school provides a liberal arts education that focuses on academic excellence and creative, intellectual and spiritual growth. It adopted the Waldorf curriculum in 1972 and now offers Parent/Child classes for infants and toddlers, a Nursery and Kindergarten program and Grades 1-8. It is a Maryland Green School..39°20′49″N 76°39′17″W / 39.3469°N 76.6547°W History First established in 1919 in Stuttgart, Germany, the Waldorf (or Steiner) educational model is based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner; it now reaches around the world. There are over 2000 early childhood programs and over 1000 Waldorf schools worldwide. Only approximately 40 Waldorf schools in North America offer a high school program.
Most Waldorf schools are independent, but they share a common outlook on human development and the educational approach that holds that a hands-on, developmentally-appropriate and arts-integrated curriculum is fundamental to the development of a healthy child. Interest is high in comparing Waldorf methods with current discoveries in brain research about effective learning. Independent schools in Canada, USA and Mexico collaborate through the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America [www.whywaldorfworks.org]. Schools in the USA receive no government stipends for parents, but must provide their own funds for financial aid; many other countries around the world support private schools with a percentage of the tuition for students.
Waldorf schools were ground-breaking in the early part of the 20th century. Co-education, classes with students from mixed socio-economic backgrounds, and the inclusion of practical arts in an academic curriculum were new ideas. There were closed down by the Nazi party during the war years because they taught "free thinkers". In the present day, extensive years of looping (the same class teacher moving through the grades with a class) and guiding students in creating their own 'textbooks' are unique approaches. Other innovations, such as providing some long (1 1/2 to 2 hour) class periods for concentrated work and integrating learning across several subject matters have become mainstream. Although the idea that integrating the arts into academic learning has now been recognized as an effective teaching strategy, Waldorf schools are still unique in the way they accomplish this. Curriculum Waldorf schools hold firm against some current trends in education. Teaching with technology in the pre-school and lower grades is not seen in Waldorf schools; technology in middle schools is unusual beyond library science. Waldorf schools are known for teacher-led activities and hands-on learning with open-ended toys made of natural materials and low-tech tools. Waldorf early childhood programs resist the pressure to bring early academics into pre-school years; teachers carefully construct environments that allow for exploration, imitation and self-guided play, insisting that these are age-appropriate goals. Waldorf schools question the efficacy of frequent standardized testing; such methods as observational assessment, grades given for specific assignments and narrative reports are held to be of higher value. Licensing The Waldorf School of Baltimore is licensed by the State of Maryland Board of Education, is a fully accredited member of the Association of Independent Maryland Schools (AIMS), and is a full member of and accredited by the Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America and the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America (AWSNA).
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