Waldorf educators agree that ages twelve to fourteen mark an exciting and transformative stage in the life of the elementary school student, yet these are often years in which class size shrinks, parents lose faith, and teachers resign under fire. Are Waldorf schools out of touch with puberty and adolescence?

In this course, we will explore the deeper aspects of sixth, seventh, and eighth grades.
We will experience the profound implications of the “incorporation of the astral body” and its ramifications for the physical and emotional life of the child. We will come to appreciate the prescient ways in which Rudolf Steiner’s grades school curriculum meets the needs of this age group, particularly when it is interpreted by teachers who are on a path of inner development. Many examples of student work from the upper elementary grades will serve as mileposts along this ever-changing journey.

Some of the topics that we will cover include:

• 7, 9, and 12-year rhythms in the unfolding of consciousness
• Adolescence: the confluence of two streams of time
• From temperament to personality
• Family karma and individual destiny
• The monastic and knightly streams in the upper grades school • Grade 6/7/8 attrition: a blessing in disguise?
• The “Parent Support Group”: separate but equal
• “Initiates and Initiettes”: the Waldorf curriculum in our time

This course will have a dedicated website that will carry resource material and participant commentary throughout the summer.

In the last period of each day, there will be drawing, painting and modeling with Elizabeth Auer for the upper elementary grades.

This course will allow experienced teachers to renew their inspiration.

Materials fee: $25

EUGENE SCHWARTZ was a class teacher at Green Meadow Waldorf School for over two decades. He has taught the upper elementary school grades four times and also taught Parsifal, Faust, History through Art and Architecture, Ancient History, and English at Green Meadow and Shining Mountain Waldorf High Schools. Articles, podcasts, and other free resources may be found at www.millennialchild.com.