Professional development for Waldorf teachers and homeschool parents
This course offers you an invaluable opportunity to focus entirely on your upcoming fourth grade school year in five days filled with discussions, presentations, practical activities, and the arts. With the insights of anthroposophy, gleaned through a daily look at child development focusing on your class’s age group, you will get to know the fourth grade child in depth as he or she steps into a more objective relationship to learning.
Under the guidance of an experienced class teacher, you’ll discover ways to enliven your teaching and how to approach the blocks so that they may meet the fourth grader in a deep and meaningful way. There will be time and space to consider and hone your skills in such practical matters as main lesson books, block planning, projects and activities, and classroom management.
In addition to inspiration and guidance which will support your teaching throughout the year, you’ll gain many invaluable opportunities for building connections among a community of parallel colleagues from across the country, to carry with you into your teaching.
Your week will be chock-full of such key fourth grade topics as:
- Working with mythological story content for fourth grade literature
- Building skills in language arts
- Teaching local geography
- Discovering the world of fractions
These subjects will be supported by explorations in art, music, and movement, giving you practical tools to take into your school year.
Useful, grade-specific resource materials, including poems, songs, stories, and main lesson book ideas, will be provided to you when you arrive on campus.
Note: This course is taught with the expectation that you have a background in Waldorf Education.
Instructor Steve Simonak is currently fourth grade class teacher at the Brooklyn Waldorf School. Prior to coming to Brooklyn in 2016, Steve was a longtime faculty member at Hawthorne Valley Waldorf School; during his 26 years there, he served as a class and high school teacher; middle school math and arts teacher, and Council of Teachers chairperson. He also established the Hawthorne Valley Surveying Practicum and wrote many class plays that have been performed around the country. Steve, who holds a BFA in Painting from Pratt Institute, received his Waldorf Teaching Certificate from the Alkion Center (for which he is a contributing faculty member) and has training in Foundation Studies from Antioch. Before becoming a Waldorf educator, he was a teacher in New York City. Steve’s hobbies include New York State history, medieval Christian painting, gardening, birdwatching, and bird photography.
Participants who previously took a Grades course with Steve had this to say:
~ Steve has lots of great ideas, and I especially appreciated his hands-on approach
~ It was a great pleasure to work with Steve. He is a well of inspiration and knowledge
~ I loved Steve’s quality and care for teaching and his openness to questions
~ Steve is so receptive to the needs of the group
~ He was very approachable
~ Steve did a great job facilitating conversation & drawing ideas out of us
~ This course was of a superior quality! I enjoyed the practical nature of the content: this is all material I can use right away
Schedule
Sunday, July 9: Optional campus tour 5:30-6pm; Registration 6-7pm; First session runs from 7-9pm
Monday, July 10-Thursday, July 13: Classes begin each day by 8:30am and run through 5:30pm, with an hour for lunch and short mid-morning and mid-afternoon breaks.
Friday, July 14: Classes begin by 8:30am and end between 12-1pm, with a mid-morning break.
Fee
$795 (includes all materials and non-refundable $75 registration fee). Discounts may apply; see registration form for details.
Visit https://www.sunbridge.edu for further information.
