This is our last look at different homeschooling styles. Today we will be looking at the worlds of Holistic/Alternative Homeschooling in the Waldorf , Enki and Reggio Emelia methods.
Waldorf
The Waldorf Method is a fast growing international movement arising from the philosophy and methods of Rudolf Steiner who founded the first Waldorf School in Stuttgart, Germany in l9l9. Steiner's insights have lead to new approaches in medicine, architecture, the fine arts, economics, and agriculture as well as education.
Waldorf education is designed to address the whole child: the head the heart and the hands. It stimulates the mind with a full spectrum of traditional academic subjects; it nurtures healthy emotional development by conveying information experientially as well as academically; and it teachers the hands to be valued members of the child’s being through a broad range of artistic and physical activities.
Waldorf education emphasizes respect, wonder for nature and reverence for human existence. Learning becomes much more than the acquisition of vast amounts of information; rather, learning becomes an engaging voyage of discovery, both of the world and of oneself. Because it touches children on a deeper level, they remember more easily what they have learned.
(source)
Waldorf Resources
Waldorf Curriculum
Waldorf Blogs
Enki
Enki homeschooling is a curriculum which aims to join vision and practicalities into an ideal education. Each activity must be worth doing and support the overall health of the family.
Features of Enki Philosophy
- Rhythms and circle times are used to cover content areas.
- Arts-integrated curriculum is woven into family life.
- Focus is kept on the core issues of what the parent wants to bring to the children, i.e., health and happiness.
- Methods are adaptable to various learning environments.
- Sensory integration and artistic movement activities.
Other features include meeting needs for community and meeting the needs of multiple age siblings.
Content Areas
- Humanities
- Mathematics
- Science
- Projects and crafts
- Foreign language
- Visual arts
- Movement arts
- Music
- (source)
Enki Links
Enki Blogs
Reggio Emelia
The Reggio Emelia Method originated in Italy and is seen as a wonderful way to see Early Childhood Education. It is an approach more than a curriculum but it has been used in planning homeschooling.
It is fairly new this side of the world so not many resources exist. I have to admit I have not heard of it before I started researching the different homeschool methods. The method and how it has been used is discussed in the following links.
After reading about all these methods for the past month and looking at all the cool blogs filled with thousands of ideas and plans for your homeschool, it is easy to feel overwhelmed. I have about 100 blog posts bookmarked with ideas I'd like to incorporate into our day. I will probably whittle them down to 20 or so actual "do-able" ideas. This is about finding inspiration and being creative. This isn't about setting unattainable standards for yourself and your kids. Find one neat thing you'd like to try and work that in gradually. If you want to add something else a few months down the road then great! This is a great blog post that sums it up quite nicely.
