"How do we as parents, in today's complicated, frantic world, create an atmosphere of regularity, consistency and stability?  How best can we nurture our young child's capacities for peace, creativity, ingenuity? The answer is simple, though not always easy. We do it by supporting their life-building will energies with the basic elements of Waldorf early education: physical and emotional warmth; a wholesome, nourishing diet; an atmosphere of beauty and reverence; consistent daily rhythms; calm, loving authority and guidance.  While each of these elements is important, appropriate rhy ..read more

This might be the hardest post of this series.  I have spent days in meditation trying to decide exactly the right words to say.  Before I begin, please do not assume offense on anything.  I always try to come from a loving and unbiased place, so if you hear judgment in what I write, come back and read it again because that is not the intent. My single friends.  I want to talk to you first.  I was a single mom for a time.  During that time I didn't want to talk about or really hear from those with a healthy marriage.  It wasn't my reality.  I only wanted ..read more

Now many people want to know what on earth God has to do with their child and their rhythm and their ability to homeschool. Everything. We are living in a time when reliance on the Spirit is seen as weakness and we are sold the lie that science has it all. Steiner could feel this lie even in his own time and spoke tirelessly of the connection between the spirit world and science.  We have to come to a place that reveres both.  Many of us have been indoctrinated in the public school system where God wasn't allowed so it will take time to bring those pieces together for you.  What ..read more

Someone once told me, "If Dr.Wayne Dyer can be called the father of intention, then Melisa you are the mother of rhythm and the guardian of the will."  Maybe I am.  It sounds a bit silly. I have written about rhythm so much over the years that it becomes second nature to talk about and sometimes I worry that younger moms think "yeah well that crazy Melisa doesn't know how busy my son is!" or "she must have easy children!"  Now those that have been with us for years know that NEITHER is the case! So many things go into crafting a healthy home rhythm.  If you are starting fr ..read more

One of my biggest aims in supporting homeschooling families is helping husbands and wives communicate and relate to each other.  By finding common ground, gaps can be bridged and partners can build some depth in their relationship - depth that meets the needs of both Mom and Dad.  Most of the time when a mom tells me that Dad isn't supportive of Steiner/Waldorf/homeschooling, it is just a symptom of a much larger problem.  There is a big hole in how they communicate and Steiner just makes that gap seem bigger than ever. My husband, Erik, is a huge film buff.  ..read more

WHY do we teach what we do for each grade? WHEN do we place children for their ages? WHAT about moving ahead and holding back? Waldorf is much different than anything you have ever experienced. You must suspend all you know about how the mainstream education system. All you know about grades, what age your child should go to school and whether or not they are gifted (or delayed) EVERYTHING. It is only when you do this that you can be fully ready to understand Waldorf. Ready? Suppose that you can look beyond the physical being standing before you and really understand your child ..read more

I have been studying anthroposophy for many years, both in its application to education, as well as spirituality and human nature as a whole.  In “Gratitude, Love, and Duty,” Steiner mentions: "Every education is self-education, and as teachers we can only provide the environment for children’s self-education. We have to provide the most favorable conditions where, through our agency, children can educate themselves according to their own destinies.” Steiner, is very clear about us providing the favorable conditions. These are young children we are talking about. Many parents, even s ..read more

The changes at age 9 are very different from those at any other stage. I found the changes at 6 (traversed it personally 5 times) much easier, but it does give you some prep for 9. The changes at 12, 14, 16 are way easier than age 9 (at least in my experience.) I sort of think of some of the changes like this... If 6 is leaving Eden, the changes at 6 are often sadness and frustration at the loss of being small, the changes at 9, are a follow up to that. At 9, they are smacked with some of the horror of the world, they are mad about their new found independent feelings but they can't do a ton ..read more

I have heard this from many over the years. I try hard to not chuckle because when I started down this path there really was very little in the way of support. Eric Fairman's guides were about the only guides out there unless you wanted to spend hundreds of dollars on one of the two big companies.  That money was never in my budget so I would each summer buy Fairman's newest book and write what we would do for the school year - it would take me a good two months to get it all in place but then I was set. I remember being so thankful for what was there. I also took this time to really ..read more

I often get objections of "I just don't have time for handwork!" Sure you do!   We are super busy people.   We have been a family of five children, homeschool and run our business... we are full on, full time... BUSY people. While I have Erik here to help, he is often doing his end of our business and hours will go by with him tucked in his office. I find little nuggets of time to knit and plan out afternoons for sewing. It can be done. Aside from Steiner's indications of handwork being appropriate for developing children, I feel like it really enriches our home, it bring ..read more