Waldorf Methods/Reading and MathIntroduction
Language is our most important means of mutual understanding and is therefore the primary medium of education. It is also a highly significant formative influence in the child’s psychological and spiritual development and its cultivation is central to the educational tasks of Steiner/Waldorf education. It is the aim of the curriculum to cultivate language skills and awareness in all subjects and teaching settings. Clearly the teaching of the mother tongue has a pivotal role within the whole education.
Mathematics in the Waldorf school is divided into stages. In the first stage, which covers the first five classes, mathematics is developed as an activity intimately connected to the life process of the child, and progresses from the internal towards the external. In the second stage, covering classes 6 to 8, the main emphasis is on the practical. Course OutlineSophia Institute Waldorf Courses: The Art of Teaching Waldorf Grade 4
Lesson 1 / Waldorf Curriculum / Introduction Lesson 2 / Waldorf Curriculum / Grades 4 - 6 (Part 1) Lesson 3 / Waldorf Curriculum / Grades 4 - 6 (Part 2) Lesson 4 / Waldorf Methods / Reading and Math / Introduction Lesson 5 / Waldorf Methods / Reading and Math / Reading / Grade 4 Lesson 6 / Waldorf Methods / Reading and Math / Math / Grade 4 Lesson 7 / Waldorf Methods / Sciences / Chemistry / Introduction Lesson 8 / Waldorf Methods / Sciences / Physics / Introduction Lesson 9 / Waldorf Methods / Sciences / Life Sciences / Introduction Lesson 10 / Waldorf Methods / Sciences / Geography / Introduction Lesson 11 / Waldorf Methods / Sciences / Geography / Grades 1 - 8 Lesson 12 / Waldorf Methods / Sciences / Gardening and Sustainable Living |
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Tasks and Assignments for Art of Teaching Waldorf Grade 4 /AoT45
Please study and work with the study material provided for this lesson. Use additional study material as wanted/needed. Then please turn to the following tasks and assignments listed below.
1. Create examples of curriculum that addresses the learning method and content appropriate for the grade 4 as follows, Curriculum examples should include outlines and goals, activities, circle/games, stories, and illustrations/drawings:
1.1. Create 2 examples that relate to "Speaking and Listening" for grade 4.
1.2. Create 2 examples that relate to "Narrative Content and Reading Material" for grade 4.
1.3. Create 2 examples that relate to "Grammar" for grade 4.
1.4. Create 2 examples that relate to "Writing and Reading" for grade 4.
2. Additionally submit comments and questions, if any.
Please send your completed assignment via the online form or via email.
1. Create examples of curriculum that addresses the learning method and content appropriate for the grade 4 as follows, Curriculum examples should include outlines and goals, activities, circle/games, stories, and illustrations/drawings:
1.1. Create 2 examples that relate to "Speaking and Listening" for grade 4.
1.2. Create 2 examples that relate to "Narrative Content and Reading Material" for grade 4.
1.3. Create 2 examples that relate to "Grammar" for grade 4.
1.4. Create 2 examples that relate to "Writing and Reading" for grade 4.
2. Additionally submit comments and questions, if any.
Please send your completed assignment via the online form or via email.
Study Material for this Lesson
English Language and Literature/Class 4
During the first three classes, literacy skills have tended to be wholly integrated. From Class 4 onwards there is an increasing differentiation of skills practice. As more time tends to be devoted to literacy skills, it is important to maintain the cultivation of spoken language through recitation and speech exercises, reporting and describing, discussing and listening.
Speaking and Listening
During Class 3 the children gradually became more detached from their wish to imagine their surroundings through imaginative stories told by their class teacher. Now, in Class 4, they turn much more directly towards nature and the world as it appears to external perception. As well as reciting seasonal nature poems, they now also enjoy poems that tell of human beings who are 'street-wise' or even 'wise' in the loftier sense." Poems relating to the main-lesson topics, such as the study of animals, local geography and history are chosen for recitation.
The main subject for the narrative content of the main -lesson is legends, tales and songs from the Icelandic epic The Edda. Speaking and stepping the rhythms of alliterative poetry gives the children the experience that speech carried on the breath can be filled by the rhythm of a slower or faster heartbeat, depending on the content. In speaking alliterative poetry, the will element in speech is strengthened, an experience which enables the children to bring their feeling life into strong connection with their breath and pulse, which has the effect of centering them. The artistic element of the poetic imagery prevents this from being a merely physical activity. Being centered, the children can stand more firmly in life and orientate themselves in relation to their environment.
The main subject for the narrative content of the main -lesson is legends, tales and songs from the Icelandic epic The Edda. Speaking and stepping the rhythms of alliterative poetry gives the children the experience that speech carried on the breath can be filled by the rhythm of a slower or faster heartbeat, depending on the content. In speaking alliterative poetry, the will element in speech is strengthened, an experience which enables the children to bring their feeling life into strong connection with their breath and pulse, which has the effect of centering them. The artistic element of the poetic imagery prevents this from being a merely physical activity. Being centered, the children can stand more firmly in life and orientate themselves in relation to their environment.
Narrative Content and Reading Material
Apart from these smaller selections from The Edda, the legends of the Norse gods and heroes provide the main story content in Class 4. After the creation story of the Old Testament, the children now enjoy the great creation images from the Norse myths. Their initial question, 'which is true?' is easy to answer. Both are true. Although a high mountain looks different depending on whether you approach it from the south, north, east or west, it remains the same mountain. Considerations like this lay the foundations for a willingness to look at things from several angles.
Should Norse myths be told in all Waldorf schools, or just those within the Northern European cultural orbit? The consensus appears to be yes, but ... The myths of the Norse gods do appear to have a universality to them whilst the legends of the Heroes are much more related to the specific folk soul and culture. Perhaps tales of 'local heroes' would be more appropriate here. In the UK, the story of Beowolf can be told or read in translation, as can the stories contained in Harald's Saga, which recalls the life of Harald Hardrada, a key figure in the events of 1066. The historical background of the Vikings can also be a theme appropriate in this class.
Should Norse myths be told in all Waldorf schools, or just those within the Northern European cultural orbit? The consensus appears to be yes, but ... The myths of the Norse gods do appear to have a universality to them whilst the legends of the Heroes are much more related to the specific folk soul and culture. Perhaps tales of 'local heroes' would be more appropriate here. In the UK, the story of Beowolf can be told or read in translation, as can the stories contained in Harald's Saga, which recalls the life of Harald Hardrada, a key figure in the events of 1066. The historical background of the Vikings can also be a theme appropriate in this class.
Grammar
Among the many comments he made about how the learning child relates to grammar, Steiner also pointed to a link between grammar and the ego or "I". In a talk on language given shortly before the Waldorf School opened in Stuttgart, he said: 'By entering consciously into the structure of language one learns a great deal from the genius of language,' and this, he said, was 'of the greatest importance: A little further he then added: 'We owe to language in particular much of what we have in our ego, through which we feel we are a personality.'
When appropriate methods were used in the classroom, he continued, the children's ego-feeling is awakened in the right way.
If it is wrongly awakened it actually fans the flames of egoism, but if you awaken it in the right way it fans the flames of the will ... for selflessness and for living together with the surrounding world.
Five years later, in a teachers' meeting on June 19,1924 he spoke of this again:
Working on language in connection with grammar is related to ego-development ... Not that you should ask how to develop the ego from grammar; it is the grammar itself that does that,"
When the children 'consciously live their way into the structure of language', they become aware of the great link that embraces all human beings who share their language with them.
The basic structure of grammar is of course common to all languages. Universal Grammar, or generative grammar is, according to modern linguistic theory since Chomsky, innate and facilitates language acquisition. Raised to consciousness, grammar gives the child an archetypal experience of relationships in the world, as they are expressed by the different parts of speech.
The theme for Class 4 is tenses:
It is just this time that one endeavours to call up in the children a clear idea of the tenses and all that comes to expression by changing the form of the verb ... A child must clearly feel that she cannot say 'the man ran' when she means 'the man has run '; ... that she acquires a feeling for when to say 'the man stood' and when to say' the man has stood' ... Forming language plastically is what we should practise in the mother tongue when the child is about ten years old, a feeling for the plastic formative quality of language.
In English the children need to become aware of the qualities of the main tenses, past, present and how the future is formed. The forms of modal verbs and auxiliaries, to do, to be, to have, can, may, etc., can be learned in connection with the tenses as well as question forms and negatives.
In answer to a question about how to treat the perfect tense in German, Steiner said:
I would pull out all the stops in discussing with the children the parallel between the past and the perfect. What is a perfect human being, a perfect table? I would bring out the connection between what is perfect and finished and the perfect tense,"
In English it is clear that we must find equivalent phenomena. The distinctions between the simple past tense and present perfect or past perfect would be examples. The formation of all the tenses, past, present and future, should be taught, including the use of simple and continuous forms.
Prepositions are words indicating direction.
Spatial relationship and locality are also themes that belong in Class 4. Initially the literal spatial relationships indicated by in, on, at, above, beyond, etc. can be explored. These need to be physically experienced in space and can be pictorially represented, e.g. through a picture of workers in a house, on the roof, at the corner, going into the cellar etc. Other grammatical topics which can be taken include the use of adverbial phrases of time, place and manner, sentence structure and the identification of the main clause. In punctuation the use of question and exclamation marks can be taught as well as the use of the comma.
When appropriate methods were used in the classroom, he continued, the children's ego-feeling is awakened in the right way.
If it is wrongly awakened it actually fans the flames of egoism, but if you awaken it in the right way it fans the flames of the will ... for selflessness and for living together with the surrounding world.
Five years later, in a teachers' meeting on June 19,1924 he spoke of this again:
Working on language in connection with grammar is related to ego-development ... Not that you should ask how to develop the ego from grammar; it is the grammar itself that does that,"
When the children 'consciously live their way into the structure of language', they become aware of the great link that embraces all human beings who share their language with them.
The basic structure of grammar is of course common to all languages. Universal Grammar, or generative grammar is, according to modern linguistic theory since Chomsky, innate and facilitates language acquisition. Raised to consciousness, grammar gives the child an archetypal experience of relationships in the world, as they are expressed by the different parts of speech.
The theme for Class 4 is tenses:
It is just this time that one endeavours to call up in the children a clear idea of the tenses and all that comes to expression by changing the form of the verb ... A child must clearly feel that she cannot say 'the man ran' when she means 'the man has run '; ... that she acquires a feeling for when to say 'the man stood' and when to say' the man has stood' ... Forming language plastically is what we should practise in the mother tongue when the child is about ten years old, a feeling for the plastic formative quality of language.
In English the children need to become aware of the qualities of the main tenses, past, present and how the future is formed. The forms of modal verbs and auxiliaries, to do, to be, to have, can, may, etc., can be learned in connection with the tenses as well as question forms and negatives.
In answer to a question about how to treat the perfect tense in German, Steiner said:
I would pull out all the stops in discussing with the children the parallel between the past and the perfect. What is a perfect human being, a perfect table? I would bring out the connection between what is perfect and finished and the perfect tense,"
In English it is clear that we must find equivalent phenomena. The distinctions between the simple past tense and present perfect or past perfect would be examples. The formation of all the tenses, past, present and future, should be taught, including the use of simple and continuous forms.
Prepositions are words indicating direction.
Spatial relationship and locality are also themes that belong in Class 4. Initially the literal spatial relationships indicated by in, on, at, above, beyond, etc. can be explored. These need to be physically experienced in space and can be pictorially represented, e.g. through a picture of workers in a house, on the roof, at the corner, going into the cellar etc. Other grammatical topics which can be taken include the use of adverbial phrases of time, place and manner, sentence structure and the identification of the main clause. In punctuation the use of question and exclamation marks can be taught as well as the use of the comma.
Writing and Reading
Essay writing still chiefly involves recounting accurately in writing what has been heard verbally. Formal letters are also practised, e.g. writing to a farmer, a baker, a jeweller about a possible visit to their business premises by the class. The children also learn to write with a fountain pen, perhaps having first made and used a goose feather quill.
In spelling the children should be learning groups of related words and learning common but difficult words such as beautiful, experience, create. They should also be taught to guess the pronunciation and spelling of unfamiliar words. The children are shown how to use a dictionary.
The children write accounts of the stories and experiences they have had in school and in daily life. They write descriptions of animals, scenes from history, their impressions of local landscapes, journeys they have made and so on. Specialised vocabulary and terminology may be provided by the teacher on the board. They may also copy important texts such as sayings and quotations, poems and the texts of songs. Dictation in a range of modes remains an important tool for listening, spelling and word recognition.
Class readers may be used but these are supplemented by access to a wide range of literature in the classroom and in the library.
In spelling the children should be learning groups of related words and learning common but difficult words such as beautiful, experience, create. They should also be taught to guess the pronunciation and spelling of unfamiliar words. The children are shown how to use a dictionary.
The children write accounts of the stories and experiences they have had in school and in daily life. They write descriptions of animals, scenes from history, their impressions of local landscapes, journeys they have made and so on. Specialised vocabulary and terminology may be provided by the teacher on the board. They may also copy important texts such as sayings and quotations, poems and the texts of songs. Dictation in a range of modes remains an important tool for listening, spelling and word recognition.
Class readers may be used but these are supplemented by access to a wide range of literature in the classroom and in the library.
Checklist for Literacy Skills in Classes 4 to 5
Most children of normal ability range will be able to:
Speaking and listening
4 Perform in a play and speak several lines individually, increasing in length by the end of Class 5 and be able to perform on stage before the school community.
Writing and reading
4 know how to use a dictionary
4 write with an ink pen
4 write an accurate account of events or stories heard in class 4 write a formal letter
4 know irregular plurals
4 know more irregular families of spellings
4 know remaining vowel and vowel/consonant digraphs
4 make a reasonable guess at unknown words in a text
4/5 read confidently and independently
5 read aloud fluently with awareness of punctuation including direct speech
5 take down a dictation on a known subject with reasonable accuracy
5 use a dictionary to find unfamiliar words for both spelling and meaning
5 use of common suffixes and prefixes
Grammar
4 use the comma and exclamation and question marks
5 use quotation marks in direct speech, colon and semi-colon, and appropriate use of paragraphs
5 know use and character of all major parts of speech: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions (time and space), the articles, conjunctions, interjections
5 use simple and continuous verb forms in all tenses, including present perfect and forms of the future, in questions and negatives and active and passive moods
Speaking and listening
4 Perform in a play and speak several lines individually, increasing in length by the end of Class 5 and be able to perform on stage before the school community.
Writing and reading
4 know how to use a dictionary
4 write with an ink pen
4 write an accurate account of events or stories heard in class 4 write a formal letter
4 know irregular plurals
4 know more irregular families of spellings
4 know remaining vowel and vowel/consonant digraphs
4 make a reasonable guess at unknown words in a text
4/5 read confidently and independently
5 read aloud fluently with awareness of punctuation including direct speech
5 take down a dictation on a known subject with reasonable accuracy
5 use a dictionary to find unfamiliar words for both spelling and meaning
5 use of common suffixes and prefixes
Grammar
4 use the comma and exclamation and question marks
5 use quotation marks in direct speech, colon and semi-colon, and appropriate use of paragraphs
5 know use and character of all major parts of speech: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions (time and space), the articles, conjunctions, interjections
5 use simple and continuous verb forms in all tenses, including present perfect and forms of the future, in questions and negatives and active and passive moods