Now he is in the second year. Looking back on the past two years, I am more and more grateful to myself for insisting on sending him to such a Waldorf kindergarten, and to my family for their support in the past two years.
In such a kindergarten, children have no learning tasks. Their only task is to play freely. If you want to ask my son, "What did you learn in kindergarten?" He will tell you' we don't learn anything, we just play'. Seeing this, it is estimated that many parents are beginning to worry. "What light play?" Don't you learn to sing and dance? Don't you learn to spell numbers? Can primary schools keep up? "
Actually, I had the same anxiety two years ago. Maybe I can't answer your question well, but I know I'm not anxious now.
You are not mistaken. There are no small, middle and large classes here. This is a mixed-age class. Children of all ages are in the same class. If there are more than 20 children, another class will be held. There are two teachers in each class. In such an environment, the elderly will take care of the young, and the caregivers have a sense of responsibility and pride. They were not ordered to do so, but were subtly influenced by such an environment and have been taken care of since they entered the park. When they grow up, they will take care of the younger ones spontaneously. The younger ones can't wait to ask you, "am I a big brother (sister) now?"
From time to time, the teacher will share photos of children's mutual help and friendship in the group. For example, younger brothers and sisters will dress their younger brothers and sisters during lunch break, help them put on their shoes, and help them carry their kettles when they go out to play. The photo is still, maybe it's not that deep. But when you see it with your own eyes, your inner surprise and joy are beyond words. Once I took my son (then four and a half years old) to the playground and met his classmate, who was less than one year younger than him. Just when my son came out from the playground to put on his shoes, he saw that his classmates had not buttoned their shoes several times, so he naturally squatted down to help her button her shoes. Imagine a picture of a four-year-old boy naturally crouching down to help a three-year-old girl put on her shoes. What's that feeling? Think about it. Do you still help your friends or family wear shoes?
I often see various courses or early education classes claiming to cultivate children's concentration and creativity. Actually, concentration and creativity are not cultivated, but protected. Every child is born with concentration and creativity. In Waldorf Kindergarten, children have at least two hours of free play time every day. As long as it doesn't violate the three noes (don't hurt others, don't hurt yourself, don't hurt the environment), the teacher won't interfere with the children's game content and won't stipulate the theme of the game.
All the games are made up by the children themselves. What is closest to nature and has not been artificially processed is the source of their creativity. Although the toys are the same every day, the content of playing is different.
As long as the weather is not too bad, I will take my children to get in touch with nature nearby one day every week. Say hello to the caterpillar, dance with the fallen leaves or run in the drizzle.
My son entered the park smoothly. He doesn't want to enter the park every day, doesn't cry loudly, doesn't get sick all day, and can't walk for a few days in a semester. He only cried a little on the first day and didn't tell him to miss his mother the next day.
Thank you for your patience with a caring teacher!
Every new child will be accompanied by a special teacher to understand his anxiety and anxiety when he left his mother for the first time and help him gradually integrate into the new environment. Stay with him when he misses his mother, and give him a mommy hug when he cries loudly. Strive to create a feeling of home, help him through the anxiety of separation, and also reassure his equally anxious mother.
Of course, this kind of kindergarten is not perfect. It doesn't have as good hardware facilities as a traditional kindergarten, a camera that allows you to see the state of the park at any time, and a Children's Day performance that allows you to brush your circle of friends. But I see my children are very happy here, that's enough!
There is no best kindergarten, only the most suitable one. This is the most suitable kindergarten for us at present. Would you like to be our classmate?