A teacher

I found this sweet list on The Center for Anthroposophy site about becoming a Waldorf teacher and had to share:

• Becoming a Waldorf teacher requires a willingness to learn–and so to teach–in an entirely new way. Rather than teaching students familiar answers, a Waldorf educator teaches them to ask unfamiliar questions. Instead of teaching from concepts to experiences or examples of these concepts–for instance, from rule of grammar to examples of the rule, or from a principle of physics to evidence of this principle in the lab–the Waldorf educator teaches the other way around: from experience to concept. Sometimes this approach is called the “discovery method” of teaching, or a “phenomena-based education”. This approach to teaching may take longer, but its results last a life time.
• To become a Waldorf teacher requires inner work and self-transformation. To be able to change children, one must first be able to change oneself. Charity begins at home.
• Becoming a Waldorf teacher requires a willingness to work with colleagues on an equal footing and to take responsibility for the school as a whole. Most Waldorf schools are run by their own teachers or those mandated by them to administer the school.
• To become a Waldorf teacher requires trust and patience: trust that the child will grow through foreseeable stages of development (some of them turbulent); patience to guide the child through these stages.
• Becoming a Waldorf teacher requires an ability not only to teach through the arts but to teach artistically so that each lesson is not only beautifully crafted but authentic. Most Waldorf classes are conducted without reference to a textbook, though students read widely in primary sources.
• To become a Waldorf teacher requires a warm sense of humor.
• To become a Waldorf teacher requires special training — first in Foundation Studies in Anthroposophy and the Arts; then in early childhood, elementary, or high school Waldorf teacher training; finally in ongoing Waldorf refresher courses.

I have decided to take a few extra weeks to think about starting my masters in teaching. It is a tough call because some, if not most, of the educational approach I would get in such a degree program is a contrast to the type of approach the student, teacher, and organization described above. I have more to think and pray about.

In the meantime, I am crafting up a storm for the holidays and having a blast! More on that in due time…