Curriculum

Waldorf Education

Waldorf education places a high value on the development of not just intellectual capacities, but also the social, emotional, and physical well-being of our students. At SWS, the curriculum inspires academic curiosity, emphasizes the interconnected nature of our world, and encourages courageous exploration on a journey of lifelong learning.

Our Curriculum

Our curriculum is broad and comprehensive. Students explore science, math, writing, literature, history, world languages, geography, music, dance, and theater in depth and as interconnected subjects. Teachers bring subjects to life through practical activities—grade school students make scientific discoveries in the school garden and create artistic renderings of mathematical principles. Kindergartners encounter physics as they build in the sandbox and high school students learn ecology by viewing plankton through a microscope in a fishery, by dwelling in the forest, and by traversing the shores of the Puget Sound.

The preschool and kindergarten curriculum consist primarily of discovery through play and imitation. In grade 1 through grade 12, each day starts with a two-hour “main lesson” during which one subject is the focus for approximately three weeks. Teachers cover subject matters intensively, allowing students to become immersed. Subjects are reintroduced in increasing depth across the grades. Academics, arts, outdoor activities, and athletics are integrated for all students from preschool through grade 12—based on the idea that combined, interdisciplinary learning experiences are mutually reinforcing.

“If you’ve had the experience of binding a book, knitting a sock, or playing a recorder, then you feel that you could build a rocket ship or learn a software program you’ve never touched. It’s not bravado, just a quiet confidence. There is nothing you can’t do. Why couldn’t you? Why couldn’t anybody?”

-Peter Nitze

Waldorf and Harvard graduate, and director of an aerospace company