Eurythmy

Steiner was devoted to the practice of eurythmy— a system of rhythmical physical movements used for therapeutic purposes. Eurythmy can also be defined as visible music or visible speech, as it aims to animate stationary forms of art like drawing and music. In his book The Balance in Teaching, Steiner states: “When you begin to have the children draw eurythmic forms and then see that drawing, and also writing, are formed out of the will that lives in gesture, you have something that human nature really wants, something linked with its being and becoming” (27). Steiner believed that eurythmy is essentially a series of motions derived from what the etheric body tends to do of itself; therefore, when children participate in eurythmy, they are affected in a curative-therapeutic way, as well as in an educational sense. In addition to the therapeutic benefits of eurythmy, studies suggest that physical activities like eurythmy “Have been shown to stimulate the birth of new neurons in the hippocampus and to pump more oxygen through the brain, stimulating capillary growth and frontal-lobe plasticity” (Cozolino, 2013). Brain plasticity refers to the anatomical phenomenon in which the brain modifies its own structure based on external…

lifetime. Since Waldorf schools are very accepting and have the feeling of being like family, the teachers recognize every students religious background and do not judge or put anyone down because of it. They have understanding that the world is full of all different people, cultures and religions and explain this to the children not focusing on only one type of religion. “ Preschool and kindergarten children learn primarily through imitation and imagination. The goal of the kindergarten is to…

the wisdom to uncover the mysteries of the spiritual world. His teachings are based on three seven year periods. The first seven years is based on the imitative and sensory based learning and that time is devoted to developing a child’s noncognitive abilities. The first seven years the students are encouraged to play and interact with their environment instead of being taught academics. He focuses on religion, teaching second graders about the Christian saints and third graders the Old Testament…

spiritual idea that he had strongly believed. Finally, Steiner developed anthroposophy, spiritual science, a philosophy that refers to spiritual knowledge gained by the conscious integration of three disciplines: thinking, feeling and willing (McDermott. 2009). In 1919, Steiner was asked to found a school by a chief executive officer of the Waldorf-Astoria Cigarette Factory for children of the factory workers. This was the first Waldorf school. The philosophy of Waldorf School was based on…