Experiential Learning in Waldorf Schools
Students at Whistler Waldorf School participate in a wide range of experiential learning activities. Experiential learning in a general sense, is the process of learning through experience. It is important to note however, that experiential learning in Waldorf Schools is not limited to creating projects or visiting a farm. If any of you have ever been moved by a compelling story, an eloquent song or a powerful play, you will understand the power of imagination for enhancing learning connections, and as an “experience” in its own right.
Waldorf schools intentionally incorporate a broad and balanced range of imaginative, creative, and kinesthetic experiences within the academic program. Yes, even content like coding can be taught imaginatively. At the same time Waldorf teachers maintain a keen awareness of a lesson’s meaning and relevance for a student’s senses, feelings and cognition so that they are actively engaged at each stage of their development. As Henry Barnes, a long time Waldorf teacher once wrote, “When children relate what they learn to their own experience, they are interested and alive, and what they learn becomes their own. Waldorf schools are designed to foster this kind of learning.”
– Rubeena Sandhu, Director of Education
