Category: 8th Grade
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How to Take Notes
In this post, I want to discuss ways to take notes. This is an important skill starting in middle school. It is certainly needed going into high school and beyond. In this article, I will discuss reasons why note taking is important and why notes should be handwritten. Let’s begin with the latter. Why Take…
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Winter or Advent Spiral
This week, I wanted to write a post about making winter holidays meaningful, especially for adolescents and teens. I will focus on the Winter or Advent Spiral, commonly done in Waldorf settings. The principles, however, are broadly applicable to other traditions as well, so extrapolate as necessary. The Difference Between Children and Adolescents At puberty,…
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What is Waldorf Education?
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In order to answer the question, “What is Waldorf Education?” we have first to answer a more fundamental question, “What is a human being?” Well, what IS a human being? What do you say to that? Stop and consider your answer. I recently elaborated my answer in the following clip: A human is a threefold…
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Civic Education in Homeschool
In the wake of this 2024 U.S. presidential election, I feel called to write a post about civic education. We have a deeply polarized nation, and that’s not good. For the record I must say that as a teacher, it’s not my place to take sides. Rather, it’s my job to preserve the sacred balance…
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Middle School Creative Writing and Derek Jeter
You might be wondering what Derek Jeter has to do with middle school creative writing. I’ll start by saying that our task as educators is to bring the world to our students. Derek Jeter is not only a Hall of Famer, he’s also a model human being and a perfect example of how dreams come…
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Education in a Time of Uncertainty
Our world is becoming increasingly uncertain. Wars progress and threaten to escalate. Markets are volatile. The upcoming U.S. presidential election looks messy. Even Asheville, N.C., long considered to be one of the very safest places in the country, was just devastated by a hurricane. (So safe was Asheville considered that NOAA put their server building…
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Michaelmas Reflections
A pale, yet warm, light glows in our garage this evening. The stars are coming earlier each night, and the air they bring grows crisper. The crop vines are withering from green to yellow to brittle brown. They’ve made their fruits, given them as gifts to the next generation, and now they’re passing from an…
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Handwriting
Some years back, a colleague informed me, “Learning a new font of handwriting builds more connections in the brain than any other activity.” He claimed to have the studies to back it up. I was intrigued, so I began to experiment with my class back when I taught at Asheville Waldorf School (AWS). The results…
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The Power of Story
Where do you get your news from? I get mine from The Lord of the Rings. I know that sounds silly, but it’s true, and that is because of the power of story to convey truth. Allow me to explain. Every reasonable adult I know agrees that the media is a fray, literally like the…
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Homeschool Music Curriculum
This post is about your homeschool music curriculum. In other words, we will discuss the value of making music everyday in your homeschool life and provide some samples we use in our lessons below to inspire your work at home. What is it about music? This evening after dinner, my family gathered around our toddler.…