Richmond Waldorf School

My child has been in the early childhood program for the past year and was in the parent/toddler program for 2 years prior. We are so happy with the school. I recall the first time that I walked into the school and thought – THIS is where I would have wanted to go to school. Warm, inviting, creative, even calming. Conducive for learning. His teachers are absolutely amazing - warm and gentle, but persistent and firm when needed. The school structure promotes learning; rhythm and routine are at the core of the school day, week, and year. Children know what to expect and what is expected of them. As a parent I know that transitions from one activity to the next can be the most challenging parts of the day for a young child; these teachers make it look effortless. Waldorf focuses on the development of the whole child, not just their academic understanding. My son is learning what so many kids miss out on in public kindergarten nowadays - self-care, self-regulation, getting along with others, trusting and accepting the guidance of an adult other than their parent, and building self confidence, gratitude, and compassion. These are values we embrace in our home life and we are so thankful to have found a school that understands that these skills need to be nourished in the school setting as well as at home. After all, for the course of your child’s academic career they are spending most of their waking hours at school, not at home. Nurturing these skill sets early forms the foundation for all the amazing growth that is to come. In those opportunities where I have the chance to interact with some of the older children in the school (middle-school aged) I see kids who are confident, not cocky; polite, not self-absorbed; responsible, not needy. I see amazing citizens in the making who are continuing their academics at challenging and competitive programs such as Maggie Walker Governor’s School, Open High School, IB programs in public high schools, and other exciting public and private high school programs. I’m eager to see my son’s academic growth develop in this wonderful environment.

This has been a great environment for my daughter. The arts integrated curriculum is stimulating, engaging, and challenging.

We have had a very positive experience with the Richmond Waldorf School, both at the school, and as a result of having been a student there later down the road. Our oldest daughter started in the PreK program, 13 years ago, and was able to attend through the 6th grade. Not only did we find it warm and welcoming during her years there, but also the Waldorf curriculum instilled in her a patient determination, along with a genuine love of learning, that has also served her amazingly well since. Her passion for reading and literature was born there. This school also taught her the value of working at a task until it is mastered, giving her confidence that she can chip away at and eventually overcome the most difficult challenges even when it looks bleak from the outset. Due to this confidence, she has since taught herself to play the guitar, has become fluent in German, and is currently a senior, and thriving in Public High School… planning to take 4 AP exams this spring alone. Our middle child had a similar experience, leaving RWS, not only academically prepared, but also having found his time there full of support and comradery. The friendships he made at Richmond Waldorf School are incredibly strong, and his entire class remains very close. And as a final example of our satisfaction with the school, our youngest daughter is currently in attendance there– happy to be learning violin, Russian, Spanish, botany, geography, spelling, drawing skills, and on and on. She loves to go to school, insisting that we get there as early as possible in order not to miss a minute. Her favorite classes at the moment are wood working and PE (where they have been known to take spontaneous outings, such as walks down to the river to clean up trash). And we are fully confident as her parents, that even though she loves school and doesn’t have loads of homework or stress that her peers in other schools seem to, that these strong roots that she is now growing will enable her to do anything she puts her mind to in the future.

We have been at the school for 10 years with two children and love it dearly. Each child has thrived in a unique way. In response to the reviewer whose child was tested midway through 3rd grade - that is a very tricky moment to test for reading in Waldorf education: the skills are about to pop open. It happened for both of our children, who are voracious and comprehensive readers - and it happened practically overnight in 3rd grade. We had a lot of coaching from the community about how those years leading up to "the reading pop" can be hard in terms of seeing your child's peers "moving ahead" in reading, but we found the wait to be worth it. The curriculum is designed to build on itself year after year, so staying the course yields the greatest results.

My child is loved and nurtured at RWS. Because he is allowed to grow and experience learning in the classroom and outdoors, he loves to learn. Waldorf education implements developmentally based techniques that are only trends or fads in other schools.