Honoring Childhood. Supporting Parenthood.
Our Early Childhood teachers strive to preserve the innocence and innate wonder of early childhood by creating a secure, inviting, joyful environment. Our toys are simple: wooden toys, shells, stones, logs, branches, colored fabrics, sheep’s wool, and cloth dolls. With these simple toys, imaginative play is nurtured and transforms into creative, independent thought in later stages of learning. Our classrooms are homelike with an emphasis on the purposeful work of daily life. The day unfolds in a natural way following a familiar rhythm that gives the children a sense of security and consistency. Rest and play, regular meal times with healthy organic food, practical/domestic activities, and simple artistic activities aid in the healthy, balanced development of the young child. Drawing, watercolor painting, beeswax modeling, baking, handwork, circle time, and storytelling nourish the children’s senses and form a strong foundation for life-long learning. Our early childhood classrooms are screen-free in order to support the developmental needs of the young child.
Daily outdoor play, in all kinds of weather, is an integral part of Waldorf education and supports a healthy lifestyle. All of our early childhood programs spend time outside on the school’s campus, with its rolling hills, farm and gardens, bubbling creeks, and wooded areas. Outdoor play allows children the opportunity to play, explore, and immerse themselves in the natural environment — giving them the opportunity to use their imaginations, develop critical thinking skills, stretch their muscles, and hone their motor skills.
Kimberton offers preschoolers and kindergartners a creative, active, play-based environment that stimulates the imagination, spurs social, emotional and physical development, and lays the foundation for physical and intellectual development, and future academic learning.
This is Education that Matters. Explore the possibilities.
Parent-Child Class
For expecting parents and parents of children up to 3 years old
We strive to support parents in strengthening their parenting skills and in creating a healthy and joyful home life. Our classes encourage mindful parenting and imaginative play, all while building a class community through purposeful work.
Rosebud Garden Preschool
For children 2 – 4 years old
Rosebud Garden Preschool provides a nurturing, home-like setting where young children learn practical life skills and develop a reverence for all life. Children are surrounded by beauty and are encouraged to learn by example and imitation, enabling each child to become a self-directed, aware, and compassionate human being.
Kindergarten
For children 4 – 6 years old
Kimberton Waldorf School’s kindergarten is a full-day, mixed-age program, serving children ages 4 to 6 years old. Our three classrooms are carefully designed to respond to the developmental needs of young children through creative, play-based learning. Our forest kindergarten program brings every enrolled child a unique, all-season, nature-immersive, outdoor experience that fosters a rich and personal connection to the natural world.
Experience the Kimberton Waldorf School early childhood difference.
There is nothing like your first glimpse into a Kimberton Waldorf preschool or kindergarten classroom. You might first notice the soft pastel colors that surround you. You might be intrigued by the natural wooden toys, smooth silks and fabrics. Maybe you’ll be amazed at how busy the children are—so much so that it is likely they won’t even notice you! Some children might be grinding wheat to make their own loaves of bread or they might be stacking wooden crates and pretending they are animals in the zoo. You immediately get swept away and feel nurtured, interested, and alive. Just imagine how the students feel each day!
The toys in our early childhood programs are simple: wooden toys, shells, stones, logs, branches, colored fabrics, sheep’s wool, and cloth dolls. With these toys, imaginative play is nurtured and transforms into creative, independent thought in later stages of learning. We encourage delayed technology and instead focus on play-based learning. Children develop dexterity through finger-knitting and working with beeswax, they tend a garden, and they are enriched with nature stories, puppet plays, storytelling, and festivals.
Our beautiful 430-acre campus with its rolling hills, babbling brook, and lush forest provides a natural setting that supports creative, self-initiated play. Daily outdoor education allows children the opportunity to explore and immerse themselves in the natural environment. And our developmental learning curriculum gives them the opportunity to use their imaginations, stretch their muscles, hone their motor skills, and develop critical thinking skills in a way that supports their ongoing education.
If this sounds like the perfect setting for you and your children, call us to schedule a tour and experience Kimberton Waldorf School in person.
Find out more about our Early Childhood Program on our blog:
Education of the Will
Written by Ona Wetherall, Early Childhood Section Leader One of the common threads in Waldorf…
Building Foundations in Early Childhood
by Ona Wetherall Our youngest students’ curriculum is designed to support children’s instincts to be…
Nurturing the Young Child’s Creative Forces
by: Molly Brett In Waldorf Early Childhood education, we work to foster and strengthen the…
Why Play-Based Learning is Best in Pre-K and Kindergarten
Historically, early childhood education was developed for nurturing and cultivating a child’s natural propensity to…
Play is crucial to a child’s development and well being.
The Benefits of Play-Based Education
Children and Chores
When is the Right Time to Read, Spell and Write?
Want to get your kids into college? Let them play
Children need to be active and use their hands at a young age. I think Waldorf Education’s approach and philosophy are exactly how children should be taught.
