Day 154
For one year, 365 days, this blog will address the Common Core Standards from the perspective of creating an alternate, ambient learning environment for math. Ambient is defined as “existing or present on all sides, an all-encompassing atmosphere.” And ambient music is defined as: “Quiet and relaxing with melodies that repeat many times.
Why ambient? A math teaching style that’s whole and all encompassing, with themes that repeat many times through the years, is most likely to be effective and successful. No standards today. Rather I am offering a look at Waldorf seventh grade work. In the spirit of what can be accomplished without testing, and with faith and trust in the abilities of both teacher and student, please see that wondrous things are possible.
The images you see here are excerpts from seventh grade main lesson books, and the overall feeling is that of the medieval illuminated manuscript. Illuminated because the drawings are lit up with physical evidence of how deeply the lessons have been planted, as seeds that will grow to full fruition over a lifetime. Manuscripts because all text is neatly and beautifully written on unlined paper! Much discipline is needed to fill a blank page with handwritten text, a discipline that translates into self-discipline and responsibility toward lifelong learning. But please browse through the images, because a these pictures are worth thousands of words . . .
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Waiting until the optimal time to work with higher reasoning skills, as is practiced with the Waldorf method, really pays off. No need to be anxious about your child not reading until 2nd, 3rd, or even early 4th grade! Why waste time worrying and fretting over anything when the end result is so spectacular? Research has shown that 94% of Waldorf students go on to college, and 50% pursue Masters degrees and PhD’s.
Knowledge ensues in an environment dedicated to imaginative, creative knowing, where student and teacher alike surrender to the ensuing of knowledge as a worthy goal. Tune in tomorrow to continue with the Common Core ELA standards and their ambient counterparts.
