Moving to the Big Island (homes, transfer, school district)

[Crand]

We are moving to the Big Island from Idaho and are looking at the Waldorf public school. How would you rate this school? Mahalo

[Drey1891]

I am not in Kona yet, but we looked into this school. We entered the lottery for admission before we knew much about it, since we will be moving there in the summer just before school starts. We were waitlisted, but declined the spots. I ended up glad that we are not going to be sending our children there.

For the positive side, it sounds like there is a great focus on community, Hawaiian culture, gardening and sustainability. They have small class sizes, and lots of art, music, and physical play.

On the negatives, I had a chance to really research the Waldorf philosophy. They don't teach ABC's until 1st grade, and kids generally don't read until grade 2. Most of their curricula and study or reading material is "kid-created," which means that the kids create their own books. This sounds intriguing, but I read reviews from parents (at other Waldorf schools) that said their kid was just copying down exactly what the teacher told them to, with little room for variance, and that everyone made exactly the same thing. It sounds like the kids do eventually catch up on reading in the later grades, but I'm an advocate of early literacy. It also sounds like if you transfer from Waldorf to a regular school in elementary school, the kids will have a really tough time, because they will not be remotely on the same page in curriculum.

I also had reservations about transferring my kids from other schools. My daughter is completing second grade here on the mainland before we move. She is young, and meets the cut off for entry for our school here, but doesn't in Hawaii. The Waldorf school said she would have to repeat 2nd grade in their school b/c she didn't meet the cutoff. She is already reading chapter books, and I can't see how she would be anything but bored there, repeating a grade because of age cutoff.

Here's the explanation they gave me:

"Our placement is based on the growing body of research that indicates the benefits of introducing academics after imaginative and physical forces are well established. Entry into our grades (edit:they mean first grade) program requires a student to be age 6 by June 1st. It is not based upon previous academic experience.

Learning, growing, and maturing are about more than simply academics. Social interaction with similarly aged students is an important aspect that becomes much more noteworthy as the students grow together. Students who are younger than their classmates often feel as if they are always trying to catch up physically even if they are advanced academically. Students who are both very strong academically and older tend to be leaders in their class. They set a powerful example for their peers and become strong leaders.

Our experience has supported the wisdom of this policy. Students who were placed according to their age were able to easily integrate socially and adapted well to the different style of teaching that is used here. Regarding the idea of “being held back”, we have seen that if parents fully support our program their children are able to accept the change and move on quickly."

Anyways, my interactions with this school have left me annoyed, and I find myself not really agreeing with the Waldorf philosophy after I researched it a little bit more.

I was however reassured after researching the local public schools. Googling public schools in Hawaii is enough to give any educated parent a heart attack, but I visited Kahakai elementary when I was there, and was impressed with the grounds, friendliness, and professionalism. The school has good reviews on ratings websites, and above average grades from external ratings agencies. We are going to send our kids there instead.

I do hear there are several good private schools. We can afford private school, but I think the money is better spent saving for my kids future, and I want my kids to experience diversity in race, culture, and economic circumstance. I think there's no better way to set them up for the wrong experience in Hawaii than to send them to the rich haole school.

There's my $0.02. Take it for what it's worth considering I'm not even a parent there yet, but I have done my research!

PS- Get your health forms filled out for them before you leave. Not many pediatricians on the Big Island taking new patients.

[Crand]

We are so impressed with the Waldorf school system, what I really was asking was if anyone knew if the Waldorf public school is set up with the same 4 body sequences as the private school. This system is designed to work with the love and logic principles that my daughter has had in her school for two years.
We really have seen the exponential growth that she has had! It is amazing! LOVE, TRUST and BEING ONE WITH NATURE are THE FIRST THINGS THAT SHOULD BE TAUGHT IN ANY SCHOOL, it gives them the absolute BEST foundation for their future!
OUR SCHOOL SYSTEM IS DEFINITELY BROKEN! If we want OUR PRECIOUS CHILDREN to have their childhood ripped from them, like so many generations before, then we should keep on the same path.
The reason the Waldorf school has been around since the early 1900's, is because IT WORKS! To have the children grow at their own pace, to teach THRU EDUCATION and the fundamentals of LOVE are exactly what I want for my daughter. Why would you settle for anything less. This IS the FOUNDATION of your childs' FUTURE!
If you want some more info this website is great; Essentials of Waldorf Schools, it really sheds a lot of light on this wonderful program.
Mahalo, I appreciate all of your info

[hotzcatz]

Which part of the Big Island are you planning on? Other than Waldorf, there's a lot of other small charter, private and some sort of off campus "homeschool" schools.

[GraceKrispy]

I strongly suggest you call the school directly and talk with them about their program. Kona Pacific in South Kona closed for a while before opening again under new management several years ago. Opening as a public charter instead of the private school it used to be meant having to follow some specific regulations. I have heard a lot about the Waldorf school, but can't speak to the integrity of the program. My main familiarity with it was also as its previous inception and then again for the first few years after it reopened (I had a friend on the board). I worked as a specialist for the school district, and had some connection with the school in that capacity as well. But if someone with personal experience with the school from a parent or curriculum perspective isn't able to answer, I'd suggest going directly to the source. Good luck.

[Green_Mountain]

Originally Posted by Crand

We are so impressed with the Waldorf school system, what I really was asking was if anyone knew if the Waldorf public school is set up with the same 4 body sequences as the private school. This system is designed to work with the love and logic principles that my daughter has had in her school for two years.
We really have seen the exponential growth that she has had! It is amazing! LOVE, TRUST and BEING ONE WITH NATURE are THE FIRST THINGS THAT SHOULD BE TAUGHT IN ANY SCHOOL, it gives them the absolute BEST foundation for their future!
OUR SCHOOL SYSTEM IS DEFINITELY BROKEN! If we want OUR PRECIOUS CHILDREN to have their childhood ripped from them, like so many generations before, then we should keep on the same path.
The reason the Waldorf school has been around since the early 1900's, is because IT WORKS!

The reason it's been around since 1900 is for the same reason as every other such system that's been around for hundreds or thousands of years - because it promotes a belief system that some people find appealing.

Why did you ask the question, if you're already a true believer? Someone took the time to give you a thoughtful reply based on their experience and research, and you respond by preaching to them in caps.

The Waldorf system has got some wonderful ideas, along with a bunch of absolute nonsense based on superstitious medieval beliefs held by a guy who lived a hundred years ago. The fact that they promote homeopathy and not reading til second grade are just a couple of examples.

The best I can say about it is that if a kid is going to be taught based on some crank philosophy, Waldorf is a hell of a lot more positive then filling beautiful young minds with fear of hell and damnation.

[67Cam]

Green Mountain - very well said. I'd give you more rep points but it says I have to spread it around...

[Crand]

We are looking at the East side and I was researching the other Waldorf schools in the area. I will definitely do some more searching, we still have at least a year. Thanx for the info. Mahalo

[Crand]

I will call them. Thank you for the info! Mahalo

[Crand]

I am definitely some people. I definitely did not mean to belittle or preach to drey1891. I am just excited about this program, obviously! Thanx for bringing that to my attention! Mahalo