My son is due to to start kindy this year and prep next year. He has a slight speech delay and is a little behind with his milestones. I worry as I don't think he'll be ready, and I dont want him to be bullied. (His dad is dyslexic ) I am considering a Steiner school for him.
Does anyone with kids with slight delays have feedback on Steiner schools( Cairns Hinterland specifically) .
This is a place where women from different backgrounds, cultures and beliefs come together to support one another judgement free.
2 Replies
I would not send him to a Steiner school. Steiner schools don't believe in teaching /correcting spelling and punctuation until very late in schooling. This is disastrous for children with any delays. I used to work in a clinic in Sydney where we used to have to try and get kids ready to go to a 'normal' school because you can't do your entire schooling in Steiner schools. We used to have to teach ten year olds phonics, how to rule up a page to work, how to write the date, how to correct there own work. Because Steiner doesn't correct spelling, the teacher just attempts to mark the content, if they can read it!
No way would I send a delayed child to a Steiner school. The best place will be a well resourced public school.
Steiner schools are notorious for bullying. The philosophy is not to interfere in the conflicts between children, but to let them sort it out themselves.
Do some very extensive research into what a Steiner school is really about. Can you handle the basic principles of anthroposophy? This is the philosophical system that underlies absolutely everything that happens in a Steiner school, though it is not taught explicitly to the children.
If you are considering a Steiner school you should have gone to some of their seasonal festivals over the last year. Google and find info videos of their summer festivals and eurythmy. These are the types of things your child will be doing.
Steiner schools are non-denominational independent schools that are free from the rigours of rote learning, and produce independent, confident children who are aware of who they are. But that's not all there is too it. It does not work well for delayed children (they will tell you the opposite) and there is a very strict religion-like philosophy dictating the whole system. Only you can work out if you are comfortable with that.