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I seem to take an immersion approach to new things that interest me. I read articles, critiques, blogs and of course as many books as I can get my hands on
And this has been the way of it with Waldorf too.
There are so many lovely and inspiring books about Waldorf. Ones about parenting, child development, Waldorf teaching and Waldorf crafts.
{Mmmm, the craft books… I will have to write a whole post devoted to those…}
But for now, here are my 5 favourite Waldorf books
By Barbara J. Patterson and Pamela Bradley
A wonderful starting place for learning about Waldorf. This book explains the gentle parenting approach that Waldorf inspires, by using rhythm, simple toys, less haste and respectful discipline.
Patterson also includes questions from the parent-child classes (playgroups) she has ran, with helpful suggestions for parents to try.
#2 You Are Your Child’s First Teacher
By Rahima Baldwin Dancy
For a deeper exploration of Waldorf and how it may be placed within our culture as a way to parent, Rahima Dancy provides a thoughtful and helpful resource.
You Are Your Child’s First Teacher includes useful discussion about academic vs play based learning, school readiness, and parenting challenges like returning to work.
#3 School as a Journey
By Torin M. Finser
This book brings us the story of Waldorf teacher, Torin M. Finser and the journey he took with his class. It is an inspiring story showing the dedication, creativity and warmth of Waldorf teachers.
As a parent considering Waldorf education, this book gave me a great deal of comfort. Finser also illustrated the wonderful relationship between teacher, student, family and school community.
#4 Heaven on Earth
By Sharifa Oppenheimer
For a handbook of Waldorf inspired ideas to incorporating into your home, Heaven on Earth is a valuable resource. From how to develop a rhythm that works for your family to how to celebrate festivals as a family.
This is a beautiful book that I like to return to for inspiration often.
#5 Simplicity Parenting
By Kim John Payne
Although not marketed as a ‘Waldorf’ book, Simplicity Parenting shares many of the same ideas about parenting and healthy, happy children (and is recommended reading for many new parents to Waldorf schools).
This is a book I revisit and with increasing lightness, continuously try to simplify our home, toys, books and lives.
Have you read these books? Did you like them?
What are your favourite Waldorf books?
Warmly, Kelly
This post was part of the series
βHow to bring Waldorf into your homeβ¦β
by Kelly of Happy Whimsical Hearts
You can see more from this series here.
20 Comments
The only one I haven’t at least flipped through is Heaven on Earth. I loved the others though. They give a great view of Waldorf Education philosophy.
Thank you for sharing your list of books. I am interested in learning about Waldorf education and putting a few ideas into practice where I work.
I haven’t heard of these before. Thanks for sharing.
I really need to read Simplicity Parenting. So many inspirational bloggers (including you now) have suggested it. Thank you for this great list π
Thanks for this list, I want to read ‘you are your child’s first teacher’ but haven’t heard of the others
I really want to read Simplicity Parenting too… I wish my library had it.
Thanks for sharing. I wish I had more time to read!
I haven’t read any of these so thanks for the suggestions. π
Looking forward to looking into these books more.. Thanks so much for this series! Such a valuable resource to have all this information in one happy place! x
I tend to take an immersion approach to learning too π I haven’t read them but I’ve heard good things about the first two. I would be interested to know what You are Your Child’s First Teacher says about academic vs play-based learning.
That looks like a great list, I immediately want to read a few of them. I love reading but rarely find the time π
I have a few of these but would love to check out the others – thanks for sharing!
A beautiful little book list. I love books, so I’ll be looking at the library this week for a couple of them!
Thanks for the recommendation. Look forward to adding some to my wish list π xo P
Thanks for these great resources. Ill add them to my reading list.
Thanks for compiling this list and your thoughts on the books. Very useful indeed π
I’m learning so much for your series. Thank you Kelly. I’ve pinned this a few times. π
I have only read #2, writing down the names of the others so I can check them out too! Very helpful list, thank you.
What a great list Kelly! Pinning and wishing I had the time to read some of them right now!!
[…] more inspiration, you can see my Waldorf book list here and some of my favourite Waldorf craft books […]