Kindergarten

Learning by Doing

In the kindergarten, early childhood is preserved, providing space and time for young imaginations to take flight. Unhurried and engaged, children build foundations for literacy, numeracy, language development, and creative problem solving skills.

Purposeful Activities

A kindergarten week has arts and crafts, puppetry, movement, painting, story time, cooking, baking, singing, games, hiking, gardening, and outdoor play. These simple yet delightful activities support sensory integration and the development of patterning, tracking, sequencing, and logical thinking. Fairy tales, folk tales, and poetry are shared by the teachers as children form inner pictures that support reading comprehension and critical thinking skills.

Joyful Movement

Through movement, children develop motor skills, integrate the senses, and work cooperatively. Kindergarten children hike to the Presidio, work in the garden, and participate in eurythmy, a movement art unique to Waldorf education. In the classroom, fine motor skills are developed through cooking, painting, crafts, and clean-up.

Imaginative Play

The importance of creative, imaginative play continues through kindergarten. Children take on new roles, test ideas, process experiences, solve problems, and have fun. As a growing body of research confirms, this good, old-fashioned kind of play supports the development of creative thinking in the adolescent and young adult.

Two-Year Program

Each of our three kindergarten classes includes new first-year children and returning second-year children, a balance that supports developing abilities. It is a five-day program for children ages four to 6 1/2, with optional After Care available until 5 p.m.

Kindergarten Teachers

Kindergarten One
Kevin Manning
Assistant
Yelena Tcheng
Lead Teacher

Kindergarten Two
Sachi Gowe
Assistant
Dagmar Eisele
Lead Teacher

Kindergarten Three
Jennifer Rossi
Assistant

Allison Carroll
Lead Teacher

Special Subjects
Astrid Thiersch
Eurythmy

Karmin Guzder
Gardening