Young children build their capacities for curiosity, creative thinking, and resilience every day through their experiences.
At the Charlottesville Waldorf School, beautiful, home-like classrooms and outdoor play areas with gardens and trees surround the children with quiet beauty, inviting them to relax and open up to the world. Grounded in a play-based curriculum, the Charlottesville Waldorf School early childhood programs center movement, nature, and imagination; building social skills and developing capabilities essential for future academic excellence.
Our teachers tell stories aloud each day, connecting children to cultural tales and the natural world. Oral storytelling engages children directly, creating a shared experience of listening and building the imagination. Music is used throughout each day, including circle times with seasonal verses and songs.
Our Waldorf Early Childhood programs include time in nature allowing children to play and explore in the fresh air on our 11+ acre campus. There are opportunities to play in the stream, hike on the trails, play in the woods, and frolic on the private class playgrounds. Playgarden (preschool) and Mixed-Age Kindergarten classrooms are gentle, homelike spaces with open-ended toys made of natural materials, plenty of space for imaginative play, and kitchen/craft areas for specific projects during the week.
At CWS your child will experience:
- Open-ended, creative play
- Extended time outdoors, experiencing nature
- Sensory-rich toys made of natural materials
- A warm, home-like environment
- Diverse and inclusive stories, songs, poems, and games
- A predictable and dependable rhythm to the days, weeks, and year
For over 100 years, Waldorf early childhood programs have been nurturing young children, establishing a strong foundation for academic learning and a life-long interest in other people and in the world around them.
