HOME LIFE. Within the schools, the children live in family-sized houses together with their houseparents, dormitory parents (who care for groups of two, three or four children) and other co-workers. In such a setting the children can feel at home. The teaching of personal care, hygiene and social skills and the involvement in everyday household tasks takes place naturally in a structured way within the daily life of the house. The children learn to help each other - older with younger, able with less able. Leisure time is spent within and outside the school in a wide range of social and cultural activities.
SCHOOL LIFE, THERAPIES AND MEDICAL CARE. Wherever possible, the classrooms are kept physically distinct from the dwelling houses so that each child has a real feeling of going to school each day. In school, the children receive a broad education based on the Waldorf curriculum given by Rudolf Steiner. For the first part of the day, the children and their class teacher work together on one of the curriculum subjects. They then divide into ability groups where individual needs are catered to more directly. Emphasis is placed on artistic approach to learning. The aim is to foster the harmonious development of the whole human being - body, soul and spirit - to create a healthy balance between thinking, feeling and will activity and to engender morality, social co-operation and responsibility.
A wide variety of therapeutic activities has been developed to help overcome specific problems which interfere with the child's educational, emotional and social devlopment. Therapies are undertaken in close co-operation with the school doctors and are supported by the use of anthroposophical and homoeopathic medicines.
