rhythm

:: I was very surprised by the level of interest generated by my previous post, particularly with regard to what Waldorf living looks like. I had been planning to write a follow-up post, but I think I'm going to make it a three-part series: rhythm, reverence, and finally resources and fellows. First we're looking at rhythm, the manner in which the Waldorf life is ordered so as to lay the foundation for all learning. ::


Rhythm is a vital part of the Waldorf home. As a family that has been fairly "fly by the seat of our pants" for our entire parenting journey, this has proven a bit of a challenge, but also a delightful remedy to some of our struggles. Rather than focusing on structure, Waldorf focuses on rhythm and flow as well as intention, having a routine which is predictable and comfortable so as to provide familiarity and security for the child, while living with intention so that the elements of the day are part of a conscious decision for living. The rhythm fits the family, and not the other way around. I have only just started implementing an intentional rhythm for our days, and we're still pretty shaky on it, but the more we work at it, the better our days seem to proceed. I'm not putting too much pressure on us to get everything right and become The Ultimate Waldorf Family, but rather gradually move toward the kind of rhythm and home that is our goal.


Inspired by this post from Simple Kids, I've set aside each day for one particular creative activity to make that day remarkable. We already had a few established activities - Tuesday afternoon is dance class, Wednesday afternoons have a visit from Gran, Sunday church - but now we have something planned for each day. For now, the rhythm of our week looks like this:

Monday - baking

Tuesday - painting

Wednesday - crafts

Thursday - play dough

Friday - handwork
Saturday - park with Jon
Sunday - church
I didn't include colouring or reading because those are such daily, near-constant activities.


Each day has its own rhythm as well. Again, it isn't a schedule with set times, but rather a general flow to how the elements of the day proceed. Here's a very rough idea of how our days are proceeding:

Wake
Say good-bye to Jon
Make breakfast - girls play in the living room
Eat breakfast together
Clear the table
Dress
Wash dishes - girls are either still dressing themselves or playing together
Tidy the living room
Circle Time
Playing/reading stories/I might check my email/errands
Make lunch
Eat lunch together
Clear the table and wash dishes
Afternoon activity (baking/painting/crafts etc.)
Playing
Jon arrives home
Make dinner
Eat dinner together
Clear the table
Bedtime

Admittedly, the wheels tend to keep falling off around dinner time. Postponing starting dinner prep until after Jon arrives home is making dinner pretty late most evenings, and hungry children and the end of the day are a bad combination. It's something to work on, and I suspect the remedy is found in my crockpot.

So that's our daily and weekly rhythm. In the next post in this series, we'll look at the theme of reverence in the Waldorf home and how it relates to rhythm.