Spring River offers flexible programming and support to the growing homeschool community in Northeast Florida seeking a holistic education.  We welcome those parents interested in an education inspired by Waldorf methods and a "whole child" view of human development, and those seeking a part-time experience to enrich and supplement their other homeschool choices.

 

We provide support and a social network for those families that can join us for a full week of classes or who are only interested in part time options. We also welcome all families from the greater community to our events, parent education, playdates, and festivals. All are welcome!

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A Developmental Approach

Spring River’s Waldorf-inspired homeschool program stands out with its unique Horizontal and Vertical Curriculum.  The curriculum offered at Spring River spans kindergarten through the high school years, and at each developmental stage addresses the student's growing capacity for thinking, willing, and feeling (doing), also sometimes referred to as "head, heart, and hands."  

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Kindergarten

Spring River School has established a Kindergarten class for homeschooling families that honors this final phase of Early Childhood and incorporates a Waldorf-inspired Early Childhood Curriculum.

 

At this age, some parents perceive their evolving 5-6-year-olds as “wanting more” or “needing more” and believe that this need can be satisfied through rigorous academics. At Spring River, we provide an experience for your child designed to “offer more” by developing gross and fine motor skills, fostering imagination through play and storytelling, honing social skills and empathy for others, and encouraging a deep connection to nature and the local outdoors.

 

Our curriculum is grounded in the gradual transitions of the seasons. The rhythm of our year aligns with these seasonal changes, featuring complementary stories, songs, and artwork. Throughout the day, your child will enjoy plenty of creative, open-ended playtime that allows for experiences that lay a strong and natural foundation in literacy, numeracy, and creative thinking. Our schedule includes daily excursions through the beautiful forest and to the nearby sandy beaches, providing ample opportunities for children to play, observe, and immerse themselves in nature.

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Grades 1-3

We recognize the natural eagerness of students between the ages of seven and nine to learn. We foster this learning through memory, movement, and imaginative stories, creating a nurturing environment where the child feels at one with the world under the guidance of a loving authority figure—the teacher. We approach these students artistically, using visual and verbal imagery, drama, music, and movement. Our teachers incorporate a multidisciplinary teaching style to enliven the students' “thinking, feeling, and willingness” by approaching one subject from these three learning elements.

 

Grades 4-5

At “the nine-year change,” the student feels a disruption in this unity with the world and becomes aware of a separation between themselves and others. The student begins to question authority (their teacher)—outwardly or through behavior—and truly encounter the physical world. Once having crossed this “Rubicon,” the student embarks on a journey that lasts until about age 12 while the intellect is awakened, self-assertion grows, and peer groups begin to have more influence.  The student moves out of the lovely golden world of early childhood into what has been called the “full technicolor” physical world.  

 

Grades 6-8

The students' will is activated from the age of 12 to 14. They are keen to explore new horizons and may develop a hyper-critical view of the world around them.  This is a transition period to adolescence, and the Spring River curriculum is intended to meet this developmental stage by helping the students awaken their powers of articulation from within their inner lives.  Assignments during this time challenge the students physically and socially to discover their own strengths.  At this phase, we hope the students begin to see that they are needed in the world, which is accentuated through the physical activities of woodworking, handwork, focused movement and games, and other creative hands-on projects.

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High School

​Our High School students are ready to meet abstract concepts with elevated cognition.  These years are a time for seeking knowledge - both of the self and of the world.  Our curriculum and teaching style is designed to help our students feel enthusiastic about the World and engaged in all that is around them.  This is brought about through the traditional subjects along with electives designed to create a sense of balance, purpose, and creativity. Learning is interdisciplinary; integrating practical, artistic and conceptional components.  ​

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