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One of the treasures of Steiner early childhood education is our parent-and-child groups. Since the 1980s, these groups have been offering support to parents and their children up to kindergarten age at three and a half years old. They emerged in response to the recognition that many elements of Steiner practice could be helpful not only for pre-kindergarten children, but also as gentle nourishing support for parents.
This movement has gradually expanded into a strong, flourishing, professional and valued aspect of Steiner early childhood provision. Most Steiner schools and kindergartens have parent-and-child groups and there are independent groups. At the last count, there were more than 170 of these groups in the UK. York Steiner School has 12 groups each week, including four parent-and-baby groups.
The groups are small. The calm atmosphere often has an enormous impact on the families who attend. Many subsequently bring their children into Steiner education, and some have gone on to train to be Steiner early childhood practitioners. I have had 25 years of professional work in Steiner early childhood education and my journey started with a talk about Steiner parent-and-child groups that I attended quite by chance.
I had a one-year-old son and was struggling to find like-minded friends. This talk spoke deeply to my needs and I started a group with other parents and later trained to be a Steiner kindergarten teacher. Like so many similar initiatives, our little group eventually grew into a kindergarten, then a Steiner School.
SLOW DOWN AND SIMPLIFY
Like Steiner kindergartens, parent-and-child groups are founded on an understanding of the particular needs of children in the first three years. These include:
- slowing down and simplifying family life
- the importance of free movement and play
- storytelling
- crafts and celebrating seasonal festivals.
For parents, the groups offer the possibility of finding friendship and a sense of belonging.
The environment often makes a strong and lasting impression. The rooms are decorated simply. Everything has been thought through; the colour of the walls, the furniture, the toys and flowers on the table. There is always a nature table, a place of peace and beauty that reflects the changing seasons. There is a welcoming calm warmth.
SPECIFIC COMPONENTS
The group sessions are usually about one and a half to two hours long. Each group is unique in its emphasis, depending on the interests and skills of the leader, but there are specific components. Usually the group begins with free play, a drink and perhaps a simple craft offered to parents.
The toys are natural objects and fabrics, with the essential child-sized kitchen corner, dolls tucked up in their beds, some equipment for climbing and making playhouses. Often parents bring fruit or vegetables to make a fruit salad or soup for the break time. They and the older children talk together as they prepare these around the table. A seasonal craft may be offered.
Later in the session, the toys are tidied away with a song, hands are washed, and everyone sits round a table to share a healthy snack. There is a moment of quiet, a candle is lit, and a blessing sung. Finally, there is a ‘ring time’ with seasonal songs and interactive rhymes. Some group leaders bring a short puppet story or tell simple nature tales. Groups may spend time outside, to play in the sandpit, water the plants, sweep the leaves, climb or rest.
There are also simple seasonal festivals, celebrated with special food and songs, and events like the lantern walk in November or dancing round the May pole.
The sessions offer ideas which can be taken back into the home, including the care of the home environment, play, crafts and mindful parenting. There may also be parent evenings and classes where issues such as sleep, technology and behavioural issues can be discussed.
STRONG TRADITION
Nationally, the value of parent-and-child groups is being increasingly recognised and the need for partnership with families in nursery settings is embedded in the EYFS. The Steiner movement has a strong tradition we can share. In addition, new types of Steiner groups are emerging which are a response to the changing needs and challenges of parenthood. For example, the Pikler approach from Hungary has inspired Steiner groups which concentrate on supporting parents and infants through the first crucial 18 months. There are also outdoor Steiner parent-and-child groups and small independent family centres (see box).
The Steiner movement recognises that supporting parents and caring for children under three years old is a distinct profession, requiring particular skills, including an understanding of Steiner early childhood pedagogy and appropriate environments for free play, skills in observation, role modelling, practical childcare, simple crafts, singing and storytelling. The CACHE Level 3 EYE Diploma in Holistic Baby and Child Care provides a nationally approved qualification for those wishing to provide a professional holistic approach to the care of children from birth to three in daycare and family support. It synthesises Steiner’s insights, an introduction to the Pikler approach and EYFS requirements.
Through my work as course leader on the above course, and also running parent-and-baby groups and consultancy for mainstream nurseries, I can see a growing need for nurseries to run parent-and-child groups as part of their provision. Our long experience in the Steiner movement shows that these groups can guide family life positively and help protect young children in uncertain and pressured times. In Steiner schools and mainstream nurseries, they help to create a strong shared ethos and partnership between families and the setting. The Steiner parent and baby/child group model has much to share.
CASE STUDIES
JACK CRYER, JACK’S FAMILY CABIN, BRIGHTON
‘I graduated from the first Holistic Baby and Child Care course in 2017 and launched The Family Cabin in my garden the following summer. It is a community centre where parents can access family sessions and one-off expert-led days of craft, therapy and art to resource their parenting. There is a dearth of holistic practice in my area and I want to bring a picture of community, nourishment and nature.
‘My practice reflects the thorough training I received from my course and my valuable experience working as parent and baby/child leader at Brighton Waldorf School.’
JO PEARCE, BLUEBELL OUTDOOR GROUPS, LONDON
‘Bluebell Outdoor Groups are for children up to three and a half years old and offer families a space to enjoy and share nature and to sow the seeds of a relationship of connection, whatever the weather!
‘We choose places where the children are surrounded by trees, so they can hear the birds singing, the leaves rustling in the wind. The morning group song welcomes and can bring a sense of unity to the group. There is plenty of time to explore and play. Offering tea and porridge allows us to model sharing and patience. We finish with a simple puppet show.’
DOROTHY MARLEN, A GENTLE BEGINNING, YORK
‘I run four parent-and-baby groups a week, each with seven parents and babies. They are based on Steiner pedagogy and the Pikler approach.
‘We meet to practise respectful care and allow children to go through the full natural motor development from six weeks old, without interference.
‘The groups are supportive and calm and ideal for the mums and dads to make friends, and for the babies to feel safe and protected. We have tea and cake, we share, sit back and observe the babies and sing nursery rhymes. I also provide articles on slow parenting, play, sleep and other issues.’
STEINER CONFERENCE
‘Working together for children in the 21st Century: Inspiring innovative and creative early childhood practice’ on 5 October will offer an opportunity for early childhood practitioners from different disciplines and approaches to explore practice that truly meets the needs of young children, https://bit.ly/31uRq0u
REFERENCES
Creating Connections: Perspectives on Parent-and-child Work in Waldorf Early Childhood Education edited by Kimberly Lewis and Susan Weber. WECAN, 2014
Nurturing Children and Families: One Model of a Parent/Child Program in a Waldorf School by Sarah Baldwin. WECAN, 2004
A Warm and Gentle Welcome. Gateway Series Five, compiled from the work of the WECAN RIE/Pikler Working Group, 2008
The Meadowsweet Year Volume 1 by Caroline Acworth. Troubadour, 2018
For groups near you, www.steinerwaldorf.org
For guides to Steiner Waldorf education by Janni Nicol, and Pikler by Dorothy Marlen, www.nurseryworld.co.uk
Dorothy Marlen is a Steiner early childhood teacher, course leader of the Level 3 (EYE) Holistic Baby and Child Care Diploma and author of The Parent and Child Group Handbook – a Steiner/Waldorf Approach(writing as Dot Male). She was a co-founder and chair for seven years of the Pikler UK Association
