Asatru Academy
• Með vitandi, vinna Sigr •
At the AFA Ásatrú Academy, we provide curriculum guidance each school year for homeschooling families. We acknowledge students' natural phases of learning in all that we do. We believe in teaching to the whole child--Mind, Body, and Spirit. Guided by the Ásatrú faith and AFA values, we honor the wisdom of our elders and ancestors. Equipped with the appropriate tools snd skills, we will see generations of Ásatrú families committed to lifelong creativity and education.
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While the traditional school year runs September through May, we do have ongoing enrollment if space is available in the program. Students may take as long as they need to complete their grade level program under our guidance. The AFA Ásatrú Academy will assist with evaluation, but ultimately a parent will make the decision about when their student is ready to progress to the next grade level.
Our program currently aligns with grade levels K-6th.
Our Educational Philosophy
Greetings students and parents!
I thought I'd take a little time to explain our educational philosophy. Most of you know that we use the Waldorf education system. Some of you may wonder, what in the world is Waldorf? What makes it different? Where does it come from?
Well, Waldorf is an educational philosophy developed by Rudolf Steiner in Germany during the inter-war period of the early 20th century. Waldorf style is holistic, intended to develop students' intellectual, artistic, and practical skills with a focus on imagination and creativity. Steiner broke up his educational approach into epochs, or stages. This allows the unique needs of specific ages to be addressed and approaches catered to, rather than a one size fits all approach.
So, who is Rudolf Steiner? The founder of the Waldorf method? Steiner was born in Austria in 1861. He received his PhD from the University of Rostock in 1891. Rudolf Steiner was a contemporary of Guido von List, and most likely was an acquaintance of Meister von List, as they both were in esoteric circles, and both were pan-German nationalists. Steiner, however, approached the magical and esoteric from a more catholic perspective, a la Lanz von Lebenfels.
Steiner wrote extensively and published several books on philosophy. His Waldorf educational philosophy would eventually grow from his first school opened in Stuttgart, Germany in 1919, to being the largest independent school movement in the world only a century later. There are more than 1200 independent brick and mortar schools and nearly 2000 kindergartens across 75 countries. There are numerous Waldorf-based public schools, charter schools, and academies, as well as the Waldorf Homeschool movement. The United States, Germany, and The Netherlands boast the most Waldorf schools.
The AFA Ásatrú Academy chose this educational philosophy because of its unique style, focus on faith and experiences, and its age-specific developmental approach. We also really like that the founder was of our Folk, a proud German, and was versed in esoteric/magical thinking. We hope you like our Waldorf program, and we look forward to continuing to serve the Folk and our kids with quality Ásatrú education.
