Building Bridges
to Waldorf Teacher Education
What is Building Bridges?
Program Summary:
- Discover the anthroposophical foundations of Waldorf education through engaging workshops
- Deepen your understanding through study, meaningful discussions, and creative artistic experiences
- New to Waldorf? Start with the online Explorations program to build a solid foundation
- Continue your journey with inspirational face-to-face Building Bridges weekends
- Complete both components for the opportunity to gain advanced standing in Antioch University’s Waldorf Teacher Education Program
- Enhance your learning with the insightful book “Guided Self Study” by Torin Finser, available at SteinerBooks.org
Our Next Location
We are delighted to announce the start of our Building Bridges Program in the Los Angeles area starting on November 1, 2024
Building Bridges sessions are designed as engaging and inspiring in-person learning experiences consisting of a series of workshops designed to introduce the anthroposophical foundations of Waldorf education through study, group discussion, and the practice of the arts. With in-person long weekends, supplemented with some virtual learning, participants in Building Bridges will earn the equivalent of the first semester of teacher education, and upon subsequent entry in Antioch University can be awarded 7 graduate credits in advance standing.
CLICK HERE FOR THE COMPLETE PROGRAM AND READING SCHEDULE.
Class Schedule
All Friday classes are from 6-8:30 pm, and all Saturdays and Sundays are from 8:30 am-5 pm at Ocean Charter School, located at 12870 Panama St., Los Angeles, CA 90066.
November 1-3, 2024
Human Development and Eurythmy with Carla Beebe Comey
Drawing Through the Grades with Tomasa Mendoza
February 15-17, 2025
Research and Self Development with Deborah Dornemann
Visual Arts with Nikki Moon Shoneman
March 28-30, 2025
Speech and storytelling with Debbie Spitulnik
April Dates and Times TBD
Two 1 1/2-Hour Online Sessions – Human Development with Carla Beebe Comey
May 16-18, 2025
Human Development and Eurythmy with Carla Beebe Comey
Drawing through the Grades with Tomasa Mendoza
August 2025
Asynchronous viewing of curriculum videos as preparation for curriculum workshops with Alison Henry.
Sept 19-21, 2025
Drawing through the Grades with Tomasa Mendoza
Curriculum with Alison Henry
Nov 21-22, 2025
Research with Deborah Dornemann and Torin Finser
Jan 17-18, 2026
Curriculum with Alison Henry and Visual Arts with Tomasa
Current Location
Baltimore / DC
2024
We are delighted to announce the start of our Building Bridges
Program in the Baltimore/DC region starting on March 8, 2024! More details…
Past Locations Include
- Anchorage, AK
- Yuba River Charter School in Grass Valley, California
- Golden Valley Charter School in Ventura, California
- Northeast Woodland Charter School in Conway, New Hampshire
- Waldorf School of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland
- Atlantic Beach, Florida
- Mountain Phoenix Community School in Wheat Ridge, Colorado
Program enhancements for 2024!
We’ve successfully carried out this program in several communities over the past few years (Alaska, Colorado, two in the Sacramento, CA area, Northeast Woodland in Conway, NH and Atlantic Beach, FL). Thanks to input from our alums, current students, and faculty, we have revised the program to:
- Increase the depth and breadth of the program with more content and delivery options.
- Use the success of our online Explorations program to cover some of the basic material early on, saving the face to face (f2f) residencies for content that is best experienced in person.
- Use a 12-month cycle with more time for digestion of material (the old BB format was a shorter 6-7 sequence)
- Increase accessibility with classes in your community and some virtual learning sessions.
- Keep the cost down to you, your school,s and CfA.
With these five goals in mind, we are happy to introduce our new format:
In all, this is a 12-month program with some breaks for holidays (including 3 months off during the summer).
Explorations Online, every other weekend, (12-2 EDT on Sat and Sun) beginning March 12/13 and ending May 14/15. These workshops will include basic exercises, self-development, practical training in thinking, parent work. All session also including a sampling of arts (speech, eurythmy, pastels).
Continuation of Explorations Online in September and perhaps October with an add-on session each Saturday taught by instructors who will meet f2f with students during rest of the program We find the approach helps accelerate the readings, opens conversations, and sets the stage for the f2f sessions. These intro sessions will focus on human development and a continuation of self development. The Explorations workshops in the early fall will most likely cover social and emotional needs of children with Kim John Payne and “Healing the Hurt” with Heather Scott – instructors who could not otherwise contribute to f2f residencies due to travel/time/expense.
Face-to-face-residencies weekends, Nov. to early March, with some breaks for holidays. These courses will build on the work already done virtually, but engage students vigorously in arts, group conversation, workshop style presentations, etc.
This will be a 12-month program with some breaks for holidays (3 months off in the summer).
Building Bridges
Preparation for Success
Building Bridges sessions are designed as engaging and inspiring in-person learning experiences, with each faculty member contributing to the rich learning community that you will form with your fellow participants. To ensure your success in each session, please set aside time to complete any preparatory work assigned by the faculty. In many cases, this preparatory work takes the form of readings. Please watch for communications from individual faculty members about specific assignments for each session. You will need to purchase, and in some cases begin reading, the following books in advance of the first session:
Required readings for BB:
Guided Self-Study by Torin Finser, ISBN 978-1-62148-130-0
The Storyteller’s Way by Ashley Ramsden and Sue Hollingsworth. Hawthorn Press; IBSN 978-1-907359-19-4
Why on Earth: Biography and the Practice of Human Becoming by Signe Eklund Schaefer, ISBN 978-1-62148-040-2
Additional required reading may be shared electronically.
Recommended reading:
Parables by Torin Finser, ISBN 978-162148-230-7
What you'll experience
Over the course of the three phases, we'll explore these questions:
- What are the best strategies for working with parents?
- How can I improve my ability to communicate and work with conflict when it arises?
- How can I enhance my skills of classroom management and discipline?
- In which new ways can I work with the differentiated learning needs of my students?
- How does the Waldorf curriculum expand my ability to work with diversity and multiculturalism?
- How can I better prepare and develop imagination, inspiration, and living thinking?
- How does my view of the world/philosophy of education inform my lesson planning and curriculum choices?
Program Leadership
Torin Finser, Ph.D.
Program Director
Who Should Enroll
These workshops are designed to accommodate practicing teachers who may only be able to use occasional professional days. Those intending to apply for the full Waldorf teacher education program at Antioch University New England will need to do so by the following May. Some workshops will require 2-3 hours of preparatory reading, while others may entail a short project or reflective paper afterwards.
Opportunities for Further Studies to earn a Waldorf Teaching Certificate and an M.Ed.
Building Bridges participants completing Parts I and II below will earn a Waldorf Certificate recognized by the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America. Those seeking a fully accredited M.Ed degree recognized by the HLC will also need to complete Part III.
| Students taking all 12 months (Including Explorations): | $4,450* |
| Students who have completed foundational (Explorations) studies**: | $3,600* |
*Please note that all tuition paid online using credit card will incur 3% bank processing fee.
**Anyone who has completed Explorations in the past need not take Phase 1 but only the supplementary sessions of Phase 2 before going on to Phase 3.
CANCELLATIONS: An enrolled student may withdraw from the program upon written request to milan@centerforanthroposophy.org . Such a request must be received at least 30 days prior to the beginning of the program in order to receive a refund for the registration fee (less $75 cancellation fee). No refunds will be granted if cancellation is received within 30 days of the program start date.
Limited Financial Aid is available upon request. To inquire, please fill out and submit the form below.
Building Bridges Financial Aid Application
Building Bridges sponsored by the Center for Anthroposophy
Upon completing Part I with CfA you may apply to Antioch University New England to continue either in the Certificate or also the M.Ed. track described above.
Waldorf Teacher Certification – At Antioch University New England with the total of 28 Credits
- Application to Antioch’s Waldorf teacher education program may include application for 7 advanced standing credits
- Acceptance to Antioch’s Waldorf teacher education program
- Attendance at 2, three-week sessions in Wilton, NH in July (7 and 6 credits respectively, for a total of 13 credits)
- Completion of a practicum and independent study semester during the two intervening spring semesters (4 credits each course for a total of 8 credits)
- Completion of the Waldorf Teacher Certification outlined above (28 credits)
- Write-up and defense of a Master’s thesis (4 credits)
