Though teachers modify the curriculum to meet the specific needs of their class, the following descriptions represent the typical curriculum for each grade at The Waldorf School of Atlanta.

Grade I Curriculum
First grade is the commencement of formal schooling marked by children's new interest in learning, inspired by the awakening capacities of memory and thinking. Students establish good habits of classroom life and work that will form the basis for all subsequent learning at school. The students and teacher build the foundation for an ever-deepening relationship while forming a socially cohesive group during this special year of "beginnings."

Main Lessons
Literature: Fairy tales, folk tales and nature stories help to cultivate imagination and awareness of the environment. Teachers utilize language that is clear and rich in expressive vocabulary, including poems with strong rhythms.

English and Grammar: Writing and reading evolve out of the oral tradition. Letters are introduced pictorially through stories, and then letters evolve into words and sentences. Writing evolves from drawing. Capital letters, simple words, speech exercises, short plays, and phonetics are all part of the first grade curriculum. A class play may be performed during this year.

Science: Stories from nature help children build awareness of and sensitivity to their surroundings.

Mathematics: Whole numbers to 100 are introduced. Elements of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division are explored through imaginative stories and tactile experiences. Counting, rhythms, mental arithmetic, Roman numerals, and number riddles help to reinforce arithmetic skills.

Drawing, Painting, and Modeling: Children are introduced to a variety of artistic materials including beeswax, crayons, and watercolor paints. Through painting, students learn about the qualities of color, and through drawing, they learn about the qualities of form. Beeswax is modeled to create small figures and scenes from fairy tales. All work is imbued with color and beauty.

Daily Schedule
The children begin each morning in a two-hour Main Lesson with their class teacher. During this time, when their minds are freshest, they intensively study one of the core academic subjects: language arts, mathematics, history, or science. Main lessons are planned in a block system, with each subject block lasting from three to four weeks. This system allows the teacher to enter each subject in depth, enlivening the lessons with drama, poetry, painting, and modeling.

Subjects requiring regular repetition in shorter lessons (foreign languages, for example) occupy the later part of the morning. The close community relationship established between a class and its teacher in the main academic subjects is balanced by lessons taught by specialists, so the children have a healthy experience of several different adults.

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