South Devon Steiner School
Book a Tour | Friday Flier | FAQs | Keep in Touch | Links | News | Support Our School
Child Exploitation & Online Protection Centre
Blue Example Button
Safeguarding is our highest priority. Find out more »
+44 (0) 1803 897377  |   Hood Manor, Dartington TQ9 6AB
+++ LATEST SCHOOL NEWS - CLICK HERE +++
  • Home
  • About
    • Ethos and Aims
    • Safeguarding >
      • Blog
      • Online Safety
    • Pupil Safety (COVID)
    • Head Teacher and Management
    • Proprietor and Council of Trustees >
      • Council Meetings, AGMs and EGMs
    • Key Members of Staff >
      • School Faculty
      • Early Years Faculty
      • Safeguarding Team
      • Leadership & Management
      • Administration
      • Council of Trustees
    • Academic Performance
    • School Policies
    • School Inspection Reports
    • Gallery
    • Blog
  • Education
    • Early Years (3 - 6 years) >
      • Our Kindergartens
      • Kindergarten Festival Calendar
      • Kindergarten Curriculum for 5 - 6 year olds
      • EYFS Exemptions and Modifications
    • Lower School (6 - 11 years)
    • High School (11-14 years)
    • Upper School (14 - 18 years) >
      • Curriculum Overview >
        • Arts & Crafts
        • English
        • Languages
        • Mathematics
        • Outdoor Classroom
        • Physical Education
        • Sciences
        • Social Studies
        • Class 12 Project & Play
      • Academic Approach
      • Community Service & Mentorship
      • New Zealand Steiner School Certificate (NZSSC)
    • The Outdoor Classroom
    • A Brief History of the School
  • Admissions
    • Admissions
    • Fees
    • Take our Virtual Tour
    • Visit Us
    • Book a School Tour
    • Admissions Forms
  • For Parents
    • Attendance
    • School Lunches
    • Term Dates
    • School Calendar
    • School drop-off and collection
    • School Portal
    • Consent Forms
    • Parents' Guide
    • Reading Lists
    • Media Guidance
    • Parents, Parental Involvement & Volunteering
    • Community Space & Shop
  • Vacancies
  • Contact
    • Tell Us What You Think
    • Our Instagram Page
    • Our Facebook Page
    • Parents' Facebook Page
  • International Students
    • International Students Programme
    • Live & Learn Language
    • Live & Learn Language - Vacancies
    • Student Exchanges
  • Staff Page
  • Safeguarding
  • Hall Hire

Top marks from Inspectors

1/10/2015

 
We can all be thrilled about the recent School Inspection Service (SIS) report which rated our school’s Early Year’s Foundation Stage (EYFS), as outstanding, as well as the majority of our school’s teaching as a whole.
 
The SIS is the equivalent of OFSTED for independent schools.
 
The report also acknowledged that our school recognises a child’s academic, emotional and spiritual needs, and engenders a love of learning principally by helping them to be inquisitive and posing their own questions about the world around them.
 
Elizabeth Elsholtz says the report was a testament to the dedication of our school’s teachers, and that the school management team was extremely proud of them, as well as the children who spend many hours every day within our school's walls.

We can be especially delighted with the acknowledgement that the ‘ethos of the school successfully fosters a strong sense of self-worth alongside understanding and sensitivity for the natural world and humankind.’

It is also gratifying to see that the inspectors recognised the strong emphasis given to the development of skills in science, and that ‘science is often taught innovatively'. 
 
“There is sometimes a misconception that Steiner education emphasizes the Arts to the detriment of Maths and the Sciences.  This is not true, and great to see independent confirmation of this.”
 
Our school’s unusual facilities were also mentioned in the report, including the wood work area, blacksmith’s forge, lime kiln, pottery facilities, charcoal burner, the playing field and ‘a most magnificent horticultural area with cultivated fruit, vegetables and flowers where pupils learn to tend the land’.
 
COMMENTS ABOUT THE CHILDREN
 
While they were at the school, the inspectors witnessed various drama activities and they reported that our children showed great confidence and literacy skills, and that such ensemble work promotes their social skills which are evident in many other areas of work.
 
They found our children's spiritual and moral development to be outstanding and good respectively, and it was clear that our children feel valued as individuals within the school community.
 
“And, parents, you will be pleased to know that,  according to the inspectors, your children behave sensibly and show good awareness of potential risks during lessons which require the use of tools and other equipment!” says Elizabeth !
 
Other highlights of the report included:

  • Aesthetic development is strongly supported by excellent work in music, art, drama and horticulture where pupils’ knowledge, skills and appreciation are of a high quality.
  • In the main lessons (which take place every day according to a theme), pupils’ attention, participation and sense of being part of a community is developed and fostered through recitation, singing, rhythmic movement and moments of reflection.
  • Pupils’ social development is good.
  • The school makes good use of its premises and grounds to meet the needs of the pupils and their education. It works hard to maintain the assortment of buildings and the use of the nearly seven acres of grounds is extremely effective. Their development and careful tending add considerably to the pupils’ experiences and make a major contribution to the delivery of the Steiner curriculum.
  • The extensive grounds provide well-organised areas for games and play as well as for horticulture and aspects of farming. A wide range of vegetables, fruit, herbs and flowers are grown bio-dynamically.
 
“Of course, no school is perfect but we are always looking to improve and have listened with keen ears to the advice we were given,” says Jonathan Hobbs.   “This included developing our assessment approach through all classes, furthering our personal, social, health and economic curriculum and sharing our recent administrative and management re-organisation with parents. We are already discussing these issues and are excited to see how we can address them in our daily art of teaching”, he says.
 
Anyone interested in reading the full report can do so here.

Picture
Kindergarten was voted as outstanding! Come for a visit and see why!

Comments are closed.

    This is our school blog

    Contributions to our website are gladly accepted. Please email stories, photographs or news to admissions@south-devon-steiner.org.

    Did you know?

    You can hire classrooms, our kitchen, outdoor spaces and Greenwood Hall !   Click here to find out more.
    Venue Hire Info

    Join our school?

    We welcome all enquiries and applications.  Please contact Kaycee on admissions@steiner-south-devon.org or call +44 (0)1803 897 377 to arrange a visit or to answer any questions.
    Admissions Info

    Learn English?

    Picture
    Overseas Students Info
© Copyright 2015 - 2021 | Rudolf Steiner School South Devon Limited | All Rights Reserved
​Charity no. 286434. Company no. 1693887. Registered at ​Hood Manor, Dartington, Devon TQ9 6AB
Steiner Waldorf School is a collective mark (Regd. TM 3069952) of the Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship.