Not What to Think

How

to Think

Waldorf education understands that developing human potential is more than providing knowledge and developing academic skills. We help children cultivate their natural curiosity to grow intellectually, thrive physically, and develop emotional resilience.

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nature school children playing
    screen-free classroom viewpoint

The CLWS Experience

    Why We Approach Screens Differently

    As a low-tech, screen-free school, City of Lakes Waldorf School helps children develop focus, creativity, and resilience before introducing technology. This post explores how our approach—rooted in neuroscience, child development, and mindful learning—builds the foundation for healthy, balanced engagement with media.

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    Early Childhood Open House

    Saturday, November 8, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

    Join us for our Early Childhood Open House to explore our beautiful classrooms, meet our dedicated teachers, and enjoy a cozy morning of bread making, beeswax crafting, and a puppet show!

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    Explore Waldorf Event

    Wednesday, November 12, 6:00 - 8:30 pm

    Become a Waldorf student for an evening at our Explore Waldorf event, highlighting Grades 1-8. Attendees will have the opportunity to experience hands-on lessons and learn how our curriculum cultivates both critical and creative thinking skills that uniquely prepare students for high school, college, and beyond.

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The New Smart

Our programs

Early Childhood

Creative play provides the foundation for all future learning experiences.

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Early Childhood

Grades 1–5

Arts, music, and movement, integrated into a robust, well-rounded academic curriculum.

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Grades 1–5

Grades 6–8

An academically challenging liberal arts education that builds capacity for creative thinking and encourages self-discovery.

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Grades 6–8

Why Waldorf?

    “City of Lakes Waldorf School is a haven among schools, where the norm is high stakes testing and pressured learning, City of Lakes values the human connection, engages the children in a multi-disciplinary approach to learning, and calls forth their love of learning. I could not have asked for better role models for my children in the teachers and staff of this school. Their depth of caring and passion for learning is evident in all they do.”

    CLWS Parent

    “Waldorf school taught me that creativity and the arts should be integrated into life. I was never afraid to pursue the arts as a profession.”

    Yoko Okumura, Filmmaker, CLWS ’02

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    “We are so blessed to have found this amazing community when we did. It's exactly what I wanted for my children and I can't imagine sending them somewhere else. They're their best selves when they're at school, and wish they could go seven days per week.”

    CLWS Parent

    “Waldorf is a place where my classmates aren’t just friends, they’re family.”

    CLWS Student

    “If you’ve had the experience of binding a book, knitting a sock, playing a recorder, then you feel that you can build a rocket ship—or learn a software program you’ve never touched. It’s not bravado, just a quiet confidence. There is nothing you can’t do. Why couldn’t you? Why couldn’t anybody?”

    Peter Nitze, Waldorf and Harvard graduate, and Director of Martek Biosciences

“The need for imagination, a sense of truth, and a feeling 
of responsibility—these three forces are the very nerve 
of education.”

Rudolf Steiner

Philosopher & Social Reformer