Country Day is a Waldorf inspired early childhood program in Palo Alto, CA. For over thirty years, we have been providing a nurturing, play-based, developmentally attuned school environment for our students and families.
Our program is inspired by Helle Heckmann’s model at Nokken, and our thirty students, ages two to six, spend their days in mixed age groups that flow together through the day. Our activities are typical of a Waldorf early childhood, with extensive time spent out of doors, a focus on practical work, and most importantly, the children’s self-directed play. We cultivate a space in which families join with a commitment to protecting childhood and working with their family life to meet their children’s developmental needs. We especially love to have parents join us in the classroom to discover the warmth, joy and magic of their children’s experience at school!
Our program is informed by an Anthroposophical understanding of human development, as well as current research on child development and education. Our striving to gain insight and improve our practices makes for a creative working environment in which nothing is taken for granted and everything is open to thoughtful development. As a standalone early childhood program, we are blessed with latitude and ample resources that make possible nearly everything we teachers can dream up!
We support our colleagues in our day to day at school, professional development, and self development. We are looking for a teacher who enjoys working collaboratively with a group of colleagues; in our co-teaching environment, we share in the responsibilities of pedagogical and practical work that is rewarding, creatively inspired, and conscientiously achieved. Our teachers discover growth and fulfillment at Country Day, working together in a way that supports each member of our faculty in sharing their gifts with students and colleagues, while finding warm support in areas that invite further learning and growth.
Country Day is centrally located in Palo Alto. This area, strongly influenced by Stanford University and the many tech companies that call it home, is community minded, wonderfully diverse, and full of ideas and work for the future. We are an easy commute from San Francisco, the Santa Cruz Mountains and the beautiful northern California coast. In our temperate climate, there are many opportunities for both urban and rural pursuits.
Visit our instagram profile, @countrydaylittleschool, to see more of our program.
