Frequently Asked Questions.

How is a charter school different from a traditional public school?

A charter school is a public school that operates independently from its local school district, yet which is still accountable for student achievement and operational performance. A charter school is funded on a per-student basis from state and local education tax funds, and is bound by a legal contract (charter) with its sponsoring district. However, it is exempt from many forms of state education regulation and is governed as an independent non-profit, with its own board of directors.

The Portland Village School is sponsored by the Portland Public School District. Our charter school proposal was approved by the PPS Board of Education.

Who is eligible to attend Portland Village School?

Charter schools, as non-tuition based government-funded public schools, are open to anyone residing in the state of Oregon. If more students apply than there are spaces available, admission is decided by lottery. Priority is given to students residing in the Portland Public Schools district, but if spaces remain, students from outside the district are allowed to attend. Once a student is enrolled at the school, priority is also given to siblings. Age restrictions on public school students also apply to us.

The Portland Village School opened in the ’07-08 school year with grades K-4, and will add a grade each successive year with the goal of having two tracks of K-8 in the coming years.

Where is the Portland Village School located?

Our school is in North Portland in the historic elementary school building of the Queen of Peace campus at 7654 N. Delaware Avenue. The site is about three quarters of mile west of the Lombard exit of I-5, and is easily accessible by MAX and bus.

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What are Waldorf methods and how are they different?

Educational approaches incorporating Waldorf methods are designed to be developmentally appropriate. The method is partly based on the question: what is the best thing to teach a child at each age? Rather than the question: how early can a child be taught each subject? Children are given tasks according to their readiness, and not pushed towards the earliest possible achievement.

Our educational approach is also multidisciplinary, centered on a 3-4 week subject unit called the Main Lesson Block. At Portland Village School, academic studies are integrated across disciplines such as art, science, math, and history. For example, students in a seventh grade main lesson history block on the Renaissance Period may be studying the lives and times of Da Vinci, Michelangelo and Rafael, while at the same time creating their own "text-books," complete with their own writings (in calligraphy) and drawings. Earlier in the day they might practice 3-part recorder music and recite poetry from the Renaissance, and later the same day, study the laws of perspective in Math class. The next day they would apply those laws in their own drawings or paintings.

Does Waldorf-methods support early reading skills?

Waldorf curriculum has a strong bent toward early-learning language skills including story-telling and oral traditions. This exposure, when integrated in lessons, serves to awaken the imagination and create a strong curiosity for successful introduction of reading and writing, in addition to introducing phonemic awareness through listening.

The Portland Village School’s curriculum also follows the model set by the successful Eugene Village School, a public Waldorf-methods charter school. This includes instruction of foundational reading skills starting in Kindergarten including phonemic awareness, sequence, decoding, and concepts of print. Comprehension and reading interest is strongly married to the creative aspects of our curriculum’s focus on oral traditions and the Main Lesson Block approach further helping to build foundational skills. The Eugene Village School has exhibited its success by exceeding average standardized test scores in both math and reading for the last 3 years.

What kind of child benefits from a Waldorf-methods school?

Many different types of children benefit from Waldorf methods. Because the lessons involve multiple intelligences (movement, language, drawing) children can enter into learning in several ways. That said, Waldorf-methods involves a structured approach that is centered around whole group instruction, rather than individualized work or programs where children rotate around lesson centers. However, because the teaching style and curriculum is centered around a child’s development needs, children tend to be heavily engaged in their individual learning in the group setting. As one Waldorf-methods teacher refers to it: “teacher directed, child centered.”

One of the major strengths of this type of instruction is the sense of community and cooperation that develops within the class – an open community that invites children in rather than closing out new kids.

Does your school provide support for different kinds of learners and how do you support single class rooms for both “advanced” and slower learners?

While the lessons are whole class, different children can engage at different levels of complexity and/or progress at different speeds. For instance, grades 1 & 2 teachers offer ways to extend the Main Lesson for children who are more advanced to aid in their exploration beyond others in the group. For those needing extra attention the same is true, with added attention spent with those needing extra help keeping up with the class. In addition, parent volunteers assist the teacher with various reading groups.

How are you different than private Waldorf schools?

The Portland Village School takes inspiration from private Waldorf schools, but our principal models in designing the curriculum and classroom environment are the dozens of public Waldorf-methods schools across the country, especially our sister school, the Eugene Village School. While the traditional private Waldorf curriculum serves as a framework, we have modified it to align with the Oregon state assessment standards. We teach formal reading and writing earlier, and we are held to the same Oregon state testing regimen as all other public schools. We strive in the Portland Village School to ensure that these required annual tests do not intimidate or disrupt a child from their appropriate learning developmental cycle. Instead of instructing toward tests, our pedagogy puts great emphasis on ensuring that a child’s learning and development holds primary influence on student performance.

It is important to understand that as a public school we cannot completely follow the strict, pure Waldorf educational philosophy as practiced at private Waldorf schools. The Portland Village School will adapt a subset of the Waldorf educational philosophy, remaining as true to the ideals as practical within the public educational framework.

What are the hours, programs, policies, and fees?

Our school is tuition free - however, we have an extended day kindergarten option for $275 per month (see hours below). There are limited activity fees for certain activities, in a manner similar to other public schools. We also have a fee-based before- and after-care that includes programs for both kindergarten and the grade levels.

The Portland Village School's schedule will approximately follow the standard Portland Public School calendar.

Our class times are:

Morning Kindergarten: 8:45 am - 11:45 am

Extended-Day Kindergarten 8:45 am - 1:45 pm

1st – 4th grade hours: 8:45 am – 3pm

Our educational programs include:

• Standard foreign language
• Standard music, including recorder and violin
• Standard handwork, including knitting & woodwork

Other policies include:

• Enforced dress code limiting logo-based and commercially-explicit clothing exhibiting images of media characters or product commercial branding.
• Limited media access in school. Computers and television are not used in early grades; We provide educational information on the negative health effects of television and video games and encourage parents to limit their use at home.
• Enforced policy regarding a junk-food-free campus. Junk will be replaced by a supply of healthy snacks. Any junk food will be sent home with children at the end of the school day.

Is transportation provided; how will I get there?

We are close to public transportation. Students at our charter school will be able to use existing PPS bus routes, but the district will not institute any new routes to transport students to and from our school. We also have a web-based carpool forum to help families who might otherwise have difficulty getting their children to our school.

What kind of foreign language program do you offer and for which grades?

We offer Spanish starting in kindergarten and follows throughout the grades. Following our arts based framework, much of the early instruction in Spanish will be song and music based. Games and verse will figure prominently in instruction through the grades.

Is Waldorf-methods education ethnically diverse?

Historically, Waldorf education in the US has typically been in middle or upper class, primarily white, private schools. Though many of these private schools have made an admirable commitment to economic and ethnic diversity by offering scholarships, the largest change in access to Waldorf education in the last decade has been its growing presence in public schools. Approximately 50 public and charter schools across the country use Waldorf methods, and these have thrived in a wide range of communities. The best-known example, the Urban Waldorf School of inner city Milwaukee, WI, is over ninety percent African American. Waldorf-methods charter schools from New York to California use arts-integrated, holistic educational practices to give children from broadly different backgrounds a solid academic grounding and a love of learning. Our sister school, the Eugene Village School (a Waldorf-methods public charter), surpasses district and state standardized testing averages while operating as a Title I school, where more than half the students qualify for federal free and reduced lunch programs. Existing charter schools in Portland use a variety of strategies to maintain a healthy diversity, and we have designed our outreach program to achieve similar results. One of our early goals is to build a school staff which reflects the kind of diversity we would like to see in our student body.

How can I reserve a spot for my child in your school?

On February 3, 2007, we opened our first phase of enrollment for the 2007-2008 school year. Our second phase ran from March 6th - May 2nd. Now we are enrolling on a first come, first serve basis if/when we have openings. See the "Application Process" side bar for more information. We plan to open enrollment for the 2008-2009 school year in January of 2008. (back to top)