My copy of this book is underlined, notated and thumbed. Mary Richards writes in the voice of a poet, often dreamily, of the gentle art of education Rudolf Steiner style. I've put Steiner theories to work successfully--but not in a dogmatic way--in a home-school setting, with small mixed-age groups of home schoolers. If we could summarize the book in a few words, we might say this: children learn through their bodies and minds and hearts what they cannot conceive of through their brains. Clearly, the brilliant M.C. Richards is an intellectual, yet Steiner education is distinctly down to earth (one could call it biodynamics of the mind) and concrete. Highly recommend for anyone interested in the way children learn. Also the reader benefits from Richards' vast experience living in Steiner communities. Includes history of this astonishing movement. Amazing that such a way of life exists in the nineties in America!
