Akoranga Matua | Main Lessons 

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In a sentence 

A sustained block of time where a unit of work is unpacked and explored fully on a daily basis over approximately a 3-week period. 

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Steiner Check 

Main Lessons are an established part of a Steiner curriculum. The placement of each main lesson in the set of main lessons from Class 1 through to Class 12 is deliberately placed to serve the developmental age and stage of the students at that class level. Many main lessons build on main lessons from previous years. The placement of main lessons progress in a way to support the unfolding consciousness of the students from Class 1 through to Class 12, from doing to feeling to thinking. Each Main Lesson feeds another Main Lesson, and they are interconnected across the 12 years, so any changes need to be considered as a united whole, not just within the context of each subject. 

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Purpose  

The purpose of a main lesson is to open a window into the world of a topic or subject while further developing the students’ skills of thinking as well as the appropriate technical skills (literacy, mathematical concepts, scientific conventions). The aim is to bring content through a range of modes, including movement, singing, storytelling, art, poetry or music. The  learning rhythm is consciously developed, delivered and led by the teacher.  A learning rhythm encompasses  

• recall and reflect of prior knowledge (develop/responding to context) 

• present and discuss new learning (modelling and guided) 

• explore and consolidate the learning (guided  independent) 

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What it involves 

Main lessons run for a block of time every a day for approximately three weeks. Each Main lesson should have a rhythm of engaging the feeling realm followed by the thinking aspects, incorporating movement or opportunities to ‘do’ as needed. This rhythm might be true over the course of the three weeks but will also be evident in the daily session in the Main lesson. 

 

Educators need to consider how they will bring this topic to students in way that the students will connect with it and form a relationship with the material in order to open a curiosity and engage with it. Educators should consider each Main Lesson they approach firstly from what they already know of the students in front of them and how best to bring this main lesson to them. In every main lesson, no matter how many times it has been repeated an educator should be stretching themselves to bring something new to the main lesson.  

There may be Learning outcomes for qualifications attached to the main lesson. 

There are also Education Outside the Classroom components of several Main Lessons.  

 

Main Lesson Books 

 Students create their own book based on what they learn in class. Main lesson books might contain art responses, written responses, final compositions in relation to the topic of the Main lesson. By the end of the Main lesson the Main Lesson book should have a record of everything they studied and felt and learnt through this Main Lesson. 

Main lessons should align to the impulse themes, key capacities and pedagogical aims 

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There are a variety of units of learning detailed in each subject area. In some schools these could be stand alone  Main Lessons and in some schools they could be taken as ongoing practice lessons.