Christchurch Rudolf Steiner School

Welcome to Christchurch Rudolf Steiner School, located at 19 Ombersley Terrace in Christchurch, New Zealand. Our institution is not just a school, but a point of interest and establishment dedicated to providing a unique and holistic educational experience for children and young adults.

At our school, we believe that play is the child's work, and the first seven years of a child's life are crucial for developing their imaginative and creative capacities. In our Kindergarten, children are encouraged to play without formal academic learning, allowing them to freely develop within their own world.

We prioritize the development of a rich inner world, well-being, and imagination, which in turn fosters creative thinking and skill acquisition in the primary years. Our educational approach does not rely on digital devices or National Standards, but instead focuses on a blend of head, heart, and hands learning, artistic richness, and intellectual thought.

In the 21st century, students require an integration of intellectual excellence, passion, imagination, social competence, and individual certainty. That is why we offer a broad range of compulsory and elective subjects towards NCEA and Steiner Certificate qualifications, ensuring high levels of achievement.

Our curriculum provides a balanced, practical, active, and artistic education that addresses the intellectual, social, and practical aspects of learning. We are committed to providing a "whole person" education, quality teaching and learning, and spiritual well-being.

What sets us apart is our unhurried approach, which is endowed with beauty, truth, and goodness. We welcome enrolments at all stages of a learner's education journey, from kindergarten through to year 13 (Class 12).

While it may seem that we simply take an artistic approach to learning, prioritizing drama, singing, or learning to play beautiful instruments, there is so much more to it. Underlying all of our activities is the inner world of the child, growing and finding their own methods of expression and connection. Our aim is to provide each individual with a pathway to self-knowledge, empathy, and active participation in the world.

None of this would be possible without our dedicated teachers who take their role incredibly seriously. However, we also recognize the importance of whānau (family) in the well-being of each class community and the school as a whole.

Structure is an essential element in building inner certainty, learning habits, confidence, and self-regulation. Creativity, grown from imagination, not only solves problems but also brings joy, color, new directions, and new thinking capacities. Academic success is well-established in both primary and high school.

From small beginnings, we have grown into a school of over 400 pupils from kindergarten to year 13 in Opawa, Christchurch. As a Steiner school, we provide a unique educational opportunity that engages all aspects of students' lives through a balance of cognitive knowledge, creative feeling, and experiential learning.

Our aim is to assist young adults in becoming confident individuals who can effectively engage in the world, have sensitivity in interrelationships, and be guided by their heart as much as their head. We believe in the foundations of humanity - Goodness, Beauty, Truth - which later grow into Morality, Creativity, Wisdom.

We welcome students from all areas of Christchurch and operate with one class per age group, creating a small family-sized school where individual needs and achievements are met, recognized, and celebrated. Join our thriving community and be a part of an education that nurtures the whole person and prepares them for a fulfilling and purposeful life.

"The Foundations of humanity - Goodness, Beauty, Truth - later grow into morality, creativity, wisdom." - Plato