I attended Shining Mountain Waldorf School from K-9 and cherish the magical experiences. I fondly recall the excitement of seeing new chalkboard drawings and hearing captivating stories in the cozy classrooms. Now, my son attends Kindergarten there and formed an instant bond with his teacher (not something that came naturally for him in preschool). Mrs. Cherie exceeds expectations by attending to each child's unique needs. All teachers offer individual care through home visits, parent nights, and meetings. Beyond being a great school, the parent community is enriching, and we're forming lifelong friendships. Some worry Waldorf's academic approach might not prepare students well, but my brothers, also Waldorf graduates, are now a urologist and a researcher at the Max Planck Institute. I'm a life coach with my own business. Success stems from joy in learning, which Waldorf fosters. I urge you to schedule a tour or email me for more insights at wovenwords [at] gmail [dot] com. read more

Being a part of Shining Mountain Waldorf School's Early Childhood program has been an exceptional experience for my daughter and our entire family. My daughter has blossomed into a confident, playful, curious, and adventurous 5-year-old in the loving care of her teachers. The beautiful campus, nestled in the foothills, offers ample opportunity for free play in nature and daily walks to visit the school chickens, gardens, and a nearby lake. Inside the classrooms, natural materials of wood and silk create a beautiful and comforting space to learn and play. Kindergarten classes provide nourishing, organic food to the children daily. Overall, the school has a rich tradition of meaningful festivals that build a thriving school community. We couldn't be happier at Shining Mountain and look forward to continuing through middle school and high school. read more

Shining Mountain Waldorf School's campus is absolutely stunning. The cottages for each grade level are a beautiful space for children to experience Waldorf pedagogy with loving and skillful teachers. My niece is thriving in the kindergarten program - she sings the sweetest songs she learns at school, often related to the changing of the seasons and the natural world. She feels safe and secure going to school every day and is developing deep, meaningful relationships with her teachers and classmates. I highly recommend Shining Mountain Waldorf School. read more

Our first child started at SMWS in 2019 and we now have 3 children attending (kindergarten, 1st grade and 3rd grade). We absolutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this school. The teachers are amazing! We also love the community of other families, the campus, the Waldorf teaching philosophy, the festivals and ceremonies and special rites of passage... we just can't recommend this school enough. Our kids literally can't wait to go in the morning and don't want to leave when it's time to go home. I never imagined that a school could have this affect on children because I always dreaded going to school as a child. Sending our kids to SMWS is 100% the best thing that we have done for our children, without a doubt. They are confident, creative, and in tune with their own learning style so that they actually enjoy learning and learn in the best possible way for themselves personally. We also love how they spend a lot of time outside, and doing handwork, crafting, playing instruments, creating art etc. and learning experientially. The new director is amazing and super positive. All of the teachers at SMWS are incredible. We are so grateful for our kids to have the opportunity to attend SMWS and to be a part of the SMWS community. HIGHLY recommend! read more

We moved from Los Angeles to Boulder to bring our 5th grader and 6th grader to the school because of their stand out middle school and high school. Our kids have been in Waldorf schools since pre school. We have had the great fortune of being a three great schools, Siskiyou School in Ashland Oregon, Westside Waldorf School in Pacific Palisades and now Shining Mountain. We have now been at the school for five years - our girls are now in high school. It has been the best decision we have ever made. First of all this school has far more resources than our previous schools. Our youngest daughter who has been a slow reader had in school tutoring and support. The school also an amazing councilor who supports the teachers in dealing with an issues that come up. The middle school at Shining Mountain is unique. Traditionally Waldorf School teachers take a child from 1st to 8th grade. Shining Mountain breaks this tradition by having a dedicated middle school team that takes the students from 6th through 8th grade. These are some of the best middle school teachers in all of Waldorf education who have focused their training and experience on this critical age. Our girls are both met with age appropriate academics and an environment that is sensitive to the changes that they are going through physically and socially. This program is so innovative that other Waldorf Schools have come to shadow our program to learn about how it is run. The high school builds on the experiences in the lower school. The students are all quite creative and capable of deep reflection on the world. I can't imagine a better place for our girls to be. For those who are not Waldorf schooled, I highly recommend the Shining Mountain as a place to look if you are wanting a more holistic education for your child and or they are longing for more self expression and art. Shining Mountain has an amazing music program and art is interwoven into all of the class work. Every grade performs plays and every student is involved. I highly recommend this school to anyone who is looking for a deeper character based education wrapped in healthy active community life. read more

Two parts to this review: Waldorf in general, and Shining Mountain in particular. I'm a parent of two boys, one in 8th grade at Shining Mountain (there for 3 years, previously in LA), one in 5th grade at the local public elementary (went to Shining Mountain for 3rd grade). In short, we looked at Waldorf because we met kids who had graduated, and they were incredibly impressive as people. Not just being smart and accomplished, but being solid. Mature, well-rounded, able to hold conversations with adults, and NOT focused on the shallow. One example comes to mind: Thanksgiving dinner with 8 nieces and nephews, of which 5 were basically the same age. The 3 who were at regular schools -- and are great kids in so many ways -- were completely occupied texting their friends about the next party that night, etc., and couldn't engage with others in any meaningful way, being totally distracted. The two Waldorf kids, on the other hand, were present in the moment, interested and interesting. The marked contrast was palpable, but it's hard to convey here. But, overall, these kids were comfortable in their own skins and were real people. It left a deep impression. So, what that said to us was, we don't know how they got there, but the end results are so good, we have to check this out. The Waldorf approach is quite different than others with which I'm familiar. It is heavy on deep exploration of topics, music, art, performance, and integration across disciplines. Deep exploration of topics is in contrast to "teaching to the test" and "learning by rote". That is a really big one, and takes getting used to for parents, and kids, who have been in public (or almost all private) schools. It's partly based on the idea that kids will truly learn when material is presented multiple times, with deep explanation of why it works the way it works. Learning about Alexander the Great, astronomy, even algebra is decidedly different under Waldorf. Much more observational rather than just accepting what someone tells you. Not perfect, because it seems to take longer than I'd like, but the kids definitely know a lot about the subject this way. Art, music and performance are serious. There is real time dedicated to stuff that public schools have had to largely jettison or do only once in a while. You give up the rapid-fire progress on other topics, obviously, but if it's a trade-off, at least you get something in trade! Every kid plays an instrument -- a lot -- and creates art in many media, performs in the class play, sings at assemblies, etc. I can't believe the art my sons have done. That skill is inherent in some people, but at Waldorf everybody spends time becoming good at it. It's amazing, I would not have expected it actually works! Waldorf is not for everyone. If your kid loves taking tests, is really competitive, or if you as a parent get freaked out by the pace and the wider array of topics or the non-denominational spirituality, it can be a challenge. My younger son and Waldorf are a great match in many ways, but he wanted much more academic pace, and -- and this can happen at any school, it's not just Waldorf or Shining Mountain -- wanted more structure and order in class than the other kids were able to deal with. So he's at public, and loves the academics, the structure and the larger pool of kids. But he definitely misses out on the art, music, etc., and gets loaded with all kinds of tedious make-work homework that is almost a complete waste of time. He may go back to Waldorf and Shining Mountain at some point, we'll see, I would be a strong advocate for that given the outcomes I've seen. Shining Mountain is a great Waldorf school. It's big enough to have enough kids to find variety, it goes K-12, the faculty and staff are great, the facilities are pretty good (although the high school could use a refresh, which it will get soon), and the kids and parents are pretty great. One thing I've learned is that the fit with the kids and teachers are most important; it's wonderful to have cool parents, which we do in our class, but your kid is there 8 hours a day, not you. So if your kid finds a fit, that's the place. read more

After attending the 25 Year Gala Anniversary celebration at SMWS last night, I am still full of positivity and gratefulness for how far the school has come from its humble beginnings. Excellent heart-centred and arts-centred education is such a rarity in America, yet it makes such a profound difference in who a person becomes later in life. The gala dinner was lovely too. Healthy salads, salmon and chicken entrees, mind-bending dessert trays, an elegant layered yam and potato side dish, wines of many kinds for those who enjoy wine with their meal, club soda, coffee, and tea for people like me, and lots of social fun. 4 or so hours of speeches too --found out many new and interesting facts about the school's history and Waldorf Education in America's history and the time flew by! read more

I discovered Waldorf Schools when I was 18 and met other teens my age who were completely different than my classmates, they were grounded individuals with deep understanding of a lot of things. They were well rounded Waldorf Grads! Needless to say, they made a strong impression on me and I told myself that when I had kids I would look for a Waldorf Education for them. 10 years later I had my son and two years after that I had my daughter. We first enrolled at Chicago Waldorf. We loved Waldorf from the beginning, later our family had the opportunity to move to Colorado and we soon found out about Shining Mountain Waldorf in Boulder. All the people in Chicago who knew Shining Mountain told us about Shining Mountain Waldorf School as one of the best Waldorf Schools in North America. The Waldorf Method is definitely different than what most people in the US know as schooling, which is just learning to be good test takers after a two -four week period of intense memorization. The difference in Waldorf is that they kindle the fire, they light up the passion for learning. Waldorf lays a strong foundation from early childhood onward, it awakens curiosity in the lower school, enlivens the child in middle school, and engages the teenagers in high school. Upon first visit of a Waldorf School one notices that the classrooms are different, there is art everywhere and anyone not familiar with Waldorf could say that it is an art school. However this observation more than anything points to the lack of beauty and art in any other school system. Additionally, I have to point out that Waldorf graduates around the world are people of various backgrounds, interests, skills, and jobs. They are people who are engaging, interested and overall impressive individuals that can engage with people smoothly in a variety of topics and situations. Another of the many unique aspects of the Waldorf School is the seasonal festivals and the rich inner life that awakens in the children with the cyclical rhythm of the years. Shining Mountain Waldorf School is an excellent K-12 school, children are exposed to a rich variety of activities throughout the years. Such as a working day on a farm, or visiting a working mine, exploring the outdoors in winter by building a snow shelter, traveling abroad as exchange students or volunteering either locally, domestic or international in between junior and senior year as a school project. Shining Mountain Waldorf School in the last few years has experienced tremendous growth, and transformation in the best way possible. There is excitement in the community for plans going forward into building new facilities, with a special focus on the High School. There is a strong parent association that is very supportive, it really takes a village to raise a child, and I can't think of a better community to do it but Shining Mountain. The faculty at Shining Mountain is really top notch, In my perspective the faculty in all Waldorf Schools is one of the most important aspects of the school. They do so much work beyond the classroom, they have scheduled meetings to support the learning environment for children and coach newer faculty, they give talks and classes to parents to deepen the understanding of the Waldorf method. Faculty is so essential to the students, that many students continue to stay in touch with their teachers even after they graduate. One suggestion I would make to new families considering Waldorf, is that I would highly encourage a visit to hear the high school senior students present their projects. You might be a parent of a young child looking for a nice Kindergarten or elementary school, but upon hearing these young adults, you'll see the whole journey and the end result of Waldorf method and won't regret it. My children are thriving, I couldn't be happier. read more

WE LOVED 12 OUT OF 14 YEARS OUR KIDS WERE IN SCHOOL, HOWEVER: The current school director is unprofessional and bullies her way to get things done. She is mean spirited and does not understand the school community's needs. She mandates rules that are specifically counter to the community's agreements. Currently I'm sorely disappointed with the administrative staff's actions following a teacher's perception of an interaction off campus with my child. A year later, I'm contemplating the RACISM and ELITISM that I saw prevalent in the school administration and community. The school was wrong in the actions taken and they know it. How they handled the process was very immature and unprofessional. The actions taken by the school's administration were very untimely, unfounded, and irresponsible. I hope the school community smartens up and removes the current director and vets a serious, qualified candidate to lead the school in a new direction (or former direction). read more

I attended Shining Mountain from kindergarten through 12th grade, and my appreciation for the school has only grown over the years since I graduated. I would not have believed how many doors this great education would open for me. But I know that I am not an exception. To my knowledge, every single student from my graduating class went on to attend excellent colleges, and I am not the only one to have also earned a law or other higher degree. Perhaps the ultimate endorsement of a school is where you decide to send your own children, and my wife and I are sending our children to SMWS. Actually, we moved back from Washington, DC in part to send our kids to this school. Our experience with the current teachers and school administration has been very positive. Here are a few of the many reasons why I think Shining Mountain is such a wonderful school: 1) The curriculum lets kids be kids without rushing them into academics before they are ready.  In particular, Waldorf schools do not teach to the test and discourage rote learning.  There are no text books that provide the answers for you.  Rather, Waldorf adopts something much closer to the Socratic method and students learn to love the learning process.  I found that, particularly when compared with students who had gone to traditional New England prep schools, I was far better prepared for college because I had a much longer attention span, loved learning and was interested in acquiring knowledge for the sake of learning not just to do well on an exam.  I also believe that the curriculum makes kids more creative and innovative, which prepares them to adapt to a rapidly changing world. 2) There are no computer or iPad screens in the classrooms, which I believe improves student engagement, creativity and attention spans. This is one of the most important things for me because I believe that a good education is about human contact and interaction.  This is anecdotal evidence, but at Georgetown Law, where some professors banned the use of computers during class while others allowed them, I always found that even when I was with the same section of law students, classes without computers generated higher levels of engagement, better discussion, and more creative application of law to facts. There's an interesting New York Times article on this subject about Silicon Valley execs choosing Waldorf for their kids: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/technology/at-waldorf-school-in-silicon-valley-technology-can-wait.html. 3) Waldorf balances its academic curriculum with art, music, theater, dance and foreign languages.  The latter is particularly important to me as this is how I learned German, which has been a big part of my life.  But research on the subject also indicates that exposure to art improves critical thinking skills. read more

After sleeping on the comments here I feel inspired this morning to try and add my own. I am a recent alumni parent of this school - shepherding over half a dozen teens in their profound years in SMWS' upper grades. Without knowing you, the reader, I can only offer this: I have met parents both wealthy and below-poverty here at SMWS, both here-since-conception and just-arrived, both permissive and authoritarian, both atheist and devoutly religious...To me, the good ones are looking at what is going on in this world and deciding at a very deep level that they will support the very best anthroposophically-inspired education they can. This requires free teachers, ample diversity in the classroom and much more....and to support this, the teen's surrounding community must weather inevitable challenges. That said, I have seen many who do not believe one has to "weather challenges" and I have come to be...alright...about that point of view too. After all, 'focusing on the light' is one of the most powerful ways to "weather challenges", isn't it? At the end of the day one can look at the students. The ones coming to kindergarten, the ones now working in the world. As a parent, whether you are DaVinci, Michaelangelo or Raphael you will, IMHO, carry ...ramifications... of the effort of such amazing parenting work. I am among many who thank-you for this beautiful, beautiful art. Blessings. read more

I attended SMWS from kindergarten through 12th grade and I cannot say enough good things about my time there. From the individualized teacher support, opportunities for growth and development of my self on all levels, and the community--just a truly, truly, wholly wonderful school, place, and education! I HIGHLY recommend this school to anyone and everyone. If you are seeking a place for your child to feel nurtured, accepted, challenged (an the best way), and inspired--this is the school for you! read more

Outstanding. Our children went K-12 to Shining Mountain. Now that they are adults and through the challenges of adolescence, we see every day the sound foundation they received to create happy, creative, ethical, fulfilling lives in these challenging times. They are making a positive difference in their work and their communities. read more

So we enrolled my son in this school. Because we had heard so many great things about it. My son had a very difficult time adjusting to a new school. The teacher that my son had Mrs Pam Rosenthal. Turned out to be very unsupportive of my son. I felt like the school was very discriminative of my son. I also felt not welcomed by any parents. I payed all this extra money for eurethmey classes and extra counseling for my son and my family. So my son can enroll for the next year. Just to find out they did not want my 9 year old son to come back to there school. The teacher gave me the feeling that they did not want to take the time to work with my son. It was very disappointing. I was truly in disbelief how the teacher Pam would isolate my son because she did not like him. Because he had some challenges. Please parents do your homework. This is a bad school. read more

A friend of mine has a daughter who attends Shining Mountain. I spent 90 days attending the festivals and programs put on by the school. It was enchanting. The people at the school are lovely souls. read more

We have spent five wonderful years at SMWS. Our daughter is a freshman in the High School now and is thriving. She is engaged in her studies, has a wonderful group of friends and the faculty is awesome. We could not be happier. read more

My 26 year-old daughter is a graduate of SMWS, class of '05. She is wonderfully grounded, kind and smart young woman who runs her own business, and has done so since the year she left Shining Mountain. While her dad and I would love to take all of the credit for how she turned out, we (happily) cannot do that--the SMWS curriculum, teachers, staff and community have all played a vital role in shaping the person she is today. We still enjoy being a part of the SMWS community and are looking forward to the awesome Michaelmas Pageant this coming Friday!!! read more

We chose Shining Mountain because of the deep commitment everyone has to the school and the children. We started at our local public school but could see the negative impact immediately on our daughter's creativity and sense of herself. Her first year at Shining Mountain she would come home singing every day - and in multiple languages - she's just so happy there. She has this belief in herself from having a Waldorf education that she can do anything - because she has done so much. She's never been made to feel like she isn't "performing" and as a result she's excelling. We are so happy we made the switch. read more

I have attended various Waldorf Schools throughout my childhood as my parents moved quite a bit. I have been to Pine Hill in NH, Tuebinger Freie Walforf Schule in Germany, and Shining Mountain Waldorf School here in Boulder. Moving from country to country can be very difficult, but the continuity of the daily routine was instrumental in helping me transition from culture to culture. When I had my son it was very clear to me that Shinning Mountain was the school for us. I love the community, the teachers, and the philosophy. read more

I don't think SMWS is a bad school. The teachers are experienced and very nice, the children seem well adjusted and kind and the curriculum seems to be relatively in touch with Steiner's teachings. But for a private school with a hefty tuition it's got a lot of problems. In 2016, minor mishap between two children got grossly mishandled by the teachers and administration and got blown up to elephantine proportions, resulting in emergency meeting with sexual abuse specialist, loss of several families and a lot of traumatized children. One of our children was behind in math and developed a severe "I'm horrible at math" complex, which could have been easily avoided if teacher communicated with us about it earlier. It's taking us a year to resolve this and we are finally seeing results and return of self-confidence. Our other child was in tears after being yelled at by a teacher and almost sent home for wearing "Waldorf inappropriate clothing" in summer camp. Again, something that could have been easily avoided by a teacher communicating to a parent without traumatizing a 5 year old who doesn't even care what's on that t-shirt. Overall, my children were never excited or looked forward to going to school. They loved their friends and teachers, but they never talked about things they did in class, because it never touched them or was relevant. They are in a different school now and they are thriving! read more

My son has been at Shining Mountain Waldorf School since pre-school. Every year that he's there I am more amazed and more grateful that Waldorf education and SMWS in particular is in our lives. The focus on the arts, on the development of the whole child, heart, head & hands is incredible. My son is in 8th grade now and will continue through Shining Mountain until his senior graduation. He has matured into a mature, strong, and capable young man who has a strong sense of his inner destiny and direction. I credit Waldorf education and the loving teachers at Shining Mountain for that! read more