During the primary years the child has an innate need for loving authority as he grows from a being of sensation into a being of feeling and thinking.

The main lesson: Grade school begins each day with a lively 2-hour main lesson. One subject is taken up in detail for a period of 3 to 4 weeks, so that children can immerse themselves completely, with their head, heart and hands. Textbooks are not used, but the main lesson work is recorded in books by the children, paying great attention to detail and artistic presentation. This is a unique and vital part of Steiner education. Recorder lessons begin in Class I, as part of the curriculum. Its short notes help the children achieve a better rhythm in their breathing.

Ideally, one class teacher takes the children from Class I to Class VI. While there are specialized teachers for subjects like handwork, dance, music, art, sports, gardening and languages, this class teacher becomes a focal point in the child's rapidly changing life. She is a mentor to the children, a ready advisor to parents, providing security and continuity in the passage from childhood to adolescence.

LOVE, AWE, DEVOTION, COMPASSION, TRUST, THE ABILITY TO RECOGNIZE BEAUTY, TO DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL, TO CARRY OUT A CHOSEN COURSE OF ACTION - SUCH QUALITIES REVEAL A PERSONS CHARACTER. CHILDREN ONCE LEARNED RESPECT FOR THESE THROUGH THEIR CULTURE, THE COMMUNITY IN WHICH THEY LIVED AND ITS RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS. TODAY WE ARE WITNESSING THE BREAKDOWN OF SUCH QUALITIES THROUGHOUT MOST OF THE WORLD. IF CHILDREN ARE NOT TO LOSE THE CHANCE TO DEVELOP THESE ASPECTS OF HUMAN NATURE, EDUCATION MUST CONSCIOUSLY CULTIVATE THEM.