As much info, experience and advice as possible please RE:steiner education.

[BeWorthy]

OK. Where do I start?

My son has always been quit ill so we put him on a very different diet where he only eats all organic, no dairy etc, no sugar etc. So his body stays as healthy as possible.

He is one of the youngest of the academic year as he was four in August. So putting him into school in September just gone was a big concern for me, maybe I'm an over protective parent (but is there such thing?) But I hated the whole idea. Admissions, school uniforms, everything. He started in September as one of the youngest and he has stuggled, and so have I. He has struggled to settle in and go into school willingly, he has struggled to sit at a table all day, he has struggled to eat a very different lunch to his classmates. I have struggled with wanting to talk to a teacher who spends more time with my child than I do but her never having the time as she has 30 four year olds. But what really irritated me recently was when I was doing homework with my son ( he has LOTS of homework, at 4, reading diaries, homework diaries, targets, etc) and he has always been left handed, but on this evening of homework after the teacher mentioning to me about his current inability to hold a pencil properly I noticed him trying to write with his Right hand. I asked him why and he said because maybe it would be easier to grip, and all of his friends do it that way. This broke my heart - I want my son to feel he can be whoever he is and not have to change that to meet expectations of society at aged FOUR.

I don't want my son to feel pressured academically, or left our because his food is not processed and bad for him.

So - my partner mentioned steiner to me. I looked into steiner schools and I had a visit on Friday. I was blown away, almost emotional at how perfect it is for us, how we parent, and for my son.

He's next in line for admissions. However, since my visit I've started to do more research and I am only seeing very conflicted views on the steiner education. I am at a loss on a decision. We are not wealthy, or even middle class. We get by. & by sending him to steiner school we'd be scraping the coins together - but I feel for an education whuch is relaxed, non-pressured, and with outstanding end results that it would be worth it. But I need to be sure, 100 percent sure almost.

So I'm looking for your views, experiences, advice so I can have as much information as possible to base my decision upon. This is a very big decision for me, this is my sons future and well-being. I know there are bad experiences, but 95% of the people I know had bad experiences with state funded schools included myself! So how can it be worse than that? The whole 'processed pea' tarred with the same brush state education system.

All views welcome

I have asked very politely for the research. Because my understanding, and the generally accepted view of childhood cancer, is that you are wrong. You are refusing to give the research.

Guilt inducing because you are suggesting, without backing it up, that parents whose children have, or have had, cancer, could have prevented it. If this is true, then you need to back up the statement, rather than leave such parents hanging.

Avoncallingbaksdale - I really don't understand your comment on the 'quote' you've taken from one of my posts? Can you explain what you mean? I am very very sad to hear about your friends son. I cannot imagine anything worse in the whole world. My comment was never nasty ? I know many children with cancer or children who have sadly passed away through the charity which has helped my son. it is awful. But what I said, It is fact.. Some cancers are in fact bad bloody luck !! And some are preventable, more than half are. I think it's a real shame that more people do not know this and it should be wide knowledge. My comment was never meant to offend anyone? I don't see how it would have been interpreted that way - but I'm spry if you saw it that way ...

I will gladly accept your apology, OP. However, you are way, way out of line with your suggestion that many cancers are preventable. We can do our best to lower our risks of certain cancers, by not smoking, not drinking excessively, keeping a healthy weight and exercising. However, I would really like to see the research that you are presumably quoting from in terms of childhood cancer. I would love to know which childhood cancers could be prevented, cos the friends I referred to sure as shit didn't lose their son through letting him have a few fruit shoots. I know you didn't come here to discuss food and preventable cancers, but you should accept that comments like that will be picked up. And, for the record, it's not inoffensive just because you add xx at the end.

I really dislike how you are still putting words into my
Mouth and are relentlessly targeting me and my posts and trying to paint a very negative view of me. It's also funny now you only jumped on this after a comment someone else had made? Which there was an apology given for how it may have misinterpreted id like you to quote me on saying how parents could have prevented their children from cancer. And back that up. Your comments are quite disgusting and hurtful to me I was talking about MY son MY experiences and what I have been told by health professionals helping MY son and what I could do to help MY son and prevent MY sons illness developing. I have many friends whose children are still battling so what you are saying I have said is incorrect and disgraceful. I NEVR said all CHILDHOOD cancers are preventable so how I have offended YOU is absurd. You have had no positive input on this thread and I will report you if you continue to put negative comments which put words into people's mouths and are completely off topic.

Did you not add xx at the end? So I responded with xx? And please quote on saying childhood cancers are preventable ? When talkng of MY SON I was talking of LYMPHOMA if you read properly which is not just a childhood cancer, my grandmother also has this. And me talking about not letting MY SON have fruit shoots is because aspartame can cause illnesses I NEVER said anyone else's children.

"Some cancers are in fact bad bloody luck !! And some are preventable, more than half are. I think it's a real shame that more people do not know this and it should be wide knowledge."

I think this is what people are asking for more information about. Links to the health practitioners - conventional or alternative - who enabled you to form this view.

Hey. A lot
Of the info I have learnt is into head from health practisers dealing with my son.
I've taken the time to do a quick search and there's
A lot on it. I've scanned through this one briefly as I'm getting ready to go out. But I thought it would be 'ok' as it talks about different types
Of cancers, how research rarely
Goes into 'prevention' and focuses
More
On a cure a quote from the article
Says "Obesity, smoking, alcohol, infectious agents and carcinogens in food and in the environment have been shown to cause chronic inflammation in the body. The longer the inflammation continues, the greater the risk of cancer."
So like mentioning before smoking etc but this also talks quite a bit about what I was trying to explain, carcinogens in food. I hope this helps.

Sorry for spelling and unneccessary paragraph indents now on my phone and touchscreen phones are crap

Practioners* oh gosh

I'm really sorry to "go on" OP, but you categorically stated that more than half of cancers are preventable. I think if you say something like that you must be prepared to back it up.

I was going to comment on the cancer comment but AVON beat me to it.

You also seem to be implying that you prevented/cured lymphoma?

My son had similar problems when he was small, he was also tested for lymphoma. Thankfully the tests came back clear because he didn't have it have you not entertained the idea that that was the case with your son?

It seems you had a bad experience at school, I think you are projecting your feelings about school onto your son and that is why he isn't settling.

What is your sons health problem exactly?

I never said I've prevented cured lymphoma
Oh my gosh if I had i think id be famous!? He never had it? They thought he did. He has a very compromised immune system which imitates signs of lymphoma.

Oh and you have said several times that you have been judged here, yet from your very first post you have made many sweeping generalisations about other parents.

Curlew you are correct and I never once said I didn't say that. You are saying I said more than half of childhood which I hand on heart did not.

I'd settle for some research that said that more than half of cancers are preventable, childhood or otherwise.

I can only imagine that some of the assertions about 'preventable' cancers are related to the study reported on here.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16031149

So avoiding smoking, not omitting fruit and veg, taking regular exercise etc not only promotes general good health, but may reduce your risk of getting some - not all - types of cancer.

However the study does not seem to say that any more 'extreme' types of diet eg just eating organic food, avoiding any kind of refined food, or adopting any radical kind of lifestyle - is going to 'cure' cancer once you've got it.

This doesn't mean that some complementary therapies - aromatherapy, counselling etc - may not be experienced as very supportive by people who have got cancer. But there's a big difference between saying that complementary therapies might feel helpful to some people who have the stressful experience of an invasive physical illness, and saying that such therapies can make the cancer go away.

Oh, this thread has moved on since I first read OP a few hours ago. OP - only after reading the first line or two of your OP, I can assure you Steiner schools are for you! After reading some more of your posts, I am now certain.

It certainly came across that way, particularly with your comment about 50% of cancers being preventable.

Who diagnosed him with a very compromised immune system?

You want to report me, BeWorthy? Crack on, be my guest.

All threads about Steiner schools seem to end in bunfights- it makes me think they are schools to avoid!

OP, as you seem to have decided not to go the Steiner route so I want to offer some hope:
my son is now in secondary school. He is a very healthy child but he attended a normal state primary school on packed lunches out of choice. He has always liked healthy food and really hated sweets. He throws most of the Halloween bucket into the bin. He refuses to go into McDonalds, once his dad forced him because he thought you have to be flexible in life... DS ordered a salad and chips. His sandwiches and snacks for school were made accordingly and all meat at home is organic as I believe in that. He never felt different or cared, and some of his friends had allergies or were vegetarian and they were not able to eat what they cooked in class and they all coped. The school was fantastic at trying to accommodate. It is very possible.
He is very creative and we have managed to cater to that. He has attended all kinds of workshops during holidays. We have done art and music at home. Whatever I thought was missing re art etc I supplied. I have taken him to museums with a pencil and a pad, we sat on the floor and did whatever the paintings inspired us to do. I don't need the school to do that.
As it happens, he has turned out to be very academic and is on a scholarship at a definitely "rat race" top school, however he is far from a cash cow. He cares about fair trade, expresses strong views on bankers' bonuses, corporations and tax avoidance :), is a lovely affectionate person and wants to be a musician when he grows up.
His schooling has not changed the person he was when a toddler in any way.
He loved the senior years at his primary and met a group of nice kids, each with their own quirky personalities. He was very very happy.

I was once tempted to go the alternative route and gosh am I glad I didn´t.
You will find many parents with similar experiences.

Hello BeWorthy - you must feel like you aren't sure whether it is a good or a bad thing to have posted on mumsnet! For what it's worth, I'm a former Steiner pupil and I also had my dd in Steiner Kindergarten, chose to move her to an independent school but one of my dd's classmates moved to Bristol Steiner School and is very happy. I'm happy to let you know my experiences but would rather not do it on this forum!! PM me if you wish and good luck with your decision making.

We are at Steiner and we love it. We moved when my DD was 6 and had just started year 2 at state.

We were motivated by a variety of factors, not least that we felt the state approach of constant testing, large classes and too little parent partnership weren't what we wanted. We also felt that we didn't want our child conditioned to become a corporate drone (read 'weapons of mass instruction' by John Taylor Gatto to understand the origins and purpose of the state system).

Whilst Steiner is in no way perfect, for us it's far better than everything else on offer. Of course I was dubious about the anthroposophical element but honestly, I've seen very little of this. Fundamentally it's a positive, supportive environment for both children AND parents. There is a certain expectation of parents in terms of their commitment to supporting the education - minimal tv, little sugar or saturated fat in the diet.

There are issues in many independant schools but my feeling is that because Steiner teaches Steiner curriculum it's easy to lump all Steiner schools together and make the assumption that, because one is bad all are bad. This is certainly not the case.

Another assumption seems to be that one size fits all. Absolutely not. As a parent it's your job to evaluate and make the decision on what is best for your child, whether it be education, vaccination, nourishment etc.