@Spingsummer: "I have read on the MN comments about the Steiner system and it looks as many children still struggle to read by the age of 8 because of their laid back approach to reading and studying in general. There were mentioned many other bad points which I did not like. Looks like a rip off business."
I'm not a fan of Steiner, but I am in favour of late introduction of reading (unless a child is particularly keen to start early). This New Zealand study suggests that the Steiner method has no long-term effect on children's reading abilities: www.literacytrust.org.uk/news/1478_new_zealand_research_into_children_s_reading_released
I don't see "struggling to read by the age of 8" as an issue in itself. My older daughter is home educated and was allowed to decide for herself when to start reading; she was still "struggling to read" at eight but I could see she would get there in her own time. She has, and it has been an entirely painless journey. Within our school system, the inability to read at eight is a problem only because instruction is often given in writing and there is a stigma attached to being a so-called "late" reader. In Steiner schools, presumably neither of those applies.
It seems to me that a huge amount of effort could be saved if the teaching of reading were begun at seven or eight. By this time, most children would be developmentally ready and perhaps more eager to try it and would pick it up quite easily. The few who found it very difficult would be easier to identify and help, without the mass of "false positives" you get when you try to identify learning difficulties in six year olds. Many of these false positives are just children who aren't ready to read this year but will be next year or the year after.