First Three Years of the Child : How Children Learn to Walk, Speak and Think

A classic text exploring the first three years of a child's life from Karl König – physician, anthroposophist and founder of the Camphill movement – which offers valuable insights into early years' development for educators, medical professionals and carers.

Karl König examines the three major achievements that occur during children's first three years: learning to walk, speak and think. These are the three basic faculties that make us human, and their acquisition, Konig argues, is 'an act of grace' in every child. He goes on to provide a detailed analysis of this extraordinarily complex process.

This Karl König Archive edition now includes extensive notes and a new introduction by Dr Jan Goeschel, founding President of the Camphill Academy in North America, which puts this well-known text in the context of modern-day research.

Karl Konig (1902-66) was well-known as a physician, author and lecturer. He began his work at the Institute of Embryology at the University of Vienna. In 1940 he founded the Camphill Movement in Scotland. Based on Rudolf Steiner's insights into human development, the special education schools for children and villages for adults with special needs are now established in many parts of the world.

Dr Jan Goeschel is the founding President of the Camphill Academy, the higher education organisation of the Camphill Movement in North America. He has a PhD in Special Needs Education and Rehabilitation Sciences from the University of Cologne, Germany. He previously worked as a class teacher for children and adolescents with intellectual and developmental disabilities at the Beaver Run Camphill School in Pennsylvania, USA where he still lives.