I’m surprised you’ve not heard of Waldorf Linsey as it is one of the most well known educational methodolgies in the world, up there with Montessori and Charlotte Mason for sure. It is a unique pedagogy, actually with much to commend it. It was developed by Steiner in the 1920’s and reflects many contemporary European attitudes to learning/spiritual exploration and pshychology. It is very popular, though mostly only in part as the anthroposy element (his own ideas on spirituality) are a bit convoluted. Actually the Waldorf method works with the Christian calander celebrating the christian festivals, that is one of the reasons it didn’t work for me, among others. It also expresses a reverence for nature and the natural world as well as the magic and innocence of childhood. The stories of pixies and gnomes are ways of maintining the special time of early childhood and the Waldorf method encourages use of natural materials and gentle rhythms to support a gentle childhood.
As part of this they also recommend delaying academics in order to preserve the dreamlike state of the early years, this is not uncommon in many european countries and has been shown to be the best approach in study after study. They recommend around 7 years. Much of waldorf is a little arcane, there is definitely a vocabulary to it as with any method. There are aspects I enjoy but on the whole it was too ‘other’ for me, it didn’t resonate with what I want to express to my children. There were too many limitations and I found it way too dogmatic. Just a personal choice.
As for the woman you met maybe she is a witch, maybe not, it really isn’t relevant to you. It sounds likely that she has chosen a curriculum for her kids that reveres nature and nature stories and seasonal changes, something that many people connect to. If you are curious about her beliefs why don’t you ask her a little about what her tatoo means to her or why she chose waldorf, rather than jumping to the conclusion that you know what she is about or that she is a member of a ‘cult’. She may have something valuable to teach you 