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Robert Sonner was born in Oak Park, Illinois in 1932 and was educated in the public schools of Cicero, Illinois. Self-taught in the disciplines of chemistry starting at age twelve, Robert eventually found himself teaching chemistry and physics to middle-school children.

After moving his family to Los Angeles, California in 1957, he earned Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in both music and educational fields from the University of Southern California. Also a professional percussionist with a strong symphonic career as a college instructor and performer, he pulled back from music to exclusively become an academics class teacher in both public and in Waldorf Schools. From there he continued his personal study and application of his two science disciplines.

Though retired after forty years of teaching and training teachers in Waldorf Schools, he still felt a need to try and help new teachers of middle school physical sciences in a way that was more comprehensive and wider in approach.
The teachers’ reference books he has written are filled with his colored illustrations and charts, experiments, supportive data, and safety data. As well, he includes background biographical materials about scientists and inventors who have given us the foundation for the physical sciences we use today.

His pedagogical approach helps to focus the student’s observational skills, to learn basic scientific reporting by means of phenomena engendering experiments, and to learn how these phenomena come about and how they are useful.