Elementary

The Rachel Eve Savett Elementary Building is home to our Lower and Upper Elementary programs. On cool mornings, a cozy, wood-burning stove greets students as they come into our entry hall which houses a library of books for students to peruse for various research projects. The elementary classrooms have at least one Montessori-trained teacher and assistant as well as reading specialists who work in small groups with our students. Classes operate five days a week from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Elementary students are also eligible for Study Hall and Extracurricular Programs.

Lower Elementary

Ages 6-9

For our Lower Elementary students, the world vividly unfolds with excitement and promise. As they expand their reading, writing and math skills, they also nourish their imaginations through a hands-on integrated curriculum that includes geography, information technology, life and earth science, art history, humanities, music and physical education.

They are highly motivated and eager to continue their intellectual growth as they gain global perspective through essay writing, scientific measurement, cultural art and literature.

Hands-on learning is emphasized in every lesson, Instead of just memorizing a map in a book, for example, your child builds her own continent from the ground up, digging out river beds and shaping vast mountain ranges...experiencing our planet through every sense. She fosters an appreciation and respect for the world and how she fits in.

Upper Elementary

Ages 9-12

The Gladwyne Montessori experience culminates in our outstanding Upper Elementary division. In the classroom, your child continues his journey of self-discovery through the study of complex algebra and geometry, human history, economic geography, oral and written Spanish, physics, computer science and sports.

He widens boundaries as he takes on learning outside of the classroom, including practical life skills like preparing a menu and balancing a checkbook. He masters sophisticated research, hands-on data collection and independent study topics.

If your child is interested in botany, for example, he can design his own comprehensive project drawing upon a variety of skills - everything from reading and investigation to editing and art. Within our unique mixed-age classroom, he can then share his research...often leading an entire class to explore a new topic together.