The Elementary School provides a vibrant and dynamic educational experience for students in Kindergarten through Grade Six. Going beyond the traditional subjects, the curriculum offers projects and studies that enable and empower children to take on challenges that are meaningful to their own innate, developmental needs and interests, and which promote the student as learner. By exploring and experimenting, then imagining and creating, children realize their potential and develop a genuine love for learning.
The foundation of a true developmental educational philosophy is based upon providing for the individual’s needs for a sense of trust and security, a sense of belonging, and self-esteem. This social-emotional foundation is essential for learning to flourish. Maple Dene provides a “safe, friendly, and responsible” atmosphere of consistent, age-appropriate expectations that allow learning challenges to be pursued in earnest.
Low teacher-student ratios, which allow the individual to progress at his or her own pace, are combined with multi-age programs that contribute to a “spirit of cooperation” and the development of leadership skills.