Private Elementary & Middle School in Philadelphia PA

The Philadelphia School:
Located in central Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, eastern Pennsylvania, The Philadelphia School is a private co-educational school for boys and girls in preschool through 8th grade. Theme-based learning is one of the principle tools we as progressive educators use to help students develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills and to encourage them to make complex connections across disciplines. The goals of our curricular sequence are to achieve greater thematic coherence and to broaden multicultural awareness through in-depth studies of Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

We are accredited by the Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools.

Mission:
The Philadelphia School is a coeducational, nonsectarian independent school educating children from preschool through eighth grade. Our mission, as a progressive school and vibrant learning community, is to educate the character and intellect of children. We want our students to become engaged citizens who are critical thinkers, creative problem solvers, and lifelong learners.

Philosophy:
The Philadelphia School’s progressive approach to learning addresses developmental issues: how a child grows intellectually, creatively, emotionally, socially, morally, and physically.

New research about child development, teaching, and learning is regularly incorporated into the school curriculum. Our diverse community of learners fosters critical thinking, love of learning, and enthusiasm for meaningful work.

We seek to nurture each student’s sense of personal integrity, care for others, and respect for individuality. Through our commitment to learning in the city, country, and classroom, we affirm our founders’ goal of educating students to be thoughtful, responsible, and active stewards of the urban and natural environments. The Philadelphia School’s vigorous, theme-based academic program prepares students for a lifetime of learning and community involvement.

Relational • 
Developmental • 
Innovative • 
Constructivist

* We value a relational approach to learning and teaching. We believe that children grow best physically, socially, ethically, and intellectually within networks of trusted peers, families, and teachers.

* We value a developmental perspective. We track and support the path and progress of each individual through appropriate developmental stages. Current research influences our practice as we design curriculum, differentiate instruction, and nurture the potential of each learner.

* We value an innovative stance. We live in a conceptual age with fast-paced change and growing complexities.

* We value a constructivist approach to learning and teaching. We believe that children naturally make meaning of their lives by actively constructing their own understanding and knowledge of the world.

At The Philadelphia School, we are dedicated to building a community whose diversity touches all aspects of our flourishing. In every scene of learning, teaching, and play, we mean to understand and celebrate our differences rather than be ruled by them.

We are committed to providing the resources and support necessary to encourage the fullest participation of every person in our school’s family. And we are resolved to take our commitment to diversity beyond that family, by both studying and serving our neighborhoods and our city.

- Preschool
- Kindergarten
- Primary Unit (1st and 2nd Grade)
- Junior School (3rd -5th Grade)
- Middle School Curriculum with science, language arts, mathematics, geography, history as well as media literacy skills, nutrition, P.E., art and drama
- Early Risers Program
- Auxiliary (Afterschool) Program with a wide range of opportunities
- Summer Camp

City & Country:
At the Philadelphia School, learning is not confined to the classroom. The rich resources of our city and the natural environment of Shelly Ridge, a nearby nature center, serve as primary sources for our learners. They may interview a local shopkeeper about her business and her customers, they may visit a medieval courtyard at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, or they may observe and sketch a fawn awaiting the return of its mother in a meadow.