During the nine-year span from Kindergarten through Grade 8, children deserve a purposeful, vigorous and joyful academic and co-curricular program. Milton Academy is structured to provide the most effective and progressive support for children over these elementary years. Children experience profound growth during this time. They gain intellectual and creative depth and range. Social aptitudes emerge along with new understandings. Each child develops confidence in his or her character and identity. We are attuned to the vastly different and intensely important developmental phases they experience. We are purposeful, over time, in tending to how each child experiences self-realization, skill development and social coherence.

Milton Academy’s K–8 includes a Lower School (Grades K–5), and a Middle School (6–8). The Lower School and Middle School are culturally distinct and appropriate to children’s ages in grades K through five, and grades six through eight. A four-person leadership team guides K–8; a skilled and devoted faculty cultivate a challenging learning environment, and an inclusive community spirit. Children thrive, benefitting from the continuum and cohesion of K–8:

• Teachers at all grade levels collaborate to think about a child’s experience, and pay particular attention to key developmental transitions. We carefully guide the academic and social transition from Lower School into Middle School.
• K–8 faculty explore important educational topics together, such as curricular sequencing. Together we encourage positive social behaviors. We enthusiastically nurture a diverse and inclusive culture. “Cross-pollination” among K–8 faculty fosters innovation in teaching, and a sense of shared purpose.
• Leadership opportunities particularly engage our students in Grades 5 through 8.  These older children guide their younger peers, even as they look ahead to the Upper School. Helping older elementary students serve as buddies and “big kids,” we capture the tremendous potential of young adolescents.
• Every day School life, punctuated by many K–8 family events, creates a dynamic network of families. Events like Swap-It, the “See You In September” Picnic, the Martin Luther King Assembly, and Grandfriends’ Day wrap children and their families into a warm, multicultural experience within the larger Milton Academy. Parents at Milton see the familiar faces and witness the long-term relationships that signal continuity and security—important components for growth.
  

Each student in our K–8 at Milton is well known to numerous teachers as he or she carves a path towards competence, confidence and character. With a K–8 foundation, our students are well-prepared and eager for Milton Academy’s superb Upper School. K–8 at Milton Academy models the “whole child” experience. We welcome you, and we are eager to share more about our programs and school community.

Marshall W. Carter
K–8 Principal