Lower School Signature Programs
In Lower School, our innovative programs develop qualities that will serve learners now and in their future, encouraging children to be skilled communicators, strong collaborators, and creative problem-solvers.
Our goal is to provide students with the content and skills needed to become educated problem-solvers and creative thinkers able to adapt to new challenges and possess a foundation of meaningful knowledge for a rich intellectual life.
Design Thinking
Design Thinking is a five-step problem-solving process that allows students to actively develop and test ideas in service of a real-world goal. This approach teaches students collaborative problem solving as they create solutions in an "outside-the-box" way and have to work together in meaningful ways to be successful. The Lower School holds Design Days each year when students collaborate across grade levels to tackle design challenges. Learn more about Design Thinking.
Nature Nook
The Nature Nook is an outdoor makerspace that offers natural materials to create a beautiful environment that invites discovery. An extension of our Lower School playground, the Nature Nook integrates features such as water play, boulders, stumps, native plantings, and sticks to build a sense of adventure and creative exploration of the natural world.
Kids Teaching Kids (KTK)
Kids Teaching Kids (KTK) is a cross-divisional series of monthly science collaborations pairing GA's youngest students with Upper School students. The program engages early childhood students in hands-on, STEAM-based experiments alongside their KTK Upper School mentors.
1/2 Multi-Age Program
The multi-age classroom is an educational model where children within a two-year age span learn alongside one another and remain with the same teachers for a two-year period. During the early childhood years (birth through age eight), children progress through all stages of development at different rates. Multi-age classrooms utilize a continuous progress model, where teachers are able to support and challenge young learners over an extended period of time. Increased time with the same teachers over two years strengthens the parent-teacher partnership as well, broadening the scope of the relationship that will impact the child's growth and development. Our Lower School primary program includes graded 1st and 2nd grade classes alongside combined 1/2 multi-age classes. As in all of our classrooms at Germantown Academy, children in multi-age classrooms are seen as individuals and teachers are skilled at meeting students where they are.
Multi-age classrooms promote a culture where deep and meaningful relationships are cultivated between children of varying ages. Younger students benefit from the modeling and mentoring of older students and then become the leaders and mentors themselves the following year. In this structure, students gain confidence from opportunities to express their understanding about learning concepts, social values and classroom culture. While students have the unique opportunity to be a member of a diverse multi-age class, students are still considered first and second graders, and our curriculum and assessments are framed accordingly.
For more information, please read our Multi-age Frequently Asked Questions.
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Transitional First Grade
At Germantown Academy, we strive to identify the best placement for each student to be successful in our Lower School program. The Transitional First Grade (T1) program reflects our commitment to offer a more flexible, developmentally appropriate education to all our students. This program is available to children who have completed one year of Kindergarten and would benefit from participation in a transitional early childhood centered environment for an additional year. It offers a specially designed program for students to continue to progress in academic and social areas.
Students may participate in the T1 program for a variety of reasons and may benefit from the gift of time, an increase in self-confidence, academic skill development, as well as social and emotional maturity. T1 emphasizes support and extension so children can meet social, academic, physical, and emotional goals. An individualized learning plan is drafted to provide specialist resources and enrichment opportunities for these students. Students work with our Germantown Academy specialists, including our math and literacy specialists and our Lower School psychologist and pediatrician as needed.
For more information about this program, please refer to the Transitional First Grade FAQs.