Premier School Models

Roman Catholic Boarding Schools

Educating the young has been a mission of the Roman Catholic Church for as long as anybody can remember.

• While curricula and teaching methods have changed dramatically over the years, one thing is immutable: these schools do a great job educating their students.
• The proof is the very high percentage of their graduates who go on to colleges and universities nationwide and abroad.
• Most Roman Catholic schools are day schools, typically affiliated with a parish or diocese.

With many other boarding schools charging $65,000-85,000 a year for their services, these boarding schools offer good value as such things go.

• A couple of schools are single sex schools. The rest are co-educational institutions.
• Roman Catholic orders, such as the Jesuits or Salesians, who specialize in teaching, run many of these schools.

The standards are high.

• Most schools have uniform or dress codes.
• Core values are also taught, along with plenty of instruction in the Catholic faith.
• These Catholic schools produce graduates whose solid spiritual and academic foundations anchor them for advancement in later life.

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The Schools

Check out the profiles of these schools. Many of them also take day students, so if you live in the area, you can have the best of both worlds.

Canterbury School, New Milford, CT
Grades 9-12
350 students
Coed

"The Canterbury experience is a rich one for both boarding and

Free Schools

There are only a handful of free private schools in the United States.

• Most of them were founded many years ago by visionary, community-minded individuals.
• These public-minded men and women believed that children from working-class and poor families should have the same educational advantages as children from families with money.
• Several schools have a religious connection, such as Regis High in New York and the Cristo Rey Schools.
• While the details vary from school to school, they all provide a tuition-free education.
• The Cristo Rey schools have a work-study component.

Parental involvement is another feature of these schools.

• These schools have had an enormous impact on society.
• They benefit thousands of students, and their families are priceless.

As you read about these schools and watch the videos, remember that all these schools believe emphatically that an education does not consist solely of academics.

• Each school understands that a child needs nurturing and counseling to maximize the opportunities before him.
• These schools expect the child's family to be involved.
• His education is a partnership of three: home, school, and student. T
• hat's what it takes to provide the solid foundation a child needs to succeed in adulthood.

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Free Private Schools

De Marillac Academy, San Francisco

De Marillac Academy, San Francisco, is an example of the best educational initiative the Roman Catholic Church sponsored.

• Established by the Daughters

Do you know....? If you know the answers to all these questions, you probably teach or work in a private school. Be that as it may, these questions contain links with the answers. Test your knowledge. Dispel some urban legends about private schools. Do you know....?

• the five things critics love to hate about private schools?
• that private schools have become quite diverse?
• that not every Montessori school is the real thing?
• that there are free private schools?
• that private school may be free if you make less than $75,000?
• that 8th graders in 1895 had to take a final exam like this?
• how to evaluate a private school?
• how to avoid common mistakes during your admissions interview?
• how to pay for private school?
• how to find a private school job?
• what the research says about single-sex education?
• what private school teachers make?
• what is being taught in private schools?
• what the difference is between an independent and a private school?
• when to apply to private school?
• where to find scholarships?
• when you should consider a special needs school?
• where you can use cellphones and iPods in school?
• which school is best for your child?
• which school is the most expensive?
• which school Malia and Sasha Obama are attending in Washington?
• why there is no ranking of private schools?
• why you should send your child to a private school versus a public school?
• why small classes are better than large ones?
• why AP courses are worth

Dr. Maria Montessori founded Casa de Bambini in a poor neighborhood of Rome, Italy, in 1906. She blazed new trails in early education by believing in the innate goodness of children, encouraging them to be curious and explore, and creating a teaching environment that followed the child.

Dr. Montessori's experiments and research ultimately produced a worldwide movement. Over 100 years later, her findings and research have stood the test of time and have been validated by modern analysis and investigation. Montessori schools have multiplied like rabbits in the United States from the 1960s onwards. Unlike Dr. Montessori's schools, which served poor children, most Montessori schools in North America educate children from the middle classes. Indeed, the Montessori approach has been used with children in all kinds of situations. It is very adaptable to the needs of a wide range of children.

Dr. Montessori never trademarked the name Montessori, nor did she claim any patents on her methodology. The result is that many Montessori schools out there claim to be the real thing. Some schools may include elements of Dr. Montessori's methods and philosophy in their teaching. Other schools quietly sublimate the parts of Dr. Montessori's thinking that may be inappropriate in their setting. In short, there are almost as many flavors of Montessori as there are schools. Not a bad thing in itself, but as always, do your due diligence. Caveat emptor!

Here are five things you should look for when vetting a school that

Private schools have terms and a language all their own. Similar to most affinity groups, this jargon is second nature to the insiders. Some of the terms which you will encounter have been passed down through the centuries. They come to us from England and other European countries where private or public schools, as they call them, have been around for centuries. That's why you will see words on this list which you will recognize with meanings that you weren't expecting.

Here are some of the more common terms you are likely to encounter as you explore private schools.

ADD/ADHD

ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) is what ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) used to be called.

Here's what WebMed has to say: "ADHD stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, a condition with symptoms such as inattentiveness, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. The symptoms differ from person to person. ADHD was formerly called ADD, or attention deficit disorder. Both children and adults can have ADHD, but the symptoms always begin in childhood. Adults with ADHD may have trouble managing time, being organized, setting goals, and holding down a job."

If your child exhibits any signs of ADHD, you should have him evaluated thoroughly and professionally. The syndrome is generally treatable. Several private schools specialize in teaching boys and girls with ADHD.

Crew

Crew is the ancient sport of rowing. Rowing in shells is very popular in many private schools. Crew is offered in the fall and spring. Schools participate in