Who We Are

A School For The Elementary Years

At PS#1, your child will begin an educational journey rich with challenges, both academic and creative. Here, the first years of your child’s education will lay the foundation for a life-long love of learning and strong sense of self. We choose to stay small so that all voices are heard and valued. PS#1’s focus is on the most formative years in your child’s life. For more than thirty-five years, this educational approach has shaped young students into leaders and independent thinkers.

What is Pluralism?

A founding value of PS#1, pluralism is the belief that a community is enriched when individual differences are respected and welcomed. At PS#1, pluralism is a commitment to diversity and inter-connectedness in both our community and our curriculum. This inclusive approach to education empowers our students to thrive in learning and in life. We have been teaching to multiple intelligences since 1971.

Pluralism in Our Community

As a community that embraces diversity, PS#1 is a private school with a public purpose. Within an environment designed to inspire learning, PS#1 goes one step further. We believe that elementary school is the ideal time to learn about people and points of view different from ourselves. Our community is consciously inclusive, honoring different religions, cultures, ethnicities and economic levels. A substantial portion of our budget is allocated to financial aid to assure socioeconomic diversity.

A Holistic Approach to Learning

We recognize that children learn in different ways, at different rates and at different times. Our teaching techniques help each child reach their maximum potential. Learning really comes alive when curiosity, a natural gift of childhood, is cultivated, in an atmosphere of inquiry and discovery. Different disciplines are often brought together under the umbrella of a unifying theme. For example, Life Science, Math and Language Arts are combined in studying healthy habitats for primates. Students work with zookeepers, observing animal behavior and experimenting with different food gathering activities. They sort, graph and present their findings. In this way, they make connections between what they learn and their life in the world.

We take the goal of academic excellence very seriously, while realizing that academic competence alone cannot provide all the necessary skills for success in school and in life. How we feel about what we know and what we do with what we know are essential values in developing the well-rounded, self-assured, articulate individuals for whom PS#1 is renowned.