Fountain Hills Charter School opened in 1997 as a charter school utilizing the Montessori education method. This is a very different approach to traditional schools in that the students are involved in free activity within a “prepared environment”. The environment is created to provide students with an environment that is centered on basic human characteristics and the main ones for different age groups. This allows students to develop independence in all areas of their life. The school strives to provide a learning environment that is harmonious, orderly, and with limited materials that exactly what is needed to help support the student’s development. The school has on average 127 students in grades kindergarten through 8th.

Parents love the school in general and students are happy going to school and learning. The major complaint is from parents that do not start with the Montessori method prior to enrolling their children in the school. Since the method is completely different some students may have a difficult time adjusting at first and parents may not understand. Before enrolling your child in this school or any Montessori education method school, you should learn more about the way in which learning is performed, as not all students will excel in this environment while those starting out in this type of learning method can exceed beyond traditional methods. The main negative reviews were issues with placing academics at the center of the school environment instead of social activities.

Along with basic curriculum the school offers extra curricular activities that help students explore their talents include painting, dance, chorus, band, computer arts, orchestra, and theater. The school does not offer any sports besides physical education classes.

Students at Fountain Hills Charter School participated in the AIMS series of state which is required in the state for students in specific grades to ensure they are mastering core subjects.

The test scores showed that students in 3rd grade meet or exceeded the test with much higher percentages than averages across the state. Fourth graders did excellent with percentages of 100% in both science and math with reading at 95% and writing at 87%, all exceeding the state average by at least 20%. Fifth and sixth graders percentage were just as good. Seventh graders did not do as well with reading and writing percentages falling below state averages and math at 69% with the state at 66%. 8th graders scores were better with the scores equal to state averages or slightly above.

Fountain Hills Charter School
15055 N. Fountain Hills Blvd.
Fountain Hills, AZ 85268
480-837-0046
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