Primary School

Kindergarten through 5th Grade

Children love to learn. Marylhurst fuels that excitement. In keeping with the progressive underpinnings of our school, Marylhurst teachers foster the intellectual, creative, social, and physical development of the whole child. We respect different developmental stages and honor the process of moving from one to another, meeting each child where they are in their learning journey.

Marylhurst emphasizes hands-on learning based on current understandings of how children’s brains work. Broad units of study offer opportunities for exploration of the literature, art, science, history, and music relating to them. Students develop a holistic understanding of the topics they are learning. Field trips connect classroom lessons to the rich cultural offerings in the Portland metro area.

In grades K-5, students are in multi-age classrooms to meet social as well as academic needs. Just as academic readiness varies among individuals, social needs vary from year to year. Students typically stay with the same teacher for two years, benefiting from continuity and the dual experience of being both the younger and older child in the class, serving as mentee and mentor among peers.

  • Kindergarten/First Grade Blend

    Community: Where Do I Belong?

    Sparrows
    Monday - Friday 8:30a - 2:30p

    One of the most important aspects of experiential education is learning from one's mistakes. Allowing a child to pursue a flawed plan because it makes sense to him or her is an essential element in nurturing the innovative mind.

    Success is often preceded by failure. When children are allowed to blaze their own paths, make their own miscalculations, reformulate their ideas and try again... and again, they form an emotional connection to their learning. The stakes are real and the rewards are genuine.

  • 2nd/3rd Grade Blend

    Relationships: With Whom Do I Identify?

    Meadowlarks
    Monday - Friday 8:30a - 2:30p

    Build a bridge, create a working city, design a community playground: We often tackle work that might seem quite daunting to the average seven-or eight-year-old, but our students are excited to meet such challenges.

    Central to The Marylhurst School program is the idea that big jobs can be broken down into manageable pieces. We ask children how to best go about completing substantial endeavors and every year our students start from scratch, devising their own ways to achieve each goal. The results are surprisingly sophisticated and unique.

  • 4th/5th Grade Blend

    Identity: Who Am I?

    Ravens
    Monday - Friday 8:30a - 2:30p

    As preadolescents, students are ready to take on new levels of responsibility. Some changes in their school life include nightly homework, mentoring younger students and delving deeper into the world of abstract thinking.

    This is a time of writing and research unlike any before. While our students have always recorded their insights and observations, now their papers take on a more formal structure, with sharpened introductions, conclusions and exploration of what it means to present and support a thesis. Weekly organizational meetings help manage this new workload.

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