Castle Rock, CO: Education Excels Here
Families and students looking for schools in Castle Rock will find a wealth of high-quality public, private and charter options at their fingertips.
One of the most attractive features for families moving to Castle Rock, CO is the city’s diverse educational offerings. While the region is home to high-quality public and private schools, it is also known for its numerous charter schools.
Ready to start exploring some of the outstanding schools in Castle Rock?
Finding Success at Charter Schools in Castle Rock
HOPE at Glenn R. Jones Academy Castle Rock uses a blended learning model where students receive instruction both online and in the classroom. Student learning is supervised by a teacher and mentor, and the school boasts low teacher-student ratios, meaning students get the personal attention they need in the classroom.
Another charter school in Castle Rock, Aspen View Academy, follows the Core Knowledge Sequence for its pre-K-8 curricula, emphasizing mathematics, technology and language arts within a balanced learning environment.
Offering a Global Perspective
Also serving pre-K-8 in the area is World Compass Academy. This public charter school focuses on mastery-based learning and early foreign language education through a research-based curriculum.
“Kids are different. Families are different, and they have different needs, and they have different goals,” says Bethany Merkling, principal of World Compass Academy.
“One school is not right for every student and for every family,
so for families to be able to identify their priorities for education
and their student’s needs and then find the right fit for them
is a great advantage.”
Bethany Merkling | World Compass Academy
One advantage students have at World Compass Academy is that they are taught to be globally competent citizens.
“We have a strategic plan that includes offering daily foreign language. Starting at the preschool level and extending through eighth grade, students are introduced to a foreign language, but we’re not a language exclusive school,” Merkling says. “We pair language learning with strong academics through a world lens. For example, we make sure that we’re teaching world history from a very young age. We make sure that we’re exposing our kids to other cultures and other groups of people.”
Merkling says developing globally competent students is advantageous to the community from an economic development standpoint, as well.
“Our curriculum not only helps prepare our students for college, but it also prepares them for careers within a global economy,” she says. “The internet has really changed the way the world operates in that it has connected people from all over the world. So even if our students are English-speaking, there’s a good chance they might end up working for an international company. Our kids who have been taking Mandarin Chinese since pre-K, for example, will have a huge advantage.”
Educating the Whole Child
In its 27th year serving the community, Academy Charter School (ACS) offers families small class sizes and a curriculum based on E.D. Hirsch’s Core Knowledge series.
Principal Erin McMilon says the K-8 school places an emphasis on educating the whole child, meaning it equips students with a strong academic and social and civic foundation.
“One of the tenets of charter schools in general and ACS in particular is to create adults who are going to participate in the world,” McMilon says.
“Our students are adults longer than they are children. By creating adults who can contribute to their community through the workforce and volunteerism and civic engagement, we can improve
the community in general.”
Erin McMilon | Academy Charter School
McMilon says the school balances the social and emotional aspects of learning with a rigorous academic curriculum.
“Academy Charter does a great job at addressing exceptional learners and meeting students where they are. We really focus on rigorous content and teaching the skills needed to be successful within that rigorous content. We have a flourishing gifted and talented program that not only addresses the academic needs of exceptional learners, but also addresses their social-emotional goals, which allows them to have friendships so that they have a balanced experience while they’re here,” she says.
And with so many great schools in Castle Rock, parents are sure to find the right place that will best serve their child’s future.
“I think it’s so wonderful that families can take who their kid is as a unique learner and find the right school for them, whether it’s an artful learning school or a STEM school or a World Compass Academy,” Merkling says.