Chandler Elementary School is the Duxbury public school for Pre-Kindergarten through second grade. It is located on Chandler Street, near exit 11 on the west side of Route 3 in Duxbury, Massachusetts. It's the first of four public schools in the Duxbury school system. The Alden School educates 3rd through 5th graders, Duxbury Middle School is the public school for 6th through 8th graders, and then students go on to Duxbury High School.
In any given year, about 750 children are enrolled in the Chandler Elementary School, most of them in first and second grade. There are a maximum of 15 children in each class. Each class has one head teacher and two assistants, as well as speech and language therapists who provide whole group and small group instruction in many classrooms.
For preschoolers (children three and four years old), there is a two day a week program and several four day a week programs, all of which run for 2 1/2 hours each day. The two day program is on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. The four day a week programs run Monday-Thursday morning, Monday-Thursday afternoons and Tuesday-Friday afternoons. In first and second grade, children have a five-day a week schedule.
The preschool follows a developmental teaching approach where each child is accepted at their own level of development and allowed to learn and develop at their own speed. It is also an integrated preschool where children with special needs are educated in the same classrooms as their peers without special needs. The approach has educational and social benefits for both types of children.
The curriculum for all grades is based on the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. Details about the curriculum and links to other aspects of the school can be found here.
Chandler is a very good school in a town with a set of very good public schools. US News doesn't rank elementary schools, but Duxbury High is ranked 13th in Massachusetts. At the elementary school level, I think the reviews from parents are the most important indicator of the strength of the school, don't you?
The best review I have for you is my own! My son was a preschooler at Chandler. He went to a two-day program the first year and a four-day program in Kindergarten. He loved it. He was given a lot of fun learning tools. He couldn't remember other children's names, but he loved the interaction. There was a lot of individual teacher attention and help, and very personal, specific reports from the teachers about my son's work, play and progress. Chandler was a very good place for Grayson to begin his education, and I recommend it highly.
I completely agree with a parent review, posted in 2006 on the GreatSchool.com site, which says,
Chandler elementary is an excellent school with high quality teachers. The school has a warm nuturing environment. Each child is made to feel special and the focus is on educating the 'whole child' where academics, social, and emotional needs are met.
This review attests to Chandler's success at meeting its own vision and educational philosophy.
The Chandler PTA has a Facebook page. Click on their dragon mascot to visit it.
As you might expect, the neighborhoods around the Chandler Elementary School have many families with children. As the children get older, families often move, so homes come on the market frequently, and are often purchased by families just moving to the area. There are numerous cul-de-sac neighborhoods and lots of wooded areas, giving children places to gather and play together.
I have a personal recommendation here, too! When Grayson, my 14-year old son, was a young child, we lived on Apple Hill Lane, just down the street. It was a terrific place to live. A current snapshot of the homes available right now in the neighborhoods around the Chandler Elementary School can be found here.
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