Friendship School helps students with different learning abilities build social and academic skills. Established in Eldersburg, Maryland, Friendship School has educated children with alternative learning needs for over a decade. Striving to create new pathways of learning, Friendship School relies heavily on the Orton-Gillingham and Saxon Math methodologies to provide a multi-sensory, linear, and cumulative learning approach to language and mathematics. Children with language and literacy-based learning differences focus on the structure of language, sound and symbol relationships, and phonological awareness. The school also emphasizes the fundamentals of writing, including sentence structure principles, paragraph development, vocabulary, and spelling rules. Friendship School’s mathematics program follows a similar approach and incorporates hands-on, interactive, and sequential pedagogical techniques to build a solid foundation. Furthermore, the science and social studies curriculums follow the voluntary guidelines of the Maryland State Department of Education and assist students as they develop a variety of study skills, including note-taking, test-taking, and time management.
With a focus on providing a comprehensive education, Friendship School also offers specialized instruction in art, drama, and music. Accordingly, Friendship School strives to provide an engaging and creative atmosphere that encourages children to discover their unique talents through a variety of activities. To help each student reach his or her full potential, Friendship School also emphasizes social skills, self-awareness, self-confidence, and qualities such as empathy, kindness, and fairness.
At the core of Friendship School’s system lies a dedicated faculty and staff that hold degrees in psychology, speech pathology, fine arts, and special and elementary education. To meet the individual needs of every child, all students receive daily one-on-one tutoring, small group instruction, and individualized treatment plans (IEP). In addition to residents of Eldersburg, Friendship School also accepts students from throughout the greater Baltimore area.
