The
Country Day School movement is a movement in
progressive education that
originated in the United
States
in the late 19th
century.
Country Day schools seek to recreate the educational rigor,
atmosphere, camaraderie and character-building aspects of the best
college prep boarding schools while allowing students to
return to their families at the end of the day. To avoid the crime,
pollution and health problems of the industrial cities of the early
1900s, the schools were sited in the 'country,' where wealthy
families owned large homes in what would later be known as
suburbs.
The Country Day School movement shared many values with the
Arts and Crafts movement.
School buildings and campus landscaping were designed with the goal
of creating an inspirational atmosphere that would foster learning
and culture. In keeping with this holistic view of the student
learning environment, various "after-school" programs promoted
student development, including athletic programs, choir and
religious studies, and monitored study time. Students were given
opportunities to develop leadership skills through clubs and
student organizations.
The first
Country Day Schools were University School
in Shaker Heights, Ohio, which opened in 1890, the Gilman School
in Baltimore
, Maryland
, which
opened in 1897,The Summit Country
Day School
in Cincinnati
, Ohio
, which
opened in 1890, or the McDonogh School
in Owings
Mills
, Maryland, which opened in 1873. These four prestigious college preparatory
schools provided the structure and campus location format that
would guide many more country day schools that would be built
around the country for the next 100 years.
Prominent Country Day Schools include the following:
)
Wikis
Quiz
Map
Search
