Newtown Friends School

Newtown Friends School has an amazing middle school. I am a parent to a 6th and 8th grader and I can see the gradual increase in intensity to create the perfect bridge to elementary school into high school. My kids have enjoyed the class trips, ski club, and the academic excellence! There are so many excellent teachers and I am very impressed with how the curriculum covers all areas of their development. It is truly a wonderful school!

We are very happy with our NFS experience! Our daughter has grown so much over the last two years and is always excited to go to school. Every adult in the building knows her name and greets her with a smile. She is loved and supported at school, and the teachers care deeply about their students. Its a great place!

As I post this in August 2020, I would like to add that I am so grateful for the way NFS`s teachers and administrators turned on a dime in March to offer online learning with only three days of school missed. I am also grateful for the way the administrators, teachers, governing board and COVID-19 Task Force have thoughtfully developed plans to make in-person and hybrid learning this fall as safe as can be, while offering families the option of starting the fall (and continuing indefinitely) online only if they choose.When our son was in third grade public school, he became very stressed because of all the testing. He is a smart kid, and he did well, but the teacher said things like, "this test will be on your permanent record," and it stressed him out. It wasn`t only end-of-year standardized tests. There were tests all year: spelling once a week, math every three weeks, science every four weeks, social studies every five weeks (or something like that). Sometimes the cycles would be such that he had four tests in one week. He developed a stutter he`d never had before. It seemed the school had forgotten that elementary school should be about instilling a love of learning as much as anything else. We met with the teacher to express our concerns, then the principal, and finally the superintendent. Their response was: sorry, the government makes us focus on testing. And if you think stress is bad in third grade, it just gets worse in 4th and 5th. There`s nothing we can do.My wife and I had both gone to public schools K-12; in disbelief we found ourselves investigating which private school would be best for our son. We were so relieved when we met with Becky and the administrators at Newtown Friends School (NFS). The school is about instilling a love of learning and creating a nurturing environment where students can grow and explore. The faculty go out of their way to avoid stress. They use a variety of approaches to assessment. The children`s art work we saw in the halls made clear that each child is encouraged to express themselves creatively it was so different from the cookie-cutter crafts we saw at the other schools we looked at.At NFS, children get individual attention, in classes with 13-21 students. Each class has a sense of community. Parents who want to get involved are welcomed.

We love Newtown Friends School. It provides the perfect combination of solid academics in a warm and inclusive environment. The core principles of Simplicity, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Stewardship are imbued into the curriculum. Our 4th grader is thriving here and we love the community of parents and staff.

My daughter, 10, and son, 12, go to Newtown Friends School and have had a great experience. The teachers are excellent and use innovative methods to help each individual student learn in his/her own ways. The teachers help the kids to develop the kinds of problem-solving skills needed in this world. The values of the school show through in the way that the students communicate and relate to one another, including the resolution of conflicts. The administration and the parents are also part of a strong community that looks out for each other. For kids that are gifted and talented in certain subject areas, there is no limit to the encouragement that they receive in these areas. I also appreciate that the school values diversity within the staff and the student body. This makes a difference in bringing the curriculum to life and preparing the students to relate to a multicultural society.

We are very happy that our child is a student at NFS. We especially appreciate the attention paid to personal growth and development we have seen every year. Faculty and staff demonstrate a team approach in working with parents to bring out the best in their child and we feel there is a sincere effort to meeting kids "where they are" in terms of engagement. The school community's focus on values and integrity was a major factor in our initial decision to choose NFS and continues to be an integral component of our overall experience as parents.

Newtown Friends School is a hidden gem in the Bucks Co/Princeton area. Combining rigorous academics with a nurturing environment, it's a school where kids find their voice and develop a lifelong love of learning. It's the rare place where you can get top academics without the competitive pressure you see in the public schools. Kids can still be kids, but they achieve top scores and go on to great schools because they've learned how to learn. If you aren't familiar with Quaker education, go take a look -- there's a reason Friends schools are considered some of the best in the country. Highlights: Singapore Math, Next Generation Science Standards curriculum, no-cut middle school interscholastic sports, after-school strings program taught by top musicians -- all in a place with a true sense of community.

I have attended this school for 10 years and I don't regret a single thing. The teachers and staff are wonderful and very caring. The relationship between students and teachers is unlike any other. Our academics are rigorous and the values that this school has are incredible. You will not find a mean student in our school and we are very accepting of all races, genders, religions, etc. I met many amazing students who share common interests as me. I can guarantee you that every student has the drive and desire to learn and succeed in our education. I couldn't imagine growing up in a different environment. Newtown Friends School has prepared me for bigger environments, and bigger leadership opportunities in my high school, and my community. I know that I am going to graduate from Newtown Friends School with a great idea of who I am, and who I plan on being in the future. Sincerely, Class of 2014 Student

We love this school! Our kids started in fourth and kindergarden, and we plan to stay till they are both through eighth grade. The faculty and administration create a warm, supportive environment, where everyone knows every child's name. There are about twelve kids in each class, so everyone gets special attention. Our son is in fifth grade and doing such advanced work that we feel like the whole class is an honors program. Newtown Friends School is school the way it should be: yes, there are some tests, but the emphasis is on instilling a LOVE OF LEARNING and there are many different ways for teachers to measure and monitor students' progress--unlike what the public schools have become. We both went to public schools, and intended to send our children to Council Rock, until we discovered the stressful, relentless environment of constant testing starting in third grade. Newtown Friends School is a breath of fresh air! The kids in K-5 have each of these specials TWICE A WEEK, ALL YEAR: Gym, Spanish, Music, Art, Science. Yes, it is expensive, but you should apply for financial aid, you may be surprised. The school website says: "With a commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive community, Newtown Friends School strives to make an independent school education affordable for students of varying financial resources. More than one-third of students at the school receive some amount of tuition assistance. There are no income limitations for financial aid consideration, but instead, a number of factors are evaluated including home equity, business-related expenses, consumer debt and the number of children attending a tuition-charging institution."

Newtown Friends School has honestly changed my life. The school has an unrivaled balance of quaker values and strong academics. I have been at Newtown Friends for nine years and am an eighth grade student, and have loved every second of the experience. Students at NFS are encouraged to participate in the numerous community service activities, and everyone who goes through the NFS program learns about how they can help both their local and global communities. Academics at NFS are very strong. All of the teachers challenge students, and there is a wide variety of choices when it comes to advanced courses. I, along with many other classmates have test scores well into the 80th and 90th percentile in both the SSATs and the ERBs, but more importantly have come to love learning. At Newtown Friends School, each individual person is taught to respect and value their piers. I would encourage anyone in grades Pre-K through 8 to come to Newtown Friends for a visit. I know of no other school that has such a balance of community and academics. I know that every Newtown Friends School student will graduate with both ambition to succeed and the knowledge to back it up.