APPLYING TO GDS
As you explore Georgetown Day School’s purposeful and joyous community for your own child and family, we invite you to schedule a visit. Our complete admissions process, including important dates, deadlines, and contact information, is fully detailed on our website at www.GDS.org/Admissions.
M I S S I O N S TAT E M E N T
GEORGETOWN DAY SCHOOL HONORS THE INTEGRITY AND WORTH OF each individual within a diverse school community. GDS is dedicated to providing a supportive EDUCATIONAL ATMOSPHERE IN WHICH TEACHERS CHALLENGE THE INTELLECTUAL, creative, and physical abilities of our students and foster strength of character and concern for others. FROM THE EARLIEST GRADES, WE ENCOURAGE OUR STUDENTS TO WONDER, TO INQUIRE,
and to be self-reliant, laying the foundation for a lifelong love of learning.
WELCOME In 1945, when seven families opened the doors of Georgetown Day School as the first integrated school in a segregated city, they sought to create a school committed to academic excellence, educational innovation, and social justice. While our world has changed meaningfully since then, the vision of 1945 has never been more important. Our founders intuited what research now proves—children learn best where individual perspectives can be shared and tested and this, in turn, helps students enter the world with a rich appreciation of and respect for others. Even as we foster this dynamic daily learning environment for our students, we are also thinking far into the future: this year’s Pre-Kindergarteners will graduate from college and enter the adult world somewhere in the neighborhood of 2033. How does a school prepare children for a far-off and uncertain future? At GDS, our students develop deep capacities, pushing the boundaries of what they know, playing with ideas, formulating new perspectives, and learning with a sense of purpose. Our teachers help our students realize their fullest potential as critical thinkers, creative problem-solvers, and true scholars. “A GDS Student Will…” outlines the essential skills that our children will need to have a meaningful impact in a changing world. Our curriculum ensures that our students have the opportunity to learn, practice, and ultimately, master these skills during their time at GDS. From our founding and into our future, these skills are the heart of a GDS education.
Russell Shaw Head of School
A GDS STUDENT WILL... Build networks and collaborate across difference
INNOVATE AND CREATE TAKE RISK S , T O L ER AT E FA IL U R E ,
AND LEARN FROM FAILURE
Self-advocate THINK CRITICALLY
These ten principles are the heart of a GDS education. In the following pages, we offer a glimpse of what these principles look like in practice every day.
COMMUNICATE CLEARLY
AND POWERFULLY Tackle complex problems LEARN ACTIVELY
AND RESOURCEFULLY ENGAGE AS A JUST, MORAL, ETHICAL CITIZEN
L EA D
LOWER SCHOOL In the safe and nurturing environment of our Lower School, we lay the foundation for our students’ lifelong engagement with the world and their learning. Our early childhood curriculum builds on children’s innate curiosity while developing foundational academic and social-emotional skills. Students increasingly take an active role in their learning, pursuing long-term academic projects and engaging in hands on exploration in addition to participating in time-honored field trips that expand their view of the world. All students participate in visual and performing arts, a daily physical education program, and weekly library and dedicated media classes to complement the technologies that are used in the classroom every day.
“ I was so excited to read my short story at Author’s Brunch for my parents and teachers.” —1ST GRADER
“ We learned about human biology by dissecting a chicken this year—it was a little messy, but it was also very cool.” —4TH GRADER
Lower School students develop the skills and confidence to explore the world around them and discover their place in it.
3RD GRADE IMMIGRATION LUNCHEON students tell personal stories of GDS staff members to gain insight into the immigrant experience.
SEPTEMBER 1:1 CHROMEBOOKS AND IPADS are distributed in 3rd through 6th grade.
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
COUNTRY MARKET DAY an annual outdoor community event featuring games, contests, and a haunted house tour
DECEMBER
JANUARY
A GDS STUDENT WILL...
...BUILD NETWORKS AND COLLABORATE ACROSS DIFFERENCE. For their “Identity Project,” 2nd Graders explore and celebrate their own identities and personal histories, culminating in a multimedia presentation event that celebrates individuality, empathy, and GDS’s diverse community.
…SELF-ADVOCATE. Whether they are being trained as Peer Mediators for resolving playground conflicts, asking to join a rally outside the Supreme Court, or providing a kids’-eye-view on changes to school policies or curriculum, our Lower School students learn that their voices matter while they gain the skills required to be self-advocates—and advocates for others.
GRADE-LEVEL OVERNIGHT TRIPS TO CAMP PECOMETH, TURKEY RUN PARK, PRINCE WILLIAM FOREST, AND SOUTH MOUNTAIN, outdoor learning experiences for all students 2nd Grade and older
LOWER SCHOOL P.E. DANCE ASSEMBLY a treasured and unique highlight of the year
FEBRUARY
MARCH
...INNOVATE AND CREATE. 5th graders strengthen their skill sets in problem solving, technology, and design by learning to create their own futuristic cities and bringing them to life using a 3D printer. 4th graders build arcade games using their own designs, testing their theories through an iterative process for a working, final product. Across the Lower School, our students are at the center of their learning developing a strong foundation of essential knowledge and skills.
APRIL
MAY
FREE-TO-BE-ME ASSEMBLY the culminating event of Pride Week for Lower Schoolers
JUNE
MIDDLE SCHOOL Middle School is all about trying things on, whether they are clothes, identities, viewpoints, or challenges. We support our students in pursuing constructive challenges and taking positive risks during this critical intellectual and social phase of development. Our integrated approach to teaching encourages students to learn across disciplines as they increasingly forge connections between their classroom learning and the wider world. Students engage in a rigorous curriculum that prepares them to be productive and inquisitive scholars. With myriad extracurricular activities and opportunities to explore academic passions, competitive athletics, dance, chorus, and band during the regular school day, our Middle School students develop in many dimensions as their passions begin to take shape.
“ I loved working on the Eighth Continent Project in history. After we learned about geography and cultures in other parts of the world, we had to create an imaginary continent and draw our own maps and explain the culture of the people there.” —6TH GRADER
“ I grew up playing lots of sports, so it was great to be able to represent GDS as a Mighty Hopper in Middle School.” —8TH GRADER
ROBOTICS COMPETITION, featuring our RoboHoppers
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
7TH GRADE TRIP TO CHESAPEAKE BAY an experiential learning trip part of the Middle School science curriculum
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
INTERSCHOLASTIC SPORTS GET UNDERWAY, required for all 7th and 8th Graders
JANUARY
A GDS STUDENT WILL...
…TAKE RISKS, TOLERATE FAILURE, AND LEARN FROM FAILURE. In science, students undertake projects in which they navigate challenges that require perseverance and inventive problemsolving. From tasks like the Rube Goldberg project, where 6th grade students engineer intricate machines that perform simple tasks to the 8th grade “sludge” project where students identify a mystery substance by testing a hypothesis through analysis and investigation, our students have chances to reflect on their strengths and areas for growth.
FEBRUARY
…LEARN ACTIVELY AND RESOURCEFULLY. Whether exploring hunger and local homelessness, barriers to educational access and literacy, or diminishing natural resources, our Middle School students combine classroom study and off-campus community engagement in a yearlong servicelearning curriculum that helps students understand their role in addressing some of modern society’s most pressing challenges.
MARCH
APRIL
COMMUNITY PRODUCTIONS, featuring work written by student actors and the Middle School Playwriting Class
…COMMUNICATE CLEARLY. An 8th grade history unit culminates in the annual tradition of Hill Day, when students visit Capitol Hill to interview legal experts and formulate their own stance on resonant Constitutional issues. Students present their own informed views on a range of topics, challenging themselves to communicate persuasively and logically, with the understanding that there are more than two sides to every issue.
MAY
JUNE
8TH GRADE LANGUAGE DAY when all Chinese, French, Latin, and Spanish students take trips to cultural institutions throughout D.C.
HIGH SCHOOL At the High School, we cultivate an environment of active engagement as students prepare to be change agents in college and beyond. Students can shape their program and explore multiple opportunities for academic challenge in a curriculum that features advanced courses in nearly all disciplines. And with more than 75 student-run clubs and activities—from our nationally-renowned Debate Team, to the Augur Bit newspaper, to a multitude of student affinity groups overseen by our Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion—our High Schoolers keep the doors of Georgetown Day School open well into the night. Our High School students are self-starters and collaborators, individuals and tight-knit community members, talented artists, championship athletes, and committed scholars—often all at once. STUDENT STAFF COUNCIL (SSC) ELECTIONS representing each grade level and leveraging the power of student-faculty partnership
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
FIRST FRIDAY an annual tradition of half-day classes, followed by a barbeque and good-spirited competition
“ This is the only school I’ve ever been where each of us can be ourselves and be assured that everyone else is comfortable with that.” —10TH GRADER
“ I had the chance to facilitate a student leadership conference for students from across the country. GDS has given me the opportunity to think not only about what kind of leader I am here on campus, but also to realize that my impact can be much larger than that.” —11TH GRADER
COLLEGE COUNSELING FOR JUNIORS BEGINS focused on building relationships with families and assisting students through all facets of the process to help them find the right fit
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
JANUARY
BENJAMIN COOPER LECTURE SERIES an annual event for the entire GDS community featuring national luminaries and concluding with a special presentation and conversation with High School students
A GDS STUDENT WILL...
…SOLVE COMPLEX PROBLEMS. The High School’s Policy and Advocacy Institute engages students directly with governmental and nonprofit organizations to explore societal challenges and participate in the development of effective policy and advocacy initiatives. Some of our budding policymakers spearheaded a partnership between law school students and businesses to provide services that can alleviate the burden of homelessness among veterans.
…ENGAGE AS A JUST, MORAL, AND ETHICAL CITIZEN. During our annual Social Justice Day, nationally renowned guest speakers and dozens of interactive workshops facilitated by students, faculty, and parents focus on the challenges most central to achieving equity and inclusion. Throughout the year, our students engage in our city and neighborhood, fulfilling their service learning hours and building relationships—from one-on-one assistance with seniors at Friendship Terrace to after-school tutoring programs with students from local elementary schools.
…THINK CRITICALLY. Teaching students to be deeply reflective, critical thinkers is a hallmark of a GDS education. Conversations about black holes, power dynamics, history, literature, current events, and artificial intelligence spill out of the classroom and set the halls buzzing. A culminating experience for all seniors is the senior paper, a months-long project, designed to prepare students for the kinds of writing they will encounter in college. With structured guidance and an age-appropriate level of autonomy, students grapple with complex literary texts of their own choosing and produce rich and nuanced essays.
STUDENT ART EXHIBITION & SALE featuring exhibits by AP Art Studio and Independent Study students
FEBRUARY
MARCH
STEM CONFERENCE, GDS’s annual convening of local public and private school students and teachers focused on pathways to STEM careers
APRIL
GRADUATION
MAY
JUNE
SENIOR QUEST NIGHT, the annual culmination of senior’s independent study projects and a celebration of their time at GDS OR
OUR TEACHERS If you ask our students to name something unique in their GDS experience, they will tell you about the transformative relationships they develop with their teachers. Our teachers devote themselves to knowing each student well and understanding how best to challenge, support, and engage every individual. In the environment cultivated by teachers deeply committed to their craft and to kids, our students exhibit confidence in their skills and joy in their learning.
“ My child, who graduated recently, credits GDS as the most important experience of her life. Nothing in college compares to her relationships with her GDS teachers and how much she learned from them.” —PARENT OF A GDS GRADUATE
79% PERCENTAGE OF FACULTY
WITH ADVANCED
DEGREES
15 YEARS
Average length of tenure at GDS
>> >> >>
5:1 >> lower school 6:1 >> middle school 7:1 >> high school Student to Teacher Ratio
A GDS STUDENT WILL... LEAD Our students graduate from Georgetown Day School ready to be leaders in the wide range of endeavors they pursue, whether as world-class professors, historic lawmakers, renowned journalists, humanitarian activists, award-winning filmmakers, decorated veterans, leading educators, or entrepreneurs. From our earliest grades and well beyond their time at GDS, our students are inspired and empowered to change the world.
WWW.GDS.ORG/ADMISSIONS
LOWER/MIDDLE SCHOOL ADMISSIONS OFFICE 4530 MACARTHUR BOULEVARD, NW WASHINGTON, DC 20007-4297 PHONE 202-295-1098 (PK–2ND GRADE) 202-295-1078 (3RD–8TH GRADE) FAX 202-295-6211
HIGH SCHOOL ADMISSIONS OFFICE 4200 DAVENPORT STREET, NW WASHINGTON, DC 20016-4560 PHONE 202-274-3210 (9TH–12TH GRADE) FAX 202-274-3211