Madison Country Day School is a nonsectarian, private day school in Dane County, Wisconsin for grades PreK through 12. The school has an enrollment of about 400 students. It is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS), and is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). It is an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School that offers the IB Diploma Program to high school students. Madison Country Day School is informally known as "MCDS", and "Country Day".
History
The school began classes on September 2, 1997. The school was originally planned for a 46-acre (190,000 m2) site in the Town of Westport donated by PDQ convenience store founder Sam Jacobsen, with buildings to be designed by Robert A. M. Stern Architects. However, when a conditional use permit was denied by the Dane County Zoning and Natural Resources Committee, the school rented quarters in a former schoolhouse in the town of Martinsville. Twenty-two students enrolled in 1997 for pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and Grades 1â€"3. Additional grades were added one at a time. The school later moved to 76 acres (310,000 m2) of land near Waunakee. A $3 million renovation project in 2001 converted sleeping rooms of the former Yahara Center into classrooms. An upper school was formed when ninth grade was added in 2003. The first senior class graduated in the spring of 2007.
Curriculum
MCDS is an IB World School and accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS) and is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS).
MCDS enrolls students from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The school has three divisions: The lower school covers pre-kindergarten through fourth grade. The middle school contains fifth through eighth, and the high school ninth through twelfth grade. The Pre-K and kindergarten classes are occasionally referred to as the Early Childhood Program (ECP).
Lower school
The math program used at MCDS, Singapore Math, starts in first grade and continues through sixth. Reading is taught starting in pre-kindergarten, with direct instruction using the Riggs phonics method, using the Orton phonograms. The Writing Workshop developed by Lucy Calkins is used throughout the lower school to teach writing. The only foreign language taught in the lower school is Spanish, which starts in Pre-K, and with daily classes for the older students. The music program has several components in the lower school, including weekly semi-private piano lessons, choir, and separate music theory classes for all students. The lower school music system prepares students to take the ABRSM practical and theory tests. Other classes include science, art, history, geography, physical education, and language arts.
Middle school
The middle school math curriculum continues with the Singapore Math. English is primarily devoted to literature and writing, but also includes grammar and public speaking. Science classes are lab- and experiment-based, using a curriculum from Japan. History and geography are taught using Core Knowledge Foundation texts. Spanish classes continue for all middle school students, and Japanese is available as an elective. Students may also elect to continue their piano studies, or switch to a woodwind, stringed, brass, or vocal instruction. Students may participate in orchestra, jazz band, or choral.
High school
International Baccalaureate
The school employs a prescribed book list in English. Students continue to study a foreign language. In science, students learn the essential topics in a given subject and further develop their understanding of the scientific method through the IB emphasis upon laboratory work. In history, students move beyond the AP model of exhaustive details to carefully studying a number of periods and areas in greater depth. In art, students are evaluated on both studio work and a research workbook. The music allows MCDS students to pursue the ABRSM standards.
References
External links
- Madison Country Day School Official Site
