John J Daly Elementary School

This experience has been wonderful! Our daughter attended for three years and our son one. He'd run in without looking back. She was more hesitant, then couldn't stop talking about it. We moved to Port largely for this school and were not disappointed. The references were strong when we were deciding, and perhaps we'll chat if you're considering it. Many parents were educators (we're not), and we developed some close friendships.The name comes from "Project Spectrum," a research program that ran at Harvard under Howard Gardner and Mara Krechevsky. It's unrelated to the autism spectrum. The idea is that there are several types of intelligence (a "spectrum" of knowledge), and they can be cultivated in early childhood. My Spectrum School combines elements of this theory and the Reggio Emilia approach.It excels at translating theory into experiences. That's mostly because teachers care about kids, and kids aren't interested in Gardner. There's a commitment to longer-term themes (e.g., creativity, cognitive skills, STEAM), which informs curriculum. And they have a moment-by-moment approach: Teachers incorporate kids' interests and provide remarkable individual attention and differentiation. Class sizes are small enough to make that work.There's also some structure. Teachers stick to a routine for activities like arrival, lunch, playground, and departure---even if there can be considerable flexibility in between. Kids call adults by titles. Dr. D, Ms. Jennifer, and Mr. Jason became household names.The teachers are amazing, and it's hard to say enough good. Mr. Jason and Ms. Jennifer are bright, engaged, and passionate about the kids. They're also all-around wonderful people. Dr. D brings considerable experience with education theory and practice. Everyone had helpful insight at our conferences. They love talking about the kids. They were willing to reinforce things that we worked on at home, like empathy, imagination, or potty training. They will also tell it like it is: You'll hear something if your kid is in diapers at four or five. It is Long Island, after all.The facilities are large and thoughtfully designed. Mr. Jason teaches Pre-K students in one room. Ms. Jennifer and Dr. D have younger kids in another. There's a fair bit of crossover, where younger kids join the Pre-K students for some activities, parties, and play. Kids without younger siblings play eldest to the little ones, and likewise.We'll have fond memories.