Encouraging curiosity

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Learn more about how UMA helps build students’ character: Contact us today to arrange a visit to the school.

Learning can be a great adventure for your children, and Upstate Montessori Academy builds on the Montessori tradition of encouraging children’s curiosity, which creates engaged students who love to learn! At UMA, academic rigor always comes with a healthy dose of adventure. With their trained teachers to assist them, students are given a range of tools with which they can gather age-appropriate information.

In addition to teaching the core disciplines, UMA students also learn about:

  • Kindness toward others

  • The importance of peace

  • Respect

One of the overarching goals of the Montessori Method, as practiced at UMA, is for students to develop positive character traits that will guide and inform them throughout their lives. The school is fully accredited and meets all state and federal standards, so parents can be assured that the educational foundation their children receive at Upstate Montessori Academy will continue to be valuable throughout their educational pursuits.

Our campus

The physical environment of Upstate Montessori also contributes to an overall atmosphere that is conducive to learning. The facility itself is surrounded by greenery. Inside, the open, airy floorplan welcomes in natural light through the many soring windows and provides students with a wealth of opportunities to explore, whether that involves reading a book, solving a math problem, or caring for one of the many small animals that call the school’s classrooms home.

Learning follows each student throughout the campus, so it’s no surprise to discover that the playground includes a unique climbing structure and natural playscape, as well as a student-grown garden.

Growth to fit Greenville

UMA began with 14 students; today, the student body has grown to 120. To accommodate the growth, the school in 2020 opened a second lower elementary class to bring the current offering to two lower school classes — comprising first, second and third grades — and one upper school classes — comprising fourth, fifth and sixth grades.

Even as the school has grown, its leadership has worked to maintain a small-school feel with ample one-on-one instruction, and also by involving parents to the extent that they would like to be involved in their children’s school lives. Our parents are a critical part of Upstate Montessori, and they are always welcome to come, visit, and become involved.

Keeping every child safe

Upstate Montessori Academy also understands the fundamental importance of creating a safe atmosphere in order for each student to grow freely and achieve his or her greatest personal potential. Parental involvement is always encouraged and appreciated by the school’s staff. Parents also receive a weekly newsletter, which makes it easy for everyone in the school family to stay up to date with all the school news.

“Children have an absorbent mind. They absorb knowledge from the environment without fatigue. … This is the moment in the life of man when we can do something for the betterment of humanity and further brotherhood.”

— Maria Montessori, The 1946 London Lectures