Welcome to North Park Montessori (PK-8)
Welcome to North Park Montessori! Thank you for visiting our website and showing interest in our program. North Park Montessori is a learning community deeply committed to growth, curiosity, joy, and community engagement. We are one of three public Montessori schools within the Grand Rapids Public Schools, located in the northeast corner of the city. We are 450 scholars strong across two buildings, and we care about meeting children where they are developmentally. Our goal is to help scholars grow into content, hard working, persistent community members.
If you are a prospective family interested in learning more, please call our Main Office or email us using the contact information on this page, and we will setup a tour of either our Cheney Campus (1st-8th grade) or our Wellerwood Campus (Pk3, Pk4, and Kindergarten).
Principal
Daniel Morse

North Park Montessori
School Hours
Grades 1-8
Breakfast 8:50 a.m.
Start Time 9:10 a.m.
Dismissal 4:06 p.m.
Half Day Dismissal 12:20 p.m.
Grades PK-K
AM Session 9:00 a.m. - 12:08 p.m.
PM Session 12:48 p.m. - 3:56 p.m.
School Transparency
Four Programs. Two Buildings. One School.
North Park Montessori Academy is a Pre-K to 8th grade program serving 550+ scholars in the Northeast sector of the city. We are one school, two buildings, and four programs. Our Tier I instructional model is based on the three main tenets of a high fidelity Montessori program: care of the whole child, an uninterrupted three hour work cycle, and multi-age classrooms spanning three grades. We have four Primary/Children House learning environments (pre-K-kinder), six Lower Elementary learning environments (1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades), and six Upper Elementary learning environments (4th, 5th, and 6th grades). We also hope to have four middle school learning environments (math, science, language, and history) as the program grows to capacity in the fall of 2023.
North Park follows the Montessori Cosmic Education curriculum, which aligns with state and federal curriculum standards, but teaches children using stories that include the Birth of the Sun, the Timeline of Life on Earth, the Timeline of Human Life, the History of Language, and the History of Math. These stories spark curiosity and engage scholars in important reading, writing, biology, chemistry, physics, and history work each day. Our highly competent and well trained Montessori-certified staff also encourage the use of hands-on materials to explore these topics and promote scholar-centered learning.
We also have a dynamic, culturally diverse, and engaged parent community eager to support learning in our building and promote the growth of public Montessori programming across Western Michigan.
North Park Montessori Program Highlights:
- A 12-acre forest used to teach plant and animal identification, remove invasive species, and make room for endangered species (Wellerwood Campus); each classroom makes monthly visits to the forest--"silent journeys"--to be with nature
- Three acres of play space used for recess each day: three playgrounds; tennis courts; basketball courts; football, baseball, and soccer fields; and a snow hill
- Scholar led and managed gardening program
- Middle school Theatre, Community Service Learning, and Self Expressions programs
- A strong Music program kinder to 8th grade (attending state competitions)
The Montessori classroom uses hands-on lessons and experiences to help scholars learn by doing. Scholars learn in cohorts of three age levels. Typically, scholars will have the same teacher for multiple years. The multi-age classroom allows the scholars to become part of a learning community that fosters respect, understanding, and tolerance where your child will:
- receive lessons as he/she/they are ready for them
- learn how to focus and concentrate
- become a self-directed learner
- achieve independence
- learn order
- be treated with respect and dignity
Children’s House @ Wellerwood (Preschool, Kindergarten)
Located at 800 Wellerwood St. NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49505
Our Children’s House is a multi-age classroom that aims to help children gain independence, confidence, curiosity, and problem solving abilities. The Montessori lessons and hands-on materials provide children with activities that help them grow intellectually, socially, and emotionally.
Elementary 1 (Grades 1, 2, 3)
Elementary 1 scholars engage in a wide range of tasks, including learning to read, studying spelling patterns and word derivations, exploring advanced math concepts, and discerning number and spatial relationships with hands-on materials. They also learn to use a daily/weekly work plan, which outlines assignments, academic goals, and work choices. Elementary 1 scholars are inspired by their older classmates’ more challenging work.
Elementary 2 (Grades 4, 5, 6)
Elementary 2 is a safe place where scholars find their voice and become more independent in asking questions and meeting their needs. They continue to learn to use a daily/weekly work plan, and they participate in rigorous lessons and activities that develop their literacy and mathematical skills.
North Park Montessori Photo Tour
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30 Mar
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No LOOP ProgrammingDate: Mar 30Calendar: GRPS District Calendar
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31 Marthru Apr 7
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No School; No LOOP Programming - Spring BreakDate: Mar 31 - Apr 7Calendar: GRPS District Calendar
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7 Apr
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Theme School Application Period Closes (3rd Round)Date: Apr 7Calendar: GRPS District Calendar
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8 Apr
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Theme School Application Period Opens (4th Round)Date: Apr 8Calendar: GRPS District Calendar
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20 Apr
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GRCC Community Fair 6:00 PM to 8:00 PMGRCC Community FairDate: Apr 20Time: 6:00 PM to 8:00 PMCalendar: GRPS District Calendar
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11 May
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Last Day of Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) PreschoolDate: May 11Calendar: GRPS District Calendar
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Family & Community Engagement (F.A.C.E.) Volunteer Celebration 5:30 PM to 7:00 PMFamily & Community Engagement (F.A.C.E.) Volunteer CelebrationDate: May 11Time: 5:30 PM to 7:00 PMCalendar: GRPS District Calendar
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18 May
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LOOP Collaborative Youth FairDate: May 18Calendar: GRPS District Calendar
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22 May
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City High Middle School Graduation Ceremony 5:00 PM to 6:00 PMCity High Middle School Graduation CeremonyDate: May 22Time: 5:00 PM to 6:00 PMLocation: Houseman Field, 162 Houseman Avenue NE, Grand Rapids, MICalendar: GRPS District Calendar
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23 May
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CA Frost Middle High School Graduation Ceremony 5:00 PM to 6:00 PMCA Frost Middle High School Graduation CeremonyDate: May 23Time: 5:00 PM to 6:00 PMLocation: Houseman Field, 162 Houseman Avenue NE, Grand Rapids, MICalendar: GRPS District Calendar
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Cornelia Steketee's life was anything but typical. She was a teacher, an author, a social advocate, and, on occasion, a politician.

Scholar-led committees planned events and created decorations during Black History Month at City High Middle School

Back in person for the first time since 2020, the annual event helped scholars consider challenges, choices and changes.