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About Us

The Bank Street School for Children is an independent, coeducational preschool through 8th grade school in New York City. Our approach places children at the center of their own learning to help them grow as critical thinkers, problem solvers, and creators.

At Bank Street, students learn by doing. In the process, they develop a lifelong love of learning as they build the academic, social, emotional, and cognitive skills essential for success in school and life. Each child is valued as a learner and as a teacher, classmate, and member of the Bank Street community.

Lower (Preschool, Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten, and Grade 1), Middle (Grades 2–4), and Upper (Grades 5–8) Schools offer a rich learning environment tailored to support children at each stage of their development. Our school is a working model of Bank Street College of Education’s approach to teaching and learning, which builds from more than a century of knowledge on children’s growth and development.

Request Information View Our Programs Strategic Plan (pdf)

School for Children at a Glance

410

Students Preschool Through Grade 8
6:1

Student : Faculty Ratio
65%

Teachers With Bank Street Graduate Degrees
1/3

Of Our Budget Supports Financial Assistance

Our History & Philosophy

Founded in 1916, Bank Street has been at the forefront of progressive education for more than a century. Our approach to teaching and learning is grounded in a deep understanding of child development—a philosophy that engages the whole child for optimal cognitive, social, and emotional growth and creates learning environments in which students are actively involved with the world around them. These foundational ideas are the basis for everything we do at Bank Street.

Explore Our History

$Math Lab project at the Upper School$

An Inquiry-based Curriculum

Children learn best when they arrive at their own meaning. Bank Street teachers encourage and facilitate student questioning, exploration, collaboration, and discovery. This climate of inquiry nurtures children’s ability to reflect on their own process and learning as well as their capacity for focused, goal-directed thinking. At the heart of Bank Street’s success are adult-child interactions that support each child’s learning and a social environment in which each child is known and respected as an individual.

What is Progressive Education?

Financial Information and Accreditations

Bank Street School for Children is accredited by the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS). We have a $10.6 million endowment and a $20 million operating budget (including Summer Camp and After School Programs). Our affiliations include: National Association of Independent Schools; Elementary School Heads Association; National Business Officers Association; Educational Records Bureau; Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development; Council for Advancement and Support of Education; Early Steps; Parent’s League; Independent School Admission Association of Greater New York.

Bank Street School for Children is also a proud member of the Independent Schools Admissions Association of Greater New York (ISAAGNY). Founded in 1965, ISAAGNY aims to ensure orderly, professional, and equitable admissions processes at member schools, such as by observing a shared admissions timeline, engaging in professional development, exchanging resources and best practices, and more. The resulting spirit of cooperation serves schools, families, and nearly 30,000 students across greater New York.