Sycamore School

Sycamore School’s teaching approach is built around providing academically gifted children an enriched, accelerated education designed to help them reach their full potential and develop into responsible, constructive, fulfilling individuals. Their program emphasizes curiosity-driven learning through experiences such as hands-on labs, real-world problem solving, and enrichment opportunities like field trips and guest expert speakers.

Families apply through Sycamore’s online admissions portal, submitting the application and a $100 fee (Preschool screening included; PreK–8 applicants also arrange and pay for required IQ testing), with the 2026–2027 deadline listed as February 1, 2026 and decisions sent on or before March 1, 2026. A complete file typically includes an uploaded birth certificate, recent school records (report card and NWEA MAP Growth/achievement results), and a teacher recommendation when the child has attended school/daycare. Preschool applicants complete an on-campus screening plus a play-based observation and must be daytime toilet trained; PreK–8 applicants submit an individual IQ test (Wechsler/comparable) and, for grades 1–8, recent standardized achievement testing, and may be invited for a full-day “shadow visit” after initial committee review. Admissions decisions consider multiple criteria related to giftedness, academics, and social-emotional readiness; the school notes it gives most serious consideration to assessment results at or above the 95th percentile (with an average Wechsler IQ just over 132). The website does not describe a formal waitlist process; instead it says off-cycle applicants may be reviewed and decided as applications are completed as long as space is available, and it lists a sibling/current-family priority with an earlier timeline (apply by December 1 for a late-January decision, with sibling preference when competing for the same opening).