Windward School

Windward is an amazing place. I only wish that it went through 12th grade. The headmaster John J. Russell is a fantastic leader. He is charismatic, truly believes in the "magic" of the school's teaching methodology, and is warm and welcoming to the entire school community (parents and children included.) The teachers are phenomenal: patient, hardworking, and very thorough. The school's emphasis is on teaching our children to properly read and write. I only wish my other 2 children could have benefitted from this stellar school.
--Submitted by a parent

My son has been in Windward since 3rd grade and is now in 6th. He started Windward not knowing how to read correctly and with low self esteem. He now reads alone each night for pleasure. This may not seem a big deal for some of you reading this, but for those of you with a child who has language based learning difficulties it is a major deal! He is now confident at public speaking, is socially very at ease, has self esteem and is a self advocate. Windward did all this and more for my son! The teachers are the best I have ever met; dedicated, knowledgeable and supportive.
--Submitted by a parent

Both my daughters attended this school (one sixth grade through ninth, the other fifth grade through eighth). It's a wonderful place. My younger daughter, who is dyslexic and is now going off to college, said it changed her life. Windward is peerless when it comes to remediating dyslexia. For my ADD daughter, Windward stemmed the downward plunge and began to restore her self-esteem, which public school had destroyed. The Windward parent community and administration are inspiring as well.
--Submitted by a parent

Wonderful school. I don't know what we would have done without this school to give my son the right tools to be successful.
--Submitted by a parent

I graduated from Windward in 2004 and I was there from 6th grade- 12th grade. The school was okay. I felt like I was forced to be very dependent on the teachers because they made you write your papers in a certain way which, for me, was a lot harder. I am in college now and I feel like Windward never prepared me for the real world.

wonderful! teachers are the best for learning disabled children,my daughter become a reader.she could not read when she started at Windward last year in second grade. Windward is the best!
--Submitted by a parent

Excellent program for learnig disabled children. lots of activities for gifted kids like sports, performing, and art.
--Submitted by a parent

I now have two children who attend Windward. My daughter is a Windward poster child. She has thrived there! Insecond grade at a NYC private school she wasn't learning to read. Within her first months at Windward she became a reader. She has been there for 5 years and will soon be looking for an ongoing school.Her progress is so significant that she will probably only need extended time on testing (because of processing issues) when she goes on to a regular school. She said to me after about 2 years at Windward, 'I'm smart now , Mom.' And, she is.
--Submitted by a parent

I would highly, highly recommend Windward. If your child has a language based learning disability, this is the school to be in. Windward uses an Orton-Gillingham approach to reading and incorporates that into Math as well. All core-academic programs are geared specifically for each individual child and the non-core classes are mixed levels to allow for well rounded children. The school attempts to weed out children with serious emotional disabilities during the application process. Parental involvement is encouraged but difficult to accomplish as parents are typically not permitted in the building during the school day, so as not to distrupt class time. Frequent conferences with teachers and staff help to ensure a constant communication regarding your child's development, but involvment with the day to day activities that parents might have in a public school, do not exist at Windward. The tuition is outrageous, but incredibly worth every penny.
--Submitted by a parent