The Spence School

Kindergarten birds and Middle School math

In Kindergarten, children observe and research the birds of Central Park. They also make a guidebook to northeast birds, with drawings, diagrams and written descriptions.

Science notebooks hold pictures and words, so the work rests on a habit that is easy to picture: look closely, record what you see, explain it to someone else.

Blocks come into the same social studies program. Children map parts of the school building and neighborhood and rebuild them in the classroom, and in a unit called All About Us they build an accessible school while learning about physical disability.

Two homeroom teachers lead literacy, math and social studies, with specialists for library, PE, dance, music, art, science and Spanish.

By Middle School the same explaining shows up in math. Math 5 treats reasons as seriously as answers.

Algebra I starts in Math 7, and late in that year students are introduced to the Harkness-style classes that continue through their Spence math years: students run the discussion of hard problems, justify their approach in exact language and field questions from peers. The course's main ideas are meant to emerge from those conversations.

Independent work in Grade 8 and Upper School

Every Grade 8 student works on a capstone: a topic of personal interest explored in a weekly seminar led by the Dean of Students and shared at a community celebration. Topics the school has listed include prosthetic devices and sports psychology.

In Upper School, fellowships are selective: students apply, then do independent research with mentors in a multi-year cohort. Not every student takes one.

At the 2026 symposium, graduating Eco Fellows presented projects that included a fairer, more efficient route from empty lots and underused city land to community gardens, and ways to build education and awareness around New York City's composting initiatives.

Who can apply

Spence considers applicants who identify as girls. A student whose identity changes is welcome to stay, and the school talks with the family case by case about whether Spence is still the best environment for that student.

Other grades open only through attrition, so email admissions; Spence expects none in Grades 10 to 12. Kindergarten siblings and legacies qualify for early notification.

Tests, forms and decisions

For Grades 6, 7 and 9, the current school's math teacher, English teacher and counselor or principal complete the forms; send that school Spence's records release form. Skip first-choice and personal recommendation letters.

Essays and other steps are on the linked checklist; the $85 fee is waived for aid applicants.

Tuition and required charges

Tuition covers books, class trips and meals. Three charges are required on top: $50 in Parents' Association dues per family, $75 in class dues per child and a $75 registration fee.

A 20 percent deposit counts toward tuition, and the balance can be paid annually, semiannually or monthly. The tuition page lists no 2027–28 price, so ask what Fall 2027 families will pay.

Applying for aid, and what the rules mean

New families apply through Clarity between September 1 and December 1, 2026. Returning aid families renew separately, by November 13.

Clarity charges a $65 fee and lets you share one application with other schools that accept it.

The current tuition page has new families send tax forms to Clarity by June 1 after acceptance, but the undated policy says prior-year returns accompany the application. Confirm with the financial aid office before December 1.

Aid is limited and may not meet full need. Current recipients are funded first; new-student requests follow the admission decision until funds run out.

Awards are reviewed yearly; support can fall as income rises, and every family should expect to cover part of each tuition increase.

If you land on the aid waitlist, return the full-tuition contract only if you would enroll without aid.

Each parent, custodial or not, plus stepparents and legal guardians, completes the forms; an unreachable parent needs a waiver in Clarity.

An unemployed parent is assigned New York City minimum-wage income unless health, disability, care duties or documented inability to find work explain it. Leave after a birth or major illness is not treated as voluntary.

Second Act, bus, music-lesson, school-trip travel and testing fees are reduced in proportion to the award, not waived; music-lesson reductions cap at 60 percent.

Learning support

Support splits into documented needs and open study help. In Middle School, learning specialists work with teachers and see students individually or in small groups on study, organization and reading and writing skills.

Students with documented learning differences can take Readers and Writers Workshop in place of a modern or classical language. Academic Workshop, an elective on study strategies and executive-function habits, meets twice a week and is open to any student who might benefit.

In Upper School, specialists support students with documented differences and those who show a need, and Academic Workshop is open to anyone who wants to join. The pages do not spell out formal accommodations, so ask what documentation the school reviews and what support would look like for your child.

The school day and after school

Spence's sample days show rhythm, not exact hours. In Middle School, homeroom starts at 8:00, 50-minute rotating classes begin at 8:20, and the last period, from 2:15, holds athletics, PE or specialty courses, some at the 412 East 90th Street facility.

The Upper School sample ends classes at 3:20, with rehearsals and matches afterward. The Lower School page gives no hours, so ask for Kindergarten arrival and dismissal.

Second Act, the after-school program, runs weekdays for Kindergarten through Grade 6. It is coed, so siblings and the children of faculty and staff can join.

The published sessions are dated 2025–26; confirm current hours, fees and the care schedule.

Bird guidebooks, Harkness math and support at Spence

Spence's Kindergarten bird study and Harkness-style math show how the school teaches, so ask to see the work and how new students are placed.