With original 1920's lovely Mediterranean architecture together with modern renovations and as the region's first "commuter" school, Ada Merritt K-8 Center was reopened to students from Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties in 2003.   It's unique programs and high academic standards, Ada Merritt is building a legacy as rich and promising as Miami itself.

The Ada Merritt K-8 Center curriculum design was created to expand multilingual education and increase opportunities for students to become bilingual and biliterate.  The instructional program includes the highly rated Dual Language Program and the International Baccalaureate Primary Years and Middle School Years Programs.  In addition, students pursuing English/Spanish or English/Portuguese proficiency will have the opportunity to enter  either the Spanish section of the International Studies (IS) Program or the Portuguese section of the International Studies (IE) - (1st through 5th grades).

About the Dual Language Program:

Designated as a Bilingual School Organization (BISO), Ada Merritt offers students an opportunity to pursue a dual language education in English/Portuguese or English/Spanish.  This successful program is based on the philosophy of the transfer of skills from one language to another.  Every students spends sixty percent of their day in English language instruction and forty percent of their day in the other language of instruction.

About the International Baccalaureate Primary Years and Middle School Years Programs:

The Primary Years Program (PYP) and Middle School Years Program (MYP) is a comprehensive approach to teaching and learning that focuses on the development of the whole child.  With an international focus, it addresses the academic, social, physical, emotional and cultural needs of students.

A distinctive feature of the IB Program is the six transdisciplinary themes:
 
Who we are
Where we are in place and time
How we express ourselves
How the world works
How we organize ourselves
Sharing the planet

Some elements of the program include a student profile, specific attitudes, a concept driven curriculum and the understanding that socially responsible actions are an integral part of the learning process.  Guided by a series of questions, students and teacher develop units for exploration and study creating a dynamic and energizing learning environment.  It combines the best research and practicies from a range of national systems with a wealth of knowledge and experience from international schools around the world.

The curriculum framework incorporates concepts, skills, attitudes, actions and knowledge.

PYP MYP Attitudes and Profiles

The International Baccalaureate Organization Primary Years Programme places the focus of schools on student learning, where it should be.  The following learner profiles are central to the PYP/MYP framework.  With the learner profiles, Ada Merritt K-8 Center strives toward developing international students and learners.   

The International Baccalaureate Organization Primary Years and Middle School Years Programs also focuses on the development of positive attitudes toward people, towards the environment, and towards learning.  Ada Merritt K-8 Center teachers address these attitudes in the written curriculum and design activities and assessments that promote these positive attitudes.