Saint Gregory's School - Coed Private School in Albany for Boys & Girls

Early Childhood Education Program

Nurturing. Creative. Welcoming. Learning. Saint Gregory’s School provides a top early childhood program, focusing on the individual developmental needs of each student. On our beautiful 22-acre campus, children have the chance to explore the outdoors through recess and nature exploration. Our early childhood and pre-K teachers deliver a comprehensive curriculum featuring science, technology, engineering and math. Our dedicated faculty ensures that even our youngest learners participate in Spanish, music, physical education and art classes on a weekly basis. Your child is treasured on our campus where we model respect, empathy, kindness and decency each day. Our private school takes pride in executing a great education for students in the greater Albany area.

Video: Early Childhood Education Program

Pre-K 2 / Toddler Program (Two Year Olds)

The two-year-old program at Saint Gregory’s School is designed to introduce our youngest learners to the school community. By providing a warm, safe and nurturing environment, the program lays the foundation for a successful learning experience here at SGS. The toddler class is mostly play based, with a focus on social emotional development. The program has a flexible schedule, with class time options on Monday-Friday mornings from 8:30-11:30. This part-time schedule provides our two-year old’s with an engaging, fun environment where they are learning to be comfortable at school while away from mom and dad. Through play, the children will work on sharing, problem solving and communication. Additionally, throughout the school year we will focus on different themes that incorporate fun activities to promote all areas of development. Each day the class will read books, sing songs, listen to music, create art, as well as explore different play centers in the classroom. The children will also play games and work on gross motor skills both inside the gym as well as outdoors as much as possible on our beautiful 22 acres here at Saint Gregory’s School.

Video: Pre-K 2 / Toddler Program (Two Year Olds)

Pre-K 3 (Three Year Olds)

The three-year-olds of Saint Gregory’s School are excited to come to school. Everyday, our teachers actively engage our youngest learners, filling them with enthusiasm for learning. Our philosophy as a school is to value each student as a unique individual, which is a process that begins at a young age and sets students up for a lifetime of learning.

Video: Pre-K 3 (Three Year Olds)

Pre-K 4 (Four Year Olds)

Our pre-k 4 program further emphasizes our values that makes Saint Gregory's such a special private school in the Albany area. As each child grows, we make sure to recognize their independent ideas, preferences, interests and learning styles. Our goal is to create a love for learning that manifests a confidence in our students to overcome any obstacle. Students are prepared for Kindergarten by being introduced to core concepts through opportunities to be creative and explore. A typical day for a child in pre-K can include painting, drawing, writing, singing, counting, baking, problem solving and playing. One of our main goals is to develop math, reading and writing skills while having fun.

Video: Pre-K 4 (Four Year Olds)

The Lower School Experience

In our private school as a whole, we teach a rigorous curriculum that challenges our students to reach their full potential in whatever they strive to accomplish, whether their achievements are intellectual, artistic or spiritual. The lower school creates a love of learning in every activity, whether it’s tallying pumpkin seeds from our garden, designing Native American villages, practicing public speaking skills, completing an independent study, or more traditional activities for lower school students like multiplication and division tables. Lower school students have positive role models to help them envision their time in our upper school through collaborating with older students. Not only do our oldest and youngest students play together at recess on a regular basis, but they assist younger students in their school day, creating respect and self-esteem from a very early time in their development. Lower school students are encouraged to be creative, enjoy the outdoors and meet our overall goal of developing the tools to solve social and emotional problems through our unique approach to their learning experience.

Video: The Lower School Experience

Kindergarten

The Kindergarten year nurtures dramatic growth for young students following our preschool programs. At this time, students begin to develop writing, speaking, listening and vocabulary skills through activities like a daily journal. Kindergarteners at Saint Gregory’s School also take part in Spanish classes, solving math problems, science class, our art program, music and physical education. We have designed a curriculum that introduces students to technology in the classroom and play time as a means to expend their energy and socialize during the school day. Our supportive environment and unique opportunities gives students a routine where they are encouraged to take academic and social risks.

Video: Kindergarten

First Grade - 1st Grade

By the time Saint Gregory’s students reach 1st grade, they are eager to advance the skills they've been developing in our school. First graders build on the concepts they began in Kindergarten by moving onto things like responding to literature, the principles of good penmanship and spelling, public speech and math word problems. Students begin to emerge as writers, artists, musicians, engineers and scientists through hands-on activities and experiences outside of the classroom like field trips. First grade students are expected to embrace the independence given to them through allowing our students to walk to class without an adult for the first time and prepare for weekly spelling assignments on their own. Integrating our 1st graders at Saint Gregory’s is as intentional as it is rewarding. Watching our students embrace the respect and values of our community fills our hearts with excitement for their futures at our school and beyond.

Video: First Grade - 1st Grade

Second Grade - 2nd Grade

Saint Gregory's second graders rush to the classroom with excitement to see their friends and start their day of learning. Students in second grade have moved beyond simple words, showing greater comprehension and more complex vocabulary. Our curriculum focuses students on writing skills and reading comprehension, including stories with a beginning, middle and end, along with solving multi-step mathematical word problems. Organizational skills that second graders begin to develop create sharper critical thinking, reading and writing abilities that pairs with the accountability for student learning and behavior, preparing them for anything and everything in their academic journey.

Video: Second Grade - 2nd Grade

Third Grade - 3rd Grade

In third grade, students are expected to use their resources to solve problems, creating a greater expectation for independence and application of foundational skills learned in the earlier years. Teachers emphasize combining skills to read novels fluently, with expression for meaning and purpose. Students are encouraged to read outside of school and work on inferring information about what they read and hear. Writing is a daily activity, including longer pieces that inform, persuade, or entertain. The work out third graders put together is revised for sentence structure, grammar, and punctuation. Our students begin to build a foundation in mathematics by applying their knowledge to more challenging topics like addition and subtraction of larger numbers, place value, multiplication and division, basic geometry, money, time, decimals and fractions. This is an age where our students begin to emerge as leaders and independent thinkers that express viewpoints fully and clearly.

Video: Third Grade - 3rd Grade

Fourth Grade - 4th Grade

Our hard-working fourth graders are ready for the challenge of being the leaders of the lower school. Students accept more responsibility for their learning and apply the skills learned in previous grades. Each fourth grader researches and writes a report on a Native American tribe to then build a historically accurate model of the tribe's village. Later in the year, they draft, rewrite, and revise a creative writing piece to be published in a book. Students further develop a sense of exploration and discovery from the skills that began in Kindergarten with PLTW (Project Lead the Way): a hands-on learning science program where the focus is for students to collaborate on a project. Fourth graders are challenged with more sophisticated mathematics and word problems. Our students leave the lower school with confidence and a strong foundation that will serve them well as they prepare for the next step in their time at Saint Gregory's in our upper school.

Video: Fourth Grade - 4th Grade

The Upper School Experience

We pride ourselves on each and every aspect of upper school life at Saint Gregory’s, including why we named in an "upper school." Our upper school is deliberately not called a middle school because our students are not caught between a high school and elementary school. We know our students have reached a time in their lives where they want to become more independent, which is why our students are allowed to take on leadership responsibilities, develop confidence and a true sense of self, and what they want to accomplish. At the same time, the approach at our private school allows students to be "a kid a little bit longer": free from the social influences of high school students.

Video: The Upper School Experience

Fifth Grade - 5th Grade

Our diligent and hard-working upper school students are excited for a year of changes. Fifth graders at Saint Gregory’s receive a new uniform, their first locker and advisor, and the responsibility of traveling to different rooms for every class. The changes reflect an increase in expectations for independence, collaboration and application of foundational skills learned in the lower school. Our teachers expose students to the highest academic standards and work across disciplines to encourage ownership of learning, risk taking, time management, organization and hard work as students transition from concrete to abstract thinking. Distributing milk, pulling up and bringing down the flag, or reading to a younger student are some examples of how students are expected to volunteer within our school community. Similar to the lower school, learning is an ongoing journey and recess continues to be an important part of the day.

Video: Fifth Grade - 5th Grade

Sixth Grade - 6th Grade

Sixth graders at Saint Gregory's School develop critical thinking and creative skills. Students are expected to be more autonomous learners while handling an increased academic workload. In homeroom, advisory, and all classes; study skills, organizational skills, time management, note-taking, self-advocacy, and responsibility are emphasized. Sixth grade students are ready for a deeper understanding of subjects as their intellectual skills are expanding. Sixth grade students participate in a wide variety of activities within the upper school with older students, including being on the same sports teams and hand-bell ringing, fostering a sense of unity that sets an example for the entire school.

Video: Sixth Grade - 6th Grade

Seventh Grade - 7th Grade

By the end of their seventh grade year, Saint Gregory’s students realize themselves as independent learners, setting the stage for success in high school. SGS students continue to strive for excellence as they explore art history, world music, and the political and strategic role upstate New York played in the forming of North America. Field trips to the Saratoga Springs battle site, Fort Ticonderoga, and Hyde Park connect topics in the classroom to a real-life experience, creating historical empathy and deep understanding of the past. Guided by teachers and advisors who care for each student on a one-to-one level, our program develops character and sense of community to become local leaders while also growing personally and intellectually.

Video: Seventh Grade - 7th Grade

Eighth Grade - 8th Grade

Eighth grade is the culmination of a student’s time at Saint Gregory's. Faculty teaches essential academic skills to encourage responsibility and risk-taking when they move onto high school. Our students often earn advanced placement by being very well-prepared for the move to secondary school and eventually college. Experiences like the entirely student planned and funded trip to Washington D.C. and a year-long capstone project give students direct opportunities to succeed. SGS graduates have skills that make them confident, collaborative, critical thinkers, problem solvers, empathetic and excited for new challenges, equipping them with life skills that translate beyond the classroom. All of the skills our students have at graduation is the result of teaching that began in their early years at Saint Gregory's.

Video: Eighth Grade - 8th Grade

Upper School Specialty Courses

𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 is an 8th grade course designed to deepen understanding of the human brain, decision-making, critical analysis, perspective-taking and recognizing bias. 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 is a year-long seminar where 8th grade students learn to write film and book reviews, master annotation and style techniques, create annotated bibliographies and works cited pages and ultimately produce a 10-20 page research paper on a topic of their choice.

Advisory

At Saint Gregory’s, each upper school student is paired with an advisor who provides mentorship, support, and advocacy. Students meet with their advisory group formally twice a week, where they set goals for the year, develop organization and study habits and focus on building friendships and kindness within our community. Beyond these advisory sessions, teachers are available for extra help during early mornings, recess, and after school. Students also come together for homeroom and morning assembly, fostering a strong sense of community and emphasizing the importance of community service.

Video: Advisory

Student Athletics - Sports

Saint Gregory's School offers comprehensive physical education and athletics programs. Each grade is engaged in sports instruction and other activities that encourage and stimulate students to be active in physical education class three times per week. Students of all ages receive recess twice a day. Lower school and upper school students have the opportunity to participate in intramural and/or interscholastic teams. SGS offers these activities to students because we believe that developing athletic skills while learning to demonstrate good sportsmanship and respect of an opponent can lead to character building, along with encouraging healthy and active lifestyles.

Video: Student Athletics - Sports

Clubs

Saint Gregory's School has activities after school that are decided, designed and chosen by students, creating programs that keep students just as engaged after their school day. Because we encourage students to begin clubs, after school activities vary from year to year depending on where the interests of our club members are at that time. Clubs are a great outlet for students that are not interested in athletics to make friends, socialize, and pursue their interests in a like-minded community.

Video: Clubs

Arts

Arts, including visual art and music, are an intricate part of Saint Gregory's curriculum. Our goal is to provide a setting that allows students to strengthen artistic skills and allow for them to unleash their creative side.

Video: Arts

Service Learning

Saint Gregory's students develop leadership abilities that are guided by a strong moral and social conscience. All students (Kindergarten through 8th grade) learn the value of sharing their abilities and donating their time for the betterment of others by participating in community service programs inside and outside of our school. Within the school, students in upper grades share their talents with younger students as classroom aids, peer tutors and reading buddies.

Video: Service Learning

After and Before School Programs

Before-School Care: Saint Gregory's offers before school care beginning at 7:30 AM daily, except when designated. There is no charge for this program. After-School Care: Saint Gregory’s offers an after school care program from 3:45 to 6:00 p.m. daily, except when designated. Students in 3rd through 8th grade may attend Homework Club from 3:45 to 4:45 p.m. on Monday through Thursday. Either extended stay programs can be billed at $900 per semester or $15 per hour with a minimum daily charge of $15.

Video: After and Before School Programs

Catholic Faith

Following the traditions of the Catholic faith, Saint Gregory’s students are expected to treat others with respect and kindness. Teachers, advisors, coaches focus on students’ character as understood through a religious lens, and they help them develop independence and a sense of self. Our aim is to graduate compassionate students and servant leaders.