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Top 7 Best Special Needs Schools in Margate, Florida (2026)

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School listings in Margate

Miami Learning Experience School special needs school in Miami, FL
1

Miami Learning Experience School

Premium
Serving Margate, FLGrades K-125:1 ratio

Miami Learning Experience School is a dedicated educational institution serving children and adults with special needs. Established in 1977, the school is committed to providing a nurturing environment that recognizes and cultivates the unique capabilities of each student. The core mission is to offer personalized care and tailored programs that empower individuals to achieve their educational and personal goals. Key offerings at Miami Learning Experience School include a variety of specialized programs designed to meet the diverse needs of students. These programs encompass: - Interactive Fine Arts Program, fostering creativity and self-expression through visual arts, music, drama, and performing arts - Daily Living Skills training, equipping students with essential life skills in a fully equipped residential-style learning environment - Community Based Instruction (CBI), providing real-world learning experiences at local stores and community locations - Volunteer Job Sites and On-The-Job Training, promoting community engagement and vocational training with job coaches - Special Olympics participation, encouraging physical fitness and teamwork through various sports including track and field, golf, tennis, softball, bowling, and basketball - The Shannon Adult Program, supporting adults with developmental disabilities through functional academics, independent living skills, employment opportunities, and social/leisure activities - Miami Learning Experience Designs, a micro business program where adults learn economics, supply and demand, and business operations while creating and selling resin art products - Continuing Education opportunities for lifelong learning The school maintains an exceptional 5:1 student-instructor ratio for K-12 programs (10:1 for adult programs), ensuring that each student receives individualized attention and support. All teachers are certified by the State of Florida in Exceptional Student Education. The school provides Academic Service Plans (ASP) updated four times per year, similar to traditional IEPs, with one-on-one family collaboration. The campus environment is designed to be inclusive and supportive, featuring specialized technology including interactive Promethean Boards in every classroom, a full bedroom, washer and dryer, full-working kitchen, and bathroom for teaching independent living skills. Miami Learning Experience School offers comprehensive support services including before school care (7:00 AM - 8:00 AM), after school care (2:30 PM - 6:00 PM), enrichment programs, and a summer camp program providing enriching activities, field trips, and socialization opportunities. The school operates year-round, closing only for brief periods between semesters. Financial assistance is available, with over 55% of students receiving financial aid. The school proudly participates in the Step Up for Students (FES-UA) scholarship program. Tuition ranges from $9,300 for part-time adult programs to $29,000 for full-time K-12 programs. This comprehensive approach to education, vocational training, and life skills development makes Miami Learning Experience School a unique and valuable resource for families seeking the best options for their children and adults with special needs.

Claimed ProfileFunding OptionsTransportation AvailableAccredited
Special education schoolAutismCerebral palsyDevelopmental Disabilities
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Mountaineers School of Autism special needs school in West Palm Beach, FL photo 20
2

Mountaineers School of Autism

Premium
Serving Margate, FLup to age 22$35,000 per year

Mountaineer's School of Autism is a dedicated educational institution focused on providing a nurturing and supportive environment for children with autism and related developmental challenges. The school's core mission is to empower students by fostering their academic, social, and emotional growth through individualized learning approaches and comprehensive therapeutic services. Key offerings at Mountaineer's School of Autism include a range of specialized programs designed to meet the unique needs of each student. These programs encompass Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, and social skills groups. Additionally, the school provides academic instruction tailored to various learning styles, incorporating technology such as iPads to enhance learning experiences. Students also benefit from extracurricular activities, including athletics, music, and independent living skills training, ensuring a well-rounded education. What sets Mountaineer's School of Autism apart is its commitment to maintaining low student-teacher ratios, allowing for personalized attention and support. The school fosters a collaborative community where students can thrive alongside their peers, supported by a team of compassionate educators and therapists. With a focus on building friendships and encouraging personal growth, Mountaineer's School of Autism is a place where children can truly reach their potential in a safe and loving environment. Mountaineer's School of Autism is a dedicated special education institution in West Palm Beach, Florida. We provide a nurturing, supportive environment tailored to students on the autism spectrum, with programs spanning athletics, music, Spanish and sign language, technology (including iPads), academics, social skills, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and individualized learning. Our team helps each student grow academically, socially, and emotionally in a community built on friendship, support, patience, and love.

Claimed ProfileFunding OptionsTransportation AvailableAccredited
Special education schoolAutismADHDNeurotypical
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4

Margate Christian Academy

Listed
Margate, FLGrades PreK-5Weekly: $275 infants to $195 fours; after school $80

Margate Christian Academy cares for children from infancy through kindergarten at 4850 W. Atlantic Boulevard, with weekly programs for infants, toddlers, twos, threes and fours, a kindergarten class, and before and after care for school-age children. Bible teaching is part of every classroom. Our core values of excellence, love and commitment each come from a verse of Scripture, and we see our preschool as carrying on the work of the home and church. Classrooms emphasize creative, active learning along with emotional, social, physical and spiritual growth. Our weekday hours, 7:00 a.m. until 6:30 p.m., cover a full workday for parents. Weekly tuition runs from $275 for infants to $195 for four-year-olds, school-age care is $135 a week and after-school care is $80 a week, and VPK families can add wraparound care. Scholarships are available to families who apply and qualify.

  • Christian preschool and child care center (infant to kindergarten)
  • Christian early education
  • Infant care
  • Private school
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6

Play, Learn, and Grow Academy of Margate | Preschool | Daycare | VPK

Listed
Margate, FLAges 2-5Free VPK for eligible 4-year-olds; other programs tuition-based

Play, Learn, and Grow Academy in Margate is one of three family-owned and operated PLG preschools, alongside our Coral Springs and Tamarac schools. Our managing director has more than 10 years in child care, and the owners' own children have attended and graduated from our schools. At Margate, children can start in our toddler program at 12 months, since infant care is offered only at our Tamarac location. Toddlers build language through songs, books and nursery rhymes and practice colors, shapes and sorting. Our twos program works on turn-taking, empathy and creative play with puppets, art and musical instruments, and our three-year-old preschool class focuses on letters, numbers and logical reasoning as a bridge to VPK. Voluntary Prekindergarten, paid for by Florida, is free for eligible 4-year-olds and builds pre-reading, pre-math, language and social skills along with traits like respect, honesty and responsibility. VPK classrooms are organized into learning centers, including Creation Station for arts and crafts, Construction Corner, a writing center, a book center, science and nature discovery, and imaginative play.

  • Private preschool and daycare (12 months to VPK)
  • Play-based learning
  • Learning centers
  • Family owned
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Front of the SunEd High School North Broward campus in Margate
7

SunEd High School of North Broward

Listed
Margate, FLGrades 9-12 & up to 22Tuition-free

SunEd High School of North Broward is the Margate campus of SunEd High, a public charter high school, free of tuition, for students ages 15 to 21 who want a state-recognized high school diploma rather than a GED. Students choose a morning or afternoon session of about five hours, Monday through Friday, and work at their own pace through a computer-based curriculum. Enrollment is open all year and school runs year-round. Every new student starts in our Transition Lab, where we assess needs and build an individual graduation plan. We serve returning students, students recovering credits, working students, teen parents and pregnant students, accelerated learners, and ESE and English learner students. Our Margate team includes ESE teachers and specialists, a speech-language therapist, a licensed mental health counselor, an ESOL and gifted coordinator, a student success coach and an art teacher. Career counselors help with job placement and college planning, and Family Education Services offers counseling and family support. SunEd High holds Cognia accreditation and also has campuses in Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood.

  • Public charter alternative high school
  • Credit recovery
  • Self-paced learning
  • Flexible half-day schedule
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Frequently Asked Questions About Special Needs Schools in Margate

How does Broward County Public Schools handle ESE?
Broward County Public Schools is one of the largest districts in the United States and serves Margate as part of its countywide system. Size means the district operates a wide spectrum of ESE programs, from consultative support in a general education classroom through separate specialized settings. It also means processes are formal and documentation-driven, so families who keep written records of every request tend to get further faster. Broward County Public Schools ESE
My child is under five and not in school. Who do I contact?
FDLRS Reach handles Child Find for Broward County, which is the screening and identification function for children not yet enrolled in public school. Child Find covers birth through 21 but focuses heavily on the birth to five range, and there is no cost. Contacting them early is better than waiting for a pediatrician to raise it, since the intake and evaluation sequence takes months rather than weeks. FDLRS Reach
How long should an initial evaluation take?
The legal obligation is 60 calendar days from signed consent, with breaks and summer not counted. The practical experience in a district of Broward's size is that scheduling an evaluator is its own queue, and families are sometimes quoted an informal wait far longer than the rule allows. Those are different things. A staffing shortage does not extend the deadline, and only a written agreement reached before day 45 can, by up to 30 days. If the date passes, say so in writing to the ESE department and reference the consent date.
What funding is available for private schools in north Broward?
The Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities can be applied to tuition at participating private schools, along with approved therapies and services, through an education savings account the family manages. Two organizations administer it, Step Up For Students and AAA Scholarship Foundation. Verify that a school you are considering actually participates, because approval is per school and not universal. Step Up For Students
Which CARD center covers Broward County?
UM-NSU CARD, run jointly by the University of Miami and Nova Southeastern University, serves Broward as well as Miami-Dade and Monroe. Its Nova Southeastern site in Davie makes it convenient for north Broward families. Services are free and cover consultation, training, and navigation support rather than direct treatment. UM-NSU CARD

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