Top 6 Best Special Needs Schools in Gaithersburg, Maryland (2026)

Since 1991, Bright Eyes Early Learning Center has been part of Bright Eyes Inc., a family-run company led by President Diane Holzberger and Vice President Pete Holzberger, with locations across Montgomery, Frederick, and Washington Counties in Maryland. The Gaithersburg center is at 7305 Hadley Farms Dr. It offers full-time and part-time care for infants and toddlers, twos, preschool and pre-K, and school-age children, plus a school-age summer program. The center welcomes children of all abilities and supports each child's primary language through songs, activities, and learning key words and phrases used with the child and family. Curricula are approved by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). Infants and toddlers use the Teaching Strategies Creative Curriculum. Weekly lesson plans are built around each child's abilities and teacher observation, and they cover art, sensory play, circle time, sign language, music, and fine and gross motor development. Preschool and pre-K classrooms run the InvestiGators Club curriculum, one of five MSDE-approved curricula and one of two to earn a 5-star MSDE rating. Children move through 7 themed units across the year. Instruction is individualized for different kinds of learners, and teachers use observation checklists at the end of each unit. Preschool and pre-K rooms are organized into 13 learning centers, including dedicated Calming and Sensory areas alongside math, science, language arts, writing, dramatic play, technology, and blocks. Daily small-group work pairs a teacher with groups of 3 to 4 children for math, science, or language arts, and children age 2 and up take part in a weekly physical education enrichment activity. Teachers are trained in first aid and CPR and continue professional training. Families meet with teachers twice a year to review progress, and the centers serve healthy snacks and lunches following MSDE guidelines. Bright Eyes accepts all state and local child care vouchers and offers flexible scheduling. Local readers' polls have included Best of Gaithersburg 2019, for Best Child Care Center and Preschool, and the Frederick News-Post Best of the Best Child Care Center award. Families can tour the Gaithersburg center before enrolling.

• Early learning center / child care center (infants through school-age)
• Learning differences
• Private school

We are an accredited nonpublic special education school in Gaithersburg, Maryland, with day and residential programs for students ages 11 to 21 who have autism, intellectual disabilities, or multiple disabilities. Montgomery County Public Schools and other Maryland local education agencies refer students to us. The referring agency decides whether a student needs day or residential placement. We can serve up to 25 students. Our program does not award diplomas or use grade levels; we align each student’s instruction with their IEP and build functional academics, communication, social skills, life skills, vocational training, and community participation. Our day program runs 211 days a year, eleven months, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Students learn in classrooms, recreation rooms, a gymnasium, kitchen, art room, music room, and media center. We use age-appropriate pre-vocational tools, computers, audio and video technology, functional life-skills materials, academic resources, and adapted manipulatives. We also teach in community settings such as libraries, recreation facilities, stores, and local internship sites. We arrange transportation by public transit, including Metro Access, or a CSS-owned minivan. We keep no more than seven students in each classroom. A certified special education teacher, an assistant teacher, and instructional associates staff each room. Our psychology team includes a licensed psychologist, BCBA professionals, and behavioral mentors. We include speech and language therapy in school services and add other therapies when a student’s IEP calls for them. Our residential program operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Students attend our day program and receive coordinated instruction and support after school, overnight, on weekends, and on days off. Two students share each townhouse, and each student has a private bedroom. We furnish each residence to create a homelike setting and equip it for instruction in daily living, social and behavioral skills, leisure, and recreation. Residential staff provide continuous supervision and instruction, including overnight teaching and support. Nursing and behavioral support serve students at home, and an on-call system handles emergencies. Maryland’s Office of Health Care Quality licenses each residence. We create an individual daily schedule for each student to practice independent living, take part in community activities, and explore interests and preferences. Families can visit through our open visitation policy. We work with each student and family to plan the move to adult services. We coordinate with Maryland Autism Waiver, DDA, and other supports a student already receives, and we help families with the administrative steps and person-centered planning.

• Nonpublic special education school (day and residential)
• Autism
• Intellectual disability
• Multiple disabilities

Our Gaithersburg school provides year-round special education, therapeutic support and daily living instruction for students ages 12–21. We serve learners with autism, intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, other health impairments and specific learning disabilities. Our team includes licensed teachers, behavioral specialists, a vocational specialist, occupational and speech therapists, and trained assistants. A structured daily routine and individualized instruction guide academic and practical learning. Students work toward educational goals and preparation for life beyond the classroom, with support coordinated around their needs.

• Private special education school
• Autism
• Intellectual disability
• Multiple Disabilities

Since 2000, Sunrise Early Learning Center has cared for children at 8306 Shady Spring Dr in Gaithersburg, Maryland, under Executive Director Mrs. Semera Fahnbulleh. The center has four age groups: infants and toddlers (6 weeks to 24 months), 2 year olds, 3 year olds, and a Pre-K program for 4 to 5 year olds. The curriculum is Maryland State approved and developmentally appropriate. Breakfast and lunch are provided daily, and special diets and snacks are included in tuition. Each age group has its own fenced playground. The day includes STEM work in science, technology, engineering, and math, plus literacy, Spanish, art, music, and hands-on Montessori-style activities. Pre-K uses a theme-based curriculum aimed at school readiness: numbers, letters, colors, shapes, writing, spelling, math, science, counting, language development, phonics, reading, and computer use. Children in that group are observed, tested, and assessed at the end of each month, and the results are kept for parent conferences. Children who need extra support can join the Accelerated Learning Program (ALP), small-group instruction for students with early learning difficulties. Sunrise also offers before-school and after-school enrichment for the Rosemont, Washington Grove, Sequoyah, and Forest Oak areas, plus a summer camp. Summer field trips carry an additional charge. Registration is a non-refundable $100 per child or $175 per family. Ages 3 to 5 have a yearly supply and educational fee of $100 per child, and 2 year olds have a fee of $75. Payment is accepted by check, money order, or credit card. Sunrise accepts vouchers and offers sibling discounts. Openings are filled first-come, first-served, and enrollment starts with a tour and a meeting with the child's teacher.

• Early learning center and preschool (child care)
• Private school

At our Montgomery County school in Gaithersburg, we serve students in grades 1–12 whose emotional disabilities are accompanied by behavioral, social skills and social-emotional needs. We combine academics with a psychoeducational approach, guided by each student’s IEP. Elementary, middle and high school courses follow requirements from students’ home school districts. Our team plans academic and social-behavioral support together, creating opportunities for students to engage with learning within a therapeutic school environment.

• Private special education school
• Autism
• emotional disabilities
• Intellectual disability

TopHat started in 2012 with a single Pre-K class near the Shady Grove Metro and later added toddler and infant rooms. Today TopHat enrolls ages 6 weeks to 6 years in a full-day, year-round program open 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. with no teacher workdays or early closings. One monthly tuition covers breakfast and snacks. Our Primary class is a three-year mixed-age room: children join at 3 and stay through kindergarten, and while the younger ones nap, Pre-K and kindergarten students get advanced afternoon lessons. Teachers blend Montessori materials with traditional methods around weekly themes. Staffing runs 1 adult to 3 children under age 2, 1 to 6 for 2- and 3-year-olds, and 1 to 10 for ages 3 to 6. Spanish, sign language, music and dance, yoga, and arts and crafts are built into the week, and children play outside on two secure playgrounds. We take part in Maryland's Pre-K Expansion Program, which offers free Pre-K to eligible 3- and 4-year-olds. Families can also use the EquiCare Grant, Montgomery County's Working Parents Assistance, Military Child Care in Your Neighborhood and USDA child care subsidies.

• Early learning center (infant to kindergarten)
• Montessori
• Mixed-age primary classroom
• Play-based learning