Best Special Needs Schools in North Potomac, Maryland (2026)

Academy Child Development Center at Stone Mill Center is an early childhood and childcare program at 14327 Stonebridge View Dr in North Potomac, MD, set on the campus of Stone Mill Elementary School. It is one location of Academy Child Development Center, Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) educational organization serving Montgomery County that has run early education programs since 1981 and is not part of a childcare chain. The Stone Mill center operates from 7:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and is led by center director Ma. Victoria Cheng with assistant director Maguy Doliska. Because the program sits on a public elementary school campus, the building uses security cameras and access-controlled entrances, and an onsite cleaning crew handles daily sanitation. The center enrolls children across a wide age span: infants and toddlers (2 to 18 months), Tiny Tots (24 to 36 months), Preschool (3 to 4 years), Pre-Kindergarten (4 to 5 years), and school-age care for kindergarten through 5th grade, plus a summer program. Preschool and Pre-K children must turn 3 or 4 by September 1st per the MSDE age requirement. Classrooms run the University of Maryland CDW project-based curriculum, with hands-on days built around arts and crafts, lego and block building, and a stated focus on language and literacy to prepare children for school. Space permitting, part-week and part-day schedules are available for select programs. Teachers at the center average about ten years of tenure, and several have been with the program long enough to teach families across multiple children. Academy's board and administrative team include backgrounds in early education, special education, elementary education, and business, and the organization maintains community partnerships with Montgomery County Public Schools, Mental Health Consultation Services, and the Gaithersburg Judy Center, along with MANNA Food and the Institute for Early Childhood Preparedness. All Academy programs are accredited by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), licensed by the MSDE Office of Child Care, and hold a Maryland Excels Level 5 rating. Families have several ways to offset tuition. The center accepts WPA (Working Parents Assistance) and POC vouchers and points families to the Maryland Child Care Scholarship (CCS) program, the Montgomery County DHHS EquiCare Grant for infants and toddlers, the MSDE Prekindergarten Expansion Grant, and Military Child Care in Your Neighborhood (MCCYN). Specific program rates are quoted by inquiry rather than posted publicly. Academy provides a morning and afternoon snack, and families send a lunch for their child.

• Not-for-profit early childhood / childcare center (infants through school-age)
• Financial aid
• Private school

Ms. Hana, an AMS (American Montessori Society) certified teacher, runs Magnet Montessori Preschool, a small home-style Montessori preschool and daycare in North Potomac, Maryland. The program is licensed by the Maryland State Department of Education and serves children roughly ages three to six. Children stay in one classroom with the same teacher each year rather than rotating between rooms. Families also come from nearby Gaithersburg, Rockville, and Germantown. The curriculum follows the Montessori "follow the child" approach and is organized into seven areas: Practical Life, Sensorial, Language, Math, History and Geography, Science, and Music, Movement and Art. Children work with standard Montessori materials, including dressing frames, water-pouring exercises, the Movable Alphabet for early reading and writing, and the Golden Beads, Spindle Box, and Red and Blue Rods for hands-on arithmetic. Practical Life work covers dressing, preparing snacks, watering plants, sweeping, and basic manners, which builds motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and independence. Language work leans on phonics so children can begin reading and writing earlier than in a traditional setting. The day mixes academics, crafts, and hands-on activities with daily outdoor and free play. Swings and tricycles are available outside, healthy snacks are provided each day, and the class takes field trips into the community. The teacher also works on interpersonal skills, safety skills, problem-solving, and attention to patterns. The program focuses on critical thinking, problem-solving, and interpersonal skills for children with developmental challenges and language-based learning differences.

• Montessori preschool and daycare
• developmental challenges
• Learning differences
• Private school

Osato Ojofeitimi, a scientist who became a Montessori educator, founded Prime Montessori Academy in 2011. The school was first a prepared environment in Miramar, Florida, and later moved to North Potomac, Maryland. It was formerly Prime Foundation Montessori. Children ages 2 through 12 attend, across toddler, preschool, and elementary years, and families come from Montgomery County, including Rockville, Gaithersburg, and Potomac. Classrooms are called ateliers. The Petite Atelier is for toddlers roughly 20 to 36 months, the Primary Atelier is for ages 2.5 to 6, and the Elementary Atelier is for ages 6 to 12. The approach is authentic, AMI-aligned Montessori, with uninterrupted work cycles, hands-on materials, mixed-age groupings, and individualized observation of each child. The day emphasizes early literacy and numeracy, concentration, practical life skills, independence, and grace and courtesy, rather than lockstep grade-level instruction. Ojofeitimi, the founder and Head of School, holds dual AMI Montessori diplomas at the Primary (2.5 to 6) and Elementary (6 to 12) levels, earned through the Washington Montessori Institute, the Southwest Institute of Montessori Studies, and Loyola University Maryland, along with four graduate degrees across the sciences and education. The school holds a Maryland State Department of Education child care credential at Level 6, the state's highest tier, and has operated for more than a decade. Admissions are selective and run by invitation rather than open enrollment. Placement is decided through an application and a family interview, with a limited number of spots each cycle. The program is aimed at college preparation and character.

• Montessori preschool and elementary school
• Montessori
• Private school