Top 4 Best Special Needs Schools in Severna Park, Maryland (2026)

A Child's Garden is a preschool and daycare in Severna Park, Maryland, founded in 2001 as a sister school to nearby Wee Lad & Lassie. It is built around the very young learner, with a toddler program starting at 18 months, a 2-year-old program (split into young twos and older twos), and a 3-year-old program. Morning preschool classes run from 9 a.m. to noon, and full-day extended care runs from 7:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. for working families. Attendance is flexible, with schedules ranging from two half-days a week up to five full days. The school is accredited by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), which it earned in 2005 through the Early Childhood Accreditation Project, and it holds a Check Level 5 rating, the highest tier under the Maryland EXCELS quality program, awarded in 2015. The program teaches Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, and the Arts through hands-on, play-based activities, and it keeps adult-to-child ratios and group sizes low so teachers can individualize instruction. Teaching staff are degreed and work from developmentally appropriate practice, and the school treats parents as partners in the learning community. A Child's Garden specializes in the care of children with food allergies and operates as a peanut and tree nut free facility. It maintains a Disability Nondiscrimination Policy and points families toward Anne Arundel County special education and ADA resources. The school also runs themed summer camps that mix outdoor play with reading, projects, and weekly themes, held at either the A Child's Garden site or the Wee Lad & Lassie campus at 1281 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd in Arnold, MD. For enrollment, families register by appointment with a $100 registration fee, a two-week deposit, and a signed contract. The school accepts CCS, Childcare Aware, and MCCYN payments. New school year enrollment opens in February, and tours can be scheduled on weekdays between 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. by contacting the office.

• Preschool and daycare (early childhood program)
• Private school

Severn School is an independent, coeducational college-prep day school in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, enrolling roughly 910 students from preschool through grade 12. It runs on two campuses: the Teel campus at 201 Water Street in Severna Park houses grades 6 to 12, and the Chesapeake campus at 1185 Baltimore Annapolis Boulevard in Arnold houses preschool through grade 5. The school traces its roots back over a century (it held its 112th commencement in 2025) and reports an average class size of 15, a 9 to 1 student-to-teacher ratio, and a faculty in which 68 percent hold an advanced degree. All graduates go on to attend a college or university. Academically, Severn is organized into Early School (preschool and pre-K), Lower School (K to grade 5), Middle School (grades 6 to 8), and Upper School (grades 9 to 12). Programs include STEM coursework, the Graw Innovation Center, the Stine Environmental Center, and access to the Malone Schools Online Network for advanced electives. The early grades emphasize outdoor learning, a maker mindset, and character education, while the upper grades add college counseling, the Van Eney '09 Fellows Program, and dedicated arts and athletics offerings. For families looking at learning support, the school operates the Learning Resource Center, formally the Hoehn-Saric Family Center for Academic Excellence. The LRC provides a range of services, from drop-in help on a rough draft or problem set to structured support for students with learning differences. It facilitates special accommodations and helps implement, manage, and modify individual educational plans, and it runs study-skills instruction (a quarter-long class for 6th graders and a six-session seminar for freshmen) plus peer mentoring and tutoring. Lower School learning specialists and Upper School health and wellness staff round out the support team. This makes Severn a mainstream school that can accommodate students with language-based learning differences or twice-exceptional profiles within a traditional college-prep setting, rather than a dedicated special-education program. Tuition for 2026-27 is $34,500 for grades 6 to 12, $27,780 for grades 1 to 5, and $25,610 for kindergarten, with preschool and pre-K options running from $11,060 (half-day, 3-day) to $23,320 (full-day, 5-day). Need-based financial aid is available through SSS by NAIS; for 2025-26 the school awarded over $4 million in aid to about 22 percent of students. Payment plans include payment in full, a 60/40 split, and monthly options.

• Independent college-prep day school (PS to grade 12)
• Learning differences
• Twice-exceptional
• Financial aid

Our ten-month special education program serves grades 9–12 within Severna Park High School. We support students with autism and emotional disabilities through individualized instruction, academic learning and social-skills practice. Students have shared access to the high school's courses, facilities and resources. Our team includes special education teachers, a licensed professional counselor, speech and occupational therapy professionals, and educational assistants. We use Anne Arundel County Public Schools' curriculum to prepare students for their next steps. Referrals are accepted only from the county schools' Non-Public Office.

• Private special education school
• Autism
• Emotional Disabilities
• Therapeutic program

SmartFit Kids Academy brings preschool, school-age care, and enrichment together at its Severna Park center. Children ages 3-5 can attend part-day or full-day preschool once they are toilet trained. A Maryland State Department of Education certified and licensed teacher guides kindergarten preparation through early reading, writing, math, language, social, and physical skills. Preschoolers can also try STEM, Spanish, Chinese, Lego Robotics, and art; full-day preschool tuition includes Taekwondo. For elementary students, SmartFit runs before- and after-school care and arranges pickup from a listed group of Anne Arundel County schools. After dismissal, children work on homework, practice language arts and math in groups, and spend time with friends. Martial arts activities take place Monday through Thursday, while Friday programs emphasize fitness. Families can ask about optional introductory language and STEM classes, and some after-school clubs also admit children who are not enrolled in daily care. Pickup for the after-school program is by 6 p.m. Summer options include Young Explorers for younger children and STEM and Adventure camps for children six and older. The Adventure camp meets at a separate Ritchie Highway site. The Severna Park center is at 780 Ritchie Highway, Suites 26-28.

• Preschool and before/after school care center with summer camps
• Transportation
• Private school