The top reported proficiency rate is 54% in Math. The lowest is 20% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on South Broward Montessori Charter School
South Broward Montessori Charter School sits in Hallandale Beach, a South Florida coastal city divided by U.S. Highway 1, where older ranch-style homes line the west side and denser condo development pushes eastward toward the water. The school's address on NW 5th Street places it on the city's western side, in the kind of neighborhood publicly reported as having palm-lined, walkable streets typical of older Florida development. Hallandale Beach is actively working to broaden its economic base beyond tourism through a redevelopment effort organized around a "BE LOCAL" campaign, though major employer data was not available in the research completed.
The school is a small Broward County charter, serving kindergarten through fifth grade, and enrollment is modest for an elementary setting. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with Black and white students making up most of the remainder. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places this among schools serving a high share of economically disadvantaged families. Data on English learner rates and students with IEPs was not reported in what was available, so those dimensions of the student population are a gap a parent would want to ask the school directly about.
The Montessori model is a defining feature. Families choosing this school are choosing a specific pedagogical approach, one built around self-directed work, mixed-age learning environments, and student-led pacing rather than conventional grade-level instruction. Whether that fits a given child is a matter of family and child temperament rather than a quality judgment, but it is the central fact about what this school offers.
On Florida's FAST assessments, the academic picture is uneven and worth examining closely. Third grade math proficiency is the strongest result across all reported grades and subjects, sitting at a rate that clears half of tested students by a meaningful margin. Fourth and fifth grade math rates fall back to roughly half of students proficient, and ELA proficiency across all three tested grades sits below half, with fourth grade the lowest of the three. The fifth grade science assessment result is notably low, well below what the other subjects show, and a parent would be right to ask the school what is driving that outcome and what supports are in place. No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible from this data to say whether these results reflect improvement, decline, or a plateau.
The comparison framework available here covers districts in Broward County, but the county contains only one district in the data set, so no meaningful peer comparison could be run. That is a limitation of the data, not a reflection on the school.
The housing market around the school is worth understanding for families considering a move. Home values in the zip code are below both the Florida state median and the national median, and values have declined over the past year, which sets this apart from much of South Florida where prices stayed elevated. Rents, on the other hand, are still high relative to income, and the rent-to-income burden in this area is steep by national standards. For buyers, the local price point offers relative accessibility compared to the broader state market, but carrying costs remain substantial given current mortgage rates.
Program data for the school was not available beyond what the Montessori designation itself conveys. No information on extracurriculars, specials, or enrichment offerings beyond the core Montessori model was reported. A graduation rate does not apply, as this is an elementary school. Title I status was not reported in the data provided.
For a family drawn to Montessori philosophy, looking for a small, demographically diverse elementary school in an affordable pocket of coastal South Florida, this school is worth a direct visit and a conversation about how the model is implemented and what the recent science scores reflect.
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