Silver Lake Elem, Silver Lake KS

Original Research by School Decision on Silver Lake Elem

Silver Lake Elementary serves students from prekindergarten through sixth grade in the small town of Silver Lake, Kansas, which sits on the rural fringe of the Topeka metropolitan area. Nearly all of the roughly 350 students are white, with a very small share of Hispanic, Black, Asian, and multiracial students combined. About a fifth of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. The school is part of the Silver Lake district, which the data shows comprises just this elementary school and a combined junior-senior high school.

Academically, the school reports solidly above-average results compared to other districts within Shawnee County, landing in the top quartile on an overall proficiency index. On the Kansas Assessment Program tests, math proficiency rates across grades three through five range from the low seventies to the mid-seventies, with a dip into the low sixties for sixth grade. In English language arts, proficiency rates run from the low sixties in fourth grade up to the high seventies in fifth grade, with sixth grade again showing a softer result in the low fifties. Fifth graders posted a notably strong science proficiency rate in the mid-eighties. Parents should be aware that Kansas changed its cut scores for the math and ELA assessments in the most recent testing year, so direct comparisons with prior years are not straightforward. For a family, these results suggest that the school is performing well in the earlier elementary grades and in science, while the sixth-grade numbers may warrant a conversation with the school about how it supports the transition to middle-level work.

The school itself appears to be the only elementary option in the district. No data on special education identification rates or English learner populations was available. The school calendar, discipline data, staffing ratios, and course access details were also absent from the records provided. A family considering this school would want to ask the school directly about class sizes, support services, and enrichment programs.

Silver Lake is a quiet, predominantly residential community. Its largest employment sectors are educational services, health care, and retail trade, and a significant share of residents commute into Topeka. The town has basic amenities, including a Dollar General, gas stations, banks, a library, and several churches. Housing values are somewhat higher than the Kansas median, and homeownership rates are high, reflecting the community’s stability and its appeal as a bedroom community for the capital city. The population grew modestly in recent years. The school sits within the town itself, not on a separate campus, which fits the integrated feel of a small-town school.

For a parent or resident, Silver Lake Elementary presents a straightforward profile. It is a predominantly white, lower-poverty school in a stable small town with a commuter economy. Academic results are strong relative to other schools in the same county, especially through fifth grade, with a dip in sixth grade that is worth noting. The lack of data on several operational areas means a family should plan to visit and ask specific questions about class size, special education services, and how the school handles the transition to junior high. The weakness in the profile is not a failing; it is simply a gap in publicly available information that the school can fill directly.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 373%

School 73% · District 73%

▲ 32 pts above state median · ▲ 35 pts above county median

Grade 471%

School 71% · District 71%

▲ 31 pts above state median · ▲ 30 pts above county median

Grade 577%

School 77% · District 77%

▲ 36 pts above state median · ▲ 44 pts above county median

Grade 663%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 371%

School 71% · District 71%

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Grade 461%

School 61% · District 61%

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 578%

School 78% · District 78%

▲ 29 pts above state median · ▲ 33 pts above county median

Grade 654%

School 54% · District 54%

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Science

Grade 584%

School 84% · District 84%

▲ 40 pts above state median · ▲ 46 pts above county median

This schoolSilver Lake, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income62%Higher-income74%12 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income55%Higher-income85%31 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income46%Higher-income82%36 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income46%Higher-income85%40 pp gap