We refer to our students as Heroes. Why? Because we believe each person has a special calling; gifts, talents, and passions, that when applied, will change the world. Our mission is to prepare each child for his or her special journey through life while serving others along their way.

We currently offer grades preschool through 9th. At AATF, there are 3 multi-aged studios: Pre-K--K - Ages 3-6 Elementary (1st - 6th) - Ages 6-11 Middle School (7th - 9th) - Ages 12-16

By using powerful, self-paced learning, students are able to complete core learning skills in 1.5-3 hours a day. Some of this learning may be either completed and/or tracked through a computer. However, even though computers are available, we promote a mix of hands-on Montessori materials and written work, as we feel this gives young learners a strong foundation in core skills.

We encourage our students to try new things to find what they're passionate about. This not only fosters a deep love of learning in their school years but also helps one to find their calling and joy in life. Idaho allows homeschoolers and private school students to utilize classes and/or extracurricular activities at public school. This allows students to gain an education their families sees best while being able to participate in activities such as sports team, band, etc...at public school. To keep our tuition as low as possible, we are currently utilizing these programs for extracurricular activities. You can reference this in Idaho Statues, Title 33, Chapter 2, Section 33-203

Yes! We have up to 9th grade starting the Fall of 2024 and we anticipate adding high school grades (10-12) in the Fall 2025 semester.

We believe children learn best by having children younger and older than themselves all learning together. We believe everyone's a teacher and everyone's a student. Our studios are grouped by ages as follows: Spark Pre-K - Ages 4-6 Elementary - Ages 6-12 (typically grade 1-6) Middle School - Age 13-15 (typically grades 6-9) Students work mostly within their own studios during core skills and join other studios for afternoon quests.

We operate on an 11-month calendar. Why? We want to capitalize on the mental and physical energy essential for learning while preventing burnout, which is a killer of curiosity. Students put forth a lot energy and effort during their 4-7 week sessions. This is followed by an exhibition to showcase their efforts and then a 1-2 week break to revamp. Our schedule allows families to travel more throughout the year without missing school days and for children to retain more learning gain by shortening summer breaks.

Someone who can research questions, follow instructions, solve problems--admit they don't know something and figure out a solution when they hit a roadblock without asking an adult for help-- participate in discussions, and strive for mastery.

We believe in learning to be and learning to do. An important part of this is helping children to take responsibility of their own learning and behavior. Students hold each other to a high standard. When something isn't working, we want students to work together to resolve issues and find solutions. We strive to foster independence and confidence that will serve children throughout their lives.

YES and NO. We support and use many Montessori practices. However, Acton Academy takes education a step further in preparing our next generation for today's challenges. We add a Socratic dimension to our approach. This puts our students in real world situations where there is not a right or wrong answer and gives them opportunities to find a solutions with in their community.

We respect and incorporate Dr. Maria Montessori’s philosophies but, we also incorporate other materials and technology. We do follow Montessori fundamentals such as mixed-age classrooms, student choice within limits, large blocks of work time, discovery learning with Montessori materials, and freedom of movement in the classroom.

No. We value and respect each person’s beliefs. We explore the importance various religions have played throughout history, but we do not offer religious education. Children may be exposed to a variety of religions through our study of civilization.

NONE! We believe that children need time to play, relax, and be with family and friends. There will not be any homework assigned. We find that children educated in this way become passionate about learning and have no trouble keeping themselves busy.

On average, Acton Academy affiliates throughout the world are finding that Acton students are progressing 3-5 grade levels above students their age in traditional settings. We do not believe standardized testing is a very accurate was to gauge a child's learning. We do not give standardized tests to pass core skills materials. Instead, we believe in a mastery approach. Once a child has mastered a concept, it is only then that they move on. This reduces frustration and getting behind or lost when a child is not ready for a new concept but also allows those ready to move faster to progress at a pace that is suitable for them.

One of our main purposes in creating Acton Academy is to bring together a community of like-minded families who are passionate about the Acton method of education. We encourage all families to participate in an exhibition to end each session. This allows students to showcase what they've been working on throughout the session. In addition to 3 parent meetings to share ideas to better the community, we ask parents to offer 3 hours per month of service to the community. We want parents engaged in this social and educational community for themselves, their students and as well as the other families. Parents are required to sign our Parent Contract upon enrolling and honoring the contract will be considered each year when it is time to send out invitations to re-enroll.

We are a micro-school concept and do have a favorable adult to child ratio as well as a handicap accessible campus. However, we are not equipped with specialists or extra adults that would be required in helping someone with special needs who may need a lot of specialized assistance. We welcome families with special needs to contact us personally to see if Acton will be able to serve your child(ren) at our Twin Falls campus.

Heroes have the freedom to explore and self-direct within boundaries. Boundaries widen as heroes prove to be responsible with the freedoms they're given. Heroes work together as well as with the studio's guide to create real-world boundaries, rules and consequences to govern themselves with. A studio guide provides tools and helps them manage their "Learning to Learn, Learning to Do and Learning to Be." Heroes learn to set S.M.A.R.T goals and meet with their running partner and guide regularly as they take steps toward being fully self-directed. A hero's willingness to set and track goals, in order to evaluate progress and be held accountable, is essential to success in a learner-driven, individualized program.

Lord John Emerich Edward Dahlberg Acton (1834-1902) was an English scholar of freedom, a politician, and writer who saw liberty not as a license, but as the freedom to do what was right. He was suspicious of power for the sake of power, which led to his most famous quote: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." At Acton Academy, we celebrate his defense of economic, political and religious freedom.

Final decisions will be sent by March 15th. If an application is submitted after March 15th, and additional space is available, you will be notified of the decision within 2 weeks after submission.

Yes. We offer 2 types: Need-based scholarships, which are based off of income. Serviced-based scholarships, which are based off of service hours given to the school.

As of 2024, Acton Academy Twin Falls is being converted into a non-profit organization. We believe this will help obtain more grant funding and donations in order to help reduce the tuition load for families. We understand it costs more to fund a hands-on, project-based school. This is one aspect that makes this a world-class learning environment, and we will not compromise this experience for our children. Instead we are working towards obtaining additional funding to help do so.