Lower School
Our Community
At Waynflete, we know trust is the foundation of all learning.
Lower School students learn to learn—side by side with their teachers and hand in hand with their friends.
Waynflete’s small class sizes, blended classrooms, and two-year advisor program give our dedicated teachers time to get to know each student, to design meaningful academic experiences around their strengths and interests, and to earn that trust. And when children know they are seen and safe, they can’t wait to take risks, try new things, and stretch their skills.
The Buddy Program
To build community and create bonds across the Lower School, Waynflete pairs younger students with their own “Buddy” in a higher grade. Buddies meet regularly to read books, make crafts, and play games together —and look out for each other—throughout the year.
Friends of Founders
Waynflete Upper School students are frequent classroom visitors, sharing their own learning and expertise in connection with Lower School studies. Stories of world travels, cello solos, printmaking demonstrations, and showing off soccer skills are some of the ways older students captivate and connect with our youngest learners.
Pachanga
A beloved Waynflete tradition, weekly Pachanga gathers the entire Lower School community together for group singing and sharing. Twice each year, families are invited to come and share the fun.
Spring Fling
Bounce houses and book fairs, carnival games and student concerts, sugared lemons and popcorn—the annual Spring Fling is a Waynflete tradition that brings everyone out to play after a long winter.
Fifth Grade Graduation
A celebration more than a ceremony, Fifth Grade Graduation acknowledges the wonderful and unique contributions each graduate has made to our community. Younger classmates compose poems and tributes, teachers share slide shows and sweet memories, and Grade 4 students create “a tunnel of flowers” for Grade 5 to walk through on their way to Middle School.
DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION
Diversity is a condition of excellence.
A Waynflete education works as well as it does because our small and challenging classes contain so many different perspectives and life experiences. And as one of the most diverse schools in southern Maine, our entire community is committed to the urgent, essential, and ongoing work toward equity and inclusion. Learn how diversity can drive caring participation in the world. 
EXPLORE
What is Waynflete like for families?
Choosing an independent school means joining a new community not only for students, but for their families. Everyone you meet on the bus line, in the bleachers, during play dates, and around the bonfire at Beats and Bites comes from many different communities and diverse life experiences. You will have many chances to get to know them—and love them.
CONTACT
“I encourage you to visit us and spend some time in Early Childhood and experience the energy of children who are happy and engaged in learning, with one another, their teachers, the space, and the materials.”
Anne Scribner Hopkins
Waynflete Lower School Director
