Summary:
Breakthrough Montessori PCS is the only school in this data set, a public charter elementary school in Washington, DC serving grades PK–6 with 383 students. As a single-school charter LEA, the school operates as its own district, so its performance is compared directly to DC averages and its own year-over-year trends rather than to other local schools.
The school’s strongest academic area is upper-elementary English language arts: 4th grade proficiency is 42.8% and 5th grade is 41.4%, both exceeding the DC state averages of 39.1% and 39.9%. However, 3rd grade ELA proficiency is just 12.5%, far below the 31.1% state average, creating a dramatic grade-level gap. Mathematics is the biggest weakness, with all-grades proficiency at 16.6% versus 28.2% statewide, and 3rd and 5th grade math scores are 21–16 points below state averages. Overall, the school ranks 66th out of 124 DC schools in 2025–2026 (47th percentile, 2 stars), improving from 76th in 2024–2025 but still below its 61st-place ranking and 3-star rating from 2023–2024.
Encouragingly, the school is showing positive momentum: ELA proficiency rose from 29.2% to 30.5% and math from 13.3% to 16.6% year-over-year, with math gains outpacing statewide improvement. Science proficiency in 5th grade is 15.38%, about 5 points below the DC average of 20.41%. The school spends a high $27,545 per student, reflecting the costs of a small independent Montessori charter, and has a student–teacher ratio of 16.6:1. While this investment does not currently translate into top-tier test scores, the Montessori model’s focus on mixed-age learning and project-based instruction may explain why upper-grade reading excels while early-grade and math skills need targeted support. Parents considering this school should weigh its distinctive educational approach and recent upward trend against persistent gaps in math and early literacy.
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