Roaring Fork Scholars
build the foundational skills to be successful in Middle School and beyond.
for students entering Fourth & Fifth Grade in September 2025.
This transformative opportunity is for applicants who:
- demonstrate strong achievement or interest in academics, arts, and outdoor education
- show promise in developing the core values of Aspen Country Day School: character, respect, responsibility, community, and perseverance
- have been enrolled in a Roaring Fork Valley school full time since Kindergarten and are applying to Aspen Country Day School for the first time
- open to students entering Fourth or Fifth Grade in September 2025. (For other grades with open space, generous financial aid is available; reach out to learn more.)
For Roaring Fork Scholars, the annual cost to attend Aspen Country Day School is set at $10,000 per year through Eighth Grade. No financial aid documentation is required.
Details: Award recipients receive generous funding for tuition, lunch, and school bus. The annual cost to attend is set at $10,000 per year for all five years until graduation from Eighth Grade, providing the student remains in good standing. (Current full tuition for Fourth & Fifth Grade is $34,800.)
To apply: Start with the inquiry form at this link. Next steps include a full-day classroom visit with an assessment of academic progress, an online application for admission, submission of student records and a teacher recommendation. Applicants must also submit a letter of recommendation from a community member such as a coach, mentor, or activity leader.
To visit: As part of the application process, students spend the day on campus. You will sign up for a visit day when you apply.
Academics
Fourth Grade is a year of intense but joyful focus on academic work, as children develop the key habits of heart and mind that will fuel their intellectual growth for the journey ahead. They are writing essays, making presentations, keeping a careful record of their assignments in their planners, using Chromebooks in class, and managing a more complex schedule. Fourth Grade is often considered a critical point in elementary school. It is in this year that students are called upon to become more independent, self-driven learners. With teachers who find just the right balance of challenge and nurture, children finish this year with skills and attitudes that set them up for success in Fifth Grade and beyond. Middle School begins in Sixth Grade at Aspen Country Day School.
Arts
At Aspen Country Day School, teachers believe in the power of the arts not only to build children’s capacity for creative expression, but also to enrich their work in academic classes. In Fourth Grade, children leverage the tools, skills, and creative practices they have learned arts classes, putting them to use in social studies, English class, world language, and even math and science. In the giant light-filled art studio, young artists learn about art history as they flex their creative powers in ceramics, drawing, and painting. They perform in the spring play at the Wheeler Opera House, sing on stage at Harris Hall for a winter concert, and they put on a heartfelt production of Romeo and Juliet in the Lower School Shakespeare Festival.
Outdoor Education
In the school’s landmark Outdoor Education program, Fourth Graders spend three days in Fruita, Colorado each fall developing basic mountain biking skills. The refine their camping skills, enjoying the autumn and the open spaces of Western Colorado. In springtime of Fourth Grade, they mountain bike the red rock canyonlands near Horsethief, Utah. These trips take students onto trails that rank among America’s best mountain biking destinations. This sequence allows them to build their riding skills in a gradual, age-appropriate way, all while fostering the confidence and resilience that are hallmarks of the Aspen Country Day School experience.