Principal: Jenn Aguilar 

Address: 700 Watts Street, Durham, NC 27701
Phone: (919) 560-3947

Fax: 919-560-3949
Hours of Operation: 7:45 a.m. - 2:15 p.m.

Office Hours: 7:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Enrollment: 309

Visiting our school:

George Watts Montessori Elementary is committed to partnership and engagement with the full school community. We believe that student growth is most impacted by the engagement of a full community. To support this value, we have established a protocol to maximize community engagement during the school day while protecting the safety of our students and staff and ensuring instructional time is prioritized to maximize student learning. Our visitor protocol is available here.

DPS Visitor Protocols are centered around the following tenants: safety, relationships, equity, independence, and instructional time.

Volunteers

If you are interested in volunteering at George Watts, learn more on our volunteer page. 

Check out these amazing videos of our staff and school! 

http://wondersofwatts.com/index.html

About George Watts 

George Watts Montessori Magnet is one of two public Montessori elementary schools within Durham Public Schools. We began our transition from a traditional elementary school in 2004.  Primary classrooms were the first to transition, growing our program into the upper grades each successive year. Full implementation occurred in 2009.  All of our students are selected through a lottery system. Our magnet theme is Montessori. Multi-aged classrooms are an integral part of the Montessori model. We are organized into three levels within our building, each containing a two to three year age span. Primary classrooms contain pre-k and kindergarten, Lower Elementary consists of first, second and third grades, with fourth and fifth-grade classes comprising our Upper Elementary. Students are encouraged to work collaboratively and often present lessons to one another. Working together for a two- or three-year cycle encourages both strong bonds and caring classroom communities. Students remain with the same classroom teacher at each level. This provides a greater opportunity of time to build strong relationships between our teachers and their classroom families, in turn supporting academic growth. 

The Montessori model assumes that all children want to learn and respects the individual’s style and pace of learning. Each student is provided with his own work plan that corresponds to his academic needs. Students are provided time to master a concept, building self-confidence.  Classroom communities operate on the principle of freedom within limits, translating into respect for self, others and the environment. These principles are critical aspects of the Montessori curriculum.