Bradley Elementary School

3051 South Elm Street

School District

Denver County 1
Grade

PK, K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:17
Type

public

School Map for Denver County 1 School District

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by parent on March 29, 2023

I am a parent of a child in a general education class and a parent of a special needs child in a center program class at this school. We have been enrolled in this school for several years and as a parent and teacher myself I could not be more pleased with this school. Most importantly, my children’s emotional needs and mental health needs are graciously met. The school psychologists have cared and understood my children in ways no other therapist ever had before. The way they speak of the children shows the knowledge and training they have but the love they have for each of these kids. I have not met a teacher that I have not been impressed with. The staff here loves big!! Even their classrooms are so cozy and time and money spent to make their kids have a space like this shows they love their work. They are each encouraged to be true to themselves and teach with their life’s passion. The staff loves and appreciates their leader and so do I. The principal Mr. Wera is one of a kind. In my years teaching and involvement in schools as a parent, I have never seen the dedication for staff, care for community, love for children and personal time shown the way this man does. His involvement with the schools, families and the community is something you rarely see. Having a child with behavioral special needs, I never have felt he was more loved and understood by a team. I have never been disappointed by a decision made in this school and never felt judged or not heard completely. My children were safe and cared for. The hands on education and engaged learning they received was just a bonus. This is a school and staff that will never be matched by another.
Submitted by parent on June 02, 2022

Bradley was selected as a National Blue Ribbon school and more than deserves the award! All 3 of my children went to Bradley from preschool on and one is still there. They all loved the school, their teachers, classmates and faculty. As parents we also love the individual attention every student recieves, the social activities during and after school for kids and parents, and the great communication at the school and classroom level. These are just some of the reasons the neighborhood now has so many young families, and the school always has a long wait list of students trying to gain admittance through School Choice!After elementary school we toured several private and public middle schools before choosing where to send our kids. Even though our kids were now attending the best middle schools, they and their friends from Bradley all tested into advanced/higher grade level classes, because Bradley had taught them so well that they were bored doing grade level assignments. Bradley is an amazing school that attracts top quality teachers and has the luxury of being picky about who they hire. It has a reputation as a great place to work and very low turnover. This leads to happy teachers and happy students! If you live in the neighborhood or are lucky enough to Choice into Bradley, you are truly lucky indeed!
Submitted by parent on June 13, 2021

Our son went to Bradley for 6years. Our experience has been poor. Teachers take weeks-long vacations at the end of the school year, after testing is done, with the blessing of the principal. Which is fine, except that our son can barely write-they don't have any kind of composition or writing classes. His ability to write letters is minimal, his ability to compose sentences was non existent, and forget being able to create a paragraph. But no one cared-he tested at grade level, so to Bradley, him being good enough was good enough. Even better, the school will just create a functional label for your child and teach to the label. We were told that our son "might have a learning disability," which is why we might be underperforming, and when we had a meeting to see what to do, the principal said that his test scores were fine: kids with a learning disability score below grade level, our son did not. After talking to other parents, this is a common occurrence at Bradley: teachers would come up with explanations related to learning disabilities that did not exist so as to justify low performance and to justify a lack of focus on the child's needs. We are doing our best, but I think there's something wrong with your kid. Cool story, but if a teacher really believes this, they have to have the child tested. They never believed it, they were just coming up with reasons why they didn't do their job. Every teacher that told us that something might be wrong with our child took 2 weeks off at the end of the school year, usually to go to a friend's wedding. Want a child that has no self esteem because he or she can't meet basic standards or excel? Go to Bradley International School-it's automatic. 30+ children to a classroom, a principal that lets teachers do whatever they want as long as the test scores are good, and plenty of vacation time for teachers. We left DPS during the pandemic and put our son into an online-only school, and guess what, there was nothing wrong with him. Once he left Denver Public Schools, he started to achieve. We should have left years ago
Submitted by parent on October 10, 2019

We have been at Bradley for almost three years now. We have been very satisfied overall from leadership, teachers, staff, students to parents. There is a great spirit of caring and sharing. We have felt respected and valued and fully part of the community. The principal is an exemplary leader who has understood that "different does not mean deficient." The school environment is very diverse and inclusive in nature. Keep up the good work.
Submitted by parent on November 19, 2018

We've been at Bradley for three years now and have been very happy with our decision to choice in to the school. To me, what sets Bradley apart from other elementary schools in SE Denver is its commitment to the IB philosophy, which is centered on character development, among other things. I tell a story about how my son as a kindergartner came home the first week of school and said that along with his ABCs and 123s, he was learning to be "humble." To be clear, he was 5. And learning the importance of treating other people with dignity and respect. I think any school can teach reading and math. (And they are important!) But helping me teach my kids how to be good people is a whole different level of education. I'd recommend Bradley to anyone.
Submitted by parent on November 13, 2018

We have sent both of our boys through Bradley and couldn’t be happier. We were fortunate that both of our boys had the Colorado Teacher of the year Mrs. Cyprus. She was one of MANY great teachers our kids had. The entire staff puts the teaching of the students as priority one. We could not be more happy with our choice of sending our kids to Bradley!
Submitted by parent on March 05, 2018

Both of my kids have gone through Bradley for most of their elementary school years. My son is in high school now and my daughter is in fifth grade. I can honestly say that growing up as a Bradley student has positively impacted not just their academic lives, but the way they carry themselves in the world. Bradley taught them to be more confident, curious, and respectful of others. Teachers at Bradley are not afraid to engage in conversations with students that encourage them to think deeply, to question things around them, to make connections across disciplines and subjects. They have opportunities throughout the year to dig deeply into areas they are interested in and present their learning to their classmates and the school community. I am constantly amazed by the poise and confidence I see by students in the school. When I watch them engage with their teachers it makes sense - Bradley teachers clearly see learning as a collaborative process, which helps the kids see it in the same way. Just as important as the excellent instruction is the sense of community in the school. Getting multiple opportunities a semester to get to know teachers, my kids classmates and their parents, and really see what they're learning (in a fun way) is so helpful to feeling a sense of community in the school and feeling involved in their educations. I cannot thank Bradley enough for the amazing years my family has spent there!
Submitted by parent on February 04, 2018

This school is phenomenal!!! Bradley is diverse, inclusive and really works to prepare your child to live and learn through all of the IB Principles. I choiced my daughter into this school because it is an IB School. The school has space for the students to learn, drama class, Spanish class, scratch-cooked meals, a garden and enrichment and family night activities to increase the student's learning experience while keeping the parents involved!!!
Submitted by parent on January 10, 2018

I love this school. There is a true sense of community. Love the character development piece of the IB program. My child is growing leaps and bounds and in a well-rounded manner.
Submitted by parent on December 06, 2017

One of the Best school in denver , we have both are kids going there ECE & 3 grade and all the staff specially the teachers are smart & experienced , highly educated. I recommend Bradley as my fist choice
Submitted by parent on November 14, 2017

I have two children that attend Bradley, and I couldn't be happier with the education they are receiving. We choiced into Bradley when my son was starting Kindergarten, and we actually didn't get in right away. He started Kinder at another school, and when a spot opened up at Bradley, we jumped on it and made one of the best decisions we could have for our son. This school has everything you are looking for in an elementary school: loving teachers, challenging curriculum, a parent-supported community and a principal who cares. And to top it off, it is an IB school that offers a diverse, worldly perspective that is teaching my kids to look beyond their own classroom to deepen their understanding of the world around them. Bradley is laying the foundation for success for my kids and I am so thankful!
Submitted by parent on November 14, 2017

Both of our daughters attend Bradley and I couldn't be more thrilled about our experience there. We toured several schools, but nothing felt more right for our family than Bradley. The school's values and priorities matched those of our family, and much of that can be attributed to the IB program. The kids are taught IB Attributes (enthusiasm, inquirer, caring, risk-taker, etc.) and we see these attributes in action at home - whether its discussing what these qualities mean, or how they see them in characters in books that they read at school, or how they see the attributes in themselves. They take IB home with them and incorporate it into their daily lives. We love the teachers, staff, and administrators at the school. They truly make the school feel like a community. To top it all off, this is our neighborhood school! That sense of community from the school flows out into our neighborhood community. Wonderful school! Wonderful people! We love our Bradley Eagles!
Submitted by parent on August 26, 2017

Wonderful school for my son. Thank you!
Submitted by other on February 14, 2016

I used to be a student there for three years and 3rd grade was great,4th not so much,5th it was good when I was with my friends.
Submitted by other on June 09, 2015

My husband and I had decided to choice into Bradley when our child went into kindergarten. On the first day of classes, we received a call that there was a spot. I went by the school to meet the teacher and she proceeded to tell me how lucky I was that we got in because the kids in my child's class at our neighborhood school were of a "much lower socioeconomic class." She repeatedly mentioned that the students and families of Bradley are higher on the socioeconomic ladder. I would have been much more interested in how the school educated their students. We had been interested in this school to broaden our child's exposure to the world, not to become judgmental towards those who struggle. We were appalled at how she so openly voiced her disdain and opted to go elsewhere. We were very disappointed in the discriminatory vibe.
Submitted by parent on February 05, 2014

This school works great with meeting the expectations of my special needs child and are very caring.
Submitted by parent on October 25, 2012

As a school teacher myself, I must say, I feel that Bradley Elementary is a model school with amazing teachers who practice extremely effective teaching strategies. My son had attended four different schools in his elementary career, in both DPS and Cherry Creek, and none have proven to offer the quality of teaching, variety of learning experiences, or community involvement that Bradley has. I still have a daughter attending Bradley and only wish that it was a K-8 school so that neither of my children would have to leave there so soon.
Submitted by parent on October 24, 2012

This is our last year at Bradley and we have seen how much it's been growing. The entire community is highly involve and participative. I recommend this school so great and friendly.
Submitted by parent on March 19, 2012

My children no longer attend Bradley, we were not impressed with the school at all. The biggest issue with the school is overcrowding. Some of the classes have more than 30 students, with aides only part of the day. It was impossible for the teachers to actually teach the children. There were some parents willing to offer support, but they were the minority. I realize with budget cuts all schools are facing obstacles, but wonder why other DPS elementary schools are able to figure this out and keep classrooms at manageable sizes and offer full-time aides. My children learned very little and were exposed to way too much, glad we have found another school.
Submitted by other on February 03, 2012

i think bradley is a great school for children to go to.i just love how all of the teachers are nice and respectful to all the children.