Mindful Leaders Academy logo, private academy in Lakewood Ranch, FL

Five programs, birth through 8th grade.

A private, professionally led homeschool program for birth through 8th grade, with drop-off days for elementary and middle school students.

Step Up For Students approved EMA Marketplace provider
Two Middle Grades students engineer a LEGO build
Lakewood Ranch · Academy Studio

Academy

A private, professionally led homeschool program for families seeking a more intentional, collaborative learning experience. Small cohorts. A full, written curriculum. Consistent instructors. A premium environment built for focused, joyful learning.

Days move between project work, outdoor learning, arts, and academics - with drop-off for elementary and middle school students and room for each child to be seen, challenged, and known.

Ages
Birth – 8th grade
Schedule
Mondays · 9am – 3pm at Harvest UMC
Field trips
Fridays, typically meeting 9 or 10am
Semesters
Semester 1: August – December · Semester 2: January – May
What's included
Professionally led instruction · STEM, Spanish, Humanities, Art, Drama, Music & PreK Enrichment · Indoor & outdoor learning · Leadership & social-emotional development

Family portal access

Attendance, teacher updates, private replies and field trip booking, included with Academy enrollment.

Spots are intentionally limited.

Why families choose a smaller program

  • A specialist teacher for every subject who knows your child by name.
  • A full six-hour Monday, from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM.
  • Small cohorts where children learn together and teachers know their learners.
  • You talk directly to Meghan, the founder.
Read the homeschool choosing guide

Built for busy families.

One familiar place for the school day, teacher conversations and Friday plans.

QR check-in at the door, so drop-off takes seconds.

Live attendance, so you know when your child arrived.

Announcements from your child's teacher, with private replies.

Field trips reserved and paid in one tap, with a card on file.

Your child's class attendance history, in one place.

Teachers take attendance on their phone while class starts, so nothing slips through.

Seven subjects, one Monday

PreK students in goggles watch pink foam in STEM class

STEM

Hands-on science led by Ms. Lisa, who holds a master's degree in education and has more than 35 years of experience teaching STEM. Every step of every project happens in class, so families never have to stage a science project at home.

Kids will

  • Make a hypothesis, test it, and repeat the trial to see if the result holds
  • Run classmates' experiments as well as their own
  • Use real scientific method vocabulary

For: PreK-K/1 · Upper Elementary · Middle

Explore STEM →
A colorful portrait drawing takes shape in art class

Art

Led by Ms. Lauren, who holds a degree in early childhood art education. Older students learn the history behind a style before creating in it. Younger artists build fine motor skills through process art that usually begins with a story.

Kids will

  • Explore clay, mosaic tiling and grouting, cloth, chalk pastels, watercolor, acrylics, paint pens and foil press
  • Learn the history and artists behind a style
  • Create original work in that style

For: Mommy & Me, PreK + K/1 · Upper Elementary + Middle Grades

Explore Art →

Spanish

Taught by Ms. Yuri, who is fluent in both Spanish and English and has extensive experience teaching Spanish. Her classes are movement based, so students hear, speak, sing and act out the language instead of memorizing lists.

Kids will

  • Learn everyday words and phrases through movement and games
  • Sing and repeat songs and stories
  • Practice speaking with partners

For: K/1 · Upper Elementary · Middle

Explore Spanish →

Drama

Led by Mr. Zack, a lead teacher and director with a local children's drama program, now in his ninth year of teaching. Drama is our one subject taught with that program's established curriculum.

Kids will

  • Warm up voice and body with games
  • Practice improvisation and thinking on their feet
  • Build characters and act out stories

For: PreK-K/1 · Upper Elementary

Explore Drama →
A toddler strums a ukulele during music

Music

Led by Ms. Alicia, who has years of experience teaching family music classes, private lessons and school enrichment. The youngest learners explore rhythm and movement, and by K/1 students are reading music and playing full songs.

Kids will

  • Keep rhythm patterns and beats
  • Move, sing and play with instruments and props
  • Learn music theory and begin reading music (K/1)

For: Mommy & Me + PreK · K/1

Explore Music →

Humanities

Social studies taught decade by decade with Ms. Carolyn. Students build historical context through hands-on, visual activities, then create an artifact that shows what they learned.

Kids will

  • Explore a decade through activities like Mystery Suitcase, Build the Decade and Decade Snapshot
  • Learn the vocabulary of the era, like the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl
  • Study the people, inventions, pop culture, sports and money of the time

For: Upper Elementary · Middle

Explore Humanities →
A PreK student proudly holds an owl themed snack plate

PreK Enrichment

Thematic units that pair a story with science, math and phonics. Each class opens with a book, then children count, sort, build patterns and practice letters around it.

Kids will

  • Start every class with a book
  • Count with manipulatives, build patterns and sort by color
  • Practice phonics, writing letters and first words

For: Mommy & Me · PreK

Explore PreK Enrichment →

More than classes

Monday is the heart of it, but Mindful Leaders is a community. Throughout the year, families share photo days, dress-up days, holiday parties, service projects and time together.

  • Graduation
  • Performances
  • Field day
  • School photos
  • Family Christmas photos
  • Beach photo shoot
  • Wacky Monday
  • Tie-dye day
  • Pajama day
  • Halloween dress-up
  • Valentine exchange
  • Halloween STEM party
  • Community service
  • Field trips
  • Moms' brunch

Graduation

Every PreK and kindergarten class gets a real graduation, caps, gowns, diplomas and a room full of proud families.

Performances

Drama ends with a show. Students write, rehearse and perform for their families, costumes and all.

A student's professional school portrait
A student's professional school portrait
A student's professional school portrait
Siblings together in a family Christmas photo setting
A family together for Christmas portraits

Photo days

Professional school portraits every year, family Christmas photos, discounted family sessions throughout the year, and a family beach photo shoot.

Children wear playful mismatched outfits for Wacky Monday
Children celebrate Wacky Monday outdoors

Spirit days

Wacky Monday, tie-dye day, pajama day and Halloween dress-up keep Mondays fun.

Field day

A whole morning of relays, water games and giant bubbles.

A pumpkin foam eruption during Halloween STEM

Holiday parties

Every holiday gets its own celebration, from the Valentine's exchange to a Halloween STEM experiment party where the science gets spooky.

Students play balloon tennis with seniors during community service

Community service

Students take learning out into the community through service and outreach projects, practicing the kind of leadership that helps other people.

A student paints during a studio field trip
Students explore outdoor science with Ms. Lisa

Field trips

Field trips take Monday's learning out into Sarasota and Manatee.

  • Holiday Pottery Painting Day
  • MLA Halloween Party!
  • Halloween Costumes or Fall Festive Outfit Day!
Explore field trips

Parent community

Parents get a community too, from a moms' brunch to the friendships that start in the pickup line.

Come spend a Monday with us

Tours are short and honest. You will see the rooms, meet the guide who would lead your child's cohort, and get straight answers about fit.

CallBook a Tour