If the gap is still there after everything you've tried, the environment is the problem.
Fourth grade is when most families have already done the right things — evaluations, 504 plans, tutors, and therapy. But the gap between what your child knows and what they can consistently produce in a traditional classroom is still there. That's not a child problem. It's an environment problem.
The Craig School was built specifically for students with ADHD, ASD, and executive functioning challenges. Not as an accommodation. As the design.
No pressure. No commitment. Just a real conversation about your child.
Now enrolling for 2026–27.
If your 4th grader is still struggling after everything you've tried, you're in the right place.
By 4th grade, most families have already done the work. The evaluation. The 504. The tutor on Tuesdays. Your child is still bright and still stuck. For kids with ADHD, ASD and executive functioning challenges, this is often when the question shifts from "what's wrong?" to "why isn't anything working?"
| A bright child who can explain everything at home but can't get it down on paper at school |
| Homework that takes hours and ends in shutdown or tears |
| A teacher who sees their potential and is running out of ways to reach them |
| A 504 plan that helped at the margins but didn't change the underlying struggle |
| A growing worry that your child is starting to believe the struggle is just who they are |
| A feeling that you've done everything right and the gap is still widening |
You didn't miss anything. The environment missed them.And 4th grade is not too late to fix it. |
Every classroom. Every day.
Social skills instruction. Not occasional.
UC Irvine research behind TCS
Of 8th graders return to traditional school
"This school has given her confidence, academic growth, and a genuine sense of belonging."
Heather S. Miethe-Wong
Parent of a 6th grader at TCS
Most schools add accommodations. We build from scratch.
There is a real difference between a school that supports students with ADHD and a school that was built around how those students learn. The first is still a traditional classroom with a layer of help added. The second is something different entirely.
Architecture, Not Accommodation
The structure, routines, and pacing were built for their brain. Not layered on top of a traditional model.
5:1 Student-to-Staff Ratio
For every 5 students, there is at least 1 staff member in the classroom. That's our standard.
Founded on 35 Years of Research
Not a Philosophy. The TCS model is grounded in research developed over 35 years at UC Irvine.
OUTRIDE PROGRAM
Learning doesn't stop at the classroom door
Every other week, TCS students ride or explore the San Diego Creek Trail, right outside our building. This isn't recess. It's not a reward.
For students with ADHD and ASD, movement and nature aren't extras — they're part of how learning works. The OutRide Program is structured, intentional, and adult-guided. It reinforces the regulation, focus, and teamwork students build inside the classroom, in an environment that's a wildlife sanctuary and creek trail.
TCS sits next to the San Diego Creek Trail and the Irvine Wildlife Sanctuary. We put that to use.
The first step is just a conversation
Families of 4th graders often come to us after navigating multiple placements, professionals, and diagnoses that each explained part of the picture but none explained all of it. Our admissions process is a real conversation, not a screening.
|
|
|
1 |
|
Tell us about your child. Fill out a short inquiry. About three minutes, no formal application, no paperwork. Just the basics so we can have a real conversation.
|
|
|
|
2 |
|
We talk. An admissions conversation, not a test. You tell us what's happened. We'll tell you honestly whether TCS is likely to be the right fit. No pressure in either direction.
|
|
|
|
3 |
|
Come see it. If there's a mutual sense of fit, we'll invite you and your child to visit. You'll see how the day flows. Your child will spend time in the classroom. We'll know more. So will you.
|
We move at your pace. No pressure.
Questions we hear from 4th grade families
No. Many of our students have a diagnosis, but it's not required. We focus on whether our environment is the right match for how your child learns. If your child struggles with attention, regulation, organization, or social navigation in ways that traditional school hasn't addressed, that's enough to start a conversation.
Accommodations modify a traditional system to make it more accessible. TCS is a different system. The classroom structure, the student-to-teacher ratio, the daily routines, and the pacing were all designed around students with ADHD and executive functioning challenges — not adapted for them after the fact. That's why families who've exhausted the accommodation route often find TCS produces results nothing else did.
We most commonly support students with ADHD, executive functioning challenges, anxiety, and autism spectrum disorders. Students should have average intellectual ability and be able to participate in a small classroom setting without requiring continuous one-to-one support throughout the day.
We encourage families to begin the conversation early. Reach out to learn about current availability for the 2026-27 school year.
The right time to find the right environment is now.
\\\