Scandinavian School of Jersey City
Scandinavian School, 513 Manila Avenue, Suite 1, Jersey City, NJ 07302
About
The Scandinavian School of Jersey City offers a 10-week summer camp where children take part in a program inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Childhood Education and are exposed to and learn a Scandinavian language in each classroom, in addition to English. The school includes a youngest program with 13 classes separated by age, a class for 4-year-olds that focuses on outdoor education, a Kindergarten class that focuses on place-based education, and a 1st–6th grade program that uses project-based learning and multi-sensory explorations of traditional academics. Students also use their community as a classroom by taking the school’s bus to local green spaces.
• Ages: 1–11 years old
• Schedule: 10-week summer camp for children ages 1–9 years old
The Scandinavian School of Jersey City is the first full-day Scandinavian school inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Childhood Education on the East Coast, serving children from 1 year old through 6th grade. The school’s families come from global, multicultural, multilingual, urban, and diverse communities. Part of the founder’s mission has been to give children the type of childhood she had growing up in Sweden, with a day centered around play, plenty of time outdoors, sitting together eating a healthy, homemade meal, and repeated time for play. At Scandi School, children’s rights are described as being at the core of the program, and the school states that it protects these rights by giving children freedom to play, solve conflicts, collaborate, care for one another, and have their voices treated as valid, respected, and heard.
The Scandinavian School of Jersey City was founded in 2010 by Maria Germerud-Sharp. The school states that it aims to inspire children to connect with themselves and one another and to give them tools to be independent, democratic, wholesome, and empathetic citizens of the world. The program notes that it will be adding a small gym and two more creative arts suites in fall 2025.
Students and alumni describe their experiences in several ways. Tara, age 9, says that Scandi School lets students do what they want, get messy, take chances, and see the world the way they want to see it. April, age 7, explains that Trollskogen is a nature class that goes every day to nature, even when it rains, and that it is different from classes that do homework every day, describing Trollskogen as “loving nature.” Tudor, age 15, remembers the school as having a very hands-on curriculum and recalls that students were very independent and that it was more fun discovering things by themselves than learning through instruction.
Last updated July 9, 2026.
• Ages: 1–11 years old
• Schedule: 10-week summer camp for children ages 1–9 years old
The Scandinavian School of Jersey City is the first full-day Scandinavian school inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Childhood Education on the East Coast, serving children from 1 year old through 6th grade. The school’s families come from global, multicultural, multilingual, urban, and diverse communities. Part of the founder’s mission has been to give children the type of childhood she had growing up in Sweden, with a day centered around play, plenty of time outdoors, sitting together eating a healthy, homemade meal, and repeated time for play. At Scandi School, children’s rights are described as being at the core of the program, and the school states that it protects these rights by giving children freedom to play, solve conflicts, collaborate, care for one another, and have their voices treated as valid, respected, and heard.
The Scandinavian School of Jersey City was founded in 2010 by Maria Germerud-Sharp. The school states that it aims to inspire children to connect with themselves and one another and to give them tools to be independent, democratic, wholesome, and empathetic citizens of the world. The program notes that it will be adding a small gym and two more creative arts suites in fall 2025.
Students and alumni describe their experiences in several ways. Tara, age 9, says that Scandi School lets students do what they want, get messy, take chances, and see the world the way they want to see it. April, age 7, explains that Trollskogen is a nature class that goes every day to nature, even when it rains, and that it is different from classes that do homework every day, describing Trollskogen as “loving nature.” Tudor, age 15, remembers the school as having a very hands-on curriculum and recalls that students were very independent and that it was more fun discovering things by themselves than learning through instruction.
Last updated July 9, 2026.
Is this your business? There is no cost, but you will be asked to sign up or log in.