National Blue Ribbon Schools Program

Fort Barton School is a PreK-4 rural elementary school in Tiverton, Rhode Island. Our school, named after Revolutionary War hero Colonial William Barton, sits nestled between the picturesque Sakonnet River banks and the Fort Barton Memorial Tower. A sense of history, pride, and belonging transcends every student at Fort Barton, where the inner atmosphere is calm, respectful, quiet, clean, and safe. We are also the Newport County Regional K-4 RI Alternate Assessment magnet program for four Rhode Island towns.

We are a data-infused school, where daily instructional decisions are based upon student needs and progress. Reading skills in phonological and phonemic awareness, word recognition, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension are taught through direct and indirect modeling. In addition to extended literacy and math instructional blocks daily, an extra block, or "Power Block", of reading or math is also offered to provide Interventionist support for struggling students. Skill-specific instruction from classroom teachers is also provided for students on grade level or higher. Our professional learning community includes book clubs, building level literacy and math teams, and teacher-led embedded professional development in our building.

Our school community is based on trust, compassion, and service. We are a Feinstein Jr. Scholar School, and our students perform community service throughout the year with food pantry donations and local community partnerships. As a US Healthier Schools Bronze recipient, we incorporate extended recess daily for students and opportunities throughout the year for additional physical activity challenges, like our Mighty Milers recess running program.