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What's the biggest difference between Explore Pk-8 and what you expected?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
557
Elementary
DISTRICT 368 · STATE 379
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MAPLETON PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 080555002007
Explore Pk-8
10310 YORK ST, THORNTON, CO 80229 · (303) 853-1300 · Adams County
GRADES PK–08ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL557 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
19.8:1
28 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.7:1 · STATE 16.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
63%
350 students
DISTRICT 71% · STATE 50%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 61 | 11% |
| Kindergarten | 58 | 10% |
| Grade 1 | 60 | 11% |
| Grade 2 | 57 | 10% |
| Grade 3 | 55 | 10% |
| Grade 4 | 58 | 10% |
| Grade 5 | 55 | 10% |
| Grade 6 | 53 | 10% |
| Grade 7 | 58 | 10% |
| Grade 8 | 42 | 8% |
This year's kindergarten class (58) is 38% larger than its 8th grade class (42).
Student demographics
50%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 33% · STATE 62% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
CMAS 2024-25 . % Met or Exceeded ExpectationsEnglish Language Arts
22.4%
CO avg 44.9% . +5.1pp since 2023
Math
15.3%
CO avg 36.1% . +1.9pp since 2023
What this means: On the CMAS, Colorado's statewide test, about 22 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 15 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Colorado schools, those numbers are about 45 and 36. Reading and writing scores are up about 5 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 2 points.
CMAS results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 22.4% | 15.3% |
| 2023-24 | 17.3% | 13.4% |
% Met or Exceeded Expectations, all students and all tested grades.
Source: CMAS. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
18.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
28.6%
based on CO schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-10.6pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 18% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 29% typical for Colorado schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Colorado's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Explore Pk-8
Explore Pk-8's state test result (18.0% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Explore Pk-8 this school | 557 | 62.8% | 18.0% |
| Crown Pointe Charter Academy WESTMINSTER | 461 | 61.6% | 35.1% |
| Stellar Elementary School THORNTON | 418 | 67.9% | 38.1% |
| Trailside Academy DENVER | 492 | 58.3% | 20.1% |
| Woodglen Elementary School THORNTON | 383 | 65.8% | 26.9% |
| Sabin World School DENVER | 559 | 65.1% | 42.9% |
Matched among Colorado elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Explore Pk-8 ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Colorado | In Adams County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 18.0% | #797 of 931 | #59 of 89 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 15.3% | #799 of 940 ▲ 21 | #58 of 89 ▲ 5 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 22.4% | #784 of 946 ▲ 63 | #58 of 89 ▲ 8 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 557 | #154 of 1,056 | #21 of 97 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 19.8:1 | #858 of 896 | #82 of 90 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 49.5% | #463 of 896 | #47 of 90 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 62.8% | #342 of 983 | #54 of 91 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +32.0% | #33 of 200 | #6 of 20 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
557
+36 (+7%) vs 2020
+55% since 2010-11, when it was 360
Student : Teacher
19.8:1
was 21.7:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 557 | 28.2 | 19.8:1 | 63% (350) |
| 2023-24 | 579 | 28.9 | 20.1:1 | 64% (372) |
| 2022-23 | 556 | 27.4 | 20.3:1 | 60% (336) |
| 2020-21 | 521 | 24 | 21.7:1 | 58% (302) |
| 2017-18 | 422 | 20 | 21.1:1 | 66% (279) |
| 2015-16 | 426 | 22 | 19.4:1 | 61% (260) |
| 2010-11 | 360 | 16 | 22.5:1 | 68% (244) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Explore Pk-8.
Since 2017-18: students up 32% (422 to 557); teachers up 41% (20 to 28.2).
About Explore Pk-8
As a mid-sized elementary school, Explore Pk-8 serves students in THORNTON, Colorado. Its enrollment is 557 students, spread over pre-K through 8. Elementary schools in Colorado average about 379 students, which makes this school 47% larger than average.
Explore Pk-8 is one school in Mapleton Public Schools, a system of 20 schools with 7,095 students.
The student body at Explore Pk-8 is 68% Hispanic. It is also 19% White, 7% Asian, and 4% multiracial. Adams County's residents are about 43% Hispanic, 25 points below the school's share. A diversity index of 50% means there is a 50% chance two randomly chosen students at Explore Pk-8 are from different groups.
There are about 19.8 students for every full-time-equivalent teacher at Explore Pk-8, which has 28.2. Elementary schools in Colorado average 16.6:1, 3.2 fewer students per teacher than here. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility at Explore Pk-8 is about 63%. The figure for public schools in Adams County is close, at 62%.
On the allk12 BeatsExpectations measure, Explore Pk-8 is 10.6 points below the average proficiency rate across its state test results predicted for its free or reduced-price lunch share: 18.0% actual, 28.6% predicted. That is outside both the top and bottom 10% in Colorado.
The county, Adams County, is where the school is located. Median household income comes to about $94,571, about 29% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 7%. The county's public schools total 171, with about 87,938 students.
Straight-line distance to the nearest public school, Leroy Elementary, is about 0.8 miles. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. The average proficiency across nearby scored schools is 17.8%; Explore Pk-8's is 18.0%, ranking 4th of 8.
Federal records code the school's setting as Suburb: Large.
The school's student count rose 7% between the 2020-21 and 2024-25 school years. The number of students per teacher dropped from 21.7 to 19.8 over 4 years.
This community page is for conversations about fundraisers, report cards, and school supplies. You can also rate the school on this page.
Adams County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
530,225
Census ACS
Median income
$94,571
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
29%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
171
87,938 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Mapleton Public Schools
- York InternationalCombined · 776 students
- Trailside AcademyElementary · 492 students
- Monterey Community SchoolElementary · 440 students
- Clayton Partnership SchoolElementary · 430 students
- Adventure ElementaryElementary · 429 students
- Global Leadership AcademyHigh · 400 students
Other schools in THORNTON
- Riverdale Ridge High SchoolHigh · 1,784 students
- Stargate Charter SchoolCombined · 1,572 students
- Thornton High SchoolHigh · 1,439 students
- Rocky Top Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,052 students
- Rodger Quist Middle SchoolMiddle · 855 students
- York InternationalCombined · 776 students
Nearby schools
- Leroy Elementary0.8 mi · 435
- York International1.2 mi · 776
- Northglenn Middle School1.2 mi · 672
- The Studio School1.4 mi · 215
- Preschool on Poze1.4 mi · 193
- Achieve Academy1.4 mi · 370
Frequently asked questions
About Explore Pk-8How large is Explore Pk-8?
Explore Pk-8 enrolls approximately 557 students in grades PK-08.
What age range does Explore Pk-8 serve?
Explore Pk-8 serves students from grade PK through grade 08.
How many students per teacher at Explore Pk-8?
Approximately 19.8:1 students per teacher at Explore Pk-8.
How diverse is Explore Pk-8?
Explore Pk-8 reports a student body of 19% White, 68% Hispanic, 1% Black, 7% Asian, 4% Two or more.
Who oversees Explore Pk-8?
Explore Pk-8 is overseen by Mapleton Public Schools in Adams County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.