Acton, Massachusetts is a suburban town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts.
The Acton Public School District consists of five elementary schools and the Acton Public School Pre-school. The method of assigning students to elementary schools is called “School Choice.” Kindergarten parents participate in a lottery based selection process. Parents choose a school by listing the preferences in ranked order.
This method has a large impact on the nature of the town. Acton is less oriented around neighborhood based schools as other towns which have neighborhood based schools. Child-oriented activities such as town sport teams are not organized around the school system. Consequently, students and families are more likely to have social connections that are independent of the neighborhood in which they live.
The curriculum in the district is fairly standardized; however, each elementary school has a different teaching philosophy. Below is a summary of the elementary schools and teaching philosophy in Acton, Massachusetts:
o Conant School: Emphasizes the Whole language approach when teaching students to read. The school also has English as a second language (ESL) program.
o Douglas School: Emphasizes phonics as a system for learning to read, and English as a second language (ESL) program.
o Gates School: Emphasizes phonics as a system for learning to read.
o McCarthy-Towne School: Offers a project-based curriculum and makes extensive use of teacher’s aides in the classroom.
o Merriam School: Teachers teach the same group of students for two years. A teacher will teach first grade one year, second grade the next and then wrap back to first.
The Acton-Boxborough Regional Schools (Junior High & Senior) consists of:
o Raymond J. Grey Junior High School
o Acton-Boxborough Regional High School
o Boxborough
Some students are accepted from neighboring towns as ‘choice’ students at ABRHS if the school committee decides it is in the best interest of the district.
Acton, Massachusetts has two public libraries. They are:
o The Acton Memorial Library
o West Acton Citizens’ Library
Each of the elementary schools, the Junior High, and the High School has libraries.
Museums:
The Discover Museums are located in Acton, Massachusetts. These are two separate science museums at the same site. Discovery Museum has exhibits suitable for younger children. The Science Discovery Museum has exhibits more for older children.
The Iron Work Farm, name for the plantation that drove the settlement of South Acton, Iron Work Farm, is a non-profit historical corporation that runs two houses which are:
o Jones Tavern
o Faulkner House
The Jones Tavern and Faulkner House are open to the public on the last Sunday of the month from May to October and on Patriots Day each April.
The Hosmer House is a Revolutionary War-era home open to the public May 27th and June 24th from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Theater
Acton, Massachusetts has two local theater groups, they are:
o Theater III
o Open Door Theater
Theater III produces several plays and/or musicals a year in the historical old church building on Central Street. Open Door Theater is a community theater group that produces one large musical each year that features a larger number of actors ranging in age from 9 to adult including people with special needs.
Transportation
The MBTA commuter Rail Fitchburg Line train stops at the South Acton station and provides service to Fitchburg, Leominster, Shirley, Ayer, Littleton, Concord, Lincoln, Weston, Waltham, Belmont, Cambridge, and Boston.
There is no fixed bus service available in Acton, Massachusetts; however, the LRTA Road Runner Program and the Council on Aging provide paratransit services for the elderly and disabled. Yankee Bus Line, Inc. offers limited commuter service to Boston.
Acton, Massachusetts is within easy reach of the Boston docks and Logan International Airport.
There is a wide range of retail stores and services in Acton, Massachusetts. The population in Acton, Massachusetts has almost tripled in the last three decades, yet the town has retained much of its rural New England character by the traditional town center and fine examples of historic architecture, stone walls and tree-lined country roads.
Form of Government:
o Board of selectmen
o Town manager
o Open town meeting
There is no hospital in Acton, Massachusetts. There is a Department of Public Health and one Nursing home.
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© 2007 Connie Limon All Rights Reserved
Written by: Connie Limon For more information about the history of, living, working and visiting Massachusetts, visit http://smalldogs2.com/VisitingMassachusetts For a variety of FREE reprint articles and a special section of articles on U.S. History and the Kennedy Family, visit http://www.camelotarticles.com
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