Education & Classes in Ballwin

Just southwest of St. Louis, a Cessna 150 rolls out of a hangar and turns to taxi down the runway of Festus Airport. It gracefully lifts off the ground, quickly ascending while dipping its right wing to head toward the muddy waters of the Mississippi River. Inside the plane is a first-time pilot, falling in love with the thrill of flight while an instructor watches over operations to ensure the utmost safety.

At Festus Airport, resident instructors illuminate tender-footed aeronauts during flight lessons, and experienced jumpers from Fly Free Skydiving usher adventurers out of perfectly good airplanes from high above St. Louis. Held each year across the airports' grassy fields, the Jefferson County Balloon Festival also calls Festus Airport home, entertaining more than 10,000 guests at last year's family-friendly flying festivities. The sight sets all visitors at ease with an indoor lounge, Internet access, and a picnic area with unlimited access to fresh air and views of the runway.

At one time, St. Charles Flying Service's airport was a training base for World War II pilots during the early 1940s. Today, several vintage WWII aircraft still call the facility home, as does Boeing, which utilizes the grounds to test its own planes for modern-day military operations. Surrounded by aviation benchmarks both past and present, St. Charles Flying Service passes on the gift of flight to students with flight training for single and multiengine aircraft. From light sport to airline transport pilot, the facility's certified instructors help mold the pilots of tomorrow, who may also take advantage of open-enrollment ground courses.

The staff members at Sylvan Learning's numerous study facilities understand that each child learns differently. Therefore, they don’t try to implement a uniform tutoring system; instead, they design custom lesson programs based on the results of standardized testing, diagnostic tools, and one-on-one interviews.

Tutors work with students from kindergarten through grade 12, illuminating topics ranging from basic reading and writing to remembering complex algebraic formulas without having them tattooed on your chest. Many of Sylvan’s instructors work in local schools, so they are intimately familiar with common curricula and understand how to gear lessons toward optimal results.

Since 1968, Skylink Aviation has safely whisked travelers and budding pilots alike into the skies with a fleet of single- and dual-engine aircraft. In modern and vintage-style mechanical birds, experienced pilots take to the clouds with ease and train young flyers to safely ride the winds without using cheat codes. Expert aviators also lead eye-indulging tours of St. Louis, granting airborne glimpses of notable landmarks such as the Arch, Busch Stadium, and the Mississippi River.