The two largest school districts in Northwest Arkansas continued to grow this year, but by smaller rates than seen in past years.

The Springdale School District added 406 students since last year, bringing its enrollment to 20,547, district spokesman Rick Schaeffer said. The Bentonville School District added 201 students for 15,081.

Those numbers were recorded Oct. 1, the day the Arkansas Department of Education uses to track enrollment annually.

Springdale and Bentonville had growth rates of 3.8 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively, between 2011 and 2012. Their growth rates this year are 2 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.

Northwest Arkansas Classical Academy, a new charter school in Bentonville, is one reason for the slower growth in Bentonville. The charter school opened in August for kindergarten through eight grade on Melissa Drive. At last count it had 260 students who live in the Bentonville School District, according to Brad Reed, the district’s student services director.

Michael Poore, Bentonville superintendent, said even with the charter school in town, he thought Bentonville’s enrollment would be higher.

“The charter did have an impact,” Poore said.

Bentonville High School, the largest high school in the state, grew from 3,843 to 4,089 students, a 6.4 percent increase. The school’s ideal capacity is 3,700. District voters agreed last month to a 2.9-mill tax increase to build a second high school.

Springdale likely will need another elementary school in 2016 but should be fine until then, Schaeffer said. Both Bentonville and Springdale opened a new junior high school this fall.

Elsewhere, according to Oct. 1 numbers, the Fayetteville and Rogers school districts also grew.

Fayetteville had 9,421 students on Oct. 1, an increase of 279 students, or 3 percent, from last year. The district has averaged a growth rate of around 3 percent annually for more than a decade, said Alan Wilbourn, the district’s public information officer.

Fayetteville schools with the biggest enrollment gains this year include Woodland Junior High School, which has 71 more students, and Vandergriff Elementary School with 49 more students. Fayetteville High School’s population — 1,896 — is up one student from last year.

Enrollment in Rogers increased at about the same level as last year. Rogers had 14,757 students on Oct. 1 compared to 14,450 last year, an increase of 307 students, or 2.1 percent. The district grew by 305 students in the fall of 2012, but 44 percent of those students were kindergarteners.

The largest class in Rogers has moved into first grade this fall with 1,251 students.

This year’s kindergarten class is smaller with 1,170 students, but greater enrollment in early grades is pointing to general growth, said Ashley Kelley Siwiec, communications director.

During their meeting last week, school board members began talking about adding an elementary school in the next few years because of growth projected at the elementary level. Rogers’ smallest class is its senior class of 1,012 students.

Rogers opened an elementary school this year at half-capacity.

“We just have to look down the road. We can’t wait until there’s a need,” said Virginia Abernathy, Rogers’ assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction.

The Benton County School of the Arts saw enrollment grow slightly to 790 students from 777 last year, said Paul Hines, superintendent. Enrollment at the two-campus charter school in Rogers is capped at 825 in grades kindergarten through eight. The increase came mostly at the high school, Hines said.

Next fall the school likely will reach its enrollment cap, Hines said. The school has appealed to the state to increase the cap.