Advice on Schools - moving from Ireland

[Kikib1]

Hello!
We are moving from Ireland & are looking for schools for our 5th grade and 6/7 grade (depending on cutoff date) children for admission in Sept 2024! I appreciate admission deadlines have passed. I have been checking out lots of school websites and contacting schools but could do with some advice please!
Considering both private & public options, currently children attend equivalent of public school in Ireland.
Wish list would be for them both to be in the same school (ideally not separate campuses), small class sizes, good inclusive community, balanced approached to learning - so not too heavily focussed on academics or sport. Both children enjoy school, are good students, creative and enjoy sports. We do not have an address yet 😅. We will be commuting into DC for work so that is a consideration for us also. Any advice appreciated 🙏

[Anonymous]

OP, realize you don't have an address yet, but are you hoping for city or suburbs? That will help people give you more useful advice. Be forewarned that traffic here is a beast.

My spouse is from Tullamore, fwiw, and finds our education system here quite different.

[Anonymous]

Thank you.
Have been recommended Tenleytown/ AU park / Chevy Chase as potential areas to live. Ideally with a metro line into the city to avoid traffic 😅

[Anonymous]

Based on your wish list, you'll want to look to private first. Middle school here splits off in either 6th or 7th (on the Virginia side so not sure which it is in MD/DC - in VA it depends on your address) and you will never find a 5th grader on the same campus as a 7th grader in this area. Same with class sizes - small class sizes by law don't have to exist in public schools so they are never guaranteed.

You can find good inclusive community in both public and private. A balance between academics and sports will be almost entirely family and kid-driven as opposed to the school at public. Privates vary in their focus a lot but it is easily possible to find the one you describe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Thank you.
Have been recommended Tenleytown/ AU park / Chevy Chase as potential areas to live. Ideally with a metro line into the city to avoid traffic 😅

Tenleytown/AU will certainly solve the traffic problem, and it is a quaint sort of “university town” suburb. The local schools are certainly very inclusive, so they check that box as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Based on your wish list, you'll want to look to private first. Middle school here splits off in either 6th or 7th (on the Virginia side so not sure which it is in MD/DC - in VA it depends on your address) and you will never find a 5th grader on the same campus as a 7th grader in this area. Same with class sizes - small class sizes by law don't have to exist in public schools so they are never guaranteed.

You can find good inclusive community in both public and private. A balance between academics and sports will be almost entirely family and kid-driven as opposed to the school at public. Privates vary in their focus a lot but it is easily possible to find the one you describe.

Nonsense. Feel free to ignore this poster.

The DC public schools are fine. No reason to waste all that $$ on snobby privates.

[Anonymous]

What is good house budget?

[Anonymous]

AU is good choice. The closest school system for Ireland would be - I’m sorry to say - British

Thus, British School of Washington in Tenleytown should be on the list.

My fear for you - US educational system is really remedial compared to Ireland’s 98% literacy rate and kids wont be able to go back to University in Ireland at, say, TrinityCollege level.

Likely your company pays or gov - if you are civil servant so cost isn’t or shouldn’t be factor. Good luck!

-former expat

[Anonymous]

If you’re interested in privates, make sure you are aware of the costs. I would generally expect $50-55,000 per year but Catholic schools can be significantly cheaper if that suits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you’re interested in privates, make sure you are aware of the costs. I would generally expect $50-55,000 per year but Catholic schools can be significantly cheaper if that suits.

* per child

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you’re interested in privates, make sure you are aware of the costs. I would generally expect $50-55,000 per year but Catholic schools can be significantly cheaper if that suits.

All the insistence on privates over DCPS seems kinda racist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Thank you.
Have been recommended Tenleytown/ AU park / Chevy Chase as potential areas to live. Ideally with a metro line into the city to avoid traffic 😅

On the red line, you have the option of D.C. or Maryland. The border runs along Western Ave which cuts through Friendship Heights. Quite a lot of embassy, World Bank and IMF folk choose the Maryland side. Many bike commute into central D.C. along the Capital Crescent Trail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re interested in privates, make sure you are aware of the costs. I would generally expect $50-55,000 per year but Catholic schools can be significantly cheaper if that suits.

All the insistence on privates over DCPS seems kinda racist.

Why?

[Anonymous]

Kikib1 wrote:Hello!
We are moving from Ireland & are looking for schools for our 5th grade and 6/7 grade (depending on cutoff date) children for admission in Sept 2024! I appreciate admission deadlines have passed. I have been checking out lots of school websites and contacting schools but could do with some advice please!
Considering both private & public options, currently children attend equivalent of public school in Ireland.
Wish list would be for them both to be in the same school (ideally not separate campuses), small class sizes, good inclusive community, balanced approached to learning - so not too heavily focussed on academics or sport. Both children enjoy school, are good students, creative and enjoy sports. We do not have an address yet 😅. We will be commuting into DC for work so that is a consideration for us also. Any advice appreciated 🙏

Do you know how long you will be here (eg if it’s a diplomatic posting)?

[Anonymous]

DC public schools in AU/Tenleytown could also be worth considering since the elementary, middle, and high schools, while separate, are very close to each other (within 3-4 blocks). And they’re among the best in the DC public school system.