Middle School Choices Next Year

[Anonymous]

OK. I know this is rather early in the new school year to think about the next school year already but we need to find a good 6th grade for a pretty good student who could probably skate by school academically but could always use some attention from good teachers. Socially, DC gets along well with most kids but is better in small groups.

Right now, we are interested in looking at Deal, Latin, and a few privates (Sidwell, Maret, GDS, Cathedral Schools). Any thoughts from current parents at any of these schools on strengths, weaknesses, or other issues (both academic and social) that may be helpful for us as we explore the options?

TIA!

[Anonymous]

http://www.keyschooldc.org/middleschool/middleschool.htm

A fellow DC public school parent. Kids still in elementary, so no direct experience to share. See the link above for a Key School middle school fair held last Jan '09 with a lot of good info on handouts.

I would consider adding Hardy to your list. Apparently has both an arts immersion and a traditional academic track middle school, starting in 6th.

I have a friend whose son was in 6th at Cap City, (admitted as a 6th grader) and is transferring this year to Deal. The Cap City class was too small to provide the breadth of experiences this child would use in middle school -- math club, band, chess club -- type of kid.

Depending on your educational goals, consider Washington International School, where 6th grade is a major entrance year, and kids with only English appear to be admitted.

If you search this site, you'll find so many opinions on the privates that I'm not sure if you know more after reading or not. Probably need to go to open houses to see for yourself.

Good luck!!

[Anonymous]

What's your plan/preference for HS?

[Anonymous]

21:47 - thanks for posting the link. Deal seems like it has some really solid offerings and a very robust program.

I have personally been on the fence about sending my kids to Deal in two years. Anytime I have met parents with kids at Deal - I truly grill them. I have yet to hear any overly negative comments. Now that they have a brand new facility and the IB program is moving forward - it will be really hard for us to justify going private. My only true concern is making sure that my DD will feel comfortable in a larger middle school.

[Anonymous]

My 5th grader will be at Deal next fall.

[Anonymous]

Hard to think about HS at this point since kids change so much between 5th grad and 9th grade. I'm not that interested in Wilson. One advantage of Latin and privates would be their HS continuation paths. If we do Deal, then perhaps move to a suburban high school. DC would probably do better in a smaller, more nurturing environment but bigger schools like Deal would certainly offer more choices. I am also intrigued by its IB curriculum.

[Anonymous]

maybe investigate some of the schools with k-8 programs?

[Anonymous]

don't forget School without Walls in DC for HS

[Anonymous]

Friend's daughter just started at Deal. Parents are thrilled with the school and incredibly impressed with the principal. We live in MD, but now I'm thinking about lying just to get my kid in (kidding).

[Anonymous]

We are in-boundary for Deal, attending Latin--and consider ourselves lucky to have both choices (though we got into Latin before it was as well-known/regarded). I think they are both strong, and different enough to provide competition and choice to one another. It will come down to which program offers a better array of services for your child upon investigation. Our child loves Latin though, and even though Deal is a stone's throw and he has toured (and was impressed by) the new facilities, he is committed to WL and came home bubbling about his first day of school. Good Luck!

[Anonymous]

My child just started at Deal and loves it!! It doesn't feel so large because of the teams. She loves her teachers!!

[Anonymous]

OP,
As you probably know, the competition to get into privates is ferocious. Applying from public has its disadvantages in that the students applying from private often get in-school SSAT prep, their head of school meets with the target schools admissions' offices, it's quite chummy. Your child's principal probably won't write your child a letter of recommendation, your child's teachers won't be invested in his getting accepted. At private schools that's the goal. Also the SSAT score is critical. If it's below a certain number, you can pretty much forget it. The numbers at some schools: 15 applications for 1 slot! My suggestion: Have your child take the SSAT, if it's below 70th percentile, consider not applying to the most competitive schools. (Many of the schools you've listed reject applicants that don't score about the 80th percentile.) Also, these schools want standout students, real achievers with something to add to the community. The process is hard on students, who are anxious about the outcome, and involves tons of work for the parents! Also, students' classmates know they're applying to schools, because they miss class for school visits.

I'm sharing this as one who went through the process. My child got into our second choice school. It's a great fit but I sure wish I'd known more before I started the application process! Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP,
As you probably know, the competition to get into privates is ferocious. Applying from public has its disadvantages in that the students applying from private often get in-school SSAT prep, their head of school meets with the target schools admissions' offices, it's quite chummy. Your child's principal probably won't write your child a letter of recommendation, your child's teachers won't be invested in his getting accepted. At private schools that's the goal. Also the SSAT score is critical. If it's below a certain number, you can pretty much forget it. The numbers at some schools: 15 applications for 1 slot! My suggestion: Have your child take the SSAT, if it's below 70th percentile, consider not applying to the most competitive schools. (Many of the schools you've listed reject applicants that don't score about the 80th percentile.) Also, these schools want standout students, real achievers with something to add to the community. The process is hard on students, who are anxious about the outcome, and involves tons of work for the parents! Also, students' classmates know they're applying to schools, because they miss class for school visits.

I'm sharing this as one who went through the process. My child got into our second choice school. It's a great fit but I sure wish I'd known more before I started the application process! Good luck.

what bs! Sorry.

[Anonymous]

BS? What in particular?

[Anonymous]

9:19 here. Instead of castigating this post as BS, it would be more constructive for the OPs sake if you would elaborate. This was my experience, if yours was different, please share. I've spoken to a number of parents who've applied to private MS from both public and private schools and what I've relayed seems to be the consensus. It is a fact that some independents do in-school test prep for students applying to MS. It is a fact that schools have target SSAT scores. It is a fact that teachers at public schools are not as invested in getting students into privates as teachers at privates. It is a fact that applying to four or five independents from Grade 5 or 6 is a time-consuming experience and that many students find it stressful. It is a fact that the process takes students out of class for interviews and for school visits. It is a fact that competition at the schools mentioned is very tight. The 1 and 15 comes from an admissions official at one of the schools mentioned. Where exactly is the BS?