Feedback on lottery for K
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Anonymous
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We are in a neighborhood DCPS (not our IB but nearby) for PK4. We put the school on our lottery list primarily because of proximity, and also because we knew several parents with kids there and they seemed to like it. We've been really happy there so far (obviously just a few months, but good experience overall). They have been phenomenal on Covid issues, which has been great. But also our kid just seems very happy and the teachers are fantastic.
We are inclined to just stay -- easy commute, we like the school a lot so far, we've learned enough about upper grades to know there are some good programs that seem to appeal to our kid's emerging interests. However, it's a DCPS with a not-great MS feed. Our IB feeds to a different MS that is actually a worse option. I know lots can change between now and when our child actually attends MS, but currently, based on what we know of these schools we are really unenthusiastic about that track. The feeder HS is even worse. So... do we try to lottery this year to find a school with a better MS/HS feed for K next year? I feel weird even considering it because MS/HS are so far off and we are really happy with this school. But I also have no idea what we'll do otherwise. I guess try to lottery into Latin or Basis or Inspired Teaching? Can you lottery into IT for middle or would it be worth it? We are not IB for Deal and will not be. Just curious how others think through this. I would hate to move away from a school we like for this reason, but I'd also hate to get to 3rd Grade and panic and realize we have to make a move in the middle of elementary. I know this is the perpetual DC public school problem. |
Anonymous
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I think a lot depends on how well you think you'll like the upper grades at your current school.
You can definitely lottery into ITS for middle school, tons of people do for 5th and 6th (or 4th). Review these stats, but bear in mind that the number of offers made is different from the people's waitlist numbers. So like if there were 40 people on the waitlist for 6th grade and they made 28 offers, they might have given an offer to everyone who was still on the list at that time. Because people leave lists. If you lottery for ITS in 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th, chances are you'll get in at some point. IMO it would be totally worth it if you're into the small nurturing progressive school thing. But not if your kid wants the hustle and bustle of a big school with a lot of sports. It just depends what you and your kid like. It's very unlikely that you'll get into Latin but you could totally get into BASIS. You might also check out Cap City if that's convenient for you. And SWW@Francis Stevens. https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/aaron2446/viz/MSDCSeatsandWaitlistOfferData/MSDCPublicDisplay |
Anonymous
| The lottery gets a lot easier K and stays a lot easy for upper grades. I wouldn't leave a school you're happy with, that is convenient for you, because of these concerns. Yes, the years fly by and it'll be here before you know it, but if you re-open this question in a few years you'll have 4 spins of the wheel and that will surely get you in somewhere that you're okay with. You only need to have one good number, and it doesn't need to be great. |
Anonymous
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If it's Seaton, stay where you are!
Sincerely, ITS parent. |
Anonymous
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Thanks PPs! That is helpful. We are actually interested in ITS for elementary as well -- we did not lottery for it last year because we unsure about the commute, but our kid has developed a real passion for art and is also an introvert and a little bit socially reserved, so it feels like it could be a good fit. But again, we like what we're getting where we are at the moment. I guess on some level I'm really trying to figure out if we should try to lottery for ITS for K or not, and it really comes down to if we can commit to the commute and what the commute would do for our family schedule and dynamic. It's not an insane commute (many people do much worse), but it's not the 10 minute walk we currently have going either. But if we totally love the school it would be worth it, especially since it would resolve MS for us as well. Just hard to know if we'd really love it -- it sounds just right but every school has downsides and it's so hard at this age to know.
Will check out Cap City. Is there a reason we won't get into Latin? Just because everyone lotteries for it? I'm still not totally clear on all the MS feeds and which schools are tougher to get into. I feel like I barely have a handle on the elementary schools! |
Anonymous
It's not Seaton, but can you explain why you feel this way? Do you have specific criticisms of ITS? |
Anonymous
Well, I like the new ITS head of school better than I liked the one we had before. And this school year is going a lot better. But I would say that Seaton's math curriculum and teaching is superior to ITS-- and it shows in their tests scores, especially their growth scores. Not all of our teachers have been that great at ITS-- all have been adequate but many are inexperienced and some are just meh. Some are truly great though. The adult-child ratio is really high and I like that, but they're certainly dropping a lot of their budget on staff rather than other things. Science doesn't get much attention. It lacks economic diversity (though the at-risk preference may improve that) and the parents can be annoyingly "woke". The test scores aren't any better than demographics would indicate-- it's not like high income kids on grade level is some huge pedagogical breakthrough, right? And it gets kind of awkward in the upper grades. People who can afford private school and people whose children will get into an application high school stick around, the others have to make other plans. And even for me whose kid tests really well, it's stressful not to have a real plan for high school. Seaton's garden is superior, ITS is a sad desiccated mess. And walking to school is sooooo nice. Traffic at ITS has been a cluster this year, lots of honking and yelling. |
Anonymous
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Re-enroll at your current DCPS, put ITS at the top of your lottery list, and then see if you have to make the decision or not.
If you stay at your DCPS, lottery again for 5th. That's when some ITS kids move to Latin or Basis and more spots open up. |
Anonymous
At Latin, the only year they offer more than a handful of seats is 5th, and they tend to go to siblings. A lot of people try to get in, so it's hard to get in. There is some art at ITS but no more than any other school-- once a week special for *part* of the year. The thing with ITS is they say they have a lot of specials, but the specials don't last the whole year. A class will have dance OR PE in a trimester, not both. I don't know that it's any better or worse than any other school for introverts or reserved kids. What it does have is a lot of smart kids who read and do math above grade level. But plenty who are on or below grade level too. And it just isn't that hard to get in to ITS in K or any grade above it. So there's no reason to rush the transition if you aren't sure. |
Anonymous
This is really helpful, thank you. This has been a really clarifying thread so far! I appreciate all the unvarnished feedback from you and others. |
Anonymous
This is a small thing, but while kids don't have an Art class all year long, there is visual art integrated into other subjects. E.g., making dioramas in ELA, Social Studies, Science; math sculptures; painting and illustrating in Science. And there are performing arts specials, Dance as PP said and also Theatre. |
Anonymous
| They just announced three MORE Wednesday half days btw. ITS talks all woke but is very casual about inconveniencing parents whenever they feel like it. There is aftercare, but only for people who can afford the YMCA rates. Beware, OP. Sometimes DCPS parents don't know how good they have it. |
Anonymous
| Can you give an example of the woke stuff at ITS? |
Anonymous
| I'd stick with the school that is working for you. You might like your IB or feeder middle school just fine in 2029 when your kid is actually going to go there. They might redraw boundaries and you could have rights to a different school you like. A charter could open down the block from you. Schools you currently think you'd like for MS might close, or change, or stay the same but not be a good fit for who your kid turns out to be in 2029. If you're happy where you are, stay. If you continue to be happy but wind up wanting a different middle school option, you can lottery for 5th grade for charters that start at 5th (Latin, BASIS), charters that start earlier but go through 8th or 12th (ITS, Cap City, Two Rivers, Haynes, maybe some DCI feeders) and DCPS elementaries that feed into middle schools you prefer. You'll likely get in somewhere, and if you don't you can try again for 6th. And if that doesn't work you can move or consider private school or do a less-than-ideal 6th grade year and re-evaluate for 7th grade. But that's all so far away that I'd take things a couple years at a time and not get too bogged down in what your current 4 year old will be like, or need, at age 12. |
Anonymous
They're often talking and talking and talking about equity using all the modern terminology, but their actions just don't match up. Like today-- three half days more than what was already scheduled, and the school is paying so that families enrolled in YMCA aftercare can have free care. But everyone who's not enrolled in the aftercare (which costs way more than DCPS aftercare!) is just SOL and gets no help. They treat parents like everyone has a flexible job or SAHP, basically. And that's not equity. Soooo many of the families say all the woke stuff, but really they're at ITS to avoid the high-poverty, high-trauma environment of Ward 5 DCPS, and they know it. So it's really awkward. |