First grader going to Arlington Traditional?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

I will insist on all these things and send my kid to a school that insists on all these things. It’s a parent teacher partnership. It is very different when both the parents and the school agree that high academic and behavioral standards are important. It is also very different when all their peers are doing the same thing. All schools are like this. But of course there would be opposition from parents like you who don’t think these things are important. It’s unfortunate because the culture surrounding education and what our kids need needs to change.

Thanks for this illustration of how delusional ATS parents are, I guess.

No one is saying that parents are wrong to like ATS if that's your family's thing. What I am saying is that there are other paths to creating good, productive citizens, and by the time your kid has graduated from high school, there will be no discernible difference between kids who attended ATS and kids who went elsewhere. "High academic and behavioral standards" take a lot of forms, and it's possible to insist on both without tucked-in shirts.

My kids have all graduated from high school and gotten into the sorts of colleges parents here drool over. And they did it while becoming kind, funny, responsible people who embrace the weirdness of other people.

It is what you are saying though, given your tiresome focus on the tucking shirts rule. As an ATS parent that’s all I hear about from ATS haters as if that’s the most important thing about the entire school. Most ats parents don’t care either way about the tucking shirts rule. I find the rule silly but it’s not a hill I am gonna die on because you know what? It’s just a dress code. What I care about, and what I think every parent should care about is high behavioral and academic standards. You are not gonna find a student throwing stuff in the middle of class at ATS. It simply doesn’t happen. Students know from day 1 that they have to show respect for their teachers and their classmates. That is a value that I want to instill in my kids and I believe everyone should want to instill in their kids. There are no excuses for bad behavior at ATS. At the same time the teachers are fun, loving and love their jobs. You don’t have high turnover at ATS because teachers are respected by everyone and are backed up by administration when it comes to unruly behavior. Kids come to ATS to learn as it should be and parents, admin and teachers all work together to make sure that is happening.

As for embracing weirdness. ATS is probably more diverse than the North Arlington schools many parents on DCUM send their kids to. More than 80 different countries are represented in school. Only 30% or 40% of the kids are white (forgot which percentage) and we have a high number of ESL students.

Good for your kids. Happy they graduated from top colleges. Given the fact that there are many schools in the country I don’t think any parent in ats is under the illusion that only students who go to an ATS like school will go to a top college. Obviously that’s not the case and obviously ATS is not a ticket to s top college. I’m sure that many ATS students go to mediocre colleges.

I obviously would be thrilled if my kids end up in a top college but that’s not really my goal. Given the learning standards in colleges these days, I’m not sure a top college is even my priority. My priority is kids who hold themselves to high standards, behaviorally and academically.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

I will insist on all these things and send my kid to a school that insists on all these things. It’s a parent teacher partnership. It is very different when both the parents and the school agree that high academic and behavioral standards are important. It is also very different when all their peers are doing the same thing. All schools are like this. But of course there would be opposition from parents like you who don’t think these things are important. It’s unfortunate because the culture surrounding education and what our kids need needs to change.

Thanks for this illustration of how delusional ATS parents are, I guess.

No one is saying that parents are wrong to like ATS if that's your family's thing. What I am saying is that there are other paths to creating good, productive citizens, and by the time your kid has graduated from high school, there will be no discernible difference between kids who attended ATS and kids who went elsewhere. "High academic and behavioral standards" take a lot of forms, and it's possible to insist on both without tucked-in shirts.

My kids have all graduated from high school and gotten into the sorts of colleges parents here drool over. And they did it while becoming kind, funny, responsible people who embrace the weirdness of other people.

Well, hopefully the ATS kids will be better dressed. Although, there is that blip of middle school which could change that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

I will insist on all these things and send my kid to a school that insists on all these things. It’s a parent teacher partnership. It is very different when both the parents and the school agree that high academic and behavioral standards are important. It is also very different when all their peers are doing the same thing. All schools are like this. But of course there would be opposition from parents like you who don’t think these things are important. It’s unfortunate because the culture surrounding education and what our kids need needs to change.

Thanks for this illustration of how delusional ATS parents are, I guess.

No one is saying that parents are wrong to like ATS if that's your family's thing. What I am saying is that there are other paths to creating good, productive citizens, and by the time your kid has graduated from high school, there will be no discernible difference between kids who attended ATS and kids who went elsewhere. "High academic and behavioral standards" take a lot of forms, and it's possible to insist on both without tucked-in shirts.

My kids have all graduated from high school and gotten into the sorts of colleges parents here drool over. And they did it while becoming kind, funny, responsible people who embrace the weirdness of other people.

So HB instead of ATS, then.

[Anonymous]

I clicked on this thread because I sometimes have FOMO WRT not sending my kids to ATS. Nothing I've read here makes me question my decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I clicked on this thread because I sometimes have FOMO WRT not sending my kids to ATS. Nothing I've read here makes me question my decision.

Good for you. We wish we would have gotten in … glade some people are happy with their neighborhood schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’re happy we took a spot at ATS. APS maxes out class sizes at ATS and it’s possible our kids would have smaller classes at our neighborhood school based on planning factors. But we like so many of the practices that it’s worth that trade off and longer commute time. Small amounts of nightly homework (less common in APS these days because “equity” even though ATS is really diverse too) , weekly reports from teachers, weekly assemblies that build community, expectations around student behavior. All of it adds up to a learning environment that serves its majority-minority, high EL and high farms population well.

All of this could be done in other neighborhood
Schools and some do. But overall APS moving towards watering down standards and expectations. Really happy we’re at ATS.

ATS is not high FARMS unless compared to the upper North schools.

If you do the math, it looks like the ONLY FARMS students come from VPI — so it seems likely FARMS family aren’t navigating the regular lottery. The VPI has outreach at community centers food banks and shelters.

ATS should be an auto enrolled program, and then families can decline when they are selected rather than filtering for proactive parents.

Nope, not anymore. FARMS % is very high, and ever growing due to its set up and preference with the lottery. The VPI program is very large with 3 classes, and auto-admits all siblings of large under-resourced families. These parents can be just as checked out, if they wanted, since they get help with everything, including the lottery. There are several elementary schools in S.Arlington with lower FARMS. However, ATS so far manages to have no achievement gap for these kids, nor any other groups of kids, which is remarkable. Expectations are high for everyone, especially academically, and personally I think the homework helps as well. It fosters good habits from the beginning, and detects problems or lack of parental involvement early.

The majority of its FRL students coming from a quality preK program (VPI) is likely a significant contributing factor to the narrower achievement gap at ATS. Something other schools with the highest FRL%s like Randolph and Carlin Springs do not benefit from.

Both Randolph and Carling Springs have VPI programs.

APS website says VPI programs at the following schools:

Neighborhood schools:

Abingdon, Alice West Fleet, Ashlawn, Barcroft, Barrett, Carlin Springs, Dr. Charles R. Drew, Hoffman-Boston, Innovation, Long Branch, Oakridge, Randolph

Option Schools:

Arlington Traditional School
Campbell
Escuela Key and Claremont (Dual Language English and Spanish Immersion) program. Note: Families can only apply to ONE Dual Language School based on their assigned neighborhood school.

My point is: the majority of underprivileged/ELL students enrolled in each of those schools do not come from VPI. Whereas, ATS naturally has a lower percentage of those students overall to begin with and a significant portion of those that are there come from the VPI program.

To add: what is the "achievement gap" between the FRL and non FRL students in the immersion programs v. ATS? Does partially learning in their native language impact the gap? If so, does it do so equally as ATS or vice versa? What % of ATS' FRL students come from the VPI program v. % of Claremont or key or any other school?

I can't find APS data on achievement by FRL status. But on every other subgroup metric, ATS outperforms immersion. Both are self-selected via lottery. Looking at the equity dashboard, ATS has 35% EL, claremont has 32%, and Key has 35%. But ATS outperforms both schools by huge margins on every public measure (SOL, DIBEL, Math Inventory).

All three schools also have VPI. Of the 3 schools, Claremont has the largest ratio of VPI/total enrollment, then ATS, then key.

What point are you trying to make? That fewer kids are in immersion VPI and that explains why ATS is leaps and bounds higher in achievement? Not true. Claremont has the most kids in VPI relative to their size.

ATS has less EL? Also not true. ATS is as high as Key and higher than Claremont.

ATS has more engaged parents than immersion? All three are lottery schools.

So why does ATS run laps around other lottery schools? Look at the data for montessori too. Highest ration of pre-k and lowest number of EL of the option schools.

There is an outreach program to Spanish speaking families for the immersion schools. They track them down because they need the ratios. There is zero outreach for ATS. It’s mentioned in a presentation and has a lottery website.

This is not true. APS does equal advertising for all choice programs. The PTA might work a bit harder to let families know about certain programs, but APS treats them equally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

I will insist on all these things and send my kid to a school that insists on all these things. It’s a parent teacher partnership. It is very different when both the parents and the school agree that high academic and behavioral standards are important. It is also very different when all their peers are doing the same thing. All schools are like this. But of course there would be opposition from parents like you who don’t think these things are important. It’s unfortunate because the culture surrounding education and what our kids need needs to change.

Thanks for this illustration of how delusional ATS parents are, I guess.

No one is saying that parents are wrong to like ATS if that's your family's thing. What I am saying is that there are other paths to creating good, productive citizens, and by the time your kid has graduated fro high school, there will be no discernible difference between kids who attended ATS and kids who went elsewhere. "High academic and behavioral standards" take a lot of forms, and it's possible to insist on both without tucked-in shirts.

My kids have all graduated from high school and gotten into the sorts of colleges parents here drool over. And they did it while becoming kind, funny, responsible people who embrace the weirdness of other people.

Well, hopefully the ATS kids will be better dressed. Although, there is that blip of middle school which could change that.

I think most parents' goal in middle school goal is hygiene, not fashion

::cue some ATS parent announcing that all ATS graduates stay ahead of puberty BO because high standards::

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’re happy we took a spot at ATS. APS maxes out class sizes at ATS and it’s possible our kids would have smaller classes at our neighborhood school based on planning factors. But we like so many of the practices that it’s worth that trade off and longer commute time. Small amounts of nightly homework (less common in APS these days because “equity” even though ATS is really diverse too) , weekly reports from teachers, weekly assemblies that build community, expectations around student behavior. All of it adds up to a learning environment that serves its majority-minority, high EL and high farms population well.

All of this could be done in other neighborhood
Schools and some do. But overall APS moving towards watering down standards and expectations. Really happy we’re at ATS.

ATS is not high FARMS unless compared to the upper North schools.

If you do the math, it looks like the ONLY FARMS students come from VPI — so it seems likely FARMS family aren’t navigating the regular lottery. The VPI has outreach at community centers food banks and shelters.

ATS should be an auto enrolled program, and then families can decline when they are selected rather than filtering for proactive parents.

Nope, not anymore. FARMS % is very high, and ever growing due to its set up and preference with the lottery. The VPI program is very large with 3 classes, and auto-admits all siblings of large under-resourced families. These parents can be just as checked out, if they wanted, since they get help with everything, including the lottery. There are several elementary schools in S.Arlington with lower FARMS. However, ATS so far manages to have no achievement gap for these kids, nor any other groups of kids, which is remarkable. Expectations are high for everyone, especially academically, and personally I think the homework helps as well. It fosters good habits from the beginning, and detects problems or lack of parental involvement early.

The majority of its FRL students coming from a quality preK program (VPI) is likely a significant contributing factor to the narrower achievement gap at ATS. Something other schools with the highest FRL%s like Randolph and Carlin Springs do not benefit from.

Both Randolph and Carling Springs have VPI programs.

APS website says VPI programs at the following schools:

Neighborhood schools:

Abingdon, Alice West Fleet, Ashlawn, Barcroft, Barrett, Carlin Springs, Dr. Charles R. Drew, Hoffman-Boston, Innovation, Long Branch, Oakridge, Randolph

Option Schools:

Arlington Traditional School
Campbell
Escuela Key and Claremont (Dual Language English and Spanish Immersion) program. Note: Families can only apply to ONE Dual Language School based on their assigned neighborhood school.

My point is: the majority of underprivileged/ELL students enrolled in each of those schools do not come from VPI. Whereas, ATS naturally has a lower percentage of those students overall to begin with and a significant portion of those that are there come from the VPI program.

To add: what is the "achievement gap" between the FRL and non FRL students in the immersion programs v. ATS? Does partially learning in their native language impact the gap? If so, does it do so equally as ATS or vice versa? What % of ATS' FRL students come from the VPI program v. % of Claremont or key or any other school?

I can't find APS data on achievement by FRL status. But on every other subgroup metric, ATS outperforms immersion. Both are self-selected via lottery. Looking at the equity dashboard, ATS has 35% EL, claremont has 32%, and Key has 35%. But ATS outperforms both schools by huge margins on every public measure (SOL, DIBEL, Math Inventory).

All three schools also have VPI. Of the 3 schools, Claremont has the largest ratio of VPI/total enrollment, then ATS, then key.

What point are you trying to make? That fewer kids are in immersion VPI and that explains why ATS is leaps and bounds higher in achievement? Not true. Claremont has the most kids in VPI relative to their size.

ATS has less EL? Also not true. ATS is as high as Key and higher than Claremont.

ATS has more engaged parents than immersion? All three are lottery schools.

So why does ATS run laps around other lottery schools? Look at the data for montessori too. Highest ration of pre-k and lowest number of EL of the option schools.

There is an outreach program to Spanish speaking families for the immersion schools. They track them down because they need the ratios. There is zero outreach for ATS. It’s mentioned in a presentation and has a lottery website.

This is not true. APS does equal advertising for all choice programs. The PTA might work a bit harder to let families know about certain programs, but APS treats them equally.

Sorry this is true, it was part of the literature handed out about how important 50/50 was and how moving it would kill it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

You do know that there huge numbers of kids in APS who are not reading and doing math on grade level, right? You do know that there are alot of parents paying for tutors because APS has not taught their kids to read or do math, right? ATS has the lowest number of kids who need support of any school in APS. More parents want that for their kids.

Yep!!!! Can't agree more. We are not at ATS but have friends with kiddos there who are the same age. It's drastic the difference between them (yes kids are different but it really comes out with their reading). Our kids were "reading" by guessing. Using the pictures for everything. We have had to pay out of pocket for a tutor from 1st to 4th grade to help correct this and finally get our DC on grade level reading. This only happened because we can afford the tutor. Not everyone can and I don't think anyone should have to. APS needs to step things up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’re happy we took a spot at ATS. APS maxes out class sizes at ATS and it’s possible our kids would have smaller classes at our neighborhood school based on planning factors. But we like so many of the practices that it’s worth that trade off and longer commute time. Small amounts of nightly homework (less common in APS these days because “equity” even though ATS is really diverse too) , weekly reports from teachers, weekly assemblies that build community, expectations around student behavior. All of it adds up to a learning environment that serves its majority-minority, high EL and high farms population well.

All of this could be done in other neighborhood
Schools and some do. But overall APS moving towards watering down standards and expectations. Really happy we’re at ATS.

ATS is not high FARMS unless compared to the upper North schools.

If you do the math, it looks like the ONLY FARMS students come from VPI — so it seems likely FARMS family aren’t navigating the regular lottery. The VPI has outreach at community centers food banks and shelters.

ATS should be an auto enrolled program, and then families can decline when they are selected rather than filtering for proactive parents.

Nope, not anymore. FARMS % is very high, and ever growing due to its set up and preference with the lottery. The VPI program is very large with 3 classes, and auto-admits all siblings of large under-resourced families. These parents can be just as checked out, if they wanted, since they get help with everything, including the lottery. There are several elementary schools in S.Arlington with lower FARMS. However, ATS so far manages to have no achievement gap for these kids, nor any other groups of kids, which is remarkable. Expectations are high for everyone, especially academically, and personally I think the homework helps as well. It fosters good habits from the beginning, and detects problems or lack of parental involvement early.

The majority of its FRL students coming from a quality preK program (VPI) is likely a significant contributing factor to the narrower achievement gap at ATS. Something other schools with the highest FRL%s like Randolph and Carlin Springs do not benefit from.

Both Randolph and Carling Springs have VPI programs.

APS website says VPI programs at the following schools:

Neighborhood schools:

Abingdon, Alice West Fleet, Ashlawn, Barcroft, Barrett, Carlin Springs, Dr. Charles R. Drew, Hoffman-Boston, Innovation, Long Branch, Oakridge, Randolph

Option Schools:

Arlington Traditional School
Campbell
Escuela Key and Claremont (Dual Language English and Spanish Immersion) program. Note: Families can only apply to ONE Dual Language School based on their assigned neighborhood school.

My point is: the majority of underprivileged/ELL students enrolled in each of those schools do not come from VPI. Whereas, ATS naturally has a lower percentage of those students overall to begin with and a significant portion of those that are there come from the VPI program.

To add: what is the "achievement gap" between the FRL and non FRL students in the immersion programs v. ATS? Does partially learning in their native language impact the gap? If so, does it do so equally as ATS or vice versa? What % of ATS' FRL students come from the VPI program v. % of Claremont or key or any other school?

I can't find APS data on achievement by FRL status. But on every other subgroup metric, ATS outperforms immersion. Both are self-selected via lottery. Looking at the equity dashboard, ATS has 35% EL, claremont has 32%, and Key has 35%. But ATS outperforms both schools by huge margins on every public measure (SOL, DIBEL, Math Inventory).

All three schools also have VPI. Of the 3 schools, Claremont has the largest ratio of VPI/total enrollment, then ATS, then key.

What point are you trying to make? That fewer kids are in immersion VPI and that explains why ATS is leaps and bounds higher in achievement? Not true. Claremont has the most kids in VPI relative to their size.

ATS has less EL? Also not true. ATS is as high as Key and higher than Claremont.

ATS has more engaged parents than immersion? All three are lottery schools.

So why does ATS run laps around other lottery schools? Look at the data for montessori too. Highest ration of pre-k and lowest number of EL of the option schools.

There is an outreach program to Spanish speaking families for the immersion schools. They track them down because they need the ratios. There is zero outreach for ATS. It’s mentioned in a presentation and has a lottery website.

This is not true. APS does equal advertising for all choice programs. The PTA might work a bit harder to let families know about certain programs, but APS treats them equally.

Sorry this is true, it was part of the literature handed out about how important 50/50 was and how moving it would kill it.

What are you talking about? Did you get a random flyer one day from the group opposing the move of Esceula Key and you have somehow made up this story about APS doing special outreach to Hispanic families? Huh? I know that APS treats all choice schools equally in "adverstising" because I've had that conversation with people who work at APS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

I will insist on all these things and send my kid to a school that insists on all these things. It’s a parent teacher partnership. It is very different when both the parents and the school agree that high academic and behavioral standards are important. It is also very different when all their peers are doing the same thing. All schools are like this. But of course there would be opposition from parents like you who don’t think these things are important. It’s unfortunate because the culture surrounding education and what our kids need needs to change.

Thanks for this illustration of how delusional ATS parents are, I guess.

No one is saying that parents are wrong to like ATS if that's your family's thing. What I am saying is that there are other paths to creating good, productive citizens, and by the time your kid has graduated fro high school, there will be no discernible difference between kids who attended ATS and kids who went elsewhere. "High academic and behavioral standards" take a lot of forms, and it's possible to insist on both without tucked-in shirts.

My kids have all graduated from high school and gotten into the sorts of colleges parents here drool over. And they did it while becoming kind, funny, responsible people who embrace the weirdness of other people.

Well, hopefully the ATS kids will be better dressed. Although, there is that blip of middle school which could change that.

I think most parents' goal in middle school goal is hygiene, not fashion

::cue some ATS parent announcing that all ATS graduates stay ahead of puberty BO because high standards::

I doubt that’s what PP meant. I’m sure it’s about looking clean and presentable which is part of hygiene.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

You do know that there huge numbers of kids in APS who are not reading and doing math on grade level, right? You do know that there are alot of parents paying for tutors because APS has not taught their kids to read or do math, right? ATS has the lowest number of kids who need support of any school in APS. More parents want that for their kids.

Yep!!!! Can't agree more. We are not at ATS but have friends with kiddos there who are the same age. It's drastic the difference between them (yes kids are different but it really comes out with their reading). Our kids were "reading" by guessing. Using the pictures for everything. We have had to pay out of pocket for a tutor from 1st to 4th grade to help correct this and finally get our DC on grade level reading. This only happened because we can afford the tutor. Not everyone can and I don't think anyone should have to. APS needs to step things up.

We’re paying for reading tutors now and I can’t believe we spend this much to live in Arlington and have to pay for reading tutors. I wish we had considered ATS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

You do know that there huge numbers of kids in APS who are not reading and doing math on grade level, right? You do know that there are alot of parents paying for tutors because APS has not taught their kids to read or do math, right? ATS has the lowest number of kids who need support of any school in APS. More parents want that for their kids.

Yep!!!! Can't agree more. We are not at ATS but have friends with kiddos there who are the same age. It's drastic the difference between them (yes kids are different but it really comes out with their reading). Our kids were "reading" by guessing. Using the pictures for everything. We have had to pay out of pocket for a tutor from 1st to 4th grade to help correct this and finally get our DC on grade level reading. This only happened because we can afford the tutor. Not everyone can and I don't think anyone should have to. APS needs to step things up.

We’re paying for reading tutors now and I can’t believe we spend this much to live in Arlington and have to pay for reading tutors. I wish we had considered ATS.

The most important thing is you figured it out early and that your kids are getting the help they need. I would write to the school board, Dr Duran, the ELA Department, and perhaps even the principal of your school. You should explain what you are doing and how much you are paying to improve your children’s reading skills. APS should know that the improvements that some kids are making in reading are the result of their parents paying for tutors and not because of APS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

You do know that there huge numbers of kids in APS who are not reading and doing math on grade level, right? You do know that there are alot of parents paying for tutors because APS has not taught their kids to read or do math, right? ATS has the lowest number of kids who need support of any school in APS. More parents want that for their kids.

Yep!!!! Can't agree more. We are not at ATS but have friends with kiddos there who are the same age. It's drastic the difference between them (yes kids are different but it really comes out with their reading). Our kids were "reading" by guessing. Using the pictures for everything. We have had to pay out of pocket for a tutor from 1st to 4th grade to help correct this and finally get our DC on grade level reading. This only happened because we can afford the tutor. Not everyone can and I don't think anyone should have to. APS needs to step things up.

We’re paying for reading tutors now and I can’t believe we spend this much to live in Arlington and have to pay for reading tutors. I wish we had considered ATS.

The most important thing is you figured it out early and that your kids are getting the help they need. I would write to the school board, Dr Duran, the ELA Department, and perhaps even the principal of your school. You should explain what you are doing and how much you are paying to improve your children’s reading skills. APS should know that the improvements that some kids are making in reading are the result of their parents paying for tutors and not because of APS.

Thanks for that suggestion. It seems like it's really common for APS parents to need reading tutors and I've been shocked that the problem is so widespread with or without the pandemic. I just assumed that school would teach my kid to read. We read at home and go to the library and have too many books, but never expected that I would need to pay someone to teach my kid to read. We'll be trying for the ATS lottery for our second kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's remember that ATS's "success" refers to its standardized test scores. You may like it's culture or not. But if your kid didn't get in and you're disappointed, you can replicate the requirements and test prep at home while your kid attends their neighborhood school.

And in 6th grade it won't matter anymore.

Why should parents have to fill the gaps for schools that aren’t teaching their kids to read and do math? This is not a new problem in APS. I give the superintendent credit for putting it on a dash board for the community to see how many kids in APS need support for foundational skills.

ATS is getting it right which is why the wait list is so huge there.

You do know that other schools are teaching kids, right? If you want your kid to play an instrument and tuck in their shirt, insist that they do so. If you want your kid to do homework every night, give them some worksheets. If you want your kid held back if they aren't reading in kindergarten, say so.

You do know that there huge numbers of kids in APS who are not reading and doing math on grade level, right? You do know that there are alot of parents paying for tutors because APS has not taught their kids to read or do math, right? ATS has the lowest number of kids who need support of any school in APS. More parents want that for their kids.

Yep!!!! Can't agree more. We are not at ATS but have friends with kiddos there who are the same age. It's drastic the difference between them (yes kids are different but it really comes out with their reading). Our kids were "reading" by guessing. Using the pictures for everything. We have had to pay out of pocket for a tutor from 1st to 4th grade to help correct this and finally get our DC on grade level reading. This only happened because we can afford the tutor. Not everyone can and I don't think anyone should have to. APS needs to step things up.

We’re paying for reading tutors now and I can’t believe we spend this much to live in Arlington and have to pay for reading tutors. I wish we had considered ATS.

The most important thing is you figured it out early and that your kids are getting the help they need. I would write to the school board, Dr Duran, the ELA Department, and perhaps even the principal of your school. You should explain what you are doing and how much you are paying to improve your children’s reading skills. APS should know that the improvements that some kids are making in reading are the result of their parents paying for tutors and not because of APS.

Thanks for that suggestion. It seems like it's really common for APS parents to need reading tutors and I've been shocked that the problem is so widespread with or without the pandemic. I just assumed that school would teach my kid to read. We read at home and go to the library and have too many books, but never expected that I would need to pay someone to teach my kid to read. We'll be trying for the ATS lottery for our second kid.

We are in the same boat with attempting to get our second in at ATS. I don't even care that it would mean two different drop-off locations and two different pickups. With the amount of time and money we put in to continue paying for supplemental help for our 5th grader, it would be worth it!