Any MV families considering a move to Bancroft to avoid horrendous commute next year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those considering Bancroft -- there are 19 Bancroft 6th graders on the honor roll at Deal this year. That's out of probably fewer than 40 Bancroft graduates who went to Deal. This school produces smart, high-achieving kids.

Bravo!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is the entire class. And, again, it would be good to hear from parents of older kids at other bilingual schools with respect to how their kids are doing in the target language (which of course isn't measured on the standardized tests). My impression from my friend whose son is at a well-regarded Chinese charter is that everyone in the 3rd grade classroom is still reading the equivalent of "cat" and "dog" in Chinese, whereas her son (who is actually reading fluently) is the exception rather than the rule. I know of a 5th grader who transferred to Bancroft from a well-regarded bilngual charter who was reading at the Kindergarten level in Spanish (the spoken language was fluent; written was not) when they got to Bancroft. They jumped several levels during their year at Bancroft and are now in advanced Spanish classes in their middle school.

This seems horrible to me, and I am at another immersion school. I haven't seen the data for my school, but all the children seem to be reading pretty well in Spanish by the first grade. I think Chinese is a different story, so I wouldn't even dare to compare, but that is an absolutely shocking percentage to me about a spanish immersion school.

Ok, pls post your own results. "Seem to be reading pretty well" doesn't count. And share your school. I shared ours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those considering Bancroft -- there are 19 Bancroft 6th graders on the honor roll at Deal this year. That's out of probably fewer than 40 Bancroft graduates who went to Deal. This school produces smart, high-achieving kids.

Bravo!

To make honor roll at Deal, a student must earn a B- or better in each course.

[Anonymous]

How is a B- honor roll? Is that true?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How is a B- honor roll? Is that true?

Yes. Straight from the Alice Deal MS website.

[Anonymous]

You mean you went to the Web site with the sole purpose of belittling the accomplishments of these kids? You are a real peach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How is a B- honor roll? Is that true?

Correct A's and B's are considered being on the honor roll regardless if it's a + or -. My DS at DEAL always for a C in math which always messed him up. We got a tutor and now it's smooth sailing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You mean you went to the Web site with the sole purpose of belittling the accomplishments of these kids? You are a real peach.

No my son is a 6th grader at Deal. If I wanted to be really gratuitous I would go look up a communication from the school (not available to the general public) sharing the really high percentage of kids that make honor roll.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They are moving to the JF Cook building in NoMa

The new location is in fact in a neighborhood called Truxton Circle. NoMa is in NE.

True, but this kind of neighborhood pedantry belongs on the PoPville blog, not here.

The new MV location is 1 block west of what is "officially" NoMa.

And 2-3 blocks north of possibly the highest concentration of gun crime west of the Anacostia river: Sursum Corda and the notorious NY Ave/N Capitol intersection.

No, NoMa does not extend north above New York Avenue, so it's one block west and 2-3 blocks north of NoMA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Other than the shooting on NY Ave and NCap that happened two yrs ago, FYI, SOME is on the same block as MV and they bus in homeless people EVERY morning so they can eat. If you have a problem with that MV may not be the school for you.

Not true. Mundo Verde is on P st. SOME is on N st.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gonzaga High School is a few blocks away and the new buildings for NPR and Walmart are nearby. Lots and lots of change going on. Honestly, I think you have just as much of a chance, if not more, of experiencing crime outside of the Target or Columbia Heights Metro. I think they made a good choice given the limited amount of real estate made available by the city. Sure, I'd love to be in a less congested area with lots of green space, but we all know that the city isn't offering up those kinds of properties.

I agree with you that MV had few options and their choice isn't a bad one. Plus, Truxton/NoMa are changing for the better.

However your statement in bold is completely false, if you are talking about serious crime. There was a fatal drive-by shooting in Co Heights a few year's back (2010?) and it made the FRONT PAGE of the Post because it was considered so shocking that such a crime could still occur in CoHi. Whereas drive-bys still happen on a monthly basis in Truxton, and it never makes the news unless a dozen people get shot (as happened a year or so ago). Give me a break.

If you are talking about petty crime, purse snatching, yes, this is more likely in absolute numbers in CoHi, because CoHi is the most densely populated neighborhood in the city and has the most foot traffic. But it is much safer on a per capita basis than Truxton.

This is such BS. Completely wrong and shows such an inability to understand the dynamics of the neighborhood. Columbia Heights has frequent violence and shootings. Perhaps not right outside the metro, but 13th and Harvard, for example, has had more shootings than anywhere else in the city at times. That is not the case with Truxton Circle. Look at the crime maps.

[Anonymous]

So, what did MTP families get into/do? Bancroft? MV?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gonzaga High School is a few blocks away and the new buildings for NPR and Walmart are nearby. Lots and lots of change going on. Honestly, I think you have just as much of a chance, if not more, of experiencing crime outside of the Target or Columbia Heights Metro. I think they made a good choice given the limited amount of real estate made available by the city. Sure, I'd love to be in a less congested area with lots of green space, but we all know that the city isn't offering up those kinds of properties.

I agree with you that MV had few options and their choice isn't a bad one. Plus, Truxton/NoMa are changing for the better.

However your statement in bold is completely false, if you are talking about serious crime. There was a fatal drive-by shooting in Co Heights a few year's back (2010?) and it made the FRONT PAGE of the Post because it was considered so shocking that such a crime could still occur in CoHi. Whereas drive-bys still happen on a monthly basis in Truxton, and it never makes the news unless a dozen people get shot (as happened a year or so ago). Give me a break.

If you are talking about petty crime, purse snatching, yes, this is more likely in absolute numbers in CoHi, because CoHi is the most densely populated neighborhood in the city and has the most foot traffic. But it is much safer on a per capita basis than Truxton.

This is such BS. Completely wrong and shows such an inability to understand the dynamics of the neighborhood. Columbia Heights has frequent violence and shootings. Perhaps not right outside the metro, but 13th and Harvard, for example, has had more shootings than anywhere else in the city at times. That is not the case with Truxton Circle. Look at the crime maps.

LOL!! Crime maps only show the crimes that are reported. Most victims of crime in Truxton Circle aren't reporting the crimes. Guess who isn't understanding the dynamics of the neighborhood!!

[Anonymous]

How long would a commute from 16th Street heights to MVs new location be in the morning? Bummed about it moving

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is the entire class. And, again, it would be good to hear from parents of older kids at other bilingual schools with respect to how their kids are doing in the target language (which of course isn't measured on the standardized tests). My impression from my friend whose son is at a well-regarded Chinese charter is that everyone in the 3rd grade classroom is still reading the equivalent of "cat" and "dog" in Chinese, whereas her son (who is actually reading fluently) is the exception rather than the rule. I know of a 5th grader who transferred to Bancroft from a well-regarded bilngual charter who was reading at the Kindergarten level in Spanish (the spoken language was fluent; written was not) when they got to Bancroft. They jumped several levels during their year at Bancroft and are now in advanced Spanish classes in their middle school.

This seems horrible to me, and I am at another immersion school. I haven't seen the data for my school, but all the children seem to be reading pretty well in Spanish by the first grade. I think Chinese is a different story, so I wouldn't even dare to compare, but that is an absolutely shocking percentage to me about a spanish immersion school.

It's completely irrelevant for a Chinese school, where literacy is character-based and not phonetic.

Incidentally, doesn't the Assistant Principal at Bancroft actually send her children to a Spanish Immersion charter?