Silver Creek? Can kids use bathrooms safely and bring backpacks
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Anonymous
| Any knowledge appreciated. Thank you so much. Also interested in hearing about any positive experiences, and also experiences of antisemitism/racism. Any logistical considerations someone might not know to ask about? Value public school education, not concerned about minute differences in academics/offerings etc., most concerned about emotional climate in kid and parent communities. |
Anonymous
| We've been very happy at Silver Creek. We have a current student and a HS student who went there. My kids have always felt safe using the bathroom there. Kids are not allowed to carry backpacks during the day. They have to keep them in their locker. There were several swastika incidents when my older son was there and I thought the school handled it well - an assembly to educate students about the Holocaust and what the swastika means followed by an assembly with children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors. There haven't been any incidents this school year. Silver Creek is a great school with an active parent community and caring teachers and administrators. It's not perfect, but the principal is very transparent and accessible. |
Anonymous
| This is very helpful to hear, thank you so much. |
Anonymous
| I had one kid go through MS at Westland (pre SC) and another go through SC and I strongly strongly preferred SC. |
Anonymous
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My DC is a 6th grader. Kid is really liking school, though I wish there were more academic rigor (especially in English and science). That may be an MCPS issue and not a SCMS issue.
Kids can definitely use bathrooms. Kids bring backpacks into school but leave them in their lockers. They carry a huge binder with a strap around all day and go to their locker a few times per day. |
Anonymous
| Thank you so much, super helpful. Any insights into emo climate for girls? Any bullying issues? |
Anonymous
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I am not aware of bullying from what my daughter tells me, but I would be shocked if it doesn’t happen given that this is middle school. My daughter has made a solid group of friends beyond those she knew in ES. She does make clear that there are kids at school who are not at all engaged in the academics, and it sounds like there is some wild behavior particularly in the hallways between classes. This hasn’t bothered her. She ignores them and moves in. But I think some kids can get pulled into the drama.
In terms of academics, there are enough students in all her classes who are engaged that they are fine for her. And there are advanced cohorted classes in math and social studies, as well as pretty challenging language classes. And learning how to get organized, study for tests, and build executive functioning has been a big focus for her, beyond the academics of individual classes. I have been happy with the administration, which seems engaged, professional, and responsive. It’s not a perfect school, but it has been a pretty solid middle school experience thus far. Happy to answer other questions you may have. |
Anonymous
| My (extremely reserved) kid switched from Westland to Silver Creek as an 8th grader. I much prefer Silver Creek. It feels smaller (not sure it actually is) and somehow mellower than Westland. Kids seem to be nice and welcoming, especially if your kid gets involved in something like stage crew that allows them to spend time with a smaller group of kids on an ongoing basis. My kid has not suggested her has any concerns re: safety or bias. |
Anonymous
I agree that drama/stage crew is good, as are the music electives, for kids who are reserved. Also putting in a plug for jazz band, which is an after-school activity my kid loves. |
Anonymous
+1 |
Anonymous
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Thank you so much. Any insights on prevalence of vaping in hallways/bathrooms? Any other +1s on use of bathrooms?
When I was much younger, I felt safe in situations and settings that would merit multiple-post threads on dcum (bc I knew the kids)....would love to have more info if anyone knows. Many thanks... |
Anonymous
My 6th grader has never mentioned vaping at school. |
Anonymous
| tysm. (Vaping is esp problematic bc it's hard to detect and ppl are exposed w/o consent.) Any other +1s for SCMS? |
Anonymous
That's true at our MS, too. I keep reading about it here, but both of my kids say it doesn't happen. I'm sure it can happen but clearly not how it's being sold. |
Anonymous
Really good to know that at least nobody who is there thinks it's happening  Thank you so much.
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