recent experiences at takoma park elementary

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is there are 9 classes of 25+ kids per class. I’m trying to wrap my head around how things function as a school that big! Is it easy for kids to make friends? Does the staff know the kids names? Are lunch/recess overwhelming? It might work great(?), but I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it all!

Like clockwork!

The size of the school is no big deal. In fact, I feel it's more of a benefit.

It’s no big deal that kids get shuffled into new classes where they only know 1-2 kids every year? That the lunchroom is chaotic since there are so many kids? That there are only a few adults supervising a large number of students at recess? I’m willing to believe that there are benefits to a larger school for older grades when there could be more specialized course offerings, for example. Here I am not seeing a benefit. I would love to hear more.

You do realize it's pretty much the same at every single school. Like if you have fewer classes per grade, you would probably just create great bands to do lunch and recess together. So you would still have about the same number of kids at lunch and recess at the same time

Except these ‘bands’ change every year. PP, there are some very big downsides to being in large elementary schools and not really an upside. My kids had 240 in their grade at TPES and Piney Branch. If I’d had a chance to send them to a smaller school I would have. Ironically we moved here for the schools but I didn’t realize just how big they were. My kid suffered for it as they didn’t start in K and were used to a very close school community. I doubt the principal ever knew who either of mine were, for example.

There are about 600 kids at Takoma elementary and 600 kids at piney Branch. I realize it might be different from where you are from, but in this area that's pretty much the norm. I don't think there's a lot of elementary schools that have fewer than 400 kids unless it's a very special program

I can tell you where I am, it’s Takoma park, and it’s not the norm in Montgomery county. That’s 1200 kids in a K-5 elementary school. That’s huge and much bigger than most other schools. I guess you don’t realize that each school houses only three grades (K-2 and 3-5).

No, that's 1200 kids in two elementary schools, or 600 per school, which is about average for MCPS.

Are you listening to yourself? The key part of how many kids per grade. It’s the number of kids in your grade and the number of classes that determines how easy it is to make connections, get a sense of community etc. Also, it’s essentially constable to one elementary school. Did you miss the part where they are K-2 and 3-5?

You seem a little unhinged. Maybe take a deep breath and consider going back on the meds.

Well that was uncalled for. Are you having a bad day?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is there are 9 classes of 25+ kids per class. I’m trying to wrap my head around how things function as a school that big! Is it easy for kids to make friends? Does the staff know the kids names? Are lunch/recess overwhelming? It might work great(?), but I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it all!

Like clockwork!

The size of the school is no big deal. In fact, I feel it's more of a benefit.

It’s no big deal that kids get shuffled into new classes where they only know 1-2 kids every year? That the lunchroom is chaotic since there are so many kids? That there are only a few adults supervising a large number of students at recess? I’m willing to believe that there are benefits to a larger school for older grades when there could be more specialized course offerings, for example. Here I am not seeing a benefit. I would love to hear more.

You do realize it's pretty much the same at every single school. Like if you have fewer classes per grade, you would probably just create great bands to do lunch and recess together. So you would still have about the same number of kids at lunch and recess at the same time

Except these ‘bands’ change every year. PP, there are some very big downsides to being in large elementary schools and not really an upside. My kids had 240 in their grade at TPES and Piney Branch. If I’d had a chance to send them to a smaller school I would have. Ironically we moved here for the schools but I didn’t realize just how big they were. My kid suffered for it as they didn’t start in K and were used to a very close school community. I doubt the principal ever knew who either of mine were, for example.

There are about 600 kids at Takoma elementary and 600 kids at piney Branch. I realize it might be different from where you are from, but in this area that's pretty much the norm. I don't think there's a lot of elementary schools that have fewer than 400 kids unless it's a very special program

I can tell you where I am, it’s Takoma park, and it’s not the norm in Montgomery county. That’s 1200 kids in a K-5 elementary school. That’s huge and much bigger than most other schools. I guess you don’t realize that each school houses only three grades (K-2 and 3-5).

No, that's 1200 kids in two elementary schools, or 600 per school, which is about average for MCPS.

Are you listening to yourself? The key part of how many kids per grade. It’s the number of kids in your grade and the number of classes that determines how easy it is to make connections, get a sense of community etc. Also, it’s essentially constable to one elementary school. Did you miss the part where they are K-2 and 3-5?

You seem a little unhinged. Maybe take a deep breath and consider going back on the meds.

The party of kindness and tolerance, ladies and gents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is there are 9 classes of 25+ kids per class. I’m trying to wrap my head around how things function as a school that big! Is it easy for kids to make friends? Does the staff know the kids names? Are lunch/recess overwhelming? It might work great(?), but I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it all!

Like clockwork!

The size of the school is no big deal. In fact, I feel it's more of a benefit.

It’s no big deal that kids get shuffled into new classes where they only know 1-2 kids every year? That the lunchroom is chaotic since there are so many kids? That there are only a few adults supervising a large number of students at recess? I’m willing to believe that there are benefits to a larger school for older grades when there could be more specialized course offerings, for example. Here I am not seeing a benefit. I would love to hear more.

You do realize it's pretty much the same at every single school. Like if you have fewer classes per grade, you would probably just create great bands to do lunch and recess together. So you would still have about the same number of kids at lunch and recess at the same time

Except these ‘bands’ change every year. PP, there are some very big downsides to being in large elementary schools and not really an upside. My kids had 240 in their grade at TPES and Piney Branch. If I’d had a chance to send them to a smaller school I would have. Ironically we moved here for the schools but I didn’t realize just how big they were. My kid suffered for it as they didn’t start in K and were used to a very close school community. I doubt the principal ever knew who either of mine were, for example.

There are about 600 kids at Takoma elementary and 600 kids at piney Branch. I realize it might be different from where you are from, but in this area that's pretty much the norm. I don't think there's a lot of elementary schools that have fewer than 400 kids unless it's a very special program

I can tell you where I am, it’s Takoma park, and it’s not the norm in Montgomery county. That’s 1200 kids in a K-5 elementary school. That’s huge and much bigger than most other schools. I guess you don’t realize that each school houses only three grades (K-2 and 3-5).

No, that's 1200 kids in two elementary schools, or 600 per school, which is about average for MCPS.

Are you listening to yourself? The key part of how many kids per grade. It’s the number of kids in your grade and the number of classes that determines how easy it is to make connections, get a sense of community etc. Also, it’s essentially constable to one elementary school. Did you miss the part where they are K-2 and 3-5?

You seem a little unhinged. Maybe take a deep breath and consider going back on the meds.

The party of kindness and tolerance, ladies and gents.

There are so many right-wing posters now. It's not surprising.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

[Anonymous]

It sounds like people have had very different experiences there in the past two years since class size and grade size has increased dramatically. I’ve heard overwhelmingly wonderful things from people who have already had kids graduate from PBES.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

Not according to PBES teachers who see the benefit of having younger kids around.

Also I live in TKPK and the community sucks. It’s surprisingly unwelcoming and very difficult to get to know others. Folks keep to themselves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is there are 9 classes of 25+ kids per class. I’m trying to wrap my head around how things function as a school that big! Is it easy for kids to make friends? Does the staff know the kids names? Are lunch/recess overwhelming? It might work great(?), but I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it all!

Like clockwork!

The size of the school is no big deal. In fact, I feel it's more of a benefit.

It’s no big deal that kids get shuffled into new classes where they only know 1-2 kids every year? That the lunchroom is chaotic since there are so many kids? That there are only a few adults supervising a large number of students at recess? I’m willing to believe that there are benefits to a larger school for older grades when there could be more specialized course offerings, for example. Here I am not seeing a benefit. I would love to hear more.

You do realize it's pretty much the same at every single school. Like if you have fewer classes per grade, you would probably just create great bands to do lunch and recess together. So you would still have about the same number of kids at lunch and recess at the same time

Except these ‘bands’ change every year. PP, there are some very big downsides to being in large elementary schools and not really an upside. My kids had 240 in their grade at TPES and Piney Branch. If I’d had a chance to send them to a smaller school I would have. Ironically we moved here for the schools but I didn’t realize just how big they were. My kid suffered for it as they didn’t start in K and were used to a very close school community. I doubt the principal ever knew who either of mine were, for example.

There are about 600 kids at Takoma elementary and 600 kids at piney Branch. I realize it might be different from where you are from, but in this area that's pretty much the norm. I don't think there's a lot of elementary schools that have fewer than 400 kids unless it's a very special program

I can tell you where I am, it’s Takoma park, and it’s not the norm in Montgomery county. That’s 1200 kids in a K-5 elementary school. That’s huge and much bigger than most other schools. I guess you don’t realize that each school houses only three grades (K-2 and 3-5).

No, that's 1200 kids in two elementary schools, or 600 per school, which is about average for MCPS.

Are you listening to yourself? The key part of how many kids per grade. It’s the number of kids in your grade and the number of classes that determines how easy it is to make connections, get a sense of community etc. Also, it’s essentially constable to one elementary school. Did you miss the part where they are K-2 and 3-5?

You seem a little unhinged. Maybe take a deep breath and consider going back on the meds.

The party of kindness and tolerance, ladies and gents.

There are so many right-wing posters now. It's not surprising.

Who's right wing here?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is there are 9 classes of 25+ kids per class. I’m trying to wrap my head around how things function as a school that big! Is it easy for kids to make friends? Does the staff know the kids names? Are lunch/recess overwhelming? It might work great(?), but I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it all!

Like clockwork!

The size of the school is no big deal. In fact, I feel it's more of a benefit.

It’s no big deal that kids get shuffled into new classes where they only know 1-2 kids every year? That the lunchroom is chaotic since there are so many kids? That there are only a few adults supervising a large number of students at recess? I’m willing to believe that there are benefits to a larger school for older grades when there could be more specialized course offerings, for example. Here I am not seeing a benefit. I would love to hear more.

You do realize it's pretty much the same at every single school. Like if you have fewer classes per grade, you would probably just create great bands to do lunch and recess together. So you would still have about the same number of kids at lunch and recess at the same time

Except these ‘bands’ change every year. PP, there are some very big downsides to being in large elementary schools and not really an upside. My kids had 240 in their grade at TPES and Piney Branch. If I’d had a chance to send them to a smaller school I would have. Ironically we moved here for the schools but I didn’t realize just how big they were. My kid suffered for it as they didn’t start in K and were used to a very close school community. I doubt the principal ever knew who either of mine were, for example.

There are about 600 kids at Takoma elementary and 600 kids at piney Branch. I realize it might be different from where you are from, but in this area that's pretty much the norm. I don't think there's a lot of elementary schools that have fewer than 400 kids unless it's a very special program

I can tell you where I am, it’s Takoma park, and it’s not the norm in Montgomery county. That’s 1200 kids in a K-5 elementary school. That’s huge and much bigger than most other schools. I guess you don’t realize that each school houses only three grades (K-2 and 3-5).

No, that's 1200 kids in two elementary schools, or 600 per school, which is about average for MCPS.

Are you listening to yourself? The key part of how many kids per grade. It’s the number of kids in your grade and the number of classes that determines how easy it is to make connections, get a sense of community etc. Also, it’s essentially constable to one elementary school. Did you miss the part where they are K-2 and 3-5?

You seem a little unhinged. Maybe take a deep breath and consider going back on the meds.

The party of kindness and tolerance, ladies and gents.

There are so many right-wing posters now. It's not surprising.

Who's right wing here?

well, most of the posters since you've noticed how often they keep blaming libs and wokes for all their imagined problems.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

We loved both these schools. Our kids got a great foundation and made so many good friends.

[Anonymous]

This is wonderful to hear! Was your experience recent?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

We loved both these schools. Our kids got a great foundation and made so many good friends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

Not according to PBES teachers who see the benefit of having younger kids around.

Also I live in TKPK and the community sucks. It’s surprisingly unwelcoming and very difficult to get to know others. Folks keep to themselves.

The teachers and administrators I've discussed this with claimed grouping students by age was much healthier for everyone and that's why they do it.

And I totally have to say, I couldn't disagree more with anyone saying Takoma Park wasn't welcoming when my family and I moved into town. We connected mostly through our kids' school. Seriously, people were so chill and friendly—parents, teachers, neighbors—all of them. We dove into school events and random chats, and the vibe was warm and inclusive. Takoma Park has this awesome community spirit that made us feel right at home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is wonderful to hear! Was your experience recent?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

We loved both these schools. Our kids got a great foundation and made so many good friends.

I have one at TPES, another at PBES and a 3rd at TPMS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

Not according to PBES teachers who see the benefit of having younger kids around.

Also I live in TKPK and the community sucks. It’s surprisingly unwelcoming and very difficult to get to know others. Folks keep to themselves.

The teachers and administrators I've discussed this with claimed grouping students by age was much healthier for everyone and that's why they do it.

And I totally have to say, I couldn't disagree more with anyone saying Takoma Park wasn't welcoming when my family and I moved into town. We connected mostly through our kids' school. Seriously, people were so chill and friendly—parents, teachers, neighbors—all of them. We dove into school events and random chats, and the vibe was warm and inclusive. Takoma Park has this awesome community spirit that made us feel right at home.

Very sadly not my experience at all. Perhaps the pandemic was the reason everyone is so insular. Polar opposite from our friendly DC neighborhood. So disappointing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

Not according to PBES teachers who see the benefit of having younger kids around.

Also I live in TKPK and the community sucks. It’s surprisingly unwelcoming and very difficult to get to know others. Folks keep to themselves.

The teachers and administrators I've discussed this with claimed grouping students by age was much healthier for everyone and that's why they do it.

And I totally have to say, I couldn't disagree more with anyone saying Takoma Park wasn't welcoming when my family and I moved into town. We connected mostly through our kids' school. Seriously, people were so chill and friendly—parents, teachers, neighbors—all of them. We dove into school events and random chats, and the vibe was warm and inclusive. Takoma Park has this awesome community spirit that made us feel right at home.

Very sadly not my experience at all. Perhaps the pandemic was the reason everyone is so insular. Polar opposite from our friendly DC neighborhood. So disappointing.

The pandemic was hard for a lot of people. I guess we moved to TKPK a few years earlier and had a very positive experience. Still find the community to be amazing and inclusive. Way more welcomng than our previous NW DC neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PBES splits the grade in two so that lunch and recess are smaller. TPES doesn’t do that, so when the grade is 230 vs 160, it’s just a lot more hectic.

All but one of the grades at TPES were below 200 last year, according to the at a glance.

Nevertheless, I have to disagree with the PP's assessment. It was so well run that my kids hardly noticed.
Just imagine lunch at Blair with 3000+ kids. These judgments are relative.

I sent three kids through these schools and felt they were well-run and organized.

The scale was more of a benefit than a liability since this allowed for many extras like math acceleration or additional STEM units.

Like the PP, my kids also preferred the TPES model since they could visit with friends during lunch and recess.

It’s just a shame that it becomes so difficult to develop a school wide sense of community this way. A PP asked about the benefits of sitting the sculls and I struggle to come up with any. Anyone? One big downside is that having younger children In the school can help temper the behavior of the older kids, and the absence of little ones at PBES shows in the behavior of the older ones.

It's not a problem. Consider how schools like BCC or Churchill, with 2000 students, do this. Although I don't live in TKPK, my impression is there is already a strong sense of community there.

Similarly, having older kids with younger ones seems to cause more problems. Separating them by age, just like separating MS and HS kids, seems to work well.

Not according to PBES teachers who see the benefit of having younger kids around.

Also I live in TKPK and the community sucks. It’s surprisingly unwelcoming and very difficult to get to know others. Folks keep to themselves.

The teachers and administrators I've discussed this with claimed grouping students by age was much healthier for everyone and that's why they do it.

And I totally have to say, I couldn't disagree more with anyone saying Takoma Park wasn't welcoming when my family and I moved into town. We connected mostly through our kids' school. Seriously, people were so chill and friendly—parents, teachers, neighbors—all of them. We dove into school events and random chats, and the vibe was warm and inclusive. Takoma Park has this awesome community spirit that made us feel right at home.

Very sadly not my experience at all. Perhaps the pandemic was the reason everyone is so insular. Polar opposite from our friendly DC neighborhood. So disappointing.

I think both PPs are right, or at least speaking from their own experience. TkPk can be amazingly welcoming and inclusive, or it can feel clubbish and snobby. I've experienced both, and the defining factor was how folks perceived my race (ambiguous) and marital status (which changed during the time I lived there).

Yes, it can feel very welcoming if folks perceived you as the "right" kind of resident, which means white or white-adjacent and with the disposable income to buy into the Takoma Park institutions. That means having one SAH parent or full-time nanny so your child goes to The Purple School, then time and resources to send your child to days off at The Little Loft, then again time and resources to sign up for Takoma Soccer and either Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts Pack 33. It means having a single family home to invite folks to Porch Fest, and volunteering at the PTA.

If you check all of those boxes, it's amazing. If you fall short, it can feel very lonely.