Mundo Verde 8th St

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:we're IB at bmpv and trying to decide. MV8 would be a rough commute.

I can't speak to your family's circumstances but I wouldn't choose a school with a rough commute, regardless of the quality of the school. The stress it can add to your life and your family outweighs any advantages the school would provide.

But life is going to be really rough when you realize you can't keep your kid at that other school past a certain grade, or face middle school with no options. You should not prioritize commute over everything. Then also, people relocate within DC. They also carpool and have bussing.

Commute is not the end all be all decider...

Ditto. If your neighborhood middle school is not going to be a viable option in 5-6 years, which realistically most in the city will not, be prepared to move or spend the money to go private. Chances of getting into an OOB middle like Deal or 1 or 2 decent charter middle schools will be nearly impossible.

We currently are doing a 15 minute commute for our DS to another charter school that we like. It’s not a big deal at all. it’s going to be a big deal when we don’t have a viable middle or high school option in the city. So long term middle and high school viability was just as important as Spanish immersion to us.

See link below in regards to middle school discussions. No way is DCPS going to be doing any type of tracking or honors courses for advance students. Students who are above grade level are not being challenged in upper elementary, let alone middle school. Now they are advocating putting all students in honors classes at Wilson even if they are below grade level. It’s their “honors for all” crap.

So I recommend those making short term choices for IB lelementarty schools without viable upper elementary or middle schools to have a backup plan. We have no problem doing a short commute to MV for Spainish immersion and for a possible middle and high school track.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/796774.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

I was also on a tour and the difference is that at P street they only had 18 kids in each combo PK3-4 classroom, with three teachers (one being a trainee or aide).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

I was also on a tour and the difference is that at P street they only had 18 kids in each combo PK3-4 classroom, with three teachers (one being a trainee or aide).

Current classes are in the 20-22 kids/class range.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

I was also on a tour and the difference is that at P street they only had 18 kids in each combo PK3-4 classroom, with three teachers (one being a trainee or aide).

Current classes are in the 20-22 kids/class range.

New principal on tour said same number of teachers as P, 3 as above. They are limiting class size to 25 but she anticipates it will be more around 24.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

We already anticipated a larger cohort of new teachers since it’s a new school vs the rate of new teachers for an established school when we put MV 8th down. We also knew that we were OK being part of a new school.

Probably unlike most here, we actually ranked 8th St above P St. because we like the Brookland location better than the area and neighborhood around P St. The location is not perfect and we don’t live in Brookland but it’s a great neighborhood for families who want to stay close to downtown. Families similar to us. We plan on being actively involved at the new school and supporting the staff and leadership. Hopefully many in the cohort of new parents will also be.

We realize there will be bumps along the way, it won’t be perfect. But we like the principal a lot and think she has the potential to be a good if not great leader. We are optimists and see the glass as half full and the possible potential there. It’s kind of like being in a start up although you are not starting from scratch since you have a model. So everyone (leadership, teachers, parents) will all be in the same boat and family with the goal of getting the school started off great and supporting everyone in the team.

With ECE we just want our child to be immersed in Spanish and pick up as much as he can (we are not Spanish speaking). We know he will be fine with learning basic things like shapes, letters, colors, sight words because of our socioeconomic and education status, and the things we do at home everyday like talking and reading to our child, etc..

So any parents out there who will be joining MV at 8th St, give us a shout out. We can’t wait to meet you and start this journey. We hope many will be as committed to not only making the school work and be a success but also committed as active parents to support and engage leadership on this journey.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

We already anticipated a larger cohort of new teachers since it’s a new school vs the rate of new teachers for an established school when we put MV 8th down. We also knew that we were OK being part of a new school.

Probably unlike most here, we actually ranked 8th St above P St. because we like the Brookland location better than the area and neighborhood around P St. The location is not perfect and we don’t live in Brookland but it’s a great neighborhood for families who want to stay close to downtown. Families similar to us. We plan on being actively involved at the new school and supporting the staff and leadership. Hopefully many in the cohort of new parents will also be.

We realize there will be bumps along the way, it won’t be perfect. But we like the principal a lot and think she has the potential to be a good if not great leader. We are optimists and see the glass as half full and the possible potential there. It’s kind of like being in a start up although you are not starting from scratch since you have a model. So everyone (leadership, teachers, parents) will all be in the same boat and family with the goal of getting the school started off great and supporting everyone in the team.

With ECE we just want our child to be immersed in Spanish and pick up as much as he can (we are not Spanish speaking). We know he will be fine with learning basic things like shapes, letters, colors, sight words because of our socioeconomic and education status, and the things we do at home everyday like talking and reading to our child, etc..

So any parents out there who will be joining MV at 8th St, give us a shout out. We can’t wait to meet you and start this journey. We hope many will be as committed to not only making the school work and be a success but also committed as active parents to support and engage leadership on this journey.

+1 Well said.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

To add one more data point, which may clear up this discrepancy, at open house we went to was told they are asking teachers if they want to move to the new building. They may likely not yet know how many are eager or willing to do so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

We already anticipated a larger cohort of new teachers since it’s a new school vs the rate of new teachers for an established school when we put MV 8th down. We also knew that we were OK being part of a new school.

Probably unlike most here, we actually ranked 8th St above P St. because we like the Brookland location better than the area and neighborhood around P St. The location is not perfect and we don’t live in Brookland but it’s a great neighborhood for families who want to stay close to downtown. Families similar to us. We plan on being actively involved at the new school and supporting the staff and leadership. Hopefully many in the cohort of new parents will also be.

We realize there will be bumps along the way, it won’t be perfect. But we like the principal a lot and think she has the potential to be a good if not great leader. We are optimists and see the glass as half full and the possible potential there. It’s kind of like being in a start up although you are not starting from scratch since you have a model. So everyone (leadership, teachers, parents) will all be in the same boat and family with the goal of getting the school started off great and supporting everyone in the team.

With ECE we just want our child to be immersed in Spanish and pick up as much as he can (we are not Spanish speaking). We know he will be fine with learning basic things like shapes, letters, colors, sight words because of our socioeconomic and education status, and the things we do at home everyday like talking and reading to our child, etc..

So any parents out there who will be joining MV at 8th St, give us a shout out. We can’t wait to meet you and start this journey. We hope many will be as committed to not only making the school work and be a success but also committed as active parents to support and engage leadership on this journey.

This is great but non PK3 parents on here have to decide if they move their child. Hence the anxiety about being part of a start up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

We already anticipated a larger cohort of new teachers since it’s a new school vs the rate of new teachers for an established school when we put MV 8th down. We also knew that we were OK being part of a new school.

Probably unlike most here, we actually ranked 8th St above P St. because we like the Brookland location better than the area and neighborhood around P St. The location is not perfect and we don’t live in Brookland but it’s a great neighborhood for families who want to stay close to downtown. Families similar to us. We plan on being actively involved at the new school and supporting the staff and leadership. Hopefully many in the cohort of new parents will also be.

We realize there will be bumps along the way, it won’t be perfect. But we like the principal a lot and think she has the potential to be a good if not great leader. We are optimists and see the glass as half full and the possible potential there. It’s kind of like being in a start up although you are not starting from scratch since you have a model. So everyone (leadership, teachers, parents) will all be in the same boat and family with the goal of getting the school started off great and supporting everyone in the team.

With ECE we just want our child to be immersed in Spanish and pick up as much as he can (we are not Spanish speaking). We know he will be fine with learning basic things like shapes, letters, colors, sight words because of our socioeconomic and education status, and the things we do at home everyday like talking and reading to our child, etc..

So any parents out there who will be joining MV at 8th St, give us a shout out. We can’t wait to meet you and start this journey. We hope many will be as committed to not only making the school work and be a success but also committed as active parents to support and engage leadership on this journey.

+1 Well said.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

We already anticipated a larger cohort of new teachers since it’s a new school vs the rate of new teachers for an established school when we put MV 8th down. We also knew that we were OK being part of a new school.

Probably unlike most here, we actually ranked 8th St above P St. because we like the Brookland location better than the area and neighborhood around P St. The location is not perfect and we don’t live in Brookland but it’s a great neighborhood for families who want to stay close to downtown. Families similar to us. We plan on being actively involved at the new school and supporting the staff and leadership. Hopefully many in the cohort of new parents will also be.

We realize there will be bumps along the way, it won’t be perfect. But we like the principal a lot and think she has the potential to be a good if not great leader. We are optimists and see the glass as half full and the possible potential there. It’s kind of like being in a start up although you are not starting from scratch since you have a model. So everyone (leadership, teachers, parents) will all be in the same boat and family with the goal of getting the school started off great and supporting everyone in the team.

With ECE we just want our child to be immersed in Spanish and pick up as much as he can (we are not Spanish speaking). We know he will be fine with learning basic things like shapes, letters, colors, sight words because of our socioeconomic and education status, and the things we do at home everyday like talking and reading to our child, etc..

So any parents out there who will be joining MV at 8th St, give us a shout out. We can’t wait to meet you and start this journey. We hope many will be as committed to not only making the school work and be a success but also committed as active parents to support and engage leadership on this journey.

This is great but non PK3 parents on here have to decide if they move their child. Hence the anxiety about being part of a start up.

Our child will be coming in at K and we are on board. Kids this young will adapt fine especially if all the other kids are new and in the same boat. We don’t have any anxiety about the change at all. They are going to hire teachers with degrees in ECE and aides with ECE experience. Yes they will be new to the school but it’s not like they have no background in ECE. The only difference is that it’s going to be taught in Spanish,

[Anonymous]

My kid started at ITS the first year at that location (then the basement of Potomac Lighthouse PCS).

Location... I feel bad for the Scrilli parents who have had zero traffic for a few years— rude awakening! Potomac lighthouse bussed most of the kids in, which helped with traffic. I think the first year ITS had around 100? 120? families?? I drove and FWIW I could usually find parking within the couple weird blocks of that dead end.

Though I’m sure the neighbors loathed us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone concerned about the sheer size of these classes at mv 8th? It seems like they are basically tripling each class size from their current pk3 sizes at p street. Isn’t that like just creating 3 whole new schools the same size they are currently running? Any information on this and how they plan on maintaining quality with such a huge expansion?

We went to the tour and this was discussed. The classes are the same size as P St. 3 instructors in EC for 24-25 students. I don’t know where people are getting the idea that they are tripling the class size. Take the number iof offered spots for prek3 and PreK 4 total and divide that by 25 and you will know how many blended class (MV puts preK 3 and 4 kids together in class) there will be. Each class will have 3 instructors. K is not blended but again will be 24-25 students per class.

They are tripling (or maybe doubling) the cohort size, not the size of the individual classrooms. Cohort size is important to the school's culture, consistency across classrooms, number of teachers they need to hire, etc.

If you do the numbers, there will be 7 blended preK classes and 4 K. That breaks down to a little over 3 classes for each prek. So I’m assuming it might be 2 times more. Like many new schools started in the city, EC will be the easiest to start since not much academic content in addition to MV already having an established curriculum. They are also moving established teachers from P St and partnering with new teachers so probably 1/2 teachers have already been teaching at the school. So yes size is bigger but curriculum same, teachers in classrooms who have taught at MV. New principal has been the lower school lead. If you have specific detailed questions, I would suggest you attend the open house and tours.

I went to both the open house and the tour, and they said they were moving a "couple" teachers from P Street but primarily hiring new so as not to take away from P Street. I don't think we can count on having remotely close to 1/2 teachers who have taught at MV. They say they'll handle this lack of experience with the model by holding a 3.5 week training before the start of the school year. Next year will definitely be a learning year for the teachers, and that's one of my main concerns.

Noted above. So it might be a few teachers, a handful of teachers, 1/3rd teachers, 1/2 teachers. Current MV parent posting that the school is taking away their teachers, principal at tour is saying they are working on pairing established teachers with new teachers, and now another tour saying it’s a “couple” teachers. There is definately going to be new teachers and training in regards to curriculum. ECE is play based and learning core academic content in many schools is not the priority. I think the priority at MV is more foreign language exposure and immersion. But yes there is going to be a learning curve for the new teachers. Only you can decide if you are comfortable with that and being in a new school.

We already anticipated a larger cohort of new teachers since it’s a new school vs the rate of new teachers for an established school when we put MV 8th down. We also knew that we were OK being part of a new school.

Probably unlike most here, we actually ranked 8th St above P St. because we like the Brookland location better than the area and neighborhood around P St. The location is not perfect and we don’t live in Brookland but it’s a great neighborhood for families who want to stay close to downtown. Families similar to us. We plan on being actively involved at the new school and supporting the staff and leadership. Hopefully many in the cohort of new parents will also be.

We realize there will be bumps along the way, it won’t be perfect. But we like the principal a lot and think she has the potential to be a good if not great leader. We are optimists and see the glass as half full and the possible potential there. It’s kind of like being in a start up although you are not starting from scratch since you have a model. So everyone (leadership, teachers, parents) will all be in the same boat and family with the goal of getting the school started off great and supporting everyone in the team.

With ECE we just want our child to be immersed in Spanish and pick up as much as he can (we are not Spanish speaking). We know he will be fine with learning basic things like shapes, letters, colors, sight words because of our socioeconomic and education status, and the things we do at home everyday like talking and reading to our child, etc..

So any parents out there who will be joining MV at 8th St, give us a shout out. We can’t wait to meet you and start this journey. We hope many will be as committed to not only making the school work and be a success but also committed as active parents to support and engage leadership on this journey.

+another. We've enthusiastically enrolled and had already considered the growing pains that come with the circumstances during ranking. Definitely not serious enough to walk away from the opportunity and we're looking forward to the experience overall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid started at ITS the first year at that location (then the basement of Potomac Lighthouse PCS).

Location... I feel bad for the Scrilli parents who have had zero traffic for a few years— rude awakening! Potomac lighthouse bussed most of the kids in, which helped with traffic. I think the first year ITS had around 100? 120? families?? I drove and FWIW I could usually find parking within the couple weird blocks of that dead end.

Though I’m sure the neighbors loathed us.

Yeah we are at Scrilli and will also be there next year. I don’t even understand how we will access our parking lot! Also I live nearby and I’m truly scared what this will mean for 12th and also Taylor both of which are already awful. And all the tiny side streets. Ugggh.