Murch vs Mann for PK4

[Anonymous]

Hello! My child has been accepted to Mann and is on the waitlist for Much (in the top 3).

We’ve been accepted to Mann for a while and have attended a play date and visited their playground a couple times to get him acclimated. Looking at the website, Mann has so much that we love and seems like the perfect school with the school community focus. I like the garden and Spanish in the early grades and even the Reggio Emilia I was coming around to. I especially love having an assistant teacher through 5th grade.

Murch is a great school as well (I went to Murch, Deal and Wilson). It was always presumed to be my top choice because of the feeders and it’s really a great school.

The downsides for Mann are that it has a longer commute by about 10 min, I’m unsure how traffic is during rush hour and how much more time it could add. The aftercare and before care is much more expensive at Mann too (by $200).

Which would you choose for your child? I’m so grateful to have the option from OOB and understand I really can’t lose.

[Anonymous]

What is your IB school, and will your child stay through 5th grade?

[Anonymous]

Your kid will be fine at either school. I would choose Murch because it's an easier commute for you.

[Anonymous]

IB is Bunker Hill (Brookland) and yes, plan to stay through 5th and all feeders through HS. Plan to move closer once a decision is made. Single mom of an only child so once the choice is made, we’re set.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:IB is Bunker Hill (Brookland) and yes, plan to stay through 5th and all feeders through HS. Plan to move closer once a decision is made. Single mom of an only child so once the choice is made, we’re set.

If you plan to move IB pretty quickly, then I would focus on the school and feeder pattern over the commute. We chose one of those feeder patterns over the other for specific reasons, but both are good options.

[Anonymous]

I would do Murch to keep the feeder to Deal and JR. That way your kid can get himself to school and home at some point, whereas if you do Mann and feed to Hardy and MacArthur, you’re driving a lot longer and farther. Better housing and Metro options around Tenleytown as well for when you move.

[Anonymous]

Mann is absolutely amazing and it was our school. Are you going private after Elementary? If so, pick Mann 100%
If you’ll stay in public, pick Murch because of Deal.

[Anonymous]

Wow, all the ib kids got in to mann and murch this year? Things have really changed.

[Anonymous]

What accounts for this change?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IB is Bunker Hill (Brookland) and yes, plan to stay through 5th and all feeders through HS. Plan to move closer once a decision is made. Single mom of an only child so once the choice is made, we’re set.

If you plan to move IB pretty quickly, then I would focus on the school and feeder pattern over the commute. We chose one of those feeder patterns over the other for specific reasons, but both are good options.

+1. Hardy is a lot smaller than Deal, and MacArthur is a lot smaller than JR. Some people also factor in the size of these schools into their decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, all the ib kids got in to mann and murch this year? Things have really changed.

Yes, Mann has had spots for all IB kids for pk4 the past couple of years. 5 years ago this was far from the case. My theory is that the real estate prices have gotten so incredibly high in spring valley and Wesley Heights that there are just fewer young families moving in

Still an amazing school though! Both my kids absolutely loved PK4 (and beyond)

[Anonymous]

You didn't say much about after care at Murch. Spanish at Mann starts right after school and there may be no need to pay for aftercare at the same time. They do take the kids outside.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You didn't say much about after care at Murch. Spanish at Mann starts right after school and there may be no need to pay for aftercare at the same time. They do take the kids outside.

Just to clarify, Mann has Spanish as a class for pre-K through first grade. It also has an in-house paid Spanish aftercare provider (Isabella and Ferdinand) for all grades. You would do Spanish aftercare in place of the regular aftercare.