PG specialty schools like Dora Kennedy and Cesar Chavez -- why choose them?
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Anonymous
| Our family is new to the area with a four-year-old, and I'm trying to make sense of the specialty program lottery. Are Dora Kennedy and Cesar Chavez considered to be good academic schools, or is the draw solely for parents interested in a bilingual education? We already speak a second language in our home, so I wouldn't necessarily see a need to apply for the lottery for language reasons alone -- but I might apply if they were considered better schools, the language notwithstanding. Our local elementary school will be University Park, FWIW. |
Anonymous
| I had two DCs go through DKFI. We initially chose because DKFI was a better option than our zoned elementary school. We were very happy with the school, teachers, and experience there. I think a lot of families (ours included) choose it for the K-8 aspect and having a solid educational option through middle school, which are notoriously bad in PGCPS. For what it's worth, both of my kids were ready to be in a non-French learning environment in HS and neither uses the language now (to my dismay). |
Anonymous
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I think that University Park is on par with DKFI and a better school than Chavez. I would not put my kid at Chavez in your situation.
In my mind, putting a kindergartener on a bus for an hour or more each way after a long day at school is cruel. Because it is a K-8, DKFI has a longer school day than other elementary schools. It is also moving to co-locate with the Goddard school in the near future. I wouldn't be surprised if this actually leads to them phasing out the 6-8th grade at DKFI and MAFI and starting a middle school language magnet with the Spanish Immersion program either at Kettering or another site. I think a lot of people like the K-8 aspect of DKFI but ~30% of students leave before 5th grade for a variety of reasons. I had my kids in our neighborhood school for years and moved my youngest to a specialty program in the 4th grade for a variety of reasons. I missed being able to walk to the school or being able to run over and participate in an event without it taking up my entire day. Having to deal with bussing or driving your kid to/from school is a huge pain. |
Anonymous
| We turned down a spot at a specialty school specifically due to the bussing and are staying at zoned school. Goin there would have meant 1h of bus in the morning and 1h30 min in the afternoons, returning just after 5.30pm at a stop that isn't super near our house. When DKFI moves in with Goddard, the bussing situation will either get a lot better or a lot worse. At elementary age, you can't put a price on free time to play, so getting home at 3 pm just feels a lot better . We'll revisit in middle school. |
Anonymous
| OP here. Thanks so much for this helpful feedback, everyone. A follow up that I have is related to the TAG program. If I’m reading it correctly, it sounds like every first-grader who tests above the 80th percentile is invited to enter the TAG lottery. Is that correct? But entering the lottery does not guarantee a slot at Glenarden or Heather Hills? To be clear, I have no idea whether this would even apply to my kid, who still can’t tie her own shoes. But I’m sort of curious about what the odds are for the TAG lottery. Do they have twice as many applicants as available slots? Four times as many? Like everyone else in this area, apparently, I am beginning to understand that folks are trying to make decisions for their kindergartners so that they don’t have to scramble sixyears down the road in middle school. |
Anonymous
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Yes, the major requirement is testing above the 80th percentile on an IQ test. There a couple of other paths but that the gist of it. If your kid doesn't pass initially, you can wait until they are retested again in 3rd and 5th grade or you can get your kid tested privately.
If you are in University Park, your TAG elementary magnet is Glenarden Woods. In previous years they had open 2nd grade slots in July so everyone who applied and was eligible got in. It doesn't look like GWES is on the list again this year but the trend is that the vast majority of kids who apply, get in at elementary level. The county expanded the TAG program significantly in the past decade so although a spot isn't guaranteed, it is highly likely. |
Anonymous
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Our son is about to start 4th grade at DKFI. We love the school. Its a nurturing environment and so happy to not have to worry about middle school.
As far as TAG, about 30% of the school is TAG at DKFI. We did not enter the lottery for the TAG Centers because we believe the caliber of education is phenomenal at DKFI and they provide enrichment for the TAG students. |
Anonymous
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I have heard from several friends that although the the language immersion programs can be very good for gifted children, kids who are not as strong academically or those who have learning challenges are not necessarily as well served. I know a lot of people who pulled their kids because their IEPs or 504 plans were not being implemented.
I think they can be a great fit for some kids but there are also a lot of kids who don't do as well. |
Anonymous
Personally I was put off by the amount of screen / computer use reported by various parents and the use of tv during lunch and library time there. Not sure if it's still what's happening but I just couldn't get behind that, at least in the early grades. |
Anonymous
Do you have a child at the school? There was a limited about of Peppa Pig in French when the library teacher had to manage more than one class due to teacher absences. Your comment does not reflect at all what was happening at the school. |
Anonymous
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I have two kids at DKFI. We have been happy there and my kids are getting a good quality education. I didn't care that much about language immersion ( we don't speak French at all) but do find it a cool bonus. I also love how independent language immersion has made my kids. Since we cannot help with work in French they learn how to do home work and projects with less input from us or through asking each other. It's been really cool to watch them navigate it and use their own knowledge (which we don't have).
I do think other posters are right that for some kids it is not a good fit. The first few years are intense as there is no academic instruction in English. English instruction begins in 2nd grade. We chose DKFI for a variety of reasons that had to do with commute/schedule logistics, availability of before and after care on site, teacher tenure and experience, school leadership, and extracurricular/specials options. |
Anonymous
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We were planning to send our DD to DKFI but got caught up in the disaster announcement that they were moving and, unfortunately, the decision to not actually move wasn’t made until much later. Our friends whose kids go there think it’s fine. They don’t know if their K and 1 grade kids actually speak any French but I think that’s to be expected at those ages.
Chavez - no. And I say that as a Spanish speaker who really wanted my kids to go there and learn the grammar/writing that I’m not teaching just by being bilingual at home. The families I know there hate it. I know two kids who transferred out of Chavez and have had to go into remedial classes at other PGPS schools because their math was so far below grade level. |