What attribute makes each of these 8 schools excellent?

[Anonymous]

Q regarding: Piney Branch, Chevy Chase Elementary, Cold Spring Elementary, Ashburton, Wyngate, Bradley Hills, Bethesda, Stone Mill

Hi,

I am new to the area, in fact new to the US. For the last few months, I read and digested almost all the available info from previouse threads, I have also looked at the ranking statistics, reviews, etc. I have arranged for visiting these schools in January.
From all I gathered until now, it seems that all the above mentioned elementary schools have a good reputation. My understanding is that there are a lot of similarities and that differences between them are driven either by the existence of an excellent principal, or a stronger involvement from parents, from a dedicated faculty, or a more diverse and capable student body. Could you point out what atribute is dominant?

I have two boys ( grade 3 and grade 1) and we are looking to rent a house, after identifying the best school option. My interest is limited to the elementary level only.

Many thanks in advance!

[Anonymous]

I can only comment on Piney Branch, which is grades 3-5. Takoma Park Elem. is K-2 and feeds into Piney Branch.

I LOVE Piney Branch. You can read more about the school here:

http://educationnext.org/all-together-now/

Lots of what is talked about in this article is what I LOVE about this school. A strong principal who aims high and is focused on the academic needs of the kids. My child is thriving with the homogenous math grouping. The school has an older kid feel to it, which perfectly matches the kids. In most cases, the 3rd grade teachers teach one set of subjects all day and the kids move from teacher to teacher. For instance, son's homeroom teacher teaches math, science and social studies. In the afternoon, he moves to a language arts teacher. Her job is to teach language arts all day.

I don't know if other schools are doing this, but I find that the teachers can go more in depth because they aren't as stretched as elementary teachers who have to do every subject every day.

The school has lots of afterschool clubs and ways for the kids to be involved. And there's a strong reward structure in place. (A pool party for learning your math facts, for instance.) It also has some extras, initiated by parents but run in conjunction with the school (GeoBowl, for instance.) The focus at this school is about the kids reaching their potential, which I appreciate much more after coming from another MoCo elementary school where that was not the case.

One big difference I see with this school versus some of the others on your list is that this is a VERY diverse school. There are many families from many countries. It manages all this greatness while embracing the diversity of its community. That's not easy to find.

[Anonymous]

One note: Chevy Chase Elementary is only grades 3-6, so both of your children wouldn't be at the same school, if that's an issue for you. Before that, kids go to Rosemary Hills Elementary, from what I know.

Just curious as to how you came up with this particular list. Also, the schools you list cover a very large range geographically, from Potomac, to Bethesda, to Chevy Chase, to Takoma Park, to Gaithersburg. (Did I miss any?) Depending on where you or your spouse are working, commutes from these areas could vary radically.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can only comment on Piney Branch, which is grades 3-5. Takoma Park Elem. is K-2 and feeds into Piney Branch.

I LOVE Piney Branch. You can read more about the school here:

http://educationnext.org/all-together-now/

Lots of what is talked about in this article is what I LOVE about this school. A strong principal who aims high and is focused on the academic needs of the kids. My child is thriving with the homogenous math grouping. The school has an older kid feel to it, which perfectly matches the kids. In most cases, the 3rd grade teachers teach one set of subjects all day and the kids move from teacher to teacher. For instance, son's homeroom teacher teaches math, science and social studies. In the afternoon, he moves to a language arts teacher. Her job is to teach language arts all day.

I don't know if other schools are doing this, but I find that the teachers can go more in depth because they aren't as stretched as elementary teachers who have to do every subject every day.

The school has lots of afterschool clubs and ways for the kids to be involved. And there's a strong reward structure in place. (A pool party for learning your math facts, for instance.) It also has some extras, initiated by parents but run in conjunction with the school (GeoBowl, for instance.) The focus at this school is about the kids reaching their potential, which I appreciate much more after coming from another MoCo elementary school where that was not the case.

One big difference I see with this school versus some of the others on your list is that this is a VERY diverse school. There are many families from many countries. It manages all this greatness while embracing the diversity of its community. That's not easy to find.

Thanks for the feedback. The Piney Branch approach -as presented in the article--seems an interesting one. I can’t wait to be there, tour the school and get the feeling of a class. I want my children to realize than not everyone has the same initial endowment, but exposure to same opportunities could make dreams come true. That's also something one can learn in a great school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One note: Chevy Chase Elementary is only grades 3-6, so both of your children wouldn't be at the same school, if that's an issue for you. Before that, kids go to Rosemary Hills Elementary, from what I know.

Just curious as to how you came up with this particular list. Also, the schools you list cover a very large range geographically, from Potomac, to Bethesda, to Chevy Chase, to Takoma Park, to Gaithersburg. (Did I miss any?) Depending on where you or your spouse are working, commutes from these areas could vary radically.

Thanks for the info. One of us will work from home and one will commute. We are prepared to make this sacrifice. We also looked at DC privates, where commute time would be so little. They did not convince us. When it comes to the Chevy Chase split between K-2 and 3-5, that’s not a problem.

I am still interested to hear from you and other parents about what makes the other schools so special, so I can pay close attention to those aspects when visiting the schools. In order to better understand why my schools list is from all over the map, I should say that checking the Maryland curriculum, I am confident that our sons are actually 3 grades above in math and 2 grades in reading/ writing/grammar, but they are social, very normal kids who like to play. I am not expecting that school is responsible 100% for keeping them challenged because we do a lot of creative stuff home. However, I definitely do not want them to be bored for 180 days/year.

Thanks in advance!

[Anonymous]

Perhaps you should look into teh GT magnets..most schools will not accomodate 3 years ahead in math..especially for a 1st grader...

[Anonymous]

"I am confident that our sons are actually 3 grades above in math and 2 grades in reading/ writing/grammar"

OP, as an aside, just to let you know, MCPS probably will not consider your kids "3 grades above in math" unless they have specifically mastered virtually every specific curriculum item in the MCPS math program--and since MCPS has a very particular way of doing things, your kids probably won't have done so. We moved to MCPS from another state. In DC's previous school, a district with excellent acceleration but a different style (more computationally-focused and less touchy-feely IMO) than MCPS, DC had been working on 4th-5th grade math in first grade. When MCPS tested DC and saw samples of DC's work, they agreed that DC was working way ahead, and had mastered much of the higher-grade material BUT refused to put DC more than one year ahead because there were some itemsof the MCPS curriclulum that had not been covered by the previous school--e.g. various things with bar graphs, a different way of learning multiplication/division and a couple other things. The school basically told us that they were sorry, they knew DC would not be appropriately challenged, but their hands were tied, and that the teacher would try to supplement (the teacher is doing so, so that has been okay).

[Anonymous]

My kids go to Wyngate. We have been very happy with the school. Test scores are high yet we do not experience the frequent "worksheets" of which I often see parents complain on this website. The Principal is a strong force at the school. She keeps the place running like a very well-oiled machine. Parents are NOT encouraged to volunteer in the classroom. But there is quite a bit of parent involvement through the PTA. Good luck making your decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids go to Wyngate. We have been very happy with the school. Test scores are high yet we do not experience the frequent "worksheets" of which I often see parents complain on this website. The Principal is a strong force at the school. She keeps the place running like a very well-oiled machine. Parents are NOT encouraged to volunteer in the classroom. But there is quite a bit of parent involvement through the PTA. Good luck making your decision.

That is interesting-how does the school make it clear that parents should not volunteer in the classroom? That would make me uncomfortable, even if I didn't want to volunteer.

[Anonymous]

I'm surprised to see Stone Mill on the list. I know several parents there who are very unhappy with how much time is spent doing worksheets. One parent calls it Stone Mill University, though I'm not sure why since worksheets are not exactly higher learning. I have heard that the aftercare program is very bad and poorly run. Most schools use Bar T, which parents I know at Wayside, Travilah and Lakewood, all seem to like. At Stone Mill the aftercare is run by a daycare center that is located on the school grounds and uses up potential school space, another issue for parents. We looked at houses that fed Stone Mill and Travilah. We ended up choosing the one in the Travilah cluster because we heard much better things about the school and the aftercare options.

All MCPS schools have to deal with prepping kids for later MSAs but some seem to be better balanced about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I am still interested to hear from you and other parents about what makes the other schools so special, so I can pay close attention to those aspects when visiting the schools. In order to better understand why my schools list is from all over the map, I should say that checking the Maryland curriculum, I am confident that our sons are actually 3 grades above in math and 2 grades in reading/ writing/grammar, but they are social, very normal kids who like to play.

Still confused as to why YOU think these particular schools are so special! Are you saying that these are supposedly schools that deal well with children who are advanced?

Will agree with others that the MoCo curriculum is pretty advanced already. At our school (not on your list, though I think it's pretty special!) the trend is for all kids to work up one grade level in math. So, kindergarten kids are doing 1st-grade math routinely. Some second-graders are working at the 2nd-grade level, but most are largely working at the 3rd-grade level, with a fairly large cohort also working on 4th-grade material. You should be able to find out on your tours what is typical for any of the schools on your list.

[Anonymous]

Not sure why you think those schools are that that much different than any other similar areas in MoCo. Montgomery county curriculum is the same for all the schools. Some schools may be better in terms of more advanced work because the parent populations is more demanding of it.

These are not private schools. They use the same books, the same worksheets, etc. They all take the same tests and have the same training done.

A good principal will help a school better organized and better run but you are kidding yourself if you think that one school is way above any other school in the schools that have higher rankings in the standardized tests.


The trend towards having kids do advanced work for math is actually being changed. So many teachers in the HS have complained that the kids coming in are not prepared for HS math because they have not learned enough of the basics. The push towards advancing kids one or 2 years above grade level is going to be slowed down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I am still interested to hear from you and other parents about what makes the other schools so special, so I can pay close attention to those aspects when visiting the schools. In order to better understand why my schools list is from all over the map, I should say that checking the Maryland curriculum, I am confident that our sons are actually 3 grades above in math and 2 grades in reading/ writing/grammar, but they are social, very normal kids who like to play.

Still confused as to why YOU think these particular schools are so special! Are you saying that these are supposedly schools that deal well with children who are advanced?

Will agree with others that the MoCo curriculum is pretty advanced already. At our school (not on your list, though I think it's pretty special!) the trend is for all kids to work up one grade level in math. So, kindergarten kids are doing 1st-grade math routinely. Some second-graders are working at the 2nd-grade level, but most are largely working at the 3rd-grade level, with a fairly large cohort also working on 4th-grade material. You should be able to find out on your tours what is typical for any of the schools on your list.

What's the name of your school? I never said my list was complete. It resulted from info available via the archived threads, ranking, parents reviews, etc. I do not know if the school that I am looking for exists. Some would say that I should probably homeschool them. I want to give a try to the public school and would visit the schools.

What do you think about the gifted or magnet programs? What would be the advantages/disavantages of such a program?

All of you have much more info than me because you lived here, some of you even went to these schools. I come from Europe. Any info, hint, warning is very appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Well, what are you looking for exactly? What are YOUR priorities?

[Anonymous]

What's the name of your school? I never said my list was complete. It resulted from info available via the archived threads, ranking, parents reviews, etc. I do not know if the school that I am looking for exists. Some would say that I should probably homeschool them. I want to give a try to the public school and would visit the schools.
What do you think about the gifted or magnet programs? What would be the advantages/disavantages of such a program?
All of you have much more info than me because you lived here, some of you even went to these schools. I come from Europe. Any info, hint, warning is very appreciated.

One thing to consider is that your child may not be gifted even though he is ahead. My kids went/go to a Montessori school that covers more reading/writing and math than MCPS. Our M school uses a european style of math that introduces addition/multiplication and subtraction/division along with fractions in kindergarten or earlier. All the kids are much farther ahead when they enter K and 1st grade but they are all not gifted. They were simply exposed to some concepts sooner than others. They need to be flexible because when they enter MCPS they have to learn a different way to get to the answer and show their work.

The bigger issue that I have with public school is the lack of science, geography, language, art and outdoor/PE time in the elementary schools. IMO you should give public school a try but try to balance it with other activities like lots of outdoor free play, sports, trips to the museums, or at home science projects.