Templteton Academy - a micro school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How serious are the academics? The Head of School's bio is riddled with grammatical errors and run-on sentences..wondering for an anxious kid who is also very advanced academically--if they would be challenged or find like-minded students in the cohort ( High school).

I am always so sad when I see text like this - just run your copy through Grammarly or by a friend, people!!! It's not that hard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure how Friends Community School got brought into this conversation at all. It's a K-8 Quaker school.

Lots of Capitol Hill kids at both. Similarly left-leaning parents. Both offer middle school (though one also offers elementary and the other doesn't, but offers high school).

They still don’t have anything to do with each other and it’s not like FCS is a feeder for Templeton. Just a strange link to try to make between these schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to an open house for the middle school last year and it felt like there were a ton of questions they couldn't yet answer fully. I got the sense things hadn't been fully fleshed out yet.

How has the middle school experience been for students?

OP here. This gives me pause. I know the middle school was tiny this year, so hopefully things have been figured out. But, could you give me an example or two of the types of questions they couldn't answer?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a student at Templeton (2nd year there) and it is a great school. The leadership is impressive and responsive. The teachers to date all have been outstanding. My student doesn't have any learning differences, but struggles with executive function. Templeton is great because they have four terms and the students only take two classes per term, they have built in study hall each day, and they meet with their advisor once per week. They do a lot of really cool experiential learning with the students and the schedule is really great - most Friday's are half days, but they are there longer M-Th (there until 4:30 ish). The space is really cool and the move the Gallery Place has been great. I highly recommend Templeton if you want your student to be engaged and not lost among hundreds of other kids.

OP here. Thank you for this. I think small groups are key to my kid's ability to focus, which is why I've been looking into micro schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a TA graduate. Our kid suffered from serious anxiety, and benefitted from a school with very few behavioral problems. I am less confident that is the case under the current administration, but we are still considering it for another child. It is, in any event, a very warm and supportive environment. Everyone has a story for why they’re there, and everyone’s ok with that. Very LGBTQI+ friendly. Very flexible academically—they developed a class because of strong interest from one or two kids (mine was one of them). Academics are challenging, although plenty of students get lower grades and are still big parts of the community.
Oh, my kid also exceeded our expectations in the college admissions process (not Ivy level (to which my kid did not apply), but scholarships at good small schools.. (Before you ask, as I recall from the graduation ceremony, there was a decent mix among the 15 or so grads from
good to decent SLACs to not particularly competitive schools—see above for how different students handled the academic challenges. But every kid who spoke at graduation had clearly found it to be a transformative experience (as did our kid).)

OP here. Thank you for this. Could you please say a bit more about the behavioral problems? My kid has had a very hard time standing up for himself, which has been a struggle when overwhelmed by more dominant (i.e., bully types as well as hyper Type A-types) personalities. I worry about this if it may even be a concern at such a small school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh, the school is also racially diverse. I have no idea of the socio-economic make up, but the price tag is definitely (or at least when we were there) about half of most privates.

I think Templeton qualifies under the DC voucher program too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have a TA graduate. Our kid suffered from serious anxiety, and benefitted from a school with very few behavioral problems. I am less confident that is the case under the current administration, but we are still considering it for another child. It is, in any event, a very warm and supportive environment. Everyone has a story for why they’re there, and everyone’s ok with that. Very LGBTQI+ friendly. Very flexible academically—they developed a class because of strong interest from one or two kids (mine was one of them). Academics are challenging, although plenty of students get lower grades and are still big parts of the community.
Oh, my kid also exceeded our expectations in the college admissions process (not Ivy level (to which my kid did not apply), but scholarships at good small schools.. (Before you ask, as I recall from the graduation ceremony, there was a decent mix among the 15 or so grads from
good to decent SLACs to not particularly competitive schools—see above for how different students handled the academic challenges. But every kid who spoke at graduation had clearly found it to be a transformative experience (as did our kid).)

OP here. Thank you for this. Could you please say a bit more about the behavioral problems? My kid has had a very hard time standing up for himself, which has been a struggle when overwhelmed by more dominant (i.e., bully types as well as hyper Type A-types) personalities. I worry about this if it may even be a concern at such a small school.

The poster seemed to be saying that Templeton doesn’t have many behavioral problems, this minimizing those distractions for their child.

If you haven’t yet, I really suggest you reach out to the school and do a visit with your child if possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have a TA graduate. Our kid suffered from serious anxiety, and benefitted from a school with very few behavioral problems. I am less confident that is the case under the current administration, but we are still considering it for another child. It is, in any event, a very warm and supportive environment. Everyone has a story for why they’re there, and everyone’s ok with that. Very LGBTQI+ friendly. Very flexible academically—they developed a class because of strong interest from one or two kids (mine was one of them). Academics are challenging, although plenty of students get lower grades and are still big parts of the community.
Oh, my kid also exceeded our expectations in the college admissions process (not Ivy level (to which my kid did not apply), but scholarships at good small schools.. (Before you ask, as I recall from the graduation ceremony, there was a decent mix among the 15 or so grads from
good to decent SLACs to not particularly competitive schools—see above for how different students handled the academic challenges. But every kid who spoke at graduation had clearly found it to be a transformative experience (as did our kid).)

OP here. Thank you for this. Could you please say a bit more about the behavioral problems? My kid has had a very hard time standing up for himself, which has been a struggle when overwhelmed by more dominant (i.e., bully types as well as hyper Type A-types) personalities. I worry about this if it may even be a concern at such a small school.

I’m the above poster. My kid never reported any issues with bullying; they found it a very supportive environment. I found the same thing, for example, during senior projects—students really were there for each other. My kid reported there were some issues with drug use, but they’re hearing that second hand from friends who are still there.
As for the person who asked about the academic rigor—it was definitely academically challenging for our kid, but I think kids can (and sometimes do) skate. My kid did major final projects, and it would have been easy to have done something less ambitious. But there’s plenty there to challenge kids. Also, when my kid started, the school was really focused on self-motivation and taking ownership of your own education. It would have been a disaster for other kids in our family, but perfect for the one who went. By the time they graduated, they felt like there was less independence, which was frustrating (but frankly makes it a more realistic possibility for our younger child).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have a TA graduate. Our kid suffered from serious anxiety, and benefitted from a school with very few behavioral problems. I am less confident that is the case under the current administration, but we are still considering it for another child. It is, in any event, a very warm and supportive environment. Everyone has a story for why they’re there, and everyone’s ok with that. Very LGBTQI+ friendly. Very flexible academically—they developed a class because of strong interest from one or two kids (mine was one of them). Academics are challenging, although plenty of students get lower grades and are still big parts of the community.
Oh, my kid also exceeded our expectations in the college admissions process (not Ivy level (to which my kid did not apply), but scholarships at good small schools.. (Before you ask, as I recall from the graduation ceremony, there was a decent mix among the 15 or so grads from
good to decent SLACs to not particularly competitive schools—see above for how different students handled the academic challenges. But every kid who spoke at graduation had clearly found it to be a transformative experience (as did our kid).)

OP here. Thank you for this. Could you please say a bit more about the behavioral problems? My kid has had a very hard time standing up for himself, which has been a struggle when overwhelmed by more dominant (i.e., bully types as well as hyper Type A-types) personalities. I worry about this if it may even be a concern at such a small school.

I’m the above poster. My kid never reported any issues with bullying; they found it a very supportive environment. I found the same thing, for example, during senior projects—students really were there for each other. My kid reported there were some issues with drug use, but they’re hearing that second hand from friends who are still there.
As for the person who asked about the academic rigor—it was definitely academically challenging for our kid, but I think kids can (and sometimes do) skate. My kid did major final projects, and it would have been easy to have done something less ambitious. But there’s plenty there to challenge kids. Also, when my kid started, the school was really focused on self-motivation and taking ownership of your own education. It would have been a disaster for other kids in our family, but perfect for the one who went. By the time they graduated, they felt like there was less independence, which was frustrating (but frankly makes it a more realistic possibility for our younger child).

We’ve had a similar set of experiences. I get the sense there was some weed usage early on. I get the sense from my kid that some kids hang out in the bathrooms far too much.

Academically, it’s been mixed. The history teacher seems to assign high level reading (college level plus). My kid can handle that, but I’m not sure all can. English seems about what you’d expect. Not college level reading, but books at high school level. I’m supplementing math because it’s project based and I think my kid needs more practice with straight math. I do think some kids skate. I see various levels of performance at the exhibition nights. Some really strong. Some make me question what the kid has been doing with their time.

Regarding academics and behavior, I’m hoping that some of what I’m seeing is a transition from pandemic schooling and some of it will be resolved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a student at Templeton (2nd year there) and it is a great school. The leadership is impressive and responsive. The teachers to date all have been outstanding. My student doesn't have any learning differences, but struggles with executive function. Templeton is great because they have four terms and the students only take two classes per term, they have built in study hall each day, and they meet with their advisor once per week. They do a lot of really cool experiential learning with the students and the schedule is really great - most Friday's are half days, but they are there longer M-Th (there until 4:30 ish). The space is really cool and the move the Gallery Place has been great. I highly recommend Templeton if you want your student to be engaged and not lost among hundreds of other kids.

OP here. Thank you for this. I think small groups are key to my kid's ability to focus, which is why I've been looking into micro schools.

You might look at Mysa as well if looking into micro schools.

[Anonymous]

I know a family who's DC is there for HS. They have been very happy.

[Anonymous]

I am thinking of sending my daughter to this school. She is brilliant, sometimes needs some motivation, definitely neurodivergent, but what you would consider a normal kid. I want something like Templeton for her because I don't believe the traditional school model is a good fit for her. I actually don't think it's a good fit for most kids. Experiential learning that centers the student is perfect for this stage in their development. It connects their present to their future.
Can someone chime in and tell me how the school year's been going this year. I really want something expansive, engaging, challenging, and, of course, college preparatory. Maybe what I'm looking for doesn't exist. Maybe Templeton is exactly what I'm looking for. The trick is you just don't know until you know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure how Friends Community School got brought into this conversation at all. It's a K-8 Quaker school.

+1
The two schools are nothing alike.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am thinking of sending my daughter to this school. She is brilliant, sometimes needs some motivation, definitely neurodivergent, but what you would consider a normal kid. I want something like Templeton for her because I don't believe the traditional school model is a good fit for her. I actually don't think it's a good fit for most kids. Experiential learning that centers the student is perfect for this stage in their development. It connects their present to their future.
Can someone chime in and tell me how the school year's been going this year. I really want something expansive, engaging, challenging, and, of course, college preparatory. Maybe what I'm looking for doesn't exist. Maybe Templeton is exactly what I'm looking for. The trick is you just don't know until you know.

Same -- would love an update!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am thinking of sending my daughter to this school. She is brilliant, sometimes needs some motivation, definitely neurodivergent, but what you would consider a normal kid. I want something like Templeton for her because I don't believe the traditional school model is a good fit for her. I actually don't think it's a good fit for most kids. Experiential learning that centers the student is perfect for this stage in their development. It connects their present to their future.
Can someone chime in and tell me how the school year's been going this year. I really want something expansive, engaging, challenging, and, of course, college preparatory. Maybe what I'm looking for doesn't exist. Maybe Templeton is exactly what I'm looking for. The trick is you just don't know until you know.

Can't speak to Templeton, but what you are describing is a close fit for The Sycamore School just over the bridge in Rosslyn. They have extensive experience with neurodivergent learners, a mastery-based curriculum, and lots of experience/project-oriented learning.

Give the HOS call and check it out. They use a rolling admissions system.