To those who struggled to send their kids to a Big 3-like school - did it turn out to be "worth it."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ultimately, it boils down to who their life-long friends are and that is extremely dependent on the school they attend.

Are you saying lifelong friendships can never be made in a public school.
Or are you saying that the lifelong friendship friend might travel by bus in a public school instead of drive a mercedes in a private school

I think that post was abstract for a reason -- look at the various schools available and decide what you want your DC's cohort to be. And the answer to that question should reflect what you/your family values -- not what that particular PP values.


PS my private school kid rides the (Metro)bus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are at a Big 3 school. We have been disappointed with our experience so far. Teachers have been not been of high quality, administration has been unresponsive. When we started asking around, it turned out that there were other disappointed parents. There are also a lot of uninvolved parents who don't notice how bad the teachers were. These parents show up for events but aren't thinking about their kid. There are parents who don't dare complain about the teachers, even in their own heads, because they think public school is just a terrible choice for various reasons. And I will say that the school really does seem to work for some kids and families, so everyone is not disappointed. Trying to figure out what to do about all this!

Would you care to mention the school? School administration read these posts, and might take a hint. Also, your post is general that you wouldn't identify yourself.

[Anonymous]

Much of it depends on the kid's needs (teacher attention) and the parents' goals (foreign language).

I'll just weigh in on the foreign language piece. We were thrilled that our kid in private elementary was exposed to a foreign language, which would not have been available in the local public until 6th grade. But we found that unless the language is done as immersion, foreign languages at the elementary level it aren't really useful. In private elementary, your kid will learn body parts, colors, some (limited) items in a house, and how to count to 100. Much of it is repeated from year to year. They won't start approaching fluency until middle school, or even high school. If they switch languages in middle school (from spanish to french or latin), they will lose all of the language they learned in elementary school. This was pretty disappointing to us.

For music too, if that is a priority, you will need to supplement with private music lessons whether you go to public or private. Although publics and privates both start instruments around 3rd-4th grade, this is often too late if your goal is the MD youth orchestra or something of that ilk. If your goal is enjoyment, then recorder lessons and an instrument starting in 4th is probably fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: In private elementary, your kid will learn body parts, colors, some (limited) items in a house, and how to count to 100. Much of it is repeated from year to year.

Totally depends on the private. I was pleasantly surprised at how much French my DC learned in lower school at GDS -- and that they were writing paragraphs and short essays, as well as speaking and reading. The French teachers also say that the kids' accents have improved dramatically since they bumped foreign language instruction down to 3rd grade.

I agree that if your kid drops a particular language before middle school (and has no regular occasion to us it outside of school), s/he doesn't get much out of that early instruction. OTOH, if a kid sticks with the language, I think it's a real benefit to have started early, both in terms of pronunciation and sheer amount of time/exposure. Most kids I know that took 4 years of a foreign language in HS (vs. elementary school), didn't end up having any use for it if they stopped there.

[Anonymous]

My child goes to a charter school in the district with foreign language immersion. So what we are getting for free is fluency/literacy in two languages, a small class (under 20 kids and two teachers last year -- two fully qualified teachers, not one teacher and an aide - one for English, one for the second language). Child has deep friendships with these children and sees them regularly through sports teams, at parties, playdates, and other events. They have an art teacher, and a music teacher. There is a great special ed component, as mandated for public schools, so children get extra help with everything from counseling one-on-one to handwriting OT or physical therapy, or math/reading pull-outs. Field trips (six or so last year), all-school multi-culti performances and potlucks. Lunch from an organic caterer. New renovated facility. Zero staff turnover for next year so all the professionals in the building know all the children and families. The population is diverse - a good thing in my mind - but parental involvement is very high. PTA meetings bring up to 50 people routinely.

I have no idea what "Big-3" schools offer for elementary school beyond this. Is there more? I genuinely don't know.

[Anonymous]

I have no idea what "Big-3" schools offer for elementary school beyond this.

Your schools sounds great. We'd need to know more -- you say there is an art teacher and a music teacher at your charter. This is excellent. Tell us how often the kids have art period each week. Music? Instrumental lessons? Describe the art studio. Describe the art materials, that sort of thing.

Curriculum is one big difference I have noticed between my son's private school and our local JKLM and the swank ES my friend's kids attend in Chevy Chase Md. I happen to like our kid's school better, but others feel differently and especially when it comes to mathreading, all day long.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are at a Big 3 school. We have been disappointed with our experience so far. Teachers have been not been of high quality, administration has been unresponsive. When we started asking around, it turned out that there were other disappointed parents. There are also a lot of uninvolved parents who don't notice how bad the teachers were. These parents show up for events but aren't thinking about their kid. There are parents who don't dare complain about the teachers, even in their own heads, because they think public school is just a terrible choice for various reasons. And I will say that the school really does seem to work for some kids and families, so everyone is not disappointed. Trying to figure out what to do about all this!

My dear, I feel your agony! I sense that we are at the same school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child goes to a charter school in the district with foreign language immersion. I have no idea what "Big-3" schools offer for elementary school beyond this. Is there more? I genuinely don't know.

You won the lottery! Congrats on your wonderful luck! Most of the rest of us did not fare so well. The highest spot one of my kids ever got in a charter or out-of-boundary lottery was in the 20s, and by summer's end we were no closer.

[Anonymous]

Do you mind identifying the charter school? It sounds wonderful.

[Anonymous]

I kind of don't want to name the school because I have before and then the one person who had a bad experience pops up and derides the whole description. This is my experience and it's true for our family. The name doesn't really matter because getting in is practically impossible, like the previous poster said. For the specific questions posed by a PP:

Your schools sounds great. We'd need to know more -- you say there is an art teacher and a music teacher at your charter. This is excellent. Tell us how often the kids have art period each week. Music? Instrumental lessons? Describe the art studio. Describe the art materials, that sort of thing.

Curriculum is one big difference I have noticed between my son's private school and our local JKLM and the swank ES my friend's kids attend in Chevy Chase Md. I happen to like our kid's school better, but others feel differently and especially when it comes to mathreading, all day long.

Yes there's an art teacher and a music teacher, but they are part-time. Art and music specials once a week each. Recorder lessons. No art studio, pottery barn, etc. Small projects done in the classrooms, larger projects either outside or in a larger multipurpose room.

Curriculum is interesting -- pretty international, covers lots of content areas. Not that strong on science hands-on activities. Much better on social studies, history, geography. Lots of hands-on language arts (making books, that sort of thing) and math. But of course, we have the reality of testing because we have to do the DC CAS-- bleh. So Jan-April ends up being a lot of working up to the DC CAS. It must be done-- the future of the school rides on it.

What I think many private school families would not go for is the lack of... how can I put it? Type A, insta-communications, abundance of organization and planning at the school. The school is about the kids and parents' convenience is somewhat secondary. Important yes, involved yes, but the whole machine that I believe may be geared up at private schools around parents' needs is just not really there at my kid's school. Maybe that's what's missing for $30,000, I don't know.

[Anonymous]

PP, not all private schools are great at parent communications and organizations!! We are at GDS, and this aspect is unbelievably poor. We are often left scratching our heads in disbelief at how poor the communications are with parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are at a Big 3 school. We have been disappointed with our experience so far. Teachers have been not been of high quality, administration has been unresponsive. When we started asking around, it turned out that there were other disappointed parents. There are also a lot of uninvolved parents who don't notice how bad the teachers were. These parents show up for events but aren't thinking about their kid. There are parents who don't dare complain about the teachers, even in their own heads, because they think public school is just a terrible choice for various reasons. And I will say that the school really does seem to work for some kids and families, so everyone is not disappointed. Trying to figure out what to do about all this!

My dear, I feel your agony! I sense that we are at the same school.

Would anybody care to name the school? I'm also curious about the charter. And it's not as though any of you has provided personally identifying info.

[Anonymous]

GDS parent here. I find no communication problems with the school and teachers. I find the teachers accessible, via telephone, in person or email, even the head of school is available. What I find head-scratching is why you have experienced such poor communication. Maybe you are not reaching out?

[Anonymous]

I think what the pp means is that for the kind of $$ you're shelling out, the parent shouldn't have to always be the one to initiate contact. It's interesting, I've found my dc's "non-big -3" to be extremely responsive, organized, and excellent at communication (the parents joke about being "spammed" by the school, although they really are just very prompt and specific in communications). I wonder if the "big 3" schools rest on their laurels, because they think the parents should just feel lucky dc got in, or whether the parents have higher expectations? Perhaps some of both?

The public school my dc is in boundary for made the private school decision a no-brainer, but I do feel that we have been "spoiled" by the excellent "specials" teachers and facilities (physical education, art room full of supplies, huge library, music room, and a real science lab for the lower school), as well as the personal attention (phone calls from the teacher over any issues, a long essay on your child's development each reporting period, plus as much time as you want to talk it over), not to mention avoiding the testing requirements. I believe my child would do just fine at a "good" public school, but it would be hard to go back now. Is it worth the $$? It is to me right now, but the contract is only for a year, and next year, we'll reevaluate.

[Anonymous]

what is a big 3 school? What is JKLM?