Thoughts about Brent Upper School from parents of kids who have gone through 5th?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child attended 5th grade at Brent - Upper School model. This model was extremely isolating for them. The 5th grade students are grouped into 6 ish students in a class of 18ish 4th graders. The 4th graders already have their friends and have no interest in socializing with the "left over" 5th graders. Further, it was only by luck you are with the 1-2 friends that didn't switch schools. It felt like starting new after being at the school for many, many years. The teachers or Principal also refused to have 5th-grade only focused activities. Teachers focused heavily on 4th grade learning so my child was very bored. Bored and lonely. We supplemented at home, as did most other 5th grade peers, which more likely attributed to maintained or increased test scores. My [academically advanced] child had to listen to the same math and English lessons -- even read the identical books -- and was not held to a higher standard. They were pulled into the "advanced" group in math but that was pretty dismal in terms of learning. Brent may be showing "higher" test scores but I call BS. Their model is both academically and socially damaging without outside support and intervention. The Principal doesn't give a hoot about the 5th grade experience either. Also, this past year 3 of 4 Upper School teachers left so that says a lot as well.

Thanks - PP current Brent parent here and this matches with what I've heard from 4th grade families as well. Assignments are the same, and obviously teachers have to focus on the 4th graders when the goal is to teach to the average. Sad to hear about the staff turnover, too, it must cause burnout. If you look at the astronomical 3rd grade WL offers this year, it's clear families did the math that two years at a swing space made no sense because they had no plans to return for 5th grade even in a new building. It's nuts because you see the increased buy-in to stay through 5th at LT, Maury, Payne, etc. We'd absolutely stay with a traditional 5th grade set-up. Parents with ECE/younger ES kids should make it priority 1,2,3,4 and 5 to get rid of this experiment. It's probably too late for us, but it's worth raising hell about before the school reopens on the Hill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child attended 5th grade at Brent - Upper School model. This model was extremely isolating for them. The 5th grade students are grouped into 6 ish students in a class of 18ish 4th graders. The 4th graders already have their friends and have no interest in socializing with the "left over" 5th graders. Further, it was only by luck you are with the 1-2 friends that didn't switch schools. It felt like starting new after being at the school for many, many years. The teachers or Principal also refused to have 5th-grade only focused activities. Teachers focused heavily on 4th grade learning so my child was very bored. Bored and lonely. We supplemented at home, as did most other 5th grade peers, which more likely attributed to maintained or increased test scores. My [academically advanced] child had to listen to the same math and English lessons -- even read the identical books -- and was not held to a higher standard. They were pulled into the "advanced" group in math but that was pretty dismal in terms of learning. Brent may be showing "higher" test scores but I call BS. Their model is both academically and socially damaging without outside support and intervention. The Principal doesn't give a hoot about the 5th grade experience either. Also, this past year 3 of 4 Upper School teachers left so that says a lot as well.

Thanks - PP current Brent parent here and this matches with what I've heard from 4th grade families as well. Assignments are the same, and obviously teachers have to focus on the 4th graders when the goal is to teach to the average. Sad to hear about the staff turnover, too, it must cause burnout. If you look at the astronomical 3rd grade WL offers this year, it's clear families did the math that two years at a swing space made no sense because they had no plans to return for 5th grade even in a new building. It's nuts because you see the increased buy-in to stay through 5th at LT, Maury, Payne, etc. We'd absolutely stay with a traditional 5th grade set-up. Parents with ECE/younger ES kids should make it priority 1,2,3,4 and 5 to get rid of this experiment. It's probably too late for us, but it's worth raising hell about before the school reopens on the Hill.

As long as Brent remains a Jefferson feeder, there probably isn’t much point to “raising hell.” People don’t stay for 5th not just because of the upper school model, but to use 5th to secure a better MS plan as well. Better use of resources to raise hell for a better feeder pattern although that would be a real uphill battle.

[Anonymous]

The child of a family we know stayed for 5th last year and they were surprised how happy they were with it, having heard the kinds of stuff mentioned in other posts here. They didn’t think that their child was repeating work, so maybe the school resolved that by last year. They said they actually felt like the small size of fifth helped their child get more attention and differentiated work, especially in math, where they break out the fifth graders to teach them alone, and there just aren’t that many of them. They were happy with the social experience too and said their kid became really close with the other fifth graders. Obviously YMMV if your kid’s close friends all get into charters and they don’t want to make new friends. But it sounds like both the social and academic experience can have some benefits.

[Anonymous]

Nah bro. Kid will go to Basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The child of a family we know stayed for 5th last year and they were surprised how happy they were with it, having heard the kinds of stuff mentioned in other posts here. They didn’t think that their child was repeating work, so maybe the school resolved that by last year. They said they actually felt like the small size of fifth helped their child get more attention and differentiated work, especially in math, where they break out the fifth graders to teach them alone, and there just aren’t that many of them. They were happy with the social experience too and said their kid became really close with the other fifth graders. Obviously YMMV if your kid’s close friends all get into charters and they don’t want to make new friends. But it sounds like both the social and academic experience can have some benefits.

It sad when they’re selling families on the benefits of getting broken out to do on grade level math. Like, literally, they’re excited because they got taught 5th grade math… unlike the other grade level content that they didn’t get. Treating 5th as 4th redux while charters are treating it as year 1 of middle school just puts kids behind the 8 ball. The only kids I know who have been happy in Brent’s 5th grade are the kids who were academically average/below average for demographics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The child of a family we know stayed for 5th last year and they were surprised how happy they were with it, having heard the kinds of stuff mentioned in other posts here. They didn’t think that their child was repeating work, so maybe the school resolved that by last year. They said they actually felt like the small size of fifth helped their child get more attention and differentiated work, especially in math, where they break out the fifth graders to teach them alone, and there just aren’t that many of them. They were happy with the social experience too and said their kid became really close with the other fifth graders. Obviously YMMV if your kid’s close friends all get into charters and they don’t want to make new friends. But it sounds like both the social and academic experience can have some benefits.

It sad when they’re selling families on the benefits of getting broken out to do on grade level math. Like, literally, they’re excited because they got taught 5th grade math… unlike the other grade level content that they didn’t get. Treating 5th as 4th redux while charters are treating it as year 1 of middle school just puts kids behind the 8 ball. The only kids I know who have been happy in Brent’s 5th grade are the kids who were academically average/below average for demographics.

+1

As a parent of former Brent 5th grader, I was shocked when my child told me that they got pulled out for math once a week. It does not compare to having 5th grade instruction every.single.day. When my kid joined a new school for 6th, there were whole math concepts that we not taught at the 5th grade level at Brent. We were prepared as we were one of the many mathansium families, but still. Everything about Upper School is sub par not matter how quickly some kids adapt versus other. Sure a handful of parents may have heard from other families that it's not so bad, but honestly, it is horrible academically. A waste of 5th grade and a school year. I agree with a previous post, just ask the 3 teachers that left Upper School; for a school like Brent, that is unheard of.

[Anonymous]

My youngest, now an 8th grader, was in the last full 5th grade class at Brent (we started in PreS3). We regretted staying for 5th. She learned little at school that year, leaving us to do heavy lifting a home and inadequate prep for MS rigor. We hired a writing tutor in 5th because a new English teacher was a disaster, yelling at the kids, giving them assignments that were way over their heads (teacher had only ever taught MS English). Meanwhile, math was far too easy. We found pricey challenge at Mathnasium. Going to the principal to ask for help was pointless. She denied all the problems, which made us angry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The child of a family we know stayed for 5th last year and they were surprised how happy they were with it, having heard the kinds of stuff mentioned in other posts here. They didn’t think that their child was repeating work, so maybe the school resolved that by last year. They said they actually felt like the small size of fifth helped their child get more attention and differentiated work, especially in math, where they break out the fifth graders to teach them alone, and there just aren’t that many of them. They were happy with the social experience too and said their kid became really close with the other fifth graders. Obviously YMMV if your kid’s close friends all get into charters and they don’t want to make new friends. But it sounds like both the social and academic experience can have some benefits.

It sad when they’re selling families on the benefits of getting broken out to do on grade level math. Like, literally, they’re excited because they got taught 5th grade math… unlike the other grade level content that they didn’t get. Treating 5th as 4th redux while charters are treating it as year 1 of middle school just puts kids behind the 8 ball. The only kids I know who have been happy in Brent’s 5th grade are the kids who were academically average/below average for demographics.

+1

As a parent of former Brent 5th grader, I was shocked when my child told me that they got pulled out for math once a week. It does not compare to having 5th grade instruction every.single.day. When my kid joined a new school for 6th, there were whole math concepts that we not taught at the 5th grade level at Brent. We were prepared as we were one of the many mathansium families, but still. Everything about Upper School is sub par not matter how quickly some kids adapt versus other. Sure a handful of parents may have heard from other families that it's not so bad, but honestly, it is horrible academically. A waste of 5th grade and a school year. I agree with a previous post, just ask the 3 teachers that left Upper School; for a school like Brent, that is unheard of.

Do you know the teachers left because of upper school? We heard one retired (and people were glad to see her go) and heard another had a baby. Not boosting upper school but don’t want to assume causation.

[Anonymous]

How can you know this? Teachers will give their polite reasons for leaving to head off drama and gossip. How can parents ever know what logic they were really following in hitting the road? Upper grades teachers pretty clearly dislike the complicated unpopular upper school model. But since the principal continues to embrace it and exercises outsized power in the chaotic DCPS system, she wins. What we've seen in the last few years is fewer and fewer 4th grade families sticking with 5th at Brent. People are quietly voting with their feet, and not just because BASIS and the Latins start at 5th as in the past.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child attended 5th grade at Brent - Upper School model. This model was extremely isolating for them. The 5th grade students are grouped into 6 ish students in a class of 18ish 4th graders. The 4th graders already have their friends and have no interest in socializing with the "left over" 5th graders. Further, it was only by luck you are with the 1-2 friends that didn't switch schools. It felt like starting new after being at the school for many, many years. The teachers or Principal also refused to have 5th-grade only focused activities. Teachers focused heavily on 4th grade learning so my child was very bored. Bored and lonely. We supplemented at home, as did most other 5th grade peers, which more likely attributed to maintained or increased test scores. My [academically advanced] child had to listen to the same math and English lessons -- even read the identical books -- and was not held to a higher standard. They were pulled into the "advanced" group in math but that was pretty dismal in terms of learning. Brent may be showing "higher" test scores but I call BS. Their model is both academically and socially damaging without outside support and intervention. The Principal doesn't give a hoot about the 5th grade experience either. Also, this past year 3 of 4 Upper School teachers left so that says a lot as well.

Thanks - PP current Brent parent here and this matches with what I've heard from 4th grade families as well. Assignments are the same, and obviously teachers have to focus on the 4th graders when the goal is to teach to the average. Sad to hear about the staff turnover, too, it must cause burnout. If you look at the astronomical 3rd grade WL offers this year, it's clear families did the math that two years at a swing space made no sense because they had no plans to return for 5th grade even in a new building. It's nuts because you see the increased buy-in to stay through 5th at LT, Maury, Payne, etc. We'd absolutely stay with a traditional 5th grade set-up. Parents with ECE/younger ES kids should make it priority 1,2,3,4 and 5 to get rid of this experiment. It's probably too late for us, but it's worth raising hell about before the school reopens on the Hill.

As long as Brent remains a Jefferson feeder, there probably isn’t much point to “raising hell.” People don’t stay for 5th not just because of the upper school model, but to use 5th to secure a better MS plan as well. Better use of resources to raise hell for a better feeder pattern although that would be a real uphill battle.

I would flip the usual framing a bit-as long as a large proportion of Brent families aren’t willing to send their kids to Jefferson, they’re undermining their own school by not having enough 5th grade students to make that experience better for those who stay. Brent has historically had the lowest MS buy-in of any Hill feeder. In contrast, Maury has been sending a growing cohort to EH and Jefferson is increasingly attracting families from the other three feeder schools, including UMC families.

By continuing on to Jefferson, they could help build a more integrated middle school, strengthen the 5th grade, and keep a stronger community feel by not having all their kids scatter in so many different directions.

[Anonymous]

5th grade was never totally great because the majority of the class and a lot of the more advanced students tended to leave. But, as the Latins get harder to get into, there was growing potential for more students to stay for 5th… until the implementation of the US model which probably makes it lots easier to balance out classroom sizes but otherwise really only works for a subset of the 5th graders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child attended 5th grade at Brent - Upper School model. This model was extremely isolating for them. The 5th grade students are grouped into 6 ish students in a class of 18ish 4th graders. The 4th graders already have their friends and have no interest in socializing with the "left over" 5th graders. Further, it was only by luck you are with the 1-2 friends that didn't switch schools. It felt like starting new after being at the school for many, many years. The teachers or Principal also refused to have 5th-grade only focused activities. Teachers focused heavily on 4th grade learning so my child was very bored. Bored and lonely. We supplemented at home, as did most other 5th grade peers, which more likely attributed to maintained or increased test scores. My [academically advanced] child had to listen to the same math and English lessons -- even read the identical books -- and was not held to a higher standard. They were pulled into the "advanced" group in math but that was pretty dismal in terms of learning. Brent may be showing "higher" test scores but I call BS. Their model is both academically and socially damaging without outside support and intervention. The Principal doesn't give a hoot about the 5th grade experience either. Also, this past year 3 of 4 Upper School teachers left so that says a lot as well.

Thanks - PP current Brent parent here and this matches with what I've heard from 4th grade families as well. Assignments are the same, and obviously teachers have to focus on the 4th graders when the goal is to teach to the average. Sad to hear about the staff turnover, too, it must cause burnout. If you look at the astronomical 3rd grade WL offers this year, it's clear families did the math that two years at a swing space made no sense because they had no plans to return for 5th grade even in a new building. It's nuts because you see the increased buy-in to stay through 5th at LT, Maury, Payne, etc. We'd absolutely stay with a traditional 5th grade set-up. Parents with ECE/younger ES kids should make it priority 1,2,3,4 and 5 to get rid of this experiment. It's probably too late for us, but it's worth raising hell about before the school reopens on the Hill.

As long as Brent remains a Jefferson feeder, there probably isn’t much point to “raising hell.” People don’t stay for 5th not just because of the upper school model, but to use 5th to secure a better MS plan as well. Better use of resources to raise hell for a better feeder pattern although that would be a real uphill battle.

I would flip the usual framing a bit-as long as a large proportion of Brent families aren’t willing to send their kids to Jefferson, they’re undermining their own school by not having enough 5th grade students to make that experience better for those who stay. Brent has historically had the lowest MS buy-in of any Hill feeder. In contrast, Maury has been sending a growing cohort to EH and Jefferson is increasingly attracting families from the other three feeder schools, including UMC families.

By continuing on to Jefferson, they could help build a more integrated middle school, strengthen the 5th grade, and keep a stronger community feel by not having all their kids scatter in so many different directions.

Oh come on. Sending your kid to Jefferson is a very high price to pay for the *possibility* of a slightly less inadequate 5th grade experience. This "framing" doesn't work at all. It isn't worth it. Brent needs to get its act together, provide a 5th grade experience that is academically and developmentally appropriate for all its students, and then maybe things could change. Trying to talk people into accepting inadequacy is never going to work.

Sincerely, a long time PTO leader at a Title I elementary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child attended 5th grade at Brent - Upper School model. This model was extremely isolating for them. The 5th grade students are grouped into 6 ish students in a class of 18ish 4th graders. The 4th graders already have their friends and have no interest in socializing with the "left over" 5th graders. Further, it was only by luck you are with the 1-2 friends that didn't switch schools. It felt like starting new after being at the school for many, many years. The teachers or Principal also refused to have 5th-grade only focused activities. Teachers focused heavily on 4th grade learning so my child was very bored. Bored and lonely. We supplemented at home, as did most other 5th grade peers, which more likely attributed to maintained or increased test scores. My [academically advanced] child had to listen to the same math and English lessons -- even read the identical books -- and was not held to a higher standard. They were pulled into the "advanced" group in math but that was pretty dismal in terms of learning. Brent may be showing "higher" test scores but I call BS. Their model is both academically and socially damaging without outside support and intervention. The Principal doesn't give a hoot about the 5th grade experience either. Also, this past year 3 of 4 Upper School teachers left so that says a lot as well.

Thanks - PP current Brent parent here and this matches with what I've heard from 4th grade families as well. Assignments are the same, and obviously teachers have to focus on the 4th graders when the goal is to teach to the average. Sad to hear about the staff turnover, too, it must cause burnout. If you look at the astronomical 3rd grade WL offers this year, it's clear families did the math that two years at a swing space made no sense because they had no plans to return for 5th grade even in a new building. It's nuts because you see the increased buy-in to stay through 5th at LT, Maury, Payne, etc. We'd absolutely stay with a traditional 5th grade set-up. Parents with ECE/younger ES kids should make it priority 1,2,3,4 and 5 to get rid of this experiment. It's probably too late for us, but it's worth raising hell about before the school reopens on the Hill.

As long as Brent remains a Jefferson feeder, there probably isn’t much point to “raising hell.” People don’t stay for 5th not just because of the upper school model, but to use 5th to secure a better MS plan as well. Better use of resources to raise hell for a better feeder pattern although that would be a real uphill battle.

I would flip the usual framing a bit-as long as a large proportion of Brent families aren’t willing to send their kids to Jefferson, they’re undermining their own school by not having enough 5th grade students to make that experience better for those who stay. Brent has historically had the lowest MS buy-in of any Hill feeder. In contrast, Maury has been sending a growing cohort to EH and Jefferson is increasingly attracting families from the other three feeder schools, including UMC families.

By continuing on to Jefferson, they could help build a more integrated middle school, strengthen the 5th grade, and keep a stronger community feel by not having all their kids scatter in so many different directions.

Oh come on. Sending your kid to Jefferson is a very high price to pay for the *possibility* of a slightly less inadequate 5th grade experience. This "framing" doesn't work at all. It isn't worth it. Brent needs to get its act together, provide a 5th grade experience that is academically and developmentally appropriate for all its students, and then maybe things could change. Trying to talk people into accepting inadequacy is never going to work.

Sincerely, a long time PTO leader at a Title I elementary.

My point is that having a larger and more bought-in 5th grade would help with advocating for changes to the US model, or perhaps if there were enough kids, they wouldn’t have a need for it anymore. But it’s hard to build that larger cohort when Jefferson is a non-starter for so many families, which I don’t think it should be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child attended 5th grade at Brent - Upper School model. This model was extremely isolating for them. The 5th grade students are grouped into 6 ish students in a class of 18ish 4th graders. The 4th graders already have their friends and have no interest in socializing with the "left over" 5th graders. Further, it was only by luck you are with the 1-2 friends that didn't switch schools. It felt like starting new after being at the school for many, many years. The teachers or Principal also refused to have 5th-grade only focused activities. Teachers focused heavily on 4th grade learning so my child was very bored. Bored and lonely. We supplemented at home, as did most other 5th grade peers, which more likely attributed to maintained or increased test scores. My [academically advanced] child had to listen to the same math and English lessons -- even read the identical books -- and was not held to a higher standard. They were pulled into the "advanced" group in math but that was pretty dismal in terms of learning. Brent may be showing "higher" test scores but I call BS. Their model is both academically and socially damaging without outside support and intervention. The Principal doesn't give a hoot about the 5th grade experience either. Also, this past year 3 of 4 Upper School teachers left so that says a lot as well.

Thanks - PP current Brent parent here and this matches with what I've heard from 4th grade families as well. Assignments are the same, and obviously teachers have to focus on the 4th graders when the goal is to teach to the average. Sad to hear about the staff turnover, too, it must cause burnout. If you look at the astronomical 3rd grade WL offers this year, it's clear families did the math that two years at a swing space made no sense because they had no plans to return for 5th grade even in a new building. It's nuts because you see the increased buy-in to stay through 5th at LT, Maury, Payne, etc. We'd absolutely stay with a traditional 5th grade set-up. Parents with ECE/younger ES kids should make it priority 1,2,3,4 and 5 to get rid of this experiment. It's probably too late for us, but it's worth raising hell about before the school reopens on the Hill.

As long as Brent remains a Jefferson feeder, there probably isn’t much point to “raising hell.” People don’t stay for 5th not just because of the upper school model, but to use 5th to secure a better MS plan as well. Better use of resources to raise hell for a better feeder pattern although that would be a real uphill battle.

I would flip the usual framing a bit-as long as a large proportion of Brent families aren’t willing to send their kids to Jefferson, they’re undermining their own school by not having enough 5th grade students to make that experience better for those who stay. Brent has historically had the lowest MS buy-in of any Hill feeder. In contrast, Maury has been sending a growing cohort to EH and Jefferson is increasingly attracting families from the other three feeder schools, including UMC families.

By continuing on to Jefferson, they could help build a more integrated middle school, strengthen the 5th grade, and keep a stronger community feel by not having all their kids scatter in so many different directions.

Oh come on. Sending your kid to Jefferson is a very high price to pay for the *possibility* of a slightly less inadequate 5th grade experience. This "framing" doesn't work at all. It isn't worth it. Brent needs to get its act together, provide a 5th grade experience that is academically and developmentally appropriate for all its students, and then maybe things could change. Trying to talk people into accepting inadequacy is never going to work.

Sincerely, a long time PTO leader at a Title I elementary.

My point is that having a larger and more bought-in 5th grade would help with advocating for changes to the US model, or perhaps if there were enough kids, they wouldn’t have a need for it anymore. But it’s hard to build that larger cohort when Jefferson is a non-starter for so many families, which I don’t think it should be.

Different poster agreeing with this take.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child attended 5th grade at Brent - Upper School model. This model was extremely isolating for them. The 5th grade students are grouped into 6 ish students in a class of 18ish 4th graders. The 4th graders already have their friends and have no interest in socializing with the "left over" 5th graders. Further, it was only by luck you are with the 1-2 friends that didn't switch schools. It felt like starting new after being at the school for many, many years. The teachers or Principal also refused to have 5th-grade only focused activities. Teachers focused heavily on 4th grade learning so my child was very bored. Bored and lonely. We supplemented at home, as did most other 5th grade peers, which more likely attributed to maintained or increased test scores. My [academically advanced] child had to listen to the same math and English lessons -- even read the identical books -- and was not held to a higher standard. They were pulled into the "advanced" group in math but that was pretty dismal in terms of learning. Brent may be showing "higher" test scores but I call BS. Their model is both academically and socially damaging without outside support and intervention. The Principal doesn't give a hoot about the 5th grade experience either. Also, this past year 3 of 4 Upper School teachers left so that says a lot as well.

Thanks - PP current Brent parent here and this matches with what I've heard from 4th grade families as well. Assignments are the same, and obviously teachers have to focus on the 4th graders when the goal is to teach to the average. Sad to hear about the staff turnover, too, it must cause burnout. If you look at the astronomical 3rd grade WL offers this year, it's clear families did the math that two years at a swing space made no sense because they had no plans to return for 5th grade even in a new building. It's nuts because you see the increased buy-in to stay through 5th at LT, Maury, Payne, etc. We'd absolutely stay with a traditional 5th grade set-up. Parents with ECE/younger ES kids should make it priority 1,2,3,4 and 5 to get rid of this experiment. It's probably too late for us, but it's worth raising hell about before the school reopens on the Hill.

As long as Brent remains a Jefferson feeder, there probably isn’t much point to “raising hell.” People don’t stay for 5th not just because of the upper school model, but to use 5th to secure a better MS plan as well. Better use of resources to raise hell for a better feeder pattern although that would be a real uphill battle.

I would flip the usual framing a bit-as long as a large proportion of Brent families aren’t willing to send their kids to Jefferson, they’re undermining their own school by not having enough 5th grade students to make that experience better for those who stay. Brent has historically had the lowest MS buy-in of any Hill feeder. In contrast, Maury has been sending a growing cohort to EH and Jefferson is increasingly attracting families from the other three feeder schools, including UMC families.

By continuing on to Jefferson, they could help build a more integrated middle school, strengthen the 5th grade, and keep a stronger community feel by not having all their kids scatter in so many different directions.

Oh come on. Sending your kid to Jefferson is a very high price to pay for the *possibility* of a slightly less inadequate 5th grade experience. This "framing" doesn't work at all. It isn't worth it. Brent needs to get its act together, provide a 5th grade experience that is academically and developmentally appropriate for all its students, and then maybe things could change. Trying to talk people into accepting inadequacy is never going to work.

Sincerely, a long time PTO leader at a Title I elementary.

My point is that having a larger and more bought-in 5th grade would help with advocating for changes to the US model, or perhaps if there were enough kids, they wouldn’t have a need for it anymore. But it’s hard to build that larger cohort when Jefferson is a non-starter for so many families, which I don’t think it should be.

If you'd like to make the case for Jefferson being a high quality school, go for it. I'm not saying you're wrong. But "Jefferson is so great it's worth the tradeoffs of putting your 5th grader through an inadequate year and accepting that you have no plan for high school" is quite the hill to climb.

You need to understand that a lot of the rising 5th grade class is siblings at Latin or BASIS or somewhere, and they're not going to be persuadable. Your potentially reachable population is quite small. And sure, some 5th grade parents have younger kids and find advocacy worthwhile, but for some 5th grade parents this is their last kid at Brent ever, so they have one foot out the door and won't bother to advocate for change at a school they're leaving. Don't be naive about these dynamics. If you're serious about making change, it's essential that you have your eyes wide open and accurately predict what people will do.