Please help me navigate dual language school admissions

[Anonymous]

Thanks to all of you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are my chances slim b/c these schools are in such high demand, or are they slim because my kid will be entering in PS4 rather than PS3?

Both. The charter schools mentioned (Mundo Verde, LAMB) are extremely high in demand, AND because they both start at PS3, the classes fill up at that point. There are fewer spots available for PS4 and above since at that point, you are just filling the spots of people who leave.

Actually, MV might be easier to enter in Pk4, as there is an extra class and will likely have fewer siblings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are my chances slim b/c these schools are in such high demand, or are they slim because my kid will be entering in PS4 rather than PS3?

Both. The charter schools mentioned (Mundo Verde, LAMB) are extremely high in demand, AND because they both start at PS3, the classes fill up at that point. There are fewer spots available for PS4 and above since at that point, you are just filling the spots of people who leave.

Actually, MV might be easier to enter in Pk4, as there is an extra class and will likely have fewer siblings.

MV parent here: because of space limitations there may NOT be an extra PK4 class this year (this will allow them to free up space to add 2nd grade without using existing common spaces for specials, etc.). I believe the plan is to have two PK4 classes next year to accommodate the existing PS3 class. If every child re-enrolls there will be 8 spaces available for lottery (that does not include sibling preference).

[Anonymous]

Our DC got in off the lottery at LAMB for PK...so it's possible. I applied just knowing we would not get a spot but what's 5 minutes? Turns out it was 5 minutes well spent. OPs listed commute as a consideration when looking at schools and we are moving closer to the school to reduce our 1.5 hour commute each day. Getting up to LAMB is not a problem but commuting downtown after drop off with the rest of MD is. The nice thing is that it has it's own outdoor space, playground and it is close to several bus routes and its primary campus is where it will be for the foreseeable future. The other thing to note is that it is a Montessori school. This is very different from other bilinguals and the primary reason they do not admit new students after PK. It's a learning process you should know about and consider for your child because the learning materials are very different than a traditional class. We love it and have found it empowering for our child but we underestimated the adjustment.

We love LAMB enough to move closer to the school and the fact that it's a charter means we can live anywhere in the city (not forced into high cost living areas to be in bounds). LAMB is also part of the charter to create the DC International School with Yiu Ying and Mundo Verde (maybe Stokes?). So middle school and high school are longer term paths you can count on. I'm not sure where all the public bilingual schools feed into so you may need to research that.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hello, my family is moving to DC this summer. My son will be PreK age, and will enter kindergarten in 2014. He is currently in a dual language program (Spanish/English), and I feel very strongly about keeping him in a public dual language program during his elementary school years (and beyond, if possible). I've done a fair bit of research about DC's dual language options, and the varying admissions policies are making my dizzy.

The Oyster-Adams website claims that if you live in-boundary, attending that school is a right/entitlement once the child enters kindergarten. Is this correct? No lottery for in-boundary K-8 kids? If we lived in-boundary, I'd just go to the school and sign him up? Elsewhere on this website, folks have posted that O-A has certain preferences for OOB and IB kids, combined with sibling preferences. This info is conflicted.

And what about the other schools: Bancroft, Bruce-Monroe, Cleveland, Columbia Heights, Marie Reed, and Tyler? Are those schools all by preferences and/or lottery, or are there any guaranteed admissions based on in-boundary status?

Other than LAMB PCS, are there other Spanish/English dual language charter schools?

Thanks!

You'd be well-advised to check out the scores of those schools, in addition to the comments on DCUM threads. They're not exactly in the same league as Oyster, MV, Lamb, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Thanks!

You'd be well-advised to check out the scores of those schools, in addition to the comments on DCUM threads. They're not exactly in the same league as Oyster, MV, Lamb, etc.

WEll, MV does not have any scores.

[Anonymous]

Try like hell to get into Stokes, LAMB or MV. They are part of the DCI which equals bilingual education from PreK to High School for free! It's the best ticket in the city! Forget about the DCPS, they don't have any comparable options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Try like hell to get into Stokes, LAMB or MV. They are part of the DCI which equals bilingual education from PreK to High School for free! It's the best ticket in the city! Forget about the DCPS, they don't have any comparable options.

DCI looks indeed like a very thoughtful experiment, but I couldn't advice OP to play the charter lottery if he/she can get into Oyster-Adams, which goes preK to grade 8 and is known quality. OP: try to live in Oyster boundary. If you can't, those chapters make sense.