Trying to decide between Beauvoir, WIS and NPS
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Anonymous
| OP here -- Thank you all for the comments. Greatly appreciated! I agree considering Beauvoir and NPS together is more apples to apples. We really enjoyed each school for different reasons. Beauvoir for the approach, curriculum and facilities; NPS for the love factor not that it doesn't have excellent curriculum, facilities and staff along with a welcoming approachable parent body; and the language component at WIS was unparalleled, the staff and parent body seemed wonderful as well. Unfortunately we would not be able to reinforce at home because we are not fluent so that leaves it between B and NPS. It is hard to distinguish between the two as they seem to offer similar very similar programs. |
Anonymous
But one does not need to reinforce it at home from what I hear - so that should not factor into your decision re WIS. |
Anonymous
| it's not an issue of reinforcing, but if dc needs help with French or Spanish homework, who's going to help her? If you get a tutor, how are you to gauge if they truly fluent in the language and actually write well in it (you will find many native English speakers with poor English skills). |
Anonymous
| One of my concerns about WIS was that the teachers be able to communicate with me. While we are fluent in French, and I have some Latin, we have no Spanish and would have put DD in the Spanish program. |
Anonymous
| WIS parent here of two students. Sadly, their dad and I don't speak a lick of their other language. Now in MS and HS each child is nearly fluent, and the "help with homework" argument is moot, as they have built-in support nearly every day in labs that run until 4 or 5. Also their teachers quickly identify if there are weaknesses, and rather than push the English-speaking parents at home to be involved more in the 2nd language--something welcomed but not obligatory--they are surrounded all week by teachers filling in the blanks for them. Don't let non-native speakers at home have one thing to do with your decision. And, yes, we would choose WIS over the others any day. |
Anonymous
|
My comments only are directed at NPS and Beauvoir as I do not have any information about WIS. It is my understanding that the class sizes are smaller (about 10-12 kids per PRE-K/12-15 for K) than Beauvoir, as well as the obvious physical structure. The facilities at B are nicer than NPS, but I do not think that NPS is lacking in any way (e.g., the library at Beauvoir is hands down much nicer than the room allocated at NPS, but that does not take away from the library program).
There is a true sense of community at NPS. The kids are genuinely nice kids (I'm not dissing B, this is just my experience with NPS). For us, outplacement was a big issue. The outplacement at both schools is excellent, but different. At B, most of the girls go to NPS and most of the boys go to St. A. There are of course, outliers, but they are just that - outliers. At NPS, the kids are relatively evenly split among the top schools in the city. I liked the variety. NPS is also a little bit less expensive than Beauvoir (maybe $5,000/year). The curriculum really is very similar. I would not view the curriculum guide at either school (particularly in the lower grades) as a definitive statement of what happens each year. We found the curriculum to be rather individually tailored and took into account that some kids are ahead/behind others when they enter the school. NPS was a good fit for both of our kids, who were on different ends of the spectrum in terms of basic skills when entering prek. |
Anonymous
WIS has language support teachers for both French and Spanish. The best place to start if a child needs help with homework is back to the teacher who gave the homework. |
Anonymous
I know all of the Beauvoir students who , for a variety of reasons , did not choose STA/NCS and they were by no means "outliers" . Smart, talented, athletic, nice kids who Cathedral schools would have been happy to have who chose co-ed or another school for many different reasons. I also know all of the kids attending STA/NCS from DC's class and they are also a pretty diverse bunch of kids. The stereotypes that you are perpetuating about the outplacemnt process are not accurate. |
Anonymous
| We also had the choice between Beauvoir and WIS for preK last year. DC enrolled in Beauvoir and we have been very happy with our choice. |
Anonymous
| Beauvoir teaches Spanish (2 classer per week) from preK through 3rd grade. They also offer afterschool enrichment classes in Chinese, Franch, or Spanish (2 after school classes per week). |
Anonymous
| Beauvoir's in-class language program isn't going to create a fluent Spanish speaker by 3rd grade, but it will provide the appropriate foundation for my kids to become fluent if they continue to take Spanish at their next schools. However, the after-school intensive language program is designed to work towards fluency. It's new this year, so I haven't heard many reviews. If you're on the fence, then speaking with someone who has used that program might help. I am sure Beauvoir would be willing to put you in touch. |
Anonymous
| I would choose between B and WIS, most likely lessening the need to go through the admissions process again. |
Anonymous
|
1. Beauvoir...but then yo have to go through the whole admission process again. 2. WIS, great school if your child and your family are a good fit. 3. NPS. Nurturing but on a different level from B and WIS. |
Anonymous
| Fine to send a girl to WIS but for a rambunctious boy no way. They can't handle it. |
Anonymous
| Beauvoir isn't known for their stellar handling of rambunctious boys either. |