Looking for a school recommendation, for second grade

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know a couple of kids like this at a school with relatively small class sizes (10-12), and I'm not sure I would recommend a school like that for a very sensitive child. What I've observed (and these are NOT my kids, but the parents are friends of mine) is that the smaller the class, the harder it can be on a sensitive kid, because they can start to feel like everyone is against them, or everyone isn't their friend. At our school this doesn't seem to be the case, but it is perceived by the child to be the case, and it can make it very hard on them. Just something to keep in mind - a larger class size or multiple classes of the same grade may be better for her.

Ditto this. Very small schools can have downsides. For a really sensitive child, I would not consider a school with only one teacher per grade because if that teacher and the child don't click for some reason, that can be pretty painful for a kid like this. One class per grade might be okay if it is a large enough class with an even boy-girl mix, there are two classroom teachers, and the school is proactive about preventing cliques.

[Anonymous]

A little surprised no one has suggested Lowell?

[Anonymous]

another plug for Norwood

[Anonymous]

11:26 again - I know it's over the bridge - but perhaps consider Langley in McLean, VA the commute isn't so bad because you get off on the first exit. It's a nice k-8 school.

[Anonymous]

Ugh 11:26 again - and closer than Sandy Spring Friends school if you are going to consider SSFS. (which is also a nice place - but a bit different than Norwood or Langley in style)

[Anonymous]

If Rockville works, take a look at Christ Episcopal School. It's hard to describe in a few words what makes this a really good school. Nice kid, nice, supportive atmosphere and great academics. If you arrange for a tour you'll see what I mean. Good luck. You have a lot of good options to choose from on this thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know a couple of kids like this at a school with relatively small class sizes (10-12), and I'm not sure I would recommend a school like that for a very sensitive child. What I've observed (and these are NOT my kids, but the parents are friends of mine) is that the smaller the class, the harder it can be on a sensitive kid, because they can start to feel like everyone is against them, or everyone isn't their friend. At our school this doesn't seem to be the case, but it is perceived by the child to be the case, and it can make it very hard on them. Just something to keep in mind - a larger class size or multiple classes of the same grade may be better for her.

Depends on the kid. Mine is like that and is thriving in a small class environment.

[Anonymous]

We were at a small school. I have a very sensitive child and it was not great because they did not mesh well socially with the class. Unfortunately no way to know this till you get there. We found a larger environment gave our child more opportunities to find a similar friend group.

[Anonymous]

I think a school with a commitment to small classes but 2-3 sections per grade is a good approach.

Nothing beats visiting schools but I would start with Green Acres and St. Andrews. I think both have a kind and welcoming culture and a critical mass of students in most grades.

[Anonymous]

Another vote for St. Andrew's. It is small but you should visit and see what you think. Our DC is very happy there.

[Anonymous]

For my two cents, I would give St. Andrews and Green Acres a look for your DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We were at a small school. I have a very sensitive child and it was not great because they did not mesh well socially with the class. Unfortunately no way to know this till you get there. We found a larger environment gave our child more opportunities to find a similar friend group.

This is so true! DC is in a small school, but the class doesn't seem like a good fit (although I love the school and they are trying to be as helpful as possible). I doubt a larger environment would be better for DC, so at this point I'm not sure what to do.

[Anonymous]

Sheridan school....excellent environment for the kid you are describing

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, everyone! I hadn't considered Sandy Spring before because the location seemed like a tough commute, but it does look wonderful.

The ICC makes it a very doable commute. I'm in Bethesda and drove my dc up there this summer for a class. Yes, it was summer, not busy fall, but we could get there in 25 minutes easy.