Anyone with experience with both Mundo Verde and Inspired Teaching?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We don't want Spanish because it is trendy, I'm sorry if it sounded that way. My husband and I both speak some Spanish but neither of us speak fluently. I have been close a few times (time in Spain, Spanish classes, etc.) and although my parents are from the U.S., they were living in a Spanish speaking country when I was born so I have always regretted not being able to speak Spanish fluently. My daughter's daycare is Spanish speaking so she has some Spanish already and I'd hate for her to lose that. I think there are a lot of benefits to being bilingual. I loved Mundo Verde when I visited it. I liked the sustainability focus, the idea of expeditionary learning, and the Spanish immersion. I also loved Inspired Teaching. I have a master's degree in education and the inquiry based education style of Inspired Teaching seems a lot like the style taught in my favorite ed class. Both schools have a lot of positives in my mind, which is why I was looking for comments from people who have experience with both. The first two responses I have received seem to be common in terms of the difference in tone between the two schools, with the IT poster really trying to be helpful and able to be positive about both schools, while the MV poster doesn't seem to have any helpful comparison and is not very friendly. It makes me a bit concerned about the MV parent culture. I know that this is one reason getting information from DCUM may not be the best idea, but after looking at the websites and going to the open houses, it is the only other place that I know of to get more information.

I am not sure what you expected from the previous MV poster. Did you want them to jump up and down with joy when yet another parent with no background or previous real interest in Spanish wants to enroll their special snowflake? The previous posters asked real questions to you, which you did not answer or address. Are you prepared to support the language since neither you nor your husband speak Spanish? Are you ready to hire the appropriate people? Aside from some vague mentions of a nice trip to Spain (also - Spain only? You live in the US and haven't bothered to take your family to Latin America despite your burning wish that your child speak Spanish?), you do not show any interest in teaching your child Spanish that I can see.

Let me be clear - kids whose parents have limited to no Spanish can and do thrive at MV. But they are willing and able to do what they can to help their child along with the Spanish. I do not see many people torn between two schools like Inspired Teaching and MV because frankly the schools are quite different. Their only similarity is that they're favorably perceived on DCUM and at the playground.

From everything you've written here, I think your choice is clear. Stick with Inspired Teaching since it seems the best fit for your family. And don't worry - lots of people will be jealous of your school.

Give it a rest. Many/most of the people in DC who send their kids to immersion schools would not be there if the "test" to get in was "real interest" in Spanish, Mandarin, French. This is why it's admittance is set up as a lottery. Many kids thrive and do just fine especially in the early grades without having support at home or having parents who speak/know the immersion language. Frankly, all the complaining about "being able to support the language at home" as a preference for admitting kids to these schools sounds like sour grapes from poor lottery results.

That's why a lot of kids don't speak the immersion language all that well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not OP but it's possible for one to want Spanish as a high priority and also have a desire for non-immersion at the same time. To be quite honest, the tone of the MV posts are very unappealing and would make me have second thoughts on the school. Crazy how someone can read into someone so much based on what's said it not said in 4 sentences. I hope these MV posters are the exception and not the norm.

Definitely best to stay away then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Spanish should never be the end all be all in your decision making for a school. One can have Spanish as #1 priority but if the school is lacking in other important areas, one should not overlook. Spanish should not have a cult like following where you ignore other important things that make a school a good place to be. Not saying MV doesn't have those things. OP is simply asking and everyone is saying "what do you need to know about MV other than its Spanish?"

I totally agree. It does not sound like the OP cares about Mundo Verde aside from the Spanish. People seem to think they can dump their kid at this school and learn Spanish for free without any problems. A school is way more than that, and I can't stand it when people only discuss the Spanish.

[Anonymous]

OP, don't let the grumps get you down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spanish should never be the end all be all in your decision making for a school. One can have Spanish as #1 priority but if the school is lacking in other important areas, one should not overlook. Spanish should not have a cult like following where you ignore other important things that make a school a good place to be. Not saying MV doesn't have those things. OP is simply asking and everyone is saying "what do you need to know about MV other than its Spanish?"

I totally agree. It does not sound like the OP cares about Mundo Verde aside from the Spanish. People seem to think they can dump their kid at this school and learn Spanish for free without any problems. A school is way more than that, and I can't stand it when people only discuss the Spanish.

I had the impression OP was trying to learn about the other factors she should consider aside from Spanish. OP if I were you I'd ask friends if they know anyone at either school. Doesnt seem like this thread will be very helpful!

[Anonymous]

We are an IT/MV family.

Spanish is a priority for our family- and easily supported in the home.

The similarity that most drove us to enroll and entrust DC's education at both schools was the emphasis on experiential learning. Especially in the early grades both schools place emphasis on the social/emotional aspect of learning which fosters a love of learning and lays the groundwork for more critical thinking skills and rigorous study.

Fwiw, we elected both charters over a sought after DCPS that we felt was both a bit too homogenous and test oriented.

[Anonymous]

To the previous poster, the IT/MV family, thank you for your response. I have a question if you happen to look back on here... Are the families at MV as friendly and welcoming as those at IT seem to be? I have met some IT families through friends but haven't managed to meet any MV families.

[Anonymous]

MV parent. People are very friendly. We love MV. My Spanish is pretty bad after many years studying in middle and high school. My 2 kids are learning very quickly, have great accents (according to my Spanish-speaking friends). Good luck with your decision.

[Anonymous]

IT parent here. We are friends with 5+ MV families. They are all super friendly and warm. All friends of friends at MV that we've met are the same. I imagine it is as warm and welcoming as IT.

[Anonymous]

We are the IT/MV family. We've found the MV family to be just as friendly and warm as the IT family. If anything, bc we have a similar set of interests and background with international work and a history of multicultural exchanges, it's been easier to integrate. (Although IT is diverse, just feels different.)

[Anonymous]

I would run away from MV if I were you. I don't know about Inspired teaching, but I do know that at MV 2 arms have been broken, 3 permanent teeth knocked out, severe bullying is taking place between students regularly, from admin to students and parents, and it is an all around shit show. Needless to say we are leaving. And the scores of their own assessments they present to parents were quite low. So mediocre education, lack of safety, bullying...its a real winner.

[Anonymous]

Dear PP above,
It looks like you dug up two old breads about MV to trash the school. I am sorry that you have had experiences that make you feel compelled to do this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dear PP above,
It looks like you dug up two old breads about MV to trash the school. I am sorry that you have had experiences that make you feel compelled to do this.

3 day old thread is not quite old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would run away from MV if I were you. I don't know about Inspired teaching, but I do know that at MV 2 arms have been broken, 3 permanent teeth knocked out, severe bullying is taking place between students regularly, from admin to students and parents, and it is an all around shit show. Needless to say we are leaving. And the scores of their own assessments they present to parents were quite low. So mediocre education, lack of safety, bullying...its a real winner.

There is a problem with one grade in the school. It has been identified, and they are trying to fix it. It does not permeate the rest of the school at all. So you will see comments like this, as they are not completely false (some facts are exaggerated here, but still the problem does exist), and it is a very unfortunate situation that the school is now trying to address with some pretty innovative strategies. But this is an issue that doesn't actually affect the vast majority of the school at all, and it is not one that will likely ever be repeated in other grades because the situation stemmed out of a buildup of a ton of unfortunate circumstances that arose with the growth of the school. If you are looking at lower grades, this should have absolutely no impact on your child.

[Anonymous]

So what happened to where there were broken bones? Is that true? I already heard about the teeth incident. Is the bullying really a problem?