Seeking TJHSST moms' advice

[Anonymous]

I wonder if the all-consuming nature of TJ is any different from the base schools? I remember being very busy with homework and activities in HS. Family was definitely on the periphery.

[Anonymous]

First of all, congratulations!

Another TJ parent here. I've also had kids at other FCPS HS and the hand is out there too. Such is life under lack of funding for schools in FCPS.

For my child at TJ I have to agree with the poster above who said that their child found a place where they belong. Kids are absolutely supportive of one another. Yes, there is more homework than MS, but my DC does not stay up all hours nor are they getting straight A's. However, they are participating in so many activities that I doubt would ever have been offered at our sports obsessed base school.

We have more than one kid, so our lives don't revolve around TJ but it is a really great school for my kid who is attending.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the all-consuming nature of TJ is any different from the base schools? I remember being very busy with homework and activities in HS. Family was definitely on the periphery.

Our non-TJ kid (at another phenomenal school) has a much better balance of school, work, and activities. I had a senior TJ mom warn me about the workload/stressful climate when my son got in and to be honest, I thought she was exaggerating. She was not and I wish I had listened to her. In the end, you have to do what is best for your child and your family.

[Anonymous]

My child is on the wait list. Does anyone know how many kids typically get accepted from the wait list of 50.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can't speak to the commute from North Arlington but in terms of work, it is a HUGE difference from my DS' not-so-challenging middle school. He is often up until after midnight doing work, especially when he's involved in a sport. You will hear repeated over and over again: "Your child just needs to learn good time management" when the load of work feels crushing. The culture for the kids is the best part: I-Night, the askings to the dances, the lock-ins, and 8th period but the crazy amounts of work make it hard for my son to fully enjoy them. He -- once very carefree in attitude -- says, "I spend the whole time worrying about how I'll pay for having fun with having to stay up." The kids are not typically cutthroat but there's enormous pressure and there are many stressed-out kids. The school will tell you about its mental health initiatives and how they have "homework guidelines" in place to minimize the craziness but some of my child's teachers will circumvent the guidelines i.e. assign a major project on the Thursday before Spring Break and say, "You had Thursday night before break to work on it so technically, you didn't have to complete it over Spring Break." If your child gets the IBET with Glotfelty and Hohlman, asked to be switched. They are two of the worst offenders in terms of actively undermining the guidelines.

In many ways TJ is a special place so I find it even more disheartening that all the good is undermined by ridiculous amounts of work. Smart 15-year-olds are still 15 year-olds; they shouldn't be walking around with their brows furrowed and the weight of the world on their shoulders. I hope it changes and that this isn't your child's experience, too. So sad!

I have a 10th grader at TJ -- this is all 100% accurate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid has been accepted to TJ. How is the commute from North Arlington? How much homework for a kid that normally finds middle school easy? How is the culture? Do the kids support each other? Cutthroat?

Thank you!!!!!!!

The commute from North Arlington depends on where you live. From YHS the drive is around 25 minutes. APS runs a bus, but the stop times vary a lot because there are only two busses that have to wind their way around Arlington before heading to TJ each AM. Some kids are on the bus for 1.5 hours each way. All kids at TJ found middle school easy -- the homework load is 4 hours per night during the weekday and 4-5 hours on Sat AND Sunday. Kids are VERY supportive of each other; I've seen little if any cutthroat behavior

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You moms are awesome! How about diversity? I hear minority is majority and majority is minority there?

yes, but my caucasian child has found it to be no issue at all. It's been eye opening for him to not always be in the majority.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child is on the wait list. Does anyone know how many kids typically get accepted from the wait list of 50.

Mine too. Letter that came with the WL said last year they took 18. And of course, not all 50 may opt to stay on the WL. And if a kid from PWC, Arlington, etc is ahead of a Fairfax kid, but all their TJ slots are full, they will skip that kid. So-- it's complicated.

[Anonymous]

TJ Freshman mom here: we were nervous about the same things as you (distance from school, homework load). But, I have to say that my child really loves this school. My child has found kindred spirits who really love what they are studying as well as enjoying the sports, music, camaraderie. Our base school is fantastic too. But the course offerings at TJ are unparalleled in the county, and it's fantastic that these kids have the opportunity and resources at their disposal.

[Anonymous]

My DD was on wait list and finally got admitted to class of 2015. My other DD just got admitted to class of 2020. Being on the waitlist back then, the admissions office was communicative when called, they said all waitlisted kids were ranked with a number. Not sure it is the same this year, but it made a difference if you were "high" or "low" on the waitlist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the all-consuming nature of TJ is any different from the base schools? I remember being very busy with homework and activities in HS. Family was definitely on the periphery.

I've had kids at TJ and at the regular high school and I would say that the level of "busyness" can be similar. Kids who are taking all AP course loads and have a high level of involvement in extracurriculars are going to have a similar experience to a kid at TJ from what I've seen of my kids and their friends. My humanities kids at the regular high school put together programs that were just as challenging in their interest areas as my STEM kid has at TJ.

What really makes a big difference is travel time from the school. TJ is tough for kids who live very far away, no doubt about it. We live closer, so the travel time wasn't as bad as some.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the all-consuming nature of TJ is any different from the base schools? I remember being very busy with homework and activities in HS. Family was definitely on the periphery.

Our non-TJ kid (at another phenomenal school) has a much better balance of school, work, and activities. I had a senior TJ mom warn me about the workload/stressful climate when my son got in and to be honest, I thought she was exaggerating. She was not and I wish I had listened to her. In the end, you have to do what is best for your child and your family.

Yep, kiss goodbye to any family weekend trips, such a quick hike in the Shenandoahs, for four years.

It is odd to see your TJ freshman working harder than your college freshman attending a top ranked university.

I would suggest talking to parents who have had kids at TJ AND a base high school who can make a meaningful comparison, vs parents who only had kids at TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid has been accepted to TJ. How is the commute from North Arlington? How much homework for a kid that normally finds middle school easy? How is the culture? Do the kids support each other? Cutthroat?

Thank you!!!!!!!

The commute depends on where you live. eg worst case scenario, if you live near HBW, the bus starts just after 7am, and returns around 5.25pm, making for around a 10.5 hour school day. Then load the homework on top. Compare that to HBW's hours of 9.20 am to 4.05 pm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't speak to the commute from North Arlington but in terms of work, it is a HUGE difference from my DS' not-so-challenging middle school. He is often up until after midnight doing work, especially when he's involved in a sport. You will hear repeated over and over again: "Your child just needs to learn good time management" when the load of work feels crushing. The culture for the kids is the best part: I-Night, the askings to the dances, the lock-ins, and 8th period but the crazy amounts of work make it hard for my son to fully enjoy them. He -- once very carefree in attitude -- says, "I spend the whole time worrying about how I'll pay for having fun with having to stay up." The kids are not typically cutthroat but there's enormous pressure and there are many stressed-out kids. The school will tell you about its mental health initiatives and how they have "homework guidelines" in place to minimize the craziness but some of my child's teachers will circumvent the guidelines i.e. assign a major project on the Thursday before Spring Break and say, "You had Thursday night before break to work on it so technically, you didn't have to complete it over Spring Break." If your child gets the IBET with Glotfelty and Hohlman, asked to be switched. They are two of the worst offenders in terms of actively undermining the guidelines.

In many ways TJ is a special place so I find it even more disheartening that all the good is undermined by ridiculous amounts of work. Smart 15-year-olds are still 15 year-olds; they shouldn't be walking around with their brows furrowed and the weight of the world on their shoulders. I hope it changes and that this isn't your child's experience, too. So sad!

I have a 10th grader at TJ -- this is all 100% accurate.

+1 I have a 12th grader at TJ -- ACCURATE

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the all-consuming nature of TJ is any different from the base schools? I remember being very busy with homework and activities in HS. Family was definitely on the periphery.

Our non-TJ kid (at another phenomenal school) has a much better balance of school, work, and activities. I had a senior TJ mom warn me about the workload/stressful climate when my son got in and to be honest, I thought she was exaggerating. She was not and I wish I had listened to her. In the end, you have to do what is best for your child and your family.

I have one at TJ and one at top FCPS. There is no comparison between the two academically -- TJ is MUCH more work, more in depth, many more hours of studying. If your HS student does certain sports they will be "busy" but the academic level at TJ is far different than any FCPS. There is a list of top public schools in the US on another thread -- FCPS do not even make the list, and TJ is #1.

My DS at TJ stats: Never made a B in anything before TJ, AAP, IQ 135, SAT 2275 (old) National Merit scholar, attending MIT in the fall -- just an ordinary student at TJ. MANY hours of homework.
Congrats new TJ acceptances! just know its a ton of work!