Capitol Hill Pre-K Lottery

[Anonymous]

OP, our kids went to CHML but we are IB for LT, which has come a long way since my 2 started school. Personally I would stick with SWS as my top choice despite the swing space. I suspect it would be worth it. Plus I am sure the parents there are doing everything they can to keep the swing space close by. I feel like LT is much more solid educationally that CHML is, although their new building will be amazing and you would just have to deal with swing space for 1 year. JO is a good choice too if you want to move back to LT in K.

[Anonymous]

Definitely add AT OK Ave. FWIW, we moved out of the neighborhood but were very happy at Miner for ECE.

[Anonymous]

CHML is a complete mess and should be avoided

[Anonymous]

You’re not getting into Peabody OOB

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am inbound at LT and didn't get in and am at JO Wilson which we got in mid-summer. My brother is inbound and get in to LT. It really is luck and incoming class size/demographics/etc. I almost didn't put JO down but now, I am really glad I did.

Even though I think LT is a better long-term option, my brother's family who has a daughter the same age as ours thinks our experience at JO far outweighs theirs. The ECE at JO really is top-notch. There is not a bad teacher among them. The school had some issues last year and we were worried but our daughter loves it and we will stay put for another year.

If I were you and I lived close to LT and JO, I would put it closer than AP-LP or CHM which i have heard mixed things about, both in terms of teachers and community.

This surprises me. We’ve been really happy in PK4 at LT and our friends at JOW have had a mixed experience. If I were OP, I would not list SWS above LT now for 2 years in unknown swing space. The odds for getting in in K aren’t that much worse than PK3 and LT >>>> SWS in swing space if you’re IB for LT. I’d do:

1. LT
2. JOW
3. Miner
4. AT LP
5. AT OK (depending on how much you need free Pk)

And the only other one I’d even consider is CHML (although this year in swing space seems to be a horror show, so if they’re in swing space at all, it would be a hard pass from me). All others are less likely than LT IB and/or Miner and I’d disprefer to the relevant comparator.

I basically agree with this poster. How much does convenience matter to you and/or how much do you care if your PK3er spends 30 minutes on a bus? I don't think listing SWS this year is a good idea just for two bites at the apple if you wouldn't actually be OK w/ their swing space location. (You can always list it in K, where you have -- historically -- had similar odds to PK3 of getting in.) The CHML swing space experience has been a living hell. They lost HALF of their students, including double digits in one classroom alone once the year had already started. I think folks underestimate how bad 30 minutes on a bus is for many 3 year olds. SWS might get a more convenient swing space (and, truthfully, it could hardly be less convenient), but it's still going to be a swing space... for two years. And, given that it's technically a city wide lottery, there is every chance they get treated just like CHML by the powers that be.

You can fill in Brent, Maury, Peabody and 2R anywhere you want on your list, but you're not getting into the first 3 OOB and, if you prefer LT, you're not getting into 2R if you don't get into LT IB, so those are just (harmless) wasted spots.

[Anonymous]

LT really isn’t that great. The preK CLASS scores were low last year. Ludlow Taylor was in the bottom tier for their CLASS scores.

[Anonymous]

I’d just say that if you do like CHM and think you can manage the swing space for a year, then you might actually have a good chance of getting in. We started out at 100+ on the WL and got in by October because so many parents were freaked out by the swing space. But now we are now locked in. So far, we have found it to be a good experience even though the swing space is a bit rough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LT really isn’t that great. The preK CLASS scores were low last year. Ludlow Taylor was in the bottom tier for their CLASS scores.

The CLASS scores are, frankly, stupid. They observe like 3 classes —including weirdly a special at my kid’s PK — and then draw unexplained conclusions from them. The numerical differences are also so tiny as to be relatively meaningless. The feedback the teachers get, especially in the instruction support category, is basically incomprehensible. LT is a great community and the PK teachers are largely excellent (PK4 in particular).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am inbound at LT and didn't get in and am at JO Wilson which we got in mid-summer. My brother is inbound and get in to LT. It really is luck and incoming class size/demographics/etc. I almost didn't put JO down but now, I am really glad I did.

Even though I think LT is a better long-term option, my brother's family who has a daughter the same age as ours thinks our experience at JO far outweighs theirs. The ECE at JO really is top-notch. There is not a bad teacher among them. The school had some issues last year and we were worried but our daughter loves it and we will stay put for another year.

If I were you and I lived close to LT and JO, I would put it closer than AP-LP or CHM which i have heard mixed things about, both in terms of teachers and community.

This surprises me. We’ve been really happy in PK4 at LT and our friends at JOW have had a mixed experience. If I were OP, I would not list SWS above LT now for 2 years in unknown swing space. The odds for getting in in K aren’t that much worse than PK3 and LT >>>> SWS in swing space if you’re IB for LT. I’d do:

1. LT
2. JOW
3. Miner
4. AT LP
5. AT OK (depending on how much you need free Pk)

And the only other one I’d even consider is CHML (although this year in swing space seems to be a horror show, so if they’re in swing space at all, it would be a hard pass from me). All others are less likely than LT IB and/or Miner and I’d disprefer to the relevant comparator.

I basically agree with this poster. How much does convenience matter to you and/or how much do you care if your PK3er spends 30 minutes on a bus? I don't think listing SWS this year is a good idea just for two bites at the apple if you wouldn't actually be OK w/ their swing space location. (You can always list it in K, where you have -- historically -- had similar odds to PK3 of getting in.) The CHML swing space experience has been a living hell. They lost HALF of their students, including double digits in one classroom alone once the year had already started. I think folks underestimate how bad 30 minutes on a bus is for many 3 year olds. SWS might get a more convenient swing space (and, truthfully, it could hardly be less convenient), but it's still going to be a swing space... for two years. And, given that it's technically a city wide lottery, there is every chance they get treated just like CHML by the powers that be.

You can fill in Brent, Maury, Peabody and 2R anywhere you want on your list, but you're not getting into the first 3 OOB and, if you prefer LT, you're not getting into 2R if you don't get into LT IB, so those are just (harmless) wasted spots.

PP has a good point. DCPS has basically told SWS that the swing space will be in a location requiring a bus, i.e. not close by. They have promised to announce the swing space location before the lottery deadline, so you can always adjust your list once they announce the space. I think Pk families have a better chance of getting into SWS over the next two years because a lot of people will be turned off by the swing space location. If you can suffer through (and with hope, it won't really be "suffering") the swing space, your child will be at a wonderful building close by for k-5. However, I have heard wonderful things about Ludlow. You are lucky in that your location has many good options. Don't worry too much.