sycamore school

[Anonymous]

We have had a great experience with our child there. I love the school model and the teachers are passionate and invested. Very happy with it.

Re: location, we drive and location is not an issue for us. I think some kids take the metro and others get dropped off.

[Anonymous]

What range of challenges/profiles are there? I know there is an emphasis on social-emotional and executive function. Is it limited to ADHD or are there kids with profiles closer to very mild ASD?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What range of challenges/profiles are there? I know there is an emphasis on social-emotional and executive function. Is it limited to ADHD or are there kids with profiles closer to very mild ASD?

I posted above that my child was accepted, although we decided not to attend. He has pretty significant disabilities in written expression and autism that causes mostly internalizing behavior, not externalizing, but I would not call it "very mild." In their promotional video, there's a kid wearing a sweatshirt from summit camp, which is an overnight camp for autistic kids (not necessarily "very mild").

[Anonymous]

I am a current parent and I don't want to speak for the school, but this is how I see it. Sycamore is warm, accepting, supportive, knowledgeable and organized but NOT a special needs school. So, it is not so much what specific challenge profile the school is willing to accept as how much specialized instruction your child needs. I think the school will accommodate and support a wide variety of profiles but cannot take the place of a school like Lab or Siena for a child who needs specialized instruction in order to acquire certain skills.

I say this partly based on my experience, and from observing kids (the children of friends and my child's classmates) who have either loved the school, opted not to come and chosen more specialized options, or attended only briefly. There are plenty of kids with language-based learning differences for example, but (from my limited observation) they are not at the stage of their development where they need the kind of full-time instruction they would get at one of aforementioned schools.

I realize that what I wrote could be roughly translated as 504 vs IEP and I am sure that is not really the breakdown. The school definitely specializes in working on executive functions and I think is exceptionally strong for kids with anxiety who might not be able to succeed elsewhere. Though I don't ever hear it promoted this way, in my observation of several kids, Sycamore is also great place for 2E kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a current parent and I don't want to speak for the school, but this is how I see it. Sycamore is warm, accepting, supportive, knowledgeable and organized but NOT a special needs school. So, it is not so much what specific challenge profile the school is willing to accept as how much specialized instruction your child needs. I think the school will accommodate and support a wide variety of profiles but cannot take the place of a school like Lab or Siena for a child who needs specialized instruction in order to acquire certain skills.

I say this partly based on my experience, and from observing kids (the children of friends and my child's classmates) who have either loved the school, opted not to come and chosen more specialized options, or attended only briefly. There are plenty of kids with language-based learning differences for example, but (from my limited observation) they are not at the stage of their development where they need the kind of full-time instruction they would get at one of aforementioned schools.

I realize that what I wrote could be roughly translated as 504 vs IEP and I am sure that is not really the breakdown. The school definitely specializes in working on executive functions and I think is exceptionally strong for kids with anxiety who might not be able to succeed elsewhere. Though I don't ever hear it promoted this way, in my observation of several kids, Sycamore is also great place for 2E kids.

Same poster. Realize that I did not address the specific ASD question. My assumption is that children with ASD attend the school and, again, that acceptance and success there depends on what level of intervention your child needs. I also think the school is working well for kids who do not have any diagnosis but would be lost in our big public middle and high schools. So, lots and lots of profiles.

[Anonymous]

I’m a parent of a current student and agree with the above posters that fit is everything so I’ll start with my child’s profile. DC is 2e with moderate ADHD and dyslexia. He can comprehend above grade level but spells on a 3rd grade level. His reading is very slow but on grade level otherwise. I met with the HOS twice: Once before applying to tell her the challenges and what I learned about how he thrives. Once, with him, to specifically discuss his fit, have him understand the school, and that’s pretty much it.

Before application, I sent the IEP to the school (“good” robust, 20+hour IEP; they do exist!). Most of it was around executive function and since the school is built around building those skills anyway, they were not the challenge. He has reading accommodation like access to audio versions of the curriculum. Since he will live with dyslexia his entire life, the LA teacher is introducing possible accommodations to him as they try to figure out the best mix. He is medicated.

Here’s the thing, he LOVES school.

This kid had a disastrous first 4 years in ES and the last two were hard b/c the school was bringing him up to grade level after the other one failed to do that. Mentally he is healthier than he’s been in the last 4 years. Socially, he has a lot of friends which is great for a small school. Intellectually, he’s engaged with and interested in learning and the school has fostered his love of learning and supports his intellectual curiosity. For example, he was studying something and packed a related science experiment in his bag. I warned him that “the school might not allow that” like the Es…Wrong. DC did the experiment. Teacher used it as a jumping point for the day’s lesson and I felt like I got my money’s worth at that moment. Minor versions of that type of thing have happened regularly.

At the school, DC is friends with a child with ASD that expresses like severe ADHD. (mom offered dx). Two kids have emotional support dogs; one’s pink.

Happy to answer additional questions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a parent of a current student and agree with the above posters that fit is everything so I’ll start with my child’s profile. DC is 2e with moderate ADHD and dyslexia. He can comprehend above grade level but spells on a 3rd grade level. His reading is very slow but on grade level otherwise. I met with the HOS twice: Once before applying to tell her the challenges and what I learned about how he thrives. Once, with him, to specifically discuss his fit, have him understand the school, and that’s pretty much it.

Before application, I sent the IEP to the school (“good” robust, 20+hour IEP; they do exist!). Most of it was around executive function and since the school is built around building those skills anyway, they were not the challenge. He has reading accommodation like access to audio versions of the curriculum. Since he will live with dyslexia his entire life, the LA teacher is introducing possible accommodations to him as they try to figure out the best mix. He is medicated.

Here’s the thing, he LOVES school.

This kid had a disastrous first 4 years in ES and the last two were hard b/c the school was bringing him up to grade level after the other one failed to do that. Mentally he is healthier than he’s been in the last 4 years. Socially, he has a lot of friends which is great for a small school. Intellectually, he’s engaged with and interested in learning and the school has fostered his love of learning and supports his intellectual curiosity. For example, he was studying something and packed a related science experiment in his bag. I warned him that “the school might not allow that” like the Es…Wrong. DC did the experiment. Teacher used it as a jumping point for the day’s lesson and I felt like I got my money’s worth at that moment. Minor versions of that type of thing have happened regularly.

At the school, DC is friends with a child with ASD that expresses like severe ADHD. (mom offered dx). Two kids have emotional support dogs; one’s pink.

Happy to answer additional questions.

I love that your child is thriving there. Seriously warms my heart.

We've thought of Sycamore for our gender non conforming child. We are very concerned about bullying in Middle School.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a parent of a current student and agree with the above posters that fit is everything so I’ll start with my child’s profile. DC is 2e with moderate ADHD and dyslexia. He can comprehend above grade level but spells on a 3rd grade level. His reading is very slow but on grade level otherwise. I met with the HOS twice: Once before applying to tell her the challenges and what I learned about how he thrives. Once, with him, to specifically discuss his fit, have him understand the school, and that’s pretty much it.

Before application, I sent the IEP to the school (“good” robust, 20+hour IEP; they do exist!). Most of it was around executive function and since the school is built around building those skills anyway, they were not the challenge. He has reading accommodation like access to audio versions of the curriculum. Since he will live with dyslexia his entire life, the LA teacher is introducing possible accommodations to him as they try to figure out the best mix. He is medicated.

Here’s the thing, he LOVES school.

This kid had a disastrous first 4 years in ES and the last two were hard b/c the school was bringing him up to grade level after the other one failed to do that. Mentally he is healthier than he’s been in the last 4 years. Socially, he has a lot of friends which is great for a small school. Intellectually, he’s engaged with and interested in learning and the school has fostered his love of learning and supports his intellectual curiosity. For example, he was studying something and packed a related science experiment in his bag. I warned him that “the school might not allow that” like the Es…Wrong. DC did the experiment. Teacher used it as a jumping point for the day’s lesson and I felt like I got my money’s worth at that moment. Minor versions of that type of thing have happened regularly.

At the school, DC is friends with a child with ASD that expresses like severe ADHD. (mom offered dx). Two kids have emotional support dogs; one’s pink.

Happy to answer additional questions.

This is amazing and sounds exactly like what we want. So bummed that it is too difficult for us to get there! It's just too far away from MD.

[Anonymous]

Also, I love that one of the dogs is pink. How cool!

[Anonymous]

Re Gender Non-conforming.

There is, for sure, one "they" and I do not know sex assigned at birth (mom told me). There is another who I assume was born one sex and is living as the other gender.

I am very surprised about how much awareness raising and accepting there is about these issues and I find them a little hard to discuss with an 11 yr old but that's on me so I'm learning more. I suspect there's more than one kid who had these challenges at other schools. I'm pretty sure if you ask, the HOS will connect you with the other mom who I know has a non-binary child. Kid is very happy at TSS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a parent of a current student and agree with the above posters that fit is everything so I’ll start with my child’s profile. DC is 2e with moderate ADHD and dyslexia. He can comprehend above grade level but spells on a 3rd grade level. His reading is very slow but on grade level otherwise. I met with the HOS twice: Once before applying to tell her the challenges and what I learned about how he thrives. Once, with him, to specifically discuss his fit, have him understand the school, and that’s pretty much it.

Before application, I sent the IEP to the school (“good” robust, 20+hour IEP; they do exist!). Most of it was around executive function and since the school is built around building those skills anyway, they were not the challenge. He has reading accommodation like access to audio versions of the curriculum. Since he will live with dyslexia his entire life, the LA teacher is introducing possible accommodations to him as they try to figure out the best mix. He is medicated.

Here’s the thing, he LOVES school.

This kid had a disastrous first 4 years in ES and the last two were hard b/c the school was bringing him up to grade level after the other one failed to do that. Mentally he is healthier than he’s been in the last 4 years. Socially, he has a lot of friends which is great for a small school. Intellectually, he’s engaged with and interested in learning and the school has fostered his love of learning and supports his intellectual curiosity. For example, he was studying something and packed a related science experiment in his bag. I warned him that “the school might not allow that” like the Es…Wrong. DC did the experiment. Teacher used it as a jumping point for the day’s lesson and I felt like I got my money’s worth at that moment. Minor versions of that type of thing have happened regularly.

At the school, DC is friends with a child with ASD that expresses like severe ADHD. (mom offered dx). Two kids have emotional support dogs; one’s pink.

Happy to answer additional questions.

This is amazing and sounds exactly like what we want. So bummed that it is too difficult for us to get there! It's just too far away from MD.

I do know your pain. I thought they would not accept him and the dyslexia schools are so far away...and one that was closer was not a "fit".

[Anonymous]

Bumping this. I would be interested to hear any current experiences at the high school level. We have not visited yet. The philosophy sounds good but and the website says not having grades is not a concern for college applications. That makes me uneasy. I’d appreciate any feedback and that and social opportunities. I know it’s very small. We would be looking at 10th or 11th grade.

[Anonymous]

I have a high schooler here. The school is still so new and small that there is not much of a sample size, but I believe that the graduates have done pretty well in college admissions. Next year's senior class will be the largest at around ten. It will be interesting to see how it goes.

There is definitely a precedent for students from mastery-based schools applying to colleges. Thee school does seem very invested in helping students find the right fit for them and in supporting them through the application process.

[Anonymous]

The school is moving to Rosslyn next year since their current building is being torn down. It'll be on Wilson Blvd almost across from HB Woodlawn. https://www.arlnow.com/2022/10/14/local-private-school-plans-move-from-ballston-to-rosslyn-office-space/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a high schooler here. The school is still so new and small that there is not much of a sample size, but I believe that the graduates have done pretty well in college admissions. Next year's senior class will be the largest at around ten. It will be interesting to see how it goes.

There is definitely a precedent for students from mastery-based schools applying to colleges. Thee school does seem very invested in helping students find the right fit for them and in supporting them through the application process.

Thank you for the feedback. That’s very small! How does your kid like it socially, with that few students?