Talk to me about Katherine Thomas School
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Anonymous
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Pros: large campus, feels like a real school
ESY on site diversity of professionals Cons: people come from all over and there can be real differences between the funded families and private pay families administration loves rules and policies overly Covid conscious not all teachers are great, some years are good, some not great they pay less than public so you have to wonder why some people choose not to go public |
Anonymous
How does KTS deal with disruptive behaviors like leaving instructional area/distracting other kids by running around the room (without aggressive behaviors)? |
Anonymous
| The admissions director is Marjorie Theard. I recommend reaching out and talking with her. We did a visit and two shadow days at KTS. We opted for another school, but I came away with a very positive impression of KTS. |
Anonymous
What is the difference between funded and self pay students? |
Anonymous
| Self-pay families are often quite wealthy. Some funded families (not all) can be quite poor. This makes it hard for socializing. |
Anonymous
They have a behaviorist and will do a BIP. |
Anonymous
I'm at a different school and it's the same here. I'd guess maybe 10% of our students are self-pay and you can tell. But in general, the geographic dispersion of the students halts socialization as well. We're in DC and my son's two favorite school friends live in Gaithersburg and Alexandria. It's hard to get the gang together outside of school. |
Anonymous
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Excellent information. We just recently moved back to DC after overseas deployment (work). My son still has some diagnoses not fully defined, like ADS is suspected but not diagnosed (F.88) and only ADHD is confirmed. Suspected mild ASD is a problem; he was not accepted in LAB school. My son is very much behind academically (reading and writing), but he is cognitively normal and has no behavior issues in public; for example, visual-spatial issues and needs multisensory methods for teaching (which is not provided in the current school). He is very social, sporty, and outgoing, and if he has ASD, it's somewhat Asperger/high functioning type. He is still pending to have a new evaluation (clinical). We don't know why our son is not learning in the same phase as others - he just turned 8. He has problems with letter/number reversing, letter spacing, and spelling (letter-sound link etc). On the other hand, he is very well-behaved and polite in school, hobbies, camps, playdates, and playground, and terrible behavior at home with his parents. He is in public school now, and we are not happy. The school is terrible and behind with the IEP process (I have done an appeal against a grade level mistake they made which they didn't want to correct and won it). I am considering the state complaint process now. The school seems to deny his eligibility for IEP services. Have anyone been denied eligibility, and have any one granted eligibility with ADHD only? Also, the current school social mix is not heterogeneous. Most of the kids are from lower socio-economic status families (supported housing). Connecting with other parents is challenging and impacts my son having friends from the school. We live, unfortunately, 2 blocks away from 10/10 rated public school area. I want to find a private specialized school with a strong academic and learning support program as he doesn't have behavioral issues. KTS seems to have a mixed profile of kids and many happy parents. What is the problem with McClean School? Diener mix reviews, but there are warnings about the school if a child has dyslexia. Does IVY school seem to serve children with severe disabilities? We are reviewing options, but all schools are so far away. Honesty, I don't know how I would arrange transportation as I need to go to the office twice a week and have work trips. LAB school with super high cost won't accept my son, and its only an elementary school in DC for kids with special needs? Does DC have any social groups/parent/playdate groups for families with neurodiverse kids? USA should have highest prevelance kids with ADHD but I havent found any support group or parental group yet? We live in the Adams Morgan/Mount Pleasant area. |
Anonymous
When I read your description of your kid I thought Mclean. Mclean is what some people on this board refer to as SN lite. The school, and a few others, walks a fine line between special needs and typical. I have a kid with true SN at KTS. I used to spend time on the Mclean campus for another reason and those kids look really typical. A teacher there told me they take kids up to two years behind. It's a beautiful campus. KTS is a grab bag school (meaning not autism focused as some schools are) and the kids range in academic ability from quite impaired to very intelligent. |
Anonymous
If this child didn’t get into Lab they are unlikely to get into McLean, or even Diener, really, at this point. Apply to all of them. There are limited options. Maybe look at Auburn too. |
Anonymous
Just my experience in DC - ADHD alone is not sufficient grounds for IEP eligibility. Just ADHD will generally get addressed by a 504 plan that addresses accommodations like extra test time, breaks, seat at front of class, etc. The threshold that the school must follow is whether the disability negatively impacts the child's ability to access the curriculum. If so, is it an instructional issue or an environmental issue? At least for the ADHD with the info you gave, his ADHD is not sufficient for an IEP, but would get a 504. The academic piece is another issue entirely. Unfortunately, two grades behind is pretty well within the spectrum of normal for DCPS. You could push for Orton-Gillingham or LMB, but with no specific disability to tie it to, I can see the school push back. I would look into private tutoring. Regarding private school, it's insanely expensive and inconvenient when you don't have public funding. Before you decide to drop $60K per year and spend three hours in your car each day, I would give supplementation a year or so. Hire the reading tutor. Hire a math tutor. Hire a writing coach. Look into classes at ASDEC. In the long run, this will cost less than private and may yield the same results. But if you decide to go private, McLean and Siena are probably your best bets and I recommend moving close to the school so the commute doesn't kill you. Based on my experience and the info you provided, I don't think KTS or Ivymount is a good fit. |
Anonymous
| Again, McLean and Siena are hard to get into. If Lab refused, I’d view those are unlikely. |
Anonymous
Again, as a former Diener parent, I again state that I agree with the reflected views of the educational consultant here about Diener. I know others have different experiences but I think people benefit from having a fuller view of the pros and cons of a school like Diener, especially in light of the monetary commitment to go there. |
Anonymous
None of these schools are easy to get into. Good fit kids get turned away all the time because of space. If you think McLean and Siena are hard, try Ivymount or KTS. There are so few options for children with these needs that supplementation is often the only option. |
Anonymous
Yes, but different variations of hard. For kids with less severe special needs, McLean and Siena are more attractive options. Those kids are unlikely to be applying to IV or KTS. What is the point of being contrary about this? KTS and IV serve the more impacted. |