Two Rivers or E.L Haynes

[Anonymous]

If you had a choice b/w 2R and Haynes (we do), which would you choose and why? Logistics is about the same and taking aside Haynes year round program. TIA.

[Anonymous]

E.L. Haynes has a far better reputation. I do not know teachers at Two Rivers, so I can't speak to their abilities, but the teaching staff at E.L. Haynes is amazing.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks PP. What grade is your child in? Any experience with the first grade classrooms? Thanks.

[Anonymous]

NP here, I have a child going into 1st grade at Haynes.
Cant say enough good things about the school, and we are looking forward to another great year!
Good Luck with your decision.
EL Haynes starts tomorrow.....

[Anonymous]

I'm not sure how many 1st grade families are on this board. I can only comment on the PreK experience at ELH, but so far it's been incredible. For us, TR wasn't an option due mostly to the location (bad commute, poor air quality and lack of green space) and we preferred the option of staying thru HS. Academically, I think both are very strong. I have only great things to say about ELH's early childhood campus, kids, leadership, teachers, families, etc. Hopefully someone will comment on the merits of TR too. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

another ELH parent here.

DC started second grade today, and I can't say enough good things about our first grade experience. The teachers are fantastic, and work together as a team. There are two teachers in each classroom, and additional teachers who assist kids who are struggling. Specials teachers are great. Great and responsive administration.

[Anonymous]

I would vote ELH. Our child started at TR PreK last year but we ended up getting a lottery spot in the DCPS school we had wanted, so we left. In the two weeks we were there, TR seemed to be a great school but the lack of green space and the postage stamp playground just a few feet away from six-lane Florida Ave were real turn offs. Academically, both are strong schools but the campus-feel of ELH is really attractive (however, the 2nd campus on Georgia Ave is NOT so attractive--busy traffic, seedy stores and strip joints, etc.). One caveat...ELH has plans to build to highschool...I would want to know what the construction plans are at their Kansas Ave campus...will my child be dealing with loud, dusty construction chaos for years? Congrats on having two really good options.

[Anonymous]

Thanks PPs. Any TR parents that can give me their own perspectives? Thanks.

[Anonymous]

We also had a choice between EL Haynes and Two Rivers and ultimately chose Two Rivers. In my neighborhood, there are kids who go to both schools, and I've heard great things about both. We have been very happy with TR -- it is a very warm community with great teachers and families and super communication/responsiveness from staff. Their test scores continue to rise even though there is no teaching to the test whatsoever. For our kids, the ELOB model has worked great. They are very excited about school and they are thriving emotionally and academically. The reason we did not choose ELH was that we felt they were not as committed to the expeditionary (i.e., ELOB) learning model, and they were more focused on academic achievement and testing (e.g., see the ELH DC CAS Rap on Youtube, which really is kind of cool, but not our speed). All that said, I do sometimes long for the year-round model, and I admit that the ELH campus is much nicer in terms of greenspace.

The upshot: I don't think you can make a bad choice here. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Two Rivers only goes through 5th, right? That would make me select Haynes.

[Anonymous]

2Rivers go to 8th

[Anonymous]

Score are out. 2 Rivers scores seem higher overall, but EL Haynes does better in math.

[Anonymous]

Scores don't tell the full story. This year's ELH reading score was an anomaly. Compare to previous years and you will see. I'd put more stock in your own impressions, kids' experience and parents' satisfaction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Scores don't tell the full story. This year's ELH reading score was an anomaly. Compare to previous years and you will see. I'd put more stock in your own impressions, kids' experience and parents' satisfaction.

What happened to EL Haynes reading this year? What's the cause of the anomaly?

[Anonymous]

EH Haynes serves a farm great % of FARMs than 2Rivers. I would expect the latter to have much better scores.