did I make a mistake?

[Anonymous]

I know it's early days in Mont.Co. schools, and I love our new neighborhood, but--I don't think much of the kindergarden. The classes are huge and there's only one, young teacher. My child looks lost and says she hates school (teacher says she does well in the classroom). I'm finding it a bit hard to connect to the other parents, many of whom are stay-at-home moms.
The day we moved from DC, I got an e-mail from the principal of a DC public school to which we'd applied out of boundary, saying we'd gotten in. I'm trying not to look back, but the class would have been smaller, and there would have been two adults in the room, unlike MoCo. My commute would have been far easier.
Anyway, I am having "buyer's remorse" about Montgomery County. I do hope the new superintendent can focus on getting an assistant teacher in every kindergarden class in the county. It would make a big difference, I think.
Sorry to be a downer. Maybe it's the rain. I do think things improve over time--but kindergarden seems to suck lemons in this county.

[Anonymous]

School has been in session < 2 weeks.

Maybe you should go to Starr's session on Thursday and raise your concerns.

Did you speak to the teacher at back To School night? We haven't had ours yet, but it is soon.

[Anonymous]

Is anyone talking about adding aides to all the K's? That would be marvelous but very surprising given all the budget woes... I hope there are benefits to you from MCPS. Don't look back!

[Anonymous]

I know it seems like chaos, but give it time. Montgomery County is actually good with K and will likely settle out in the upcoming weeks. It's tough when you child is new to the class and friendships are forming. Plus, K is a long day compared to whatever your child was doing last year. They are still working on getting into routine and how your teacher does things. It may take some time.

That being said, I highly advise attending back to school night and learning about what is happening in the classroom. I also highly suggest emailing the teacher if you have some concerns about how your child is adjusting. You don't know that your child would be adjusting any differently in the DC school you left. This is not the kindergarten any of us attended.

[Anonymous]

Give it time. Your child will make friends and love it, soon. Right now, with the rain, it's hard to get out on the playground, leading kids to be grumpy. I was amazed at how the K teacher last year in my child's class with only the help of parents managed so well with 28 kids. It wasn't ideal, but my child still vastly improved. Would he have improved more with more 1-to-1 attention? Perhaps. Am I happy with it overall? Absolutely. Go to the BTS night, talk to the teacher - many are available by email as well. If you can, take a day or two off and volunteer in the classroom to help and to get a feel for how the classroom really works. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[Anonymous]

OP - Your sense is correct. I had a kid in Kindergarten last year and an older kid in K during the pre-budget cut days. Both had the exact same teacher. I can tell you that MCPS K classes in the green zone have absolutely gone down hill. You can't put 27-28 5 yr old kids in a room with 1 adult and expect optimal results. The same sweet teacher that my older child loved, seemed to 'yell alot' according to my younger kid. I almost wish they would go back to half-day k with smaller class sizes.

The good news for us is that the class sizes have gone down to 23 or 24 for first grade.

[Anonymous]

Yes, you made a mistake. MoCo (apart from the magnets) is fool's gold at the elementary level. It's good at MS and great at HS, though, so hang in there!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, you made a mistake. MoCo (apart from the magnets) is fool's gold at the elementary level. It's good at MS and great at HS, though, so hang in there!

what do you mean by fools gold? we're also new and I'd be interested in your perspective.

[Anonymous]

Class sizes and number of teachers in class are awful. Much worse than VA or northwest DC. We are in private for elementary and maybe middle school. We will consider public in high school.

[Anonymous]

Class size is not the only criteria for a good/bad classroom environment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know it's early days in Mont.Co. schools, and I love our new neighborhood, but--I don't think much of the kindergarden. The classes are huge and there's only one, young teacher. My child looks lost and says she hates school (teacher says she does well in the classroom). I'm finding it a bit hard to connect to the other parents, many of whom are stay-at-home moms.
The day we moved from DC, I got an e-mail from the principal of a DC public school to which we'd applied out of boundary, saying we'd gotten in. I'm trying not to look back, but the class would have been smaller, and there would have been two adults in the room, unlike MoCo. My commute would have been far easier.
Anyway, I am having "buyer's remorse" about Montgomery County. I do hope the new superintendent can focus on getting an assistant teacher in every kindergarden class in the county. It would make a big difference, I think.
Sorry to be a downer. Maybe it's the rain. I do think things improve over time--but kindergarden seems to suck lemons in this county. [/quote spe

We moved from DC to MC specifically for schools. DC was at one of the better DCPS's and it still "sucked lemons." Academic quality was veyr low even for our "good" school. Although it's not perfect, MoCo is far and away so much better than DCPS in many many ways ,and I have never regretted it (although I still love DC and would like to move back downtown when DCs finish high school.)

[Anonymous]

Some MoCo parents are in denial. Quality of elementary education is simply not at the same level of VA or selected NW locations in DC. Education is still solid, but MCPS is loosing ground even accounting for the overall deterioration of public schools in the region. The sooner we realize this, the better. There is a very strong case for considering private education at the elementary level when kids need more individualized attention and should be given space to blossom his/her talents.

[Anonymous]

We were very disappointed in Montgomery Country Schools.

[Anonymous]

Some MoCo parents are in denial. Quality of elementary education is simply not at the same level of VA or selected NW locations in DC. Education is still solid, but MCPS is loosing ground even accounting for the overall deterioration of public schools in the region. The sooner we realize this, the better. There is a very strong case for considering private education at the elementary level when kids need more individualized attention and should be given space to blossom his/her talents.

Do you think the State and Feds will fork over $22,000/year for MD kids to attend private school?

I suggest if you believe your case you had better send your elementary school-aged children to private school ... on your dime (not mine).

Are you doing so? If not, why not?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some MoCo parents are in denial.

And some (myself included) are very happy. I think the comparisons you offer (MoCo versus all VA, or "selected NW locations") aren't helpful.