The Lists are In...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IT is getting a lot more high rankings than I expected. Is it the curriculum/location? Would most people hand put CM above IT of they were in the fray?

Why weren't you expecting it to be that high? We chose it because we loved the open house and expo. The principal and director were very enthusiastic and approachable. We were impressed by the families we met. They all could describe why they loved the school and were welcoming and friendly. We were impressed with their CAS scores last year. We were extremely impressed with the class work and art at the school. We were especially impressed with the work on display from the older classes. We put it ahead of CM because of our ability to see the work being done in the upper grades. We also consider IT to be more established than CM. I know it's only 1 year older but they seemed to be a much more established school. We also like that they have a permanent location (even though we live in NW). Some of the work in the 3rd grade classroom were things I consider 5th-6th grade. The work really reflected the school's philosophy. I know all kids vary on levels but we were also impressed with the work in PS/PK/K classrooms.

This sounds like an IT troll booster. Also, you didn't put IT ahead of CM because CM isn't in the common lottery. After results you can make that statement.

WTH is a "troll booster"? Seriously, pick one or the other but "you're a bad gooder!" sounds vaguely Orwellian (not quite "double-plus good" but definitely going down that road.

Anyway, I'm not the PP, but I get her point:

1. Having students at higher grades gives a clearer picture of how the program is performing over time.
2. Having a permanent facility is definitive proof of being "more established."
3. Having the backing of a foundation that is grounded in teaching generates confidence among parents.
4. The building may not be in NW, but it's large, it's permanent, and it has nice outdoor facilities for any school, not just a charter.

And no, we're not at IT and I don't have a dog in this fight. I just got her point, and am vaguely put-off by your need to try to slime her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1)MV (2%)
2) Marie Reed Dual (IB) (Pretty sure thing if we are willing to wait until August)
3) Powell Dual Language (0% first round,maybe 25% if we wait until August)
4) Bancroft (0%)
5) Cleveland Dual Language (15%)
6) Ross (0%)
7) Capitol Montessori (12%)
8) DC Bilingual (?)
9) Appletree CH (Pretty sure thing if we wait until August)
10) Lee Montessori (?)

Also Lamb (12% if we wait until August), Stokes (0%), and SHIning Stars (30%)

My priorities are Spanish immersion (one or two way), followed by Montessori with adjustments for proximity and skewed perceptions of program quality. I have also included my estimated odds of getting into each as a one shot based on fact, rumor, and innuendo.

So why didn't you include Oyster on your list? If you're going for immersion, why not go for the best and most established?

Because Oyster may be the most established SI, but LAMB is arguably the best.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It just dawned on me that I haven't seen Sela listed in any of the lists posted.

Considering the vitriol that's been spewed at Sela, due to what objectively appears to be racial/religious prejudice, I would be a little scared of mentioning Sela myself.

Instead, my family is just part of the DCI feeder consortium, but I hope Sela joins us.

[Anonymous]

Bc oyster is a wasted spot OOB

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You guys are so weird!!! We bought our house before we were even engaged. Things happen step by step. And it's not short term thinking--most of us cannot afford to buy our first home in Chevy Chase. We bought where we could afford. I do not want this string to turn into the argument of those who "care" about their children's education and rent a 1-bedroom on Connecticut Ave vs those who don't because they bought a house they could afford. But really--should you have bought a house in a good school distinct before even thinking of having kids? Seems bizarre.

As practical as your own decisions were/are, I hope you're open-minded enough to accept that everyone doesn't think like you do (and can't - being without the education and guidance). You're a long-term thinker with a strategic P.O.V. Kudos to you, because we need more of you in DC. However, we must improve the schools that we have, which alas, isn't a greenfield re-invention of the entire system. (That's a benefit enjoyed by many of our "high-concept" charters, but also a discussion for another thread.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Losing your IB status makes no sense. What if the school you choose doesn't work for your child? Our children change as they grow and something that works for PK might not work for the later grades.

Agreed. If people pay the price premium on their house for the security of a good IB school, then they're entitled to what they paid for. If you moved IB for Lafayette because you wanted to make sure that's an option, then decide you want LAMB or YY or whatever, that's totally fair. Now, if you got in via OOB and leave and want to come back, you gave up your shot. Also, if you pick an immersion school and move closer to it and then want to return to your former IB school, you shouldn't be any further ahead on the WL than anyone else OOB. However, there is nothing wrong with using your IB school as a back-up plan. Private school families do it too, there no reason that public schools families shouldn't either.

While price premia for good schools exist, they are a function of the market, and are not an entitlement. No school system is obligated to maintain the value of your home for you. That's why school systems are allowed to redraw boundaries with no regard to community whining about property values.

That said, I agree that students need to have a default school to which they are assigned. If a charter folds, a parent becomes disabled and can no longer transport the student across town, or a student diagnosed with special needs only the public system can handle, they have to have a place to go on the first day of school. Whatever the circumstance, everyone gets an education. The Supreme Court says so.

Not every Latin singular is pluralized in the Latin (as opposed to English). When done so, some of them offer delightful opportunities for parody.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ROOi5xagxg

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It just dawned on me that I haven't seen Sela listed in any of the lists posted.

Considering the vitriol that's been spewed at Sela, due to what objectively appears to be racial/religious prejudice, I would be a little scared of mentioning Sela myself.

Instead, my family is just part of the DCI feeder consortium, but I hope Sela joins us.

That's ridiculous as a reason that people aren't mentioning it. There has been no discussion on this thread about anything other than the pluses and minuses of different schools as ways of understanding other people's choices. Your post PP seems like an attempt to cover up the reality that there may just not be much interest in Sela as a 1st round draft pick school. Way back when, when you waded through the conversations about Sela as a proposed school and then as an approved school, aside from the vitriol there were MANY posts about the value of Hebrew immersion. That is simply not an in-demand language on the world stage.

Your suggestion that the lack of mentions of Sela on these lists is really people "hiding" their application because they're afraid to post it, as opposed to the simple fact that probably most people didn't put it on their list at all, is silly.

And that shouldn't be a surprise that so far no one has mentioned it (or, I thought I saw one person who did). Sela did not fill up this year, and in the "DCUM battles for most popular schools", they are not a school that people are fighting about admission into. If I was interested in Sela, I still wouldn't apply to it in the 1st round (unless it was my 1st choice) because it is highly likely that there will be plenty of spots in 2nd round. That's not about "racial/religious prejudice". That's about the fact that this whole lottery situation is about trying to increase your liklihood of getting in SOMEWHERE that you'll feel good about, and if a school that you think would be fine will most likely still have slots when the original 1st round dust settles, why would you use up a precious spot in the 1st round on it?

[Anonymous]

I did not put Sela on my list because I didn't feel Hebrew was a priority but mostly because I looked at the daily class schedule and it seemed way too academic for my kid--particularly with no recess until 2 pm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1)MV (2%)
2) Marie Reed Dual (IB) (Pretty sure thing if we are willing to wait until August)
3) Powell Dual Language (0% first round,maybe 25% if we wait until August)
4) Bancroft (0%)
5) Cleveland Dual Language (15%)
6) Ross (0%)
7) Capitol Montessori (12%)
8) DC Bilingual (?)
9) Appletree CH (Pretty sure thing if we wait until August)
10) Lee Montessori (?)

Also Lamb (12% if we wait until August), Stokes (0%), and SHIning Stars (30%)

My priorities are Spanish immersion (one or two way), followed by Montessori with adjustments for proximity and skewed perceptions of program quality. I have also included my estimated odds of getting into each as a one shot based on fact, rumor, and innuendo.

So why didn't you include Oyster on your list? If you're going for immersion, why not go for the best and most established?

Because Oyster may be the most established SI, but LAMB is arguably the best.

Ha--I sincerely doubt that claim! Oyster is objectively superior to LAMB based on test scores and location/neighborhood. Oyster is arguably superior to LAMB based on school community (a more diverse and interesting parent/student body). Oyster is also a great hybrid of a neighborhood and citywide school (generally, IB kids from English-speaking homes and OOB kids from Spanish-speaking homes). However, please offer your perspective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bc oyster is a wasted spot OOB

Yet, OOB kids are admitted EVERY year. Imagine that!

[Anonymous]

Please, let's not turn this thread into a LAMB vs. Oyster free for all. 16:28, I'm really glad that you feel the oyster community is wonderful, but your tone is really aggressive and off-putting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bc oyster is a wasted spot OOB

Yet, OOB kids are admitted EVERY year. Imagine that!

ones who are not spanish-dominant? or are not fake spanish-dominant?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I did not put Sela on my list because I didn't feel Hebrew was a priority but mostly because I looked at the daily class schedule and it seemed way too academic for my kid--particularly with no recess until 2 pm.

NP We didn't put Sela on because we have no interest in Hebrew as a language. But if we had been interested, we would certainly have said it here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Please, let's not turn this thread into a LAMB vs. Oyster free for all. 16:28, I'm really glad that you feel the oyster community is wonderful, but your tone is really aggressive and off-putting.

Thanks, and your schoolmarm-ish attempt at controlling the “tone” of the discussion is really annoying and will be ignored.

[Anonymous]

Not ignored by all. I always appreciate when someone - anyone - encourages a civil tone on these boards. So that's at least two for civilized discourse. One for ?