GDS or Burke for HS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh please! Either one is fine. He will just take the easy classes at GDS. At GDS all Physical activity is optional. The social climate at Burke Who is probably kinder though.

Physical activity is optional at GDS US? I am deeply skeptical of this statement.

PE is NOT optional at GDS.

It is called PE but you literally don’t have to do anything. You can lie for an hour on a yoga mat if you want

I don’t see why anyone wouldn’t want their kids to be physically fit. How healthy do you expect them to be without physical activity?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the question is where he’d be happy as an artsy non athlete. I think he’d be ok at both academically w the right classes but socially is where you gave to choose carefully.

I think socially he would be fine either place. If you get into both have him do a visit day at both and then see which he prefers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:St Andrew’s has a fantastic jazz band and they have their research center for learning. They are known for being a good school for ADHD and anyone else needing learning accommodations because of their research center.

How is it socially for a non-sporty boy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh please! Either one is fine. He will just take the easy classes at GDS. At GDS all Physical activity is optional. The social climate at Burke Who is probably kinder though.

Physical activity is optional at GDS US? I am deeply skeptical of this statement.

PE is NOT optional at GDS.

It is called PE but you literally don’t have to do anything. You can lie for an hour on a yoga mat if you want

My kid is lifting weights alternating with running. No one in his class is just lying down on a yoga mat unless they want to get a bad grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GDS s a "self starter" school. A kid with ADHD will get crushed there.

So not true.
This is a myth.
They have a high school learning specialist for a reason. GDS has all sorts of kids.

Every HS has a Learning Specialist. What’s your point?

[Anonymous]

Adhd kid won’t get “crushed” there because they’ll let him pick and choose easy or random classes as he wishes and not push him. How much he learns will be up to him.

Adhd kid would get crushed at the other upper schools because they do do an amount of pushing forward and high expectations. He might learn more because there will be more work, drills, tests and not group projects.

Adhd kid would actual LEARN the most at a St. Andrews who specializes in efficacy/scaffolding for such a student plus foundational skills and learning, or at a school that pushes and has higher standards for ALL plus an exec functioning coach and tutors.

Op can decide.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GDS s a "self starter" school. A kid with ADHD will get crushed there.

So not true.
This is a myth.
They have a high school learning specialist for a reason. GDS has all sorts of kids.

Every HS has a Learning Specialist. What’s your point?

My point is a kid with adhd would be fine at any of the schools. They are all filled with a variety of kids not just “self starters”. That PP doesn’t know all the kids at GDS if they think they are all like that.

[Anonymous]

We have a lot of friends with children at both Burke and GDS. Culturally they are somewhat similar, but GDS is wealthier and more socially and academically competitive. GDS students also seem to do about 50% more homework than Burke students. This number would vary from student to student, but nobody thinks Burke assigns as much homework as GDS. Both schools attract some extremely smart and academically strong students, but a higher percentage of GDS students are extremely smart and a higher percentage of GDS students strive to get high grades.

If given the choice, most people prefer GDS but some people prefer Burke. The ones who prefer Burke often make their decision partly based on the school's culture and partly based on the lower homework load. These factors could make a big difference in the quality of life for a student with ADHD.

By the way, college admissions results are surprisingly similar for Burke and GDS students with similar backgrounds and credentials (grades, scores, rigor of courses taken, extracurricular accomplishments, etc.), but there are a lot more very strong students at GDS. Since GDS starts out with more strong students and then puts more of them through a very rigorous curriculum, GDS's college admissions list ends up being more impressive overall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a lot of friends with children at both Burke and GDS. Culturally they are somewhat similar, but GDS is wealthier and more socially and academically competitive. GDS students also seem to do about 50% more homework than Burke students. This number would vary from student to student, but nobody thinks Burke assigns as much homework as GDS. Both schools attract some extremely smart and academically strong students, but a higher percentage of GDS students are extremely smart and a higher percentage of GDS students strive to get high grades.

If given the choice, most people prefer GDS but some people prefer Burke. The ones who prefer Burke often make their decision partly based on the school's culture and partly based on the lower homework load. These factors could make a big difference in the quality of life for a student with ADHD.

By the way, college admissions results are surprisingly similar for Burke and GDS students with similar backgrounds and credentials (grades, scores, rigor of courses taken, extracurricular accomplishments, etc.), but there are a lot more very strong students at GDS. Since GDS starts out with more strong students and then puts more of them through a very rigorous curriculum, GDS's college admissions list ends up being more impressive overall.

I would also look are courses offered in high school if your child is accepted to both. There are higher level math and science options at gds, but that does not matter to many students there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GDS s a "self starter" school. A kid with ADHD will get crushed there.

No they let plenty of people like that float around, but they don’t push them or improve them much. It’s like college- what you make of it or don’t. Easier for the teachers that way too.

This was unfortunately our experience with “meets your child where they are….” And keeps them there!

To build on pp’s points, you really ought to consider more structured schools, op. GDS has many strengths, but giving kids tools to excel is simply not one of them. GDS will provide endless resources for self-starting kids to pursue their passions, and those self starters will also get their other stuff done. They’ll provide similar resources for less organized or driven kids to pursue their passions, but almost nothing in the way of tools to get other stuff done. You’ll end up with the same kid you started with, and come tenth grade, you’ll be scrambling to get all the tutors so that your kid can get the fundamentals. The fundamentals just aren’t what gds provides.

Do you have suggestions for more structured schools that aren't sporty? Not only does he not want to be required to participate in sports, he struggles socially when sports are how others organize themselves (ie, if the dominant lunch conversation is last night's football game or if other boys primarily want to shoot hoops after school). We've thought about St. Andrews, but concerned about the sports emphasis.

Saas comes to mind

[Anonymous]

Another good option is Sandy Spring Friends. It was challenging but nurturing for my ADHD kid. They assign less homework than the most elite schools like GDS. Sports are taken seriously there but plenty of non-athletes thrive.

[Anonymous]

Burke and GDS both have some very good athletes and plenty of non-athletes. Everyone does some sports but neither is a jock school like St. Albans. Far from it.

[Anonymous]

ADHD kids struggle at SAAS. Not sure what kind of accommodation helps with managing 9 classes a semester. But it’s not a sporty high school.

[Anonymous]

If your kid is into art or music, Burke is a very good option.

[Anonymous]

Bumping this old thread. How about a kid with a similar profile - very smart, ADHD, artsy, academically strong, exec functioning challenges at times - at either school? Or at Maret? Or SAES? or Sandy Spring?