Yu Ying Waitlist Movement

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There will be more. Was not impressed with the tour and the presentation. If we did not want Chinese, we would go elsewhere but willing to risk it for preK.

I had exactly the opposite reaction to our tour (we had been on the fence; now we're definitely in, giving up another excellent option), so I'd be curious to hear what you found not impressive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be more. Was not impressed with the tour and the presentation. If we did not want Chinese, we would go elsewhere but willing to risk it for preK.

I had exactly the opposite reaction to our tour (we had been on the fence; now we're definitely in, giving up another excellent option), so I'd be curious to hear what you found not impressive.

DC CAS scores are not good and the explanation was the teachers are inexperienced. However, the same teachers are staying and not replaced? Not sure why they can't find experienced teachers for English. No matter: It's preK so we're not going to over think it. Also, it'll be completely in Mandarin.

Loved the Chinese dance by the preKers. Too cute. 25% knew what they were doing, the other 50% were unsure but following their peers and the other 25% obviously had no clue. What's to be expected in an immersion program for the age group.

The things we did like was that they did have differentiation by reading level in the classroom and the emphasis on parental involvement/help with homework.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The things we did like was that they did have differentiation by reading level in the classroom and the emphasis on parental involvement/help with homework.

What happened to the old fashioned idea that homework is for the kids to do, not the parents? I can see checking my kids homework, but not doing it with them or for them. How much homework do the kids at each level of Yu Ying get?

[Anonymous]

How do you know the DC-CAS scores are poor? The third graders this year are first class to take them and results won't be out until this summer... Not sure what you mean .

[Anonymous]

I was worried to hear kindergartners even have homework! Daily reading is more than enough for young kids. This makes me concerned that Yu Ying's approach is overly academic. Also concerning- I did not see any play kitchen area, blocks, easels or sand tables in the room. The kindergarten rooms in our zoned school have beautiful and much more developmentally appropriate classrooms. Thoughts from any Yu Ying parents?

[Anonymous]

I am a YY parent and can tell you from experience that in order for your kindergartener to really keep up they will have to spend at least an hour each night on homework. It only gets worse as they get older. Many children, like my child, do it in the aftercare program. But the aftercare is very expensive and many families can't afford it.

[Anonymous]

Really? That is crazy! I don't mind older children having homework but 60 minutes is too much for a five year old. Do most of the parents support this approach?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Really? That is crazy! I don't mind older children having homework but 60 minutes is too much for a five year old. Do most of the parents support this approach?

Does not sound like the school for you if you have a problem with homework for your K...

[Anonymous]

Perhaps you are right- may not be a good fit for my child. Nonetheless, 60 minutes of homework for a five year old is excessive. Younger children learn by playing and doing activities not by completing worksheets. Do any of the children struggle with the homework assignments?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do you know the DC-CAS scores are poor? The third graders this year are first class to take them and results won't be out until this summer... Not sure what you mean .

They, the presenters, seem to think the scores won't be good. Not sure how they know. The discussion about the testing was the part I liked least. They appeared evasive and dodging questions. Felt like they were preparing people for bad news but not ready to answer questions.

No homework for preK but there was a lot about homework packets for other grades.

[Anonymous]

Wow, my kid is in one Of the upper grades at Yu Ying (above 1st) and definitely has never had that much homework! In K at Yu Ying she had like 15-20 min per day. Now she probably has 30-45 min. Per day. It is not oppressive, overly academic, or that big a deal. The Chinese homework takes longer, but my DC iis doing fine in Chinese according to her assessments. The description from the above posters is very different from what my child is experiencing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a YY parent and can tell you from experience that in order for your kindergartener to really keep up they will have to spend at least an hour each night on homework. It only gets worse as they get older. Many children, like my child, do it in the aftercare program. But the aftercare is very expensive and many families can't afford it.

Nonsense. My Kindergartener didn't spend more than 5-10 minutes per night. The half-hour bedtime reading isn't "homework" at our house - it's something we do anyway.

[Anonymous]

Folks, if you want your kids to learn another, very difficult language, and keep up with thei peers in English, that's going to take some work. There's no way around it. So there will be homework. Call it overly academic, but that's the way it is. Parents who send their kids to Yu Ying set high expectations academically.

Not saying this is right for all children -- but as a charter school, that's just the point. Yu Ying is not for everyone. You choose to send your kids there. If you have other ideas about how your kids should be taught, there's lots of other schools to choose from.

[Anonymous]

I have kids in two grades and NEVER is it an hour a night. We do less that that per week and we are getting very good test scores in English and Chinese. In kindergarten the packets take a total of about 30 minutes and they are do a week or more later.

[Anonymous]

It would make sense for the presenters to be evasive on test scores, because the test scores aren't known. Not sure how you can make assumptions with no data.