Boston, MA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In addition, it is only fair to warn you... The Boston area differs in every way, but here are some more that are well known:
It is competitive, they do not hand out A's in class, nor do they put any one who whines into G&T. They don't even have G&T. They have IB instead (look it up). Stricter international guidelines, no appeal process.
Also, they are not nosy. If you are nosy, you will have a difficult time making friends. Nosy is seen as "raised without parents", so to speak.
Much of what pertains to the South seems reverse in New England.

I'm from Boston and in my (public) school, we didn't have G&T, but I had also never heard of IB until I moved here. I actually think IB is more common in this area.

[Anonymous]

Nope. Never heard of IB until Boston. All parents hear here is G&T!

[Anonymous]

The sports fans reflect how passionate people are in general, there. You don't find that here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
We moved here from Boston about a year ago. Boston is a better city all around (except for weather). I miss it terribly and find that most of what the other posters have said is quite true (burbs are a lot nicer, more options as far as housing- here it seems to be Bethesda or nothing..., very pedestrian friendly, gorgeous, nice people, not such a big deal to go to private school, historic, etc.. etc..).

I love Boston but have to laugh at the concept that it isn't as important to go to private school. Maybe not day schools because they are all off at boarding schools. The majority of people I know from Boston went to private school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nope. Never heard of IB until Boston. All parents hear here is G&T!

If you go to the official website of IB programs, you can search by state. It looks like there are a few IB programs at a handful of private schools in Boston, while it is much more common at public schools in Maryland and Virginia.
http://www.ibo.org/

The more significant differences between schools in Boston vs. DC is that Boston has much smaller schools and school districts. (Each town has its own district) and much more less racial/ethnic/economic diversity in the suburban public schools. Having grown up in Boston suburbs, I like the diversity and the range of opportunities that the county school districts offer around here.

[Anonymous]

The fact that the towns are each responsible for themselves speaks volumes about the fact that they value common sense. (I fully expect the "huh" lady to step in here, as she seems to have nothing better to do.)

[Anonymous]

IB is actually most prevelant in the Boston suburbs.

[Anonymous]

I don't think that town-based school districts say anything about "common sense". They just reflect that towns in the Boston area have been around a long time and have a long history of running their own schools. There are pros and cons, but I do think that the county systems around here have some economies of scale since they are large systems and also can offer more options- like magnet schools, language immersion, etc.

Regarding IB schools, I'm sorry but I really don't know what you are talking about. According to the website (ibo.org), there are 9 IB programs in all of Massachusetts and several are outside of the Boston area. There are lots of IB programs in MD and VA suburbs. I had not heard of them until I moved here.

[Anonymous]

I would personally prefer to have my own strong school system in my own town, and pay accordingly, than have magnet systems, which are less efficient. Are the IB's required to be listed? I know some that are not listed, for some reason.

[Anonymous]

We moved to Boston last summer after living in DC for nearly 8 years. DH is from Boston. I am not and I hate it. I thought DC was bad when I moved there but eventually grew to love the city. I'm hoping that's what happens here. Our children were not in school in DC, but we would have definitely gone the private route. DH went to private school in Boston so we'll do private here as well.

The weather is horribly cold and the people are, too. New Englanders really can pick out other NE's as someone else posted, and if you're not from NE they're not very friendly. I miss DC and the interesting conversations. It feels as though all the moms here just settle into domestic oblivion. MISERY!

Of course with all my complaints, we do live in a very picturesque part of the area which is a hop, skip and a jump away from downtown for my husband. He has family here, so that helps, too. This weather was brutal so I'm obviously biased, but if we had the chance to move back to DC I would jump at it.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Misery sounds like she would be miserable anywhere. It is what you make it! Embrace where you are and decide that life is, in fact, too short. Personally, I prefer being where people are happy. That's just me. Call me crazy.

[Anonymous]

I don't know, I would love to live where there are top schools and top universities, but so few people qualify for that world.....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Misery sounds like she would be miserable anywhere. It is what you make it! Embrace where you are and decide that life is, in fact, too short. Personally, I prefer being where people are happy. That's just me. Call me crazy.

11:03 here. It's hard to find happy people when everyone is hibernating. 70+ inches of snow doesn't help.

To the OP, you're moving at a great time but the people here aren't the friendliest. My closest friends all happen to be from the Deep South like myself. They get the joke. You'll make friends but it's not like outgoing DC.

[Anonymous]

11:03/14:17 Is clearly on crack. LOL!

People make the most of their surroundings if one has made their minds up to do so! There are many outside sports in cold weather which plenty of people happen to enjoy! Have fun!

[Anonymous]

This probably isn't the place to ask. Southerners hate "Yankees" (and not just the baseball team!). If Southerners had it their way.....well, let's not even go there.....