Best Neighborhood for Short-Term Family

[Anonymous]

OP Finally Back. Thank you for all of these really helpful suggestions. It sounds as though Arlington is probably the place to look provided we can find a place that is metro accessible within our budget. I haven't seen a lot of options for Arlington on Craigslist - does anybody have another good source for rental homes in the area?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Capitol Hill. Several perfectly good elementary options and fits the rest of your criteria to a tee. If you prefer D.C. and want to be near all D.C. offers, there is no reason to be in Arlington (or in upper NW, for that matter).

curious---what are the good public elem school's on the Hill? didn't know there were any.

Schools on Hill:

Capitol Hill Cluster -- 3 choices -- "regular population" or "downstairs" Peabody starts at 3-y-o and kids go PK-3, PK-4, and K there and then move to regular population Watkins for 1st - 4th grades. OR Montessori program at Watkins for PK-3 thru 4th grade. OR "upstairs" Peabody which is Reggio Emilio and starts at PK-4, then K, then join "downstairs" kids at regular population Watkins for 1st thru 4th.

Brent ES -- starts at PK-3, has museum magnet program

Tyler ES -- 3 programs -- Spanish immersion starts at PK-3, arts integration starts at PK-3, autism program

Maury ES -- "regular" PK-3 to 5th grade elementary school

these are all popular and pretty well established -- waitlists are LONG and you would have to move in-bounds for one of them to get in for next year
wouldn't be able to get into Watkins Montessori or upstairs Peabody at this point even if you were in-bounds

up-and-coming programs:

Miner ES -- has Reggio Emilio, is really a work in progress, but look for great things in the future (brand new building is gorgeous and playgrounds are amazing)

J.O. Wilson -- actually has pretty decent test scores, French, and a brand-new building

Ludlow-Taylor -- parents are rallying around it

I add these "up-and-coming" programs as ones to watch for the future, but they wouldn't be my pick for a 1-year stay.

For downtown and Rosslyn community, Hill is perfect. OP could do quite well putting her kids at any of the above schools; I would especially recommend Brent or Maury as the most welcoming, easiest to join in (can't really jump into a Spanish immersion or Montessori program for 1 year). Maury would be a better bet for finding a rental house in the OP's price range.

The public schools on the Hill are not perfect, but they are really great -- schedule a visit and you will be surprised by what you see!

[Anonymous]

OP - go to the Arlington public schools website. The metro is underground on Wilson Blvd. That will show you the neighborhoods and the schools to look at. I'm sure I'm leaving something out: Key, Science Focus, Glebe, Long Branch Barrett are all walkable to the metro from a good chunk of their catchment areas.

Schooling is complicated here. You will have to go to the zoned school because you won't have an address in time for the lotteries.

Another neighborhood to look at is near 23rd Street South. The blue line goes there, and that train goes to Rosslyn. Not as posh as the orange line, but quite nice. (Zoned for the less desirable high school, but you couldn't care about that!) Less expensive. Families I know with kids at Oakridge really like it.

[Anonymous]

definitely get a condo or apartment close to the metro!