Child will be starting K in the fall- what can we expect??

[Anonymous]

My child will be starting kindergarten this fall (Hunt Valley in Springfield); we went to orientation and the teachers and admin seemed nice. In general (or if you have specific experience with HV), what can we expect from next year? Anything we should know about how to make the transition go more smoothly? General advice?

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Hunt Valley is a fabulous school! You will love your experience there. The new principal, Mr. Fee promises to be an out standing leader. He was the vice principal and he is very approachable. He "gets" kids. All the students love him. Everyone is very excited to have him as the new principal.

The kindergarten classes are large, but each class has a full time aide so it works very well. They do an outstanding job teaching reading; I would say that is the strength of the program. Overall academics are very strong. The school offers pull out in math and language arts, I believe starting with a handfull of kids 2nd semester in kindergarten, definitely in 1st grade. It is done very low key so it is never a big parent bragging contest. Same with AAP. HV qualifies a lot of kids, but since the local school is so strong you just don't see the same cut throat hand wringing you see here on this board. HV has the autism program for our pyramid. They have dedicated classrooms as well as a strong inclusion program. I have been very happy to see that work successfully in my child's class.

The school is warm, intimate and caring. Since it is smaller than many school in the area everyone seems to know each other very quickly. There does not seem to be much gossip though, or a queen bee clique. There is a great parent dynamic at HV. Laid back, friendly parents, active PTA, focus on academics. The school seems more diverse than many of the surrounding schools. The mix is primarily military, educated immigrants (none of the issues often lamented on dcum), and govt workers. Since there are so many military families the student body is fairly transient, and the staff deals well with these issues.

Many of the kid walk, with parents meeting them outside the school. This is a great way to meet your neighbors and your kids classmates. If you work or have to do kiss and ride, be sure to show up for activities and PTA, everyone will be happy to get to know you.

We have attended 6 elementaries across the country, and have been very please with our experience at Hunt Valley.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks, PP!

I didn't know Mr. Fee is now the new principal- any idea who will take over his old spot? Where is the old principal going?

One of the things that DH and I wondered/worried about is that we're both govt workers who work downtown, and our neighborhood seems to be mostly SAHP. We were hoping that working parents or kiss and riders would feel included, but it sounds like from your post they do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks, PP!

I didn't know Mr. Fee is now the new principal- any idea who will take over his old spot? Where is the old principal going?

One of the things that DH and I wondered/worried about is that we're both govt workers who work downtown, and our neighborhood seems to be mostly SAHP. We were hoping that working parents or kiss and riders would feel included, but it sounds like from your post they do.

If you both work, just be sure to show up for the things like PTA, school carnival, movie nights, etc. People are friendly in this neighborhood. Kindergarten is more of a get acquainted year, so be prepared for lots of awkward chit chat and small talk. By the end of the year it was more natural, and by first grade everything is normal. The parents are all really laid back.

HV does welcome parents to help at the class parties. My suggestion if you do work is for you to sign up as a room parent helper at open house. You will get on the email list for the parties, and you can then plan to maybe take a day off or early day to help at one of them. Your kid will be so excited to have you there, and it is a great way to get to know other parents on a face/name basis. There were several working parents in my kids class who do this, including a dad.

[Anonymous]

For K also remember not to over-schedule your child in after school activities. My dd was completely exhausted during the Fall, and I only started scheduling her other stuff in the Spring, and then only one extra.