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where is Lee moving? Leak it here!
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Anonymous
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The PowerPoint showed that a huge number of people from Shining Stars had applied to lee in an effort to make lee look better. It was a low blow, especially considering that people lottery for any number of reasons, not just because they want to get into a "better" school.
It was obnoxious to say the least and yet another indicator of the ultra-competitive spirit of the school. |
Anonymous
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Anonymous
| Thank you 5:28. We've just moved from NH and wondered about what appeared to be an obvious slight -to-bashing of another Montessori school. Wondered why. My husband and I are interested in continuing our children's Montessori education (elementary) and will look more closely at LAMB and Shining Stars. Good luck to all Montessori schools and hoping for a high school option at some point soon. |
Anonymous
This is why threads like this is dangerous. PP please don't think that anything here reflects Lee. Nothing negative has been said by any Lee parent and, as has been said here multiple times the school is very open and supportive of other Montessori schools. In fact, Lee is leading the effort to work with other Montessori schools to open a Montessori high school. The Lee team also formally supported the charter application of another Montessori school, because, they told parents, they think that all children in the city should have the option of a Montessori education. Whether you think the slide referenced was misjudged or not, it simply showed where in the city applicants had come from and which schools most applicants had come from. I was at a presentation showing a similar slide last year and the only message conveyed by the admin at the time was that there was broad support for Montessori schools throughout the city. Yes, more applicants came from Shining Stars than any other school (this is applicants, not enrollees, BTW) but they were going through significant admin turmoil and a location crisis at the time -- no judgment offered or implied. the list wasn't exactly something to brag about -- the schools on the list were not highly popular ones. They were all ones that were either close to the current Lee location, were Montessori, were one of very few schools that took 2.5 year olds, were imminently moving location (which always causes attrition), or only offered pre-school. So, if you're looking for a Montessori school I'd encourage you to look at all of them, including Capitol Hill Montessori. You likely will have to rule out LAMB, not because it's not "real" Montessori (and btw, many parents at Lee would prefer more parental involvement in the classroom, for example, which is one of the ways that LAMB differs from "pure" Montessori) but because they don't admit after PK4 and you said your kids are already in elementary. LAMB is also not working with the other Montessori schools on a high school because they have already teamed up with other bilingual schools for a high school option in DCI. Both Shining Stars and Lee are moving next year. Lee has committed to staying near the current location in ward 5, I don't believe that Shining Stars has made any such promises, so potentially could move anywhere in the city. Also, Lee will be adding 3rd grade next year, and SSMA will be up to 5th (I think?) by then. If you're looking for higher grades for this year, you may wish to give either of them a call because there may be space right now. Good luck! |
Anonymous
Montessori Lite, what school do your kids attend? I personally would never call a Spanish bilingual school that actually teaches grammar that is also tier one a joke, but then again you do sound like you have an axe to grind. |
Anonymous
Montessori Lite sends her kids to Lee. Based on her posts, she continually insists LAMB would vacate Perry St in favor of Lee. I think that's the source of her complaints regarding LAMB. I would be embarrassed of having such a insane, reckless booster. Here is a recent post (pasted below): http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/90/441851.page;jsessionid=7A4B65194E44B13C54C747DB85C58F5C.dcum2#7473134 "It is going to be Perry. An admin mentioned it like two years ago at a school fair before Lee even started--before they started smartly not giving concrete information about the future location. When I realized where it was, this gave me pause because it is pretty far from me, but I thought well maybe it isn't Perry because they started saying within a mile. The latest revision of within 1 to 2 miles leaves me to believe it is definitely Perry. And yes, two montessoris at the same location would be great for both schools although LAMB isnt really montessori and Lee is." I should note that Lee is not accredited by AMI or AMS. They may be seeking it, but they don't have it. |
Anonymous
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So I read these boards a lot, and see how schools get certain reputations. I've always felt there had to be some truth to these reputations. But now that, as a Lee parent, I see this reputation emerging for Lee (at least believed by a vocal minority) as being full of fanatical parents bashing other schools to boost their own (and now the admins are supposed to be doing it too?!), I realize how unfounded all these reputations are.
Lee is full of parents very happy to be at a school where their kids are learning tons and are treated with kindness and respect. I love the down-to-earth families who make me, an awkward introvert, feel welcomed and accepted, and I love the administrators who are competent and who take parent concerns and suggestions seriously. But we all would likely be equally happy at the other schools we applied to (I think my top 6 at least would all have been great fits for us). I didn't apply in the lottery again last year because we are happy (and my child loves going to school) not because I think lee is better than other schools. Why change? DCUM isn't real life. People applying to schools - go to the schools yourself and make your own judgments. There is no way you can have a conversation with the principal or the head of the school and walk away with the sense of them as the kind of people who bash other schools. |
Anonymous
The poster who insists that the new location will be Perry is not a Lee parent either. Not sure if Perry poster and Montessori lite poster are the same person or not, but the Perry poster made it clear in previous posts that she ended up elsewhere. But again, believing that LAMB isn't strict Montessori isn't bashing LAMB, it's a fact that they do not have and are not seeking AMI certification and that for Montessori purists it's not "real" Montessori. Lee doesn't have AMI certification either (neither does SSMA) but they are both seeking certification (SSMA seeking AMS). I am a Lee parent and I have never had a SINGLE conversation with any families about either AMI or AMS and when other Montessori schools have come up it has only been positively. The vast majority of Lee parents send their kids there because that's where they landed. A few had previous Montessori experience and/or picked Montessori specifically but there is certainly not a hard core of Montessori purists that consider diverging from Maria Montessori's teachings to be blasphemy (like the Montessori lite poster). Most of us are still learning what Montessori is. And it's not all rainbows and unicorns -- if there are things that we question or wonder if they are working, like allowing parents into the classroom at drop off, or having parental involvement in the classroom, they are often things that are part and parcel of "real" Montessori. |
Anonymous
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How about you read this page earlier in this thread: http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/60/492510.page#7447022 Don't know if it was Montessori-lite or not, but again, NOT a Lee parent.
Anonymous wrote: Anonymous wrote: Anonymous wrote: Anonymous wrote: Anonymous wrote: It is going to be Perry. An admin mentioned it like two years ago at a school fair before Lee even started--before they started smartly not giving concrete information about the future location. When I realized where it was, this gave me pause because it is pretty far from me, but I thought well maybe it isn't Perry because they started saying within a mile. The latest revision of within 1 to 2 miles leaves me to believe it is definitely Perry. And yes, two montessoris at the same location would be great for both schools although LAMB isnt really montessori and Lee is. Lamb is looking to lease this space already. And if LAMB isn't real Montessori (which is also a lie people in new, unimpressive schools tell themselves), give me whatever it is they are serving. I hesitated to respond to this because this thread is not about what schools are and are not "real" Montessori. But you are clearly ignorant as to what the method is and are hyper sensitive about your school not making the AMI cut. Or perhaps you don't want the truth out so you can keep other ignorant folks under the impression that LAMB is oh so impressive. LAMB is montessori in name only- they are based very loosely on the method. In fact, I could open a school in my basement, throw the word montessori in the name and it would be LAMB. There are no criteria or standards for AMS Montessori. Whether or not you are impressed with any of the other Montessori programs in the area is irrelevant since you so obviously don't even have the slightest clue as to what it really is. You Lee parents are quite harsh. Crazy you've only been in school a year. You have a lot to endure. Calm down. you don't know that was a lee parent. maybe just a Montessori purist. agree it was harsh. both good schools - one new and exciting with a purist curriculum; on tried and proven with solid results. Harsh PP here - I am not a Lee parent. DC is enrolled at a traditional DCPS. When deciding what schools to look at I did the research so that I could make an informed choice, rather than an ignorant one. I looked closely at Montessori, Waldorf and Reggio methods. That being said, had we gotten j to Lee we would've jumped in it. Fingers crossed for next year. |
Anonymous
Which is fantastic, but it isn't a Montessori accreditation body and while it may mean that it's a great school it doesn't offer any information to those trying to ascertain if it's true to the Montessori method. |
Anonymous
Sad to see that you are so dumb that you don't see how bash LAMB does not necessarily equal Lee parent. I bash LAMB because it drives me crazy how people drop the name "Montessori" and people just follow like morons--if it is in the title then that must be what it is--instead of scratching beneath the surface and doing research. Shows you what a sad state of affairs we have in DC education. I have also outed the pre-school Little Flowers Montessori because it is NOT Montessori. |
Anonymous
This must have been posted by a LAMB parent--the Middle States Association is not a Montessori accrediting organization and is irrelevant to this discussion. Do your research, people. It is, after all, your child's education. |
Anonymous
It is true that it has been criticized for not being "real" Montessori much longer than the "Montessori Lite" thing six months ago as I have been criticizing for some time and have not earlier used that term. I've been criticizing LAMB before we even heard of Lee Montessori. |
Anonymous
Oh please, let this family go elsewhere. If they are dumb enough to base their decision on what someone has posted on an anonymous forum, and can't grasp the fact that the posters may not be Lee parents, you don't want them as a part of your parent body. I am sure Lee had enough applicants. Let it go. -signed non-Lee parent poster/LAMB basher |
Anonymous
This, my dear, is unfortunate and should not be celebrated. |