Open houses -- why bother?
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Anonymous
| This is an honest question. My kid is in the PS-3 lottery. We live on the Hill and are zoned for Maury. I've been told that there is about a 50% chance that we will get a slot for Maury, where we would happily go. But there's virtually no chance of us getting into Brent, Peabody or SWS. We will probably apply to a few nearby, still-sought-after schools, like Logan, Appletree and maybe Ludlow-Taylor....there seems to be a decent chance of getting into one of those. But I don't understand...why is everybody acting like we have so many options, and weighing this school/educational philosophy against that, and hustling over to open houses during precious free time? Everybody wants the same schools. This decision isn't ours at this point. Will somebody please explain? |
Anonymous
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I think the decision is really different if you have a good in boundary school option and are fine with sending your kid to private school until K. I would not be worried then. For me, I'm looking for a long-term option that will take my kid through at least 5th grade. Our in-boundary school is terrible, and I'd move in-boundary for a better school or to the 'burbs before I would send her there. That's the intial reason that I started going to open houses. It's not just about next year--it's also about future years, where I will need to decide whether to apply into the lottery. Even if my chances suck this year, I may very well luck out in a future year.
What I've discovered is that I'm really glad to go to open houses because I realize how very different program are. Take Appletree, for example. I thought I would love it based on what I read here, and I HATED it when I went to the open house yesterday. Just not a good fit for what I am looking for for my daughter. On the other hand, I've gone to some not-very-desirable DCPS and have really liked their early-childhood programs--way more than Appletree. And those are schools where we actually have a shot OOB. I've really gotten a chance to think about what would work for my kid and my family, and for that I am grateful. It will affect the choices that I make in education in the long-run, not just this year. Best of luck to you. |
Anonymous
It's the common lottery, I think. In the past, you would submit an application to each school you would even consider attending and wait until the individual lottery results were announce to visit schools and make a decision, assuming you got in anywhere. Now, you must do your due diligence before submitting the common lottery application since you are required to rank all of your choices. Otherwise, you run the risk of being assigned to a less desirable school than you might have been assigned to with a different ranking. |
Anonymous
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I was going to say the same thing as 13:30.
However, in the before common lottery (B.C.L), we were not accepted into any of our top choices but ended up being fairly happy where we ended up. On the Monday of the second week of school, we got a call from two of our top choices informing us that we'd made it off the wait list and could start the next day, but needed to get them a decision by the end of the school day. Having been to Open Houses for both was extremely helpful for us to reach a quick decision. |
Anonymous
Pretty much this. If we don't get into any of our desired schools, we'll probably be leaving DC for MD or VA. We've been able to wittle down our list after attending several open houses. Some of these schools (like pp mentioned) get rave reviews here and I thought would be sure bets if we got in. I'm glad to know now that these schools aren't a good fit for my child rather than getting a spot and being unhappy in the fall. ...wouldn't have known if we didn't attend the open house. |
Anonymous
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Your question is something that actually makes me quite angry, and it's been this way for years. Back in 2009 I was at open houses with hundreds of other parents, when there were less than 20 slots available.
We don't have a lot of choice. We have a lot of chance. So you go to open houses to see which schools you should apply and that might be ok choices should you be accepted. BUt never, ever fall in love with only one school for your child. The odds are not good. That said, you do get in somewhere, so good to make an informed choice when you do actually get presented with the choice. Also, preS-3 is not the end all be all. By staying engaged over 3-4 years, and lottery-ing every year, we ended up where we wanted. |
Anonymous
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Not to be depressing, but your chances of getting into Logan Montessori aren't so good either... I did the full circuit of
Capitol Hill open houses last year and found it quite interesting/informative, but my job is very flexible. If you can only see a couple, I'd go see LT and Appletree and any others (Payne maybe?) where you actually have a decent chance of getting in outright or off the waitlist, rank the others based on heresay and only go see them if you get in or get a decent waitlist number. Good luck! |
Anonymous
| OP here -- great answers. I think that part of it is that I don't have a strong educational philosophy myself and believe in collective wisdom more than my own first impressions. So, which do people like better, Ludlow Taylor or Appletree? Those are my only 2 remaining choices as I need something in stroller-distance from my house. |
Anonymous
| OP I had the same approach but we are fortunate to have a good fall-back option (private preschool) and are in a good IB school. I figure I will do open houses if/when we get in or have a good WL number. |
Anonymous
| If you're not looking for public childcare, there are lots of private preschool options on the Hill. Enroll in one of those and send your child to Maury in PreK 4. |
Anonymous
After visiting both LT and AT (including 2 Appletree campuses), I had a very strong preference for LT because of the incredibly easy access to the outdoor playground (which means they spend a lot more time outdoors), the abundance of extracurriculars (around 4 hours of arts classes a week plus PE plus two library sessions a week in addition to the arts-based curriculum), knowledge that all 3 PS teachers were quite good so it didn't matter which class we ended up in, and the less aggressive approach to reading (although my kid went from not recognizing all the letters of the alphabet when he started less than 5 months ago to nearly reading now, so LT isn't unaggressive either). Others like AT more because they like the differentiation/greater focus on academics. Each to their own! |
Anonymous
I'm just the opposite, so going to open houses is invaluable. I can all the collective wisdom out there, but nothing beats going and seeing for myself whether the vibe is right for my kid. |
Anonymous
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Basically, the open houses can break your stereotypes by allowing you to talk to the people actually involved.
I would also tour during the school day. |
Anonymous
PP, can you elaborate on what turned you off about Appletree for those of us who are considering it and haven't made it over there yet? |
Anonymous
It was very rigid, structured, and academic. Even in free play time (which we observed), kids were in small groups with the teachers learning math skills. The teachers did not seem warm in the way that they did in other schools. I just didn't have a good feeling, and I don't think it would be good for my child. The after-care is also academic in nature. I definitely think in reading posts on Appletree that there are a lot of kids who really like Appletree--the curriculum does sound engaging--but I really want a school that gives kids more than 30 minutes a day of outdoor time and that is a child-centered approach to preschool rather than a teacher-led approach. |