Oakland Terrace in SS - the good, bad, and the ugly please

[Anonymous]

I'm looking for some information on Oakland Terrace ES in SS. I've combed the website, done a tour, and met with parents. All seems good, but I can't help thinking I'm missing something. The school is HUGE, and my kids are used to a small private. They are going into 3rd and K. Can anyone help?

[Anonymous]

Bump. Please!

[Anonymous]

I'd love to hear more too. My DC is starting K in the fall. My understanding from neighbors is that the class size for K-2 is small and teachers are generally good. But I don't like how big the school is either. Still, everyone seems so positive about it (in my neighborhood) that I am hopeful our children will have a good experience.

Also, does anyone know about when McKenny Hills is opening and how that will affect the size of Oakland Terrace?

[Anonymous]

Mom of another entering kindergartner here. Looks like we're all in the same boat. At the open house, I was impressed by the dynamism of the principal and the welcoming nature of all the adminstrators and teachers we met. The smaller class size does seem like a positive, but I gulped when I heard that all 160+ kindergartners go to lunch together and then all go to recess together. Still, our friends in the neighborhood speak very favorably about the school.

Wish I could remember what I heard about McKenney Hills school. I think it was something like 2012 or 2013?

[Anonymous]

I was extremely impressed at the open house. I also went to the open house for the spanish immersion program at another school so that is my only basis for comparison.

OTES seems extremely well run, kind. classes are small, teachers warm and administration is very good. I've heard it's a very nice community too. Plus, it was kind of cool as we were touring to see so many kids I know from our neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

The principal of Oakland Terrace just received the Washington Post's Educational Leadership Award. Check it out:

http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/press/index.aspx?pagetype=showrelease&id=2500

[Anonymous]

McKenney Hills is opening in 2012.

Oakland Terrace is great. Overcrowded (2nd graders have to be in portables) but the class sizes are small.

[Anonymous]

For those of you who are sending kids to OTES, are you planning to send your kids to Sligo or Newport Mills Middle and Einstein?

I am not at all concerned about OTES but I have heard negative things (though not from first hand experience- just rumors and stats, really) about the middle and high schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those of you who are sending kids to OTES, are you planning to send your kids to Sligo or Newport Mills Middle and Einstein?

I am not at all concerned about OTES but I have heard negative things (though not from first hand experience- just rumors and stats, really) about the middle and high schools.

My daughter goes to Newport Mill. It seems OK. They are very big on character education, especially anti-bullying education. They are also part of the Middle Years Programme, the middle school part of the IB program in high school. The teachers are pretty good about responding quickly to any concerns/questions I have about my daughter's work.

That said, the class sizes seem very large, with about 30 kids in many, although most have assistant teachers. My main concern is lack of socio-economic diversity. Fifty percent are on free and reduced lunches at Newport; at Sligo, it's 44 percent. That is in part because many families who have the means, move to Bethesda or another more affluent area or send their kids to private schools. I am being very general here, but children from impoverished households tend to have more trouble focusing in school, meaning more disruptions in the classroom. I do worry the work they are doing isn't of the same caliber or creativity that children of friends in more wealthy area are receiving. I think there is much more focus on keeping MSA scores high, more boring worksheets and less opportunity for creative projects.

One big difference between the two middle schools: Newport Mill has a 1.7 percent suspension rate, while Sligo has 9.8. The Montgomery County Public Schools Web site has a wealth of stats. What really concerns me are the ones in the chart labeled "safety and security" at Einstein. An awful lot of fights and weapons. That worries me much more than low SAT scores.

I would rather not move because the neighborhoods that feed into these schools are nice with reasonably priced houses, but that is likely what we will do before high school. It will be difficult as a single-parent household to do this economically, but I want my daughter to be in an environment that is optimal for learning, not worrying about if someone has a gun or knife (both well-publicized incidents at Einstein last year).

[Anonymous]

Principal at Oakland Terrace just won a WaPo best principals award.