Elementary schools in fcps to avoid and why

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If your child needs special education services, I recommend avoiding Vienna Elementary. Evaluation and eligibility is very challenging to get at that school, lots of barriers to get your foot in the door for special ed. Once you have an IEP, it's also difficult to get the services that are necessary. If your child is neurotypical and doesn't difficulties, then the school is fine.

Interesting! This has not been our experience with the Special Education team at VES.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child needs special education services, I recommend avoiding Vienna Elementary. Evaluation and eligibility is very challenging to get at that school, lots of barriers to get your foot in the door for special ed. Once you have an IEP, it's also difficult to get the services that are necessary. If your child is neurotypical and doesn't difficulties, then the school is fine.

You’ve described any ES ever in FCPS.

This. We were told it was a "good thing my kid came with her IEP, otherwise she wouldn't qualify"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Belvedere Elementary. Lackluster academics. IB is a joke. Untrustworthy admin.

Belvedere's test scores are spectacular given the large Hispanic population and large FARMs population. It is extremely rare to see a school have such high scores with that type of diverse population. We have people here on DCUM claiming that schools like Sangster ES are closing the achievement gap

Belvedere staff are truly working miracles because no other low-SES, high-FARMs school shows such results. Something great must be happening in the classroom despite the untrustworthy admin you've encountered.

A ton of other ES send their AAP kids to Belvedere. It’s a lot like Springfield Estates used to be. No miracles.

Seriously, Belvedere is an AAP center!

Born on third base and think they hit a triple.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child needs special education services, I recommend avoiding Vienna Elementary. Evaluation and eligibility is very challenging to get at that school, lots of barriers to get your foot in the door for special ed. Once you have an IEP, it's also difficult to get the services that are necessary. If your child is neurotypical and doesn't difficulties, then the school is fine.

You’ve described any ES ever in FCPS.

With the caveat that my experience is of course anecdotal we found our elementary - Freedom Hill - was proactive in identifying our child for a 504 and offering accommodations. There's another kid in the grade level with some obvious special needs and that child seems to be very well accommodated.

And a friend of mine that has a kid at another FCPS school has a child with extensive special needs and she said FCPS was much easier and much more proactive and accommodating than Arlington had been.

[Anonymous]

Wolftrap - management decisions are heavily influenced by the PTA. Good or bad depending on whether you’re on it. PTA members fill up all the volunteering slots for every activity before they send the signupgenius to others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wolftrap - management decisions are heavily influenced by the PTA. Good or bad depending on whether you’re on it. PTA members fill up all the volunteering slots for every activity before they send the signupgenius to others.

God, this happens at our school too. In fact, this happens with field trips. The teacher sends it to room moms first who take all the slots. Can’t stand it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Virginia Run principal is nuts.

Neighborhood is great at least though!

She's not that bad. Virginia Run is a good school.

Our teachers have always been wonderful. No love for the principal here though. I'd correct PP to say the school is not bad (even if the Principal is). It definitely is a good school.

NP. +1 to all of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wolftrap - management decisions are heavily influenced by the PTA. Good or bad depending on whether you’re on it. PTA members fill up all the volunteering slots for every activity before they send the signupgenius to others.

This happens at our school too. Kids who get principal placed in AAP is heavily influenced by the PTA. They say it has changed and I see some changes with the new principal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Olde Creek- too small, bad with special Ed services, lackluster administration but really too small.

We love Olde creek. It’s a great community and we have had good experiences with the teachers. There is a poster who comes on here and bad mouths Olde Creek on here. Not saying it’s perfect and everyone’s experience may be different but beware that the negative comments seem to be from the same one or two people. I would agree that it’s a small school. I didn’t find that to be a problem from an academic perspective but my kids were sick of such a small social circle by 6th grade.

[Anonymous]

Haycock is toxic. Shrevewood is very down to earth and diverse. Lemon Road is incredibly welcoming to everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wolftrap - management decisions are heavily influenced by the PTA. Good or bad depending on whether you’re on it. PTA members fill up all the volunteering slots for every activity before they send the signupgenius to others.

God, this happens at our school too. In fact, this happens with field trips. The teacher sends it to room moms first who take all the slots. Can’t stand it.

It’s mind-boggling! Some PTA moms signed up for both morning and afternoon slots for a VA history day event. We had outdoor recess one day a week for each grade. Same story. Another mom signed up for multiple weeks of the school year. Not on an adhoc basis, she just signed up for all the slots in one go. It goes without saying that they all have AAP or principal placed kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haycock - weak administration, horrible special ed department, parent community (trickles down to kids)

& can't keep a principal.

I suspect because the parents are who essentially picks the principal. They inevitably pick one they know they manipulate who burns out quick.

Yeah, no. A principal is picked by FCPS administration at the regional level. Sometimes parents and School Board members have some limited input.

Principal J was drummed out mostly due to his proposed changes to AAP.

. . .

He wanted to water it down, with (I strongly suspect) an eventual goal of eliminating it.

- because: “equity.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child needs special education services, I recommend avoiding Vienna Elementary. Evaluation and eligibility is very challenging to get at that school, lots of barriers to get your foot in the door for special ed. Once you have an IEP, it's also difficult to get the services that are necessary. If your child is neurotypical and doesn't difficulties, then the school is fine.

You’ve described any ES ever in FCPS.

With the caveat that my experience is of course anecdotal we found our elementary - Freedom Hill - was proactive in identifying our child for a 504 and offering accommodations. There's another kid in the grade level with some obvious special needs and that child seems to be very well accommodated.

And a friend of mine that has a kid at another FCPS school has a child with extensive special needs and she said FCPS was much easier and much more proactive and accommodating than Arlington had been.

We had ruled out Freedom Hill because of the abuse of non-verbal kids there. It seemed like there were an awful lot of adults who were involved. The criminal prosecutions are ongoing I believe.

[Anonymous]

Sleepy Hollow. Invisible administration and poor treatment of special education teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child needs special education services, I recommend avoiding Vienna Elementary. Evaluation and eligibility is very challenging to get at that school, lots of barriers to get your foot in the door for special ed. Once you have an IEP, it's also difficult to get the services that are necessary. If your child is neurotypical and doesn't difficulties, then the school is fine.

You’ve described any ES ever in FCPS.

With the caveat that my experience is of course anecdotal we found our elementary - Freedom Hill - was proactive in identifying our child for a 504 and offering accommodations. There's another kid in the grade level with some obvious special needs and that child seems to be very well accommodated.

And a friend of mine that has a kid at another FCPS school has a child with extensive special needs and she said FCPS was much easier and much more proactive and accommodating than Arlington had been.

We had ruled out Freedom Hill because of the abuse of non-verbal kids there. It seemed like there were an awful lot of adults who were involved. The criminal prosecutions are ongoing I believe.

That happened under old administration and in one classroom. Freedom Hill is truly one of the best ES because of the staff and community. My kid loves going to school there and has had incredible teachers.