i know it is a favorite, but anyone else underwhelmed by Mundo Verde open house?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is the umpteenth thread on people not liking some hot charter schools open house. Stokes, YY, CM now MV...

Maybe the school isn't for you, not every "hot" carter will be or someone is trying to scare people off.

Are we suppose to praise something that's not "hot" to us?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is the umpteenth thread on people not liking some hot charter schools open house. Stokes, YY, CM now MV...

Maybe the school isn't for you, not every "hot" carter will be or someone is trying to scare people off.

Are we suppose to praise something that's not "hot" to us?

You must be new...l

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is the umpteenth thread on people not liking some hot charter schools open house. Stokes, YY, CM now MV...

Maybe the school isn't for you, not every "hot" carter will be or someone is trying to scare people off.

So what? A fruitless exercise anyway considering the chances of getting in to MV, Stokes, YY, CM are close to zero. If OP is underwhelmed, she'll be less disappointed when her child does not get in...

[Anonymous]

Current MV parent. Moved from another charter. I'll admit that MVs open houses do a poor job of "selling" the school; terrible sound system, awkward translation. But, I would urge you to talk to current parents and find out what they think. MV has a very high re-enrollment rate, which indicates that parents are happy. My children have amazing, dedicated teachers, and we have a great parent community.

I disagree with the above poster that MV is trying to do to much and is not focused. The administration and academic leadership are very committed to the expeditionary learning system and do a great job of making learning fun and interesting for children. In addition, unlike a couple of other schools mentioned, MV has a good aftercare program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is the umpteenth thread on people not liking some hot charter schools open house. Stokes, YY, CM now MV...

Maybe the school isn't for you, not every "hot" carter will be or someone is trying to scare people off.

And I would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for you darn kids!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have any chance of getting into Stokes EVER? I have applied 3 years in a row and haven't even made it in the single digits. Do you know anyone who doesn't already have a sib there who has gotten in? It's been my first choice school for years, but so what?

I know several people who have gotten in without sibling preference in the last few years.

[Anonymous]

MV SUCKS don't apply.

[Anonymous]

for those impressed by Stokes, I hope you all get in and are as impressed with the ill behaved, impoverished kids that make up the majority of the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Current MV parent. Moved from another charter. I'll admit that MVs open houses do a poor job of "selling" the school; terrible sound system, awkward translation. But, I would urge you to talk to current parents and find out what they think. MV has a very high re-enrollment rate, which indicates that parents are happy. My children have amazing, dedicated teachers, and we have a great parent community.

I disagree with the above poster that MV is trying to do to much and is not focused. The administration and academic leadership are very committed to the expeditionary learning system and do a great job of making learning fun and interesting for children. In addition, unlike a couple of other schools mentioned, MV has a good aftercare program.

Doesn't MV aftercare cost around $400 month compared to $200- $300 at most schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Current MV parent. Moved from another charter. I'll admit that MVs open houses do a poor job of "selling" the school; terrible sound system, awkward translation. But, I would urge you to talk to current parents and find out what they think. MV has a very high re-enrollment rate, which indicates that parents are happy. My children have amazing, dedicated teachers, and we have a great parent community.

I disagree with the above poster that MV is trying to do to much and is not focused. The administration and academic leadership are very committed to the expeditionary learning system and do a great job of making learning fun and interesting for children. In addition, unlike a couple of other schools mentioned, MV has a good aftercare program.

Doesn't MV aftercare cost around $400 month compared to $200- $300 at most schools?

At the open house, they said aftercare was $420/month, but much cheaper if you are FARM. In fairness, though, the aftercare also sounded much better than other schools' aftercare.

[Anonymous]

the better aftercare programs charge more but you get more

MV aftercare combines structures activities with free play ---- it is better than the typical aftercare garbage --- I have kids who have been in various dcps and charter aftercares.

[Anonymous]

It isn't cheap (although sliding), but the program is wonderful. I took my child out for a while because my schedule allowed, and she begged and begged to go back. One of the biggest complaints that parents end up having is that the kids make them wait so long when they are picking them up because they want to finish whatever they are doing. I found this to be even more the case when I tried picking up my child at around 4:30 for a while. I would myself get caught up watching whatever lesson was occurring and wouldn't get out of there until the less structured art, sharing or playground time started after 5, so I gave that up and now just let her stay.

[Anonymous]

Given the physical constraints of the current building, I can see that it would be difficult to get a real sense of the school or the community from an open house. In fairness to the school, they do a fantastic job in the classrooms with the building that they have, but it isn't conducive for large gatherings such as open houses and presentations. As someone else already mentioned, this will change when the move to a traditional school building happens in August. If you want to get a real feel for the school you would be better off finding a parent(s) to speak to. The aftercare program is very high quality and most parents we know are happy to pay for care that is organized, well-staffed, and includes a selection of specials. $420 per month breaks out to about $8.40 per hour for full-time aftercare based on 50 hours per month (3:30-6pm daily). I think that this is a reasonable price for everything that is offered. There is also the option to use aftercare on a part-time basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mundo Verde sucks. Don't anyone rank them on your list. Flee. NO DATA, the administration is probably impossible and clueless.

The new building will probably be just as bad...

Not to mention that drug ridden, filthy neighborhood (I don't care how much the houses cost and that homeless shelter/soup kitchen around the corner.

totally agree. new location will be awful and the school sucks. whatever you do DO NOT apply!!!

(pp, our cunning plan may work!)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Given the physical constraints of the current building, I can see that it would be difficult to get a real sense of the school or the community from an open house. In fairness to the school, they do a fantastic job in the classrooms with the building that they have, but it isn't conducive for large gatherings such as open houses and presentations. As someone else already mentioned, this will change when the move to a traditional school building happens in August. If you want to get a real feel for the school you would be better off finding a parent(s) to speak to. The aftercare program is very high quality and most parents we know are happy to pay for care that is organized, well-staffed, and includes a selection of specials. $420 per month breaks out to about $8.40 per hour for full-time aftercare based on 50 hours per month (3:30-6pm daily). I think that this is a reasonable price for everything that is offered. There is also the option to use aftercare on a part-time basis.

What are some of the specials and is there an additional fee on top of the $420/mo? (I know a lot of schools have separate fees for "enrichment"--eg mad science)