Any academically rigorous privates in MD still accepting students?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Barnesville. Main knock on it is the distance, which is (IMHO) a mistake because there's no traffic in that direction. Not sure where you're coming from but from Rockville it's about the same amount of driving time as St. Andrews, McLean etc, probably a bit less than Norwood. Wish we'd figured this out a lot earlier.

pIt is 16 miles from Rockville to the Barnesville School. It is 5-7 miles to St. Andrews from Rockville deoneding on where you live.For norwood 9-10 miles. from Rockville.

Not sure how 16 equals 5-7. That is 32 miles of driving a day compared to 10-14. Add in a special event at night and that is a lot of driving every week.

I'm not the previous poster and I'm not affiliated in any way with Barnesville, except that I know someone who drives there from Rockville (very northern end of Rockville). They love it, they said their commute is always the same (because it's against traffic), and it's about 20 minutes door to door.

So I do see how the driving time could be the same, even if the distance is shorter, because traffic closer in to the city is much heavier and more unpredictable.

Hi, I'm the PP. Yes, it's just as little time for us to drive to Barnesville as it would be to St. Andrews, and actually slightly less than it would have been to Norwood.

The distance is indeed greater to Barnesville and this tripped us up at first, we wrongly assumed it would take us longer to drive there. On average it takes us about 25 minutes, but the standard deviation is no more than 2-3 minutes. St. Andrews (the lower school) would also have averaged about 25 minutes but the traffic variability would have been greater so we would have had to allow more time, to budget for that variability.

Key is that driving to Barnesville puts us on I-270 against traffic most of the way, so we're going 60 mph. Heading to the Potomac schools we'd be fighting rush hour traffic. I-270 is an absolute nightmare in that direction at that time. We found back ways to the Potomac schools, but even roads such as Seven Locks and Wootton can get backed up in the mornings.

The mileage is greater to Barnesville for us but the time is not. It takes less time for us than it would have taken to get to Norwood, Harbor, or St. Andrews lower school. Probably would have to budget about the same for St. Andrews Middle School, Charles E. Smith, or McLean.

Admittedly we are on the north edge of Rockville, but that's how it works out for us.

I guess my bottom-line advice is go with the school you think best. If you live in Rockville (at least in the northern half of it) it would be a mistake to rule Barnesville out based on distance, as we've found it to be a complete non-factor. I like the drive, actually, it's actually more pleasant than the rest of the driving I do all week, since I'm never stuck in traffic.

[Anonymous]

PP here again. I just checked Google Maps on all this to reconfirm the numbers.

From our home in Rockville it's about 22 minutes to Barnesville when there's no traffic. Distance is 15 miles. During rush hour it might take as much as 25, but never more than that.

St. Andrews' Lower School is about 9-10 miles away. About 20 minutes this time of the day but during rush hour it can easily get to 25-30.

Basically we budget 25 minutes for the trip to Barnesville and have no trouble making it. We'd probably budget 25-30 if we were attending SAES, definitely 30 if we were attending Norwood.

Again, this is from northern Rockville.

I'd just repeat -- go with the school that you like. I wouldn't rule any of these schools out based on distance, if you live in Rockville.

[Anonymous]

Oh, and forgive me but I feel compelled to share our anecdote. We went through exactly the same mental block about the distance that others do. First time we drove to the school to visit, we both thought, "Oh, it's SO far." And I think it felt that way because it's a different (more rural) kind of driving. Just north of Germantown, around where one gets into Boyds, you feel very far away from life in Rockville.

But thank goodness we got over that because it turned out to be a complete non-issue relative to the quality of the school.


OK, enough on transportation logistics for today. Back to your regularly scheduled programming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh, and forgive me but I feel compelled to share our anecdote. We went through exactly the same mental block about the distance that others do. First time we drove to the school to visit, we both thought, "Oh, it's SO far." And I think it felt that way because it's a different (more rural) kind of driving. Just north of Germantown, around where one gets into Boyds, you feel very far away from life in Rockville.

But thank goodness we got over that because it turned out to be a complete non-issue relative to the quality of the school.


OK, enough on transportation logistics for today. Back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Can you tell me more about Barnesville? How is it for unconventional learners/GTLD/SN kids? What is the typical parent profile? We are a bit more "crunchy" than many DC-ers (recent CA transplants) and seek a nurturing, not-too-preppy, engaging, warm environment for early elementary.

Any thoughts appreciated!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh, and forgive me but I feel compelled to share our anecdote. We went through exactly the same mental block about the distance that others do. First time we drove to the school to visit, we both thought, "Oh, it's SO far." And I think it felt that way because it's a different (more rural) kind of driving. Just north of Germantown, around where one gets into Boyds, you feel very far away from life in Rockville.

But thank goodness we got over that because it turned out to be a complete non-issue relative to the quality of the school.


OK, enough on transportation logistics for today. Back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Can you tell me more about Barnesville? How is it for unconventional learners/GTLD/SN kids? What is the typical parent profile? We are a bit more "crunchy" than many DC-ers (recent CA transplants) and seek a nurturing, not-too-preppy, engaging, warm environment for early elementary.

Any thoughts appreciated!

Well, we're hardly objective because we absolutely love the school and in particular we love the parents. All the parents we know are very involved with the school, there is a ton of volunteerism, and it's just a very supportive, welcoming place. If you're looking for "nurturing, not preppy, engaging, warm" you could hardly do better.

As for unconventional learners they have some resources available -- they have a reading specialist with the school who helps kids with challenges in that area, there's also a speech/social specialist, though that costs extra, that's someone who is permitted to work with students there but parents contract with them separately. The reading specialist isn't someone we have had to use, so we can't vouch for her personally, but I believe she's actually employed by the school, and judging by rapid progress other kids in the class have made, she clearly knows what she is doing.

Not a SN school by any means, most of the kids are already strong academic achievers but the small class sizes and the general attitude of the school are very conducive to kids having an opportunity to get individualized instruction where they need a little extra work. In our class, every kid seemed to have some real strong talents, but a few of them had an area they had to work harder on, too. They were thus able to learn from each other, and to help one another, while also getting extra attention from the teacher in the discipline if they weren't as strong in it. And the teachers and parents are very on top of the social interactions between the kids, so if a kid is a bit off the beaten path, it's a very warm and supportive place to be.

Everyone is looking for something different, but if you were the parent of a student who was academically in a decent place, I would definitely look into it. My feeling wouldn't change even if your child has an unconventional learning profile or a particular challenge that needed to be worked on, as it doesn't seem to be a huge problem there. If they're not equipped to handle a specific LD, they'll be up front about it and discuss whether it's possible to work with the parent to bring in other resources. It's hard to find schools that provide both the helping hand as necessary, and the strong academics at the same time, and this is one.

One of the notable things about the school is the number of annual shows and performances (grandparents' day, holiday show, may day, graduation) at which the kids get experience singing, dancing, and speaking in front of an audience. It's done in low pressure ways and it's a part of the school's routine, so even the kids who are shy and a bit withdrawn at first all seem like poised public speakers by 8th graduation. It's indeed something to see.

OK, enough gushing. Obviously, we love the school.

[Anonymous]

I cannot for the life of me figure out what "HGC" stands for: can someone illuminate?

[Anonymous]

HGC = Center for the Highly Gifted

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh, and forgive me but I feel compelled to share our anecdote. We went through exactly the same mental block about the distance that others do. First time we drove to the school to visit, we both thought, "Oh, it's SO far." And I think it felt that way because it's a different (more rural) kind of driving. Just north of Germantown, around where one gets into Boyds, you feel very far away from life in Rockville.

But thank goodness we got over that because it turned out to be a complete non-issue relative to the quality of the school.


OK, enough on transportation logistics for today. Back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Can you tell me more about Barnesville? How is it for unconventional learners/GTLD/SN kids? What is the typical parent profile? We are a bit more "crunchy" than many DC-ers (recent CA transplants) and seek a nurturing, not-too-preppy, engaging, warm environment for early elementary.

Any thoughts appreciated!

Well, we're hardly objective because we absolutely love the school and in particular we love the parents. All the parents we know are very involved with the school, there is a ton of volunteerism, and it's just a very supportive, welcoming place. If you're looking for "nurturing, not preppy, engaging, warm" you could hardly do better.

As for unconventional learners they have some resources available -- they have a reading specialist with the school who helps kids with challenges in that area, there's also a speech/social specialist, though that costs extra, that's someone who is permitted to work with students there but parents contract with them separately. The reading specialist isn't someone we have had to use, so we can't vouch for her personally, but I believe she's actually employed by the school, and judging by rapid progress other kids in the class have made, she clearly knows what she is doing.

Not a SN school by any means, most of the kids are already strong academic achievers but the small class sizes and the general attitude of the school are very conducive to kids having an opportunity to get individualized instruction where they need a little extra work. In our class, every kid seemed to have some real strong talents, but a few of them had an area they had to work harder on, too. They were thus able to learn from each other, and to help one another, while also getting extra attention from the teacher in the discipline if they weren't as strong in it. And the teachers and parents are very on top of the social interactions between the kids, so if a kid is a bit off the beaten path, it's a very warm and supportive place to be.

Everyone is looking for something different, but if you were the parent of a student who was academically in a decent place, I would definitely look into it. My feeling wouldn't change even if your child has an unconventional learning profile or a particular challenge that needed to be worked on, as it doesn't seem to be a huge problem there. If they're not equipped to handle a specific LD, they'll be up front about it and discuss whether it's possible to work with the parent to bring in other resources. It's hard to find schools that provide both the helping hand as necessary, and the strong academics at the same time, and this is one.

One of the notable things about the school is the number of annual shows and performances (grandparents' day, holiday show, may day, graduation) at which the kids get experience singing, dancing, and speaking in front of an audience. It's done in low pressure ways and it's a part of the school's routine, so even the kids who are shy and a bit withdrawn at first all seem like poised public speakers by 8th graduation. It's indeed something to see.

OK, enough gushing. Obviously, we love the school.

Thank you!!!!!!!!! It sounds wonderful. Thank you for the great information here. It is definitely on our radar now.

[Anonymous]

NP here. I still remember being on a trip to the pumpkin patch a few years back and noticing a group of incredibly well behaved kids. I complimented the chaperones and was told they were from Barnesville.

[Anonymous]

PP is nonsense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP here. I still remember being on a trip to the pumpkin patch a few years back and noticing a group of incredibly well behaved kids. I complimented the chaperones and was told they were from Barnesville.

NP here: In nearly 20 years of attending my kids' soccer games (rec, travel, HS and college games), possibly the worst example of sportsmanship I ever encountered was by Barnesville parents and players. We've now demonstrated the limits of anecdotal evidence.

[Anonymous]

Wow. I am the PP who posted this and this is the second time on DCUM that something I've written has been accused of being nonsense. I hate when that happens. How do you possibly know? What I wrote is true, though the kids were quite young - this was a preschool pumpkin patch trip. The little kids I saw way back when would be early elementary now - rising 2nd and 3rd graders. Needless to say, I was impressed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. I am the PP who posted this and this is the second time on DCUM that something I've written has been accused of being nonsense. I hate when that happens. How do you possibly know? What I wrote is true, though the kids were quite young - this was a preschool pumpkin patch trip. The little kids I saw way back when would be early elementary now - rising 2nd and 3rd graders. Needless to say, I was impressed.

Don't let the haters get you down. There are some troubled people on this site who can't resist the compulsion to pee on the positive things other people say. In any anonymous site where people can post what they want, you're going to get that. Don't let it bother you. Most readers don't assume someone is lying on so little basis.

[Anonymous]

Norwood- really wonderful school. Not sure any spots but you never know. Emphasis on learning about other religions, strong emphasis on character. We love it. Very nice, well rounded families and kids. We have two children there. Best of luck !!!

[Anonymous]

+1 for Norwood. I have been very happy there for years, and am now sending two children. Plus I know of a family who recently had to give up two spots due to financial problems, so you never know when spots can open up and it doesn't hurt to call.