If you had to choose between private school for elementary or high school, which would you choose?

[Anonymous]

It really depends on your child and what is offered at your public school. If you think for some reason your child wouldn't be well prepared for a magnet or top private high school or may not even get the foundation needed, then the right call is elementary school. We moved one because I was honestly worried about my son getting more in progress grades that never made it to proficient. He was the classic not doing terrible enough to get an IEP but not getting even close to the sort of grades/mastery of material that I think you need K-5. This was on top of social issues.

If our child had been getting the basic foundation at public school and working closer to potential (this can happen with larger class sizes and at schools that may not have top test scores depending on the child and strength of teaching) we would have stayed with public school longer. In that case I think it becomes more important in middle-high school when you can see the benefits of private school really making a difference for your child. It can be to change peer groups, help become a more well rounded student/person, provide more challenge and support to the smart but lazy student etc. You could have the type of child that thrives anywhere and find that while private high school may be nice, it wouldn't really alter their path in life and don't just mean college placement. For a different child, it could make a huge difference.

[Anonymous]

Middle/high. Most area elementary schools are strong, tho overcrowded.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It really depends on your child and what is offered at your public school. If you think for some reason your child wouldn't be well prepared for a magnet or top private high school or may not even get the foundation needed, then the right call is elementary school. We moved one because I was honestly worried about my son getting more in progress grades that never made it to proficient. He was the classic not doing terrible enough to get an IEP but not getting even close to the sort of grades/mastery of material that I think you need K-5. This was on top of social issues.

If our child had been getting the basic foundation at public school and working closer to potential (this can happen with larger class sizes and at schools that may not have top test scores depending on the child and strength of teaching) we would have stayed with public school longer. In that case I think it becomes more important in middle-high school when you can see the benefits of private school really making a difference for your child. It can be to change peer groups, help become a more well rounded student/person, provide more challenge and support to the smart but lazy student etc. You could have the type of child that thrives anywhere and find that while private high school may be nice, it wouldn't really alter their path in life and don't just mean college placement. For a different child, it could make a huge difference.

Thanks for an insightful post. You're absolutely right that a lot depends on your child and the public schools in your area. We liked our public elementary school, but switched our kids from public to private in middle school because we wanted them to have an educational experience focused on critical thinking and questioning with lots of opportunities for writing and public speaking. Our public high school is very good -- offers lots of APs and has a good college admissions record for top students -- but the larger class sizes tend to produce a very different educational approach with less debate and more fill-in-the-blank/multiple choice thinking. Our youngest just graduated from high school and all have happy memories of their public elementary, and are also grateful for the experience they had at their private middle/high school. The older two were extremely well-prepared for college and we expect the youngest will be as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

my concern with starting in public and switching is that if we start in public K and find that we want to switch to private before grades 6 or 9, won't there be significantly fewer spots available at the private schools and much less opportunity to get in? It seems like most schools take a whole new class in K but might only have a handful of openings in 1st or 2nd grade because the only openings come from people moving or leaving.

This is exactly right. the K-6/8s don't expand and take kids only through attrition in grades 1-5. the better K-12s do add two, three or four kids in grades before 4th (thinking GDS, Sidwell, Maret here). 4th is an entry point for NCS and STA of course, and Sidwell takes several.

OTOH, there are many applicants at 4th, coming from Beauvoir, Primary Day, and Concord Hill (by design), plus kids trying to switch and improve their odds from St. Patrick's, NPS, WES.

This poster, albeit insufferable w/the school-name-dropping, brings up a point to me. OP--are you trying to get just any old private school or are you shooting for a "top school"?

[Anonymous]

Above posters make a valid point. Getting into your dream private is easier at kindergarten then in middle school and sometime private is hard if it has a lower school attached to it so if you have one in mind then go for it now. Plus once you get used to having the tuition in your budget you might find that you could manage private high school as well. We didn't think we could make it work for all 13 years (ps to 12) but we did as incomes went up and we just learned that we didn't need all the extra luxuries that we would have otherwise spent the money on.

[Anonymous]

Entry at PK or K is easier everywhere for above stated reasons

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

my concern with starting in public and switching is that if we start in public K and find that we want to switch to private before grades 6 or 9, won't there be significantly fewer spots available at the private schools and much less opportunity to get in? It seems like most schools take a whole new class in K but might only have a handful of openings in 1st or 2nd grade because the only openings come from people moving or leaving.

This is exactly right. the K-6/8s don't expand and take kids only through attrition in grades 1-5. the better K-12s do add two, three or four kids in grades before 4th (thinking GDS, Sidwell, Maret here). 4th is an entry point for NCS and STA of course, and Sidwell takes several.

OTOH, there are many applicants at 4th, coming from Beauvoir, Primary Day, and Concord Hill (by design), plus kids trying to switch and improve their odds from St. Patrick's, NPS, WES.

This poster, albeit insufferable w/the school-name-dropping, brings up a point to me. OP--are you trying to get just any old private school or are you shooting for a "top school"?

Why is it "insufferable" to state facts? This post saved OP a lot of time from sifting through these schools' websites and calling these schools' ADs.

If you rather, we could all wander around erroneously believing that [warning: "name drop" ahead] Maret accepts 20 new students in 2nd grade every year. Or that just one or two Beauvoir graduates apply to STA in 4th and the rest go to DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

my concern with starting in public and switching is that if we start in public K and find that we want to switch to private before grades 6 or 9, won't there be significantly fewer spots available at the private schools and much less opportunity to get in? It seems like most schools take a whole new class in K but might only have a handful of openings in 1st or 2nd grade because the only openings come from people moving or leaving.

This is exactly right. the K-6/8s don't expand and take kids only through attrition in grades 1-5. the better K-12s do add two, three or four kids in grades before 4th (thinking GDS, Sidwell, Maret here). 4th is an entry point for NCS and STA of course, and Sidwell takes several.

OTOH, there are many applicants at 4th, coming from Beauvoir, Primary Day, and Concord Hill (by design), plus kids trying to switch and improve their odds from St. Patrick's, NPS, WES.

This poster, albeit insufferable w/the school-name-dropping, brings up a point to me. OP--are you trying to get just any old private school or are you shooting for a "top school"?

Why is it "insufferable" to state facts? This post saved OP a lot of time from sifting through these schools' websites and calling these schools' ADs.

If you rather, we could all wander around erroneously believing that [warning: "name drop" ahead] Maret accepts 20 new students in 2nd grade every year. Or that just one or two Beauvoir graduates apply to STA in 4th and the rest go to DCPS.

+1 agree, it was helpful information more than name dropping.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It really depends on your child and what is offered at your public school. If you think for some reason your child wouldn't be well prepared for a magnet or top private high school or may not even get the foundation needed, then the right call is elementary school. We moved one because I was honestly worried about my son getting more in progress grades that never made it to proficient. He was the classic not doing terrible enough to get an IEP but not getting even close to the sort of grades/mastery of material that I think you need K-5. This was on top of social issues.

If our child had been getting the basic foundation at public school and working closer to potential (this can happen with larger class sizes and at schools that may not have top test scores depending on the child and strength of teaching) we would have stayed with public school longer. In that case I think it becomes more important in middle-high school when you can see the benefits of private school really making a difference for your child. It can be to change peer groups, help become a more well rounded student/person, provide more challenge and support to the smart but lazy student etc. You could have the type of child that thrives anywhere and find that while private high school may be nice, it wouldn't really alter their path in life and don't just mean college placement. For a different child, it could make a huge difference.

Thanks for an insightful post. You're absolutely right that a lot depends on your child and the public schools in your area. We liked our public elementary school, but switched our kids from public to private in middle school because we wanted them to have an educational experience focused on critical thinking and questioning with lots of opportunities for writing and public speaking. Our public high school is very good -- offers lots of APs and has a good college admissions record for top students -- but the larger class sizes tend to produce a very different educational approach with less debate and more fill-in-the-blank/multiple choice thinking. Our youngest just graduated from high school and all have happy memories of their public elementary, and are also grateful for the experience they had at their private middle/high school. The older two were extremely well-prepared for college and we expect the youngest will be as well.

You can get this in FCPS AAP starting in 3rd and running through 8th. If you have a child in the top 98% in IQ and can live in FCPS, save your money. Go private in 9th if you must.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are also in MoCo and are sending our child to a private K-8. MoCo schools are having over-crowding issues (26-28 in a K class with one teacher and one aid in our IB school), and the curriculum is guided too much by standardized test results. Our progressive K-8 is a whole different world, and our child is thriving.

We specifically chose a K-8 because we are hoping to send our child to public for high school (IB school or one of the magnets). We are also open to sending him private for HS, but we wanted to keep our options open, and a K-8 makes for a natural exit point.

As others have mentioned, it really does depend on your specific school choices. If your MoCo elementary school is like ours, I would recommend you take a look at private starting at K. If not, give it a try for a few years and look to enter private later.

Good luck.

OP here. Please tell me which K-8 private school your kid goes to. The issues you mention with MoCo public schools are EXACTLY what I'm concerned about. The classes seem large, and the curriculum seems overly standardized and a bit too technology-focused at the expense of other learning. I'd be very interested in which private school you felt met your needs, given that you seem to have similar desires from the school as we have.

For the others -- my concern with starting in public and switching is that if we start in public K and find that we want to switch to private before grades 6 or 9, won't there be significantly fewer spots available at the private schools and much less opportunity to get in? It seems like most schools take a whole new class in K but might only have a handful of openings in 1st or 2nd grade because the only openings come from people moving or leaving.

Hi OP. I am the PP that you quoted above. Our child ended up at Sheridan, largely because we were interested in the progressive education model, and it felt like a really good match for our child when we toured. We have friends who left MoCo public schools over similar concerns and they ended up at a variety of places: Maret, GDS, Lowell, Grace Episcopal, St. Andrews, Sandy Spring Friends, and Aidan Montessori. You have lots of options, and the one that will work best depends on your family and your child.

Another thought. You mentioned in your initial post that K-12 in private was not financially possible for your family. I don't know if you are open to a religiously affiliated school, but Episcopal schools tend to be less expensive than independent schools. Perhaps this is a way to make more years in private school possible.

Also, MoCo has some good language immersion programs starting in K. Placement is by lottery, so you never know, but it may be worth a try. It gives you a good exit point to apply to private a few years down the road.

Best of luck to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are also in MoCo and are sending our child to a private K-8. MoCo schools are having over-crowding issues (26-28 in a K class with one teacher and one aid in our IB school), and the curriculum is guided too much by standardized test results. Our progressive K-8 is a whole different world, and our child is thriving.

We specifically chose a K-8 because we are hoping to send our child to public for high school (IB school or one of the magnets). We are also open to sending him private for HS, but we wanted to keep our options open, and a K-8 makes for a natural exit point.

As others have mentioned, it really does depend on your specific school choices. If your MoCo elementary school is like ours, I would recommend you take a look at private starting at K. If not, give it a try for a few years and look to enter private later.

Good luck.

OP here. Please tell me which K-8 private school your kid goes to. The issues you mention with MoCo public schools are EXACTLY what I'm concerned about. The classes seem large, and the curriculum seems overly standardized and a bit too technology-focused at the expense of other learning. I'd be very interested in which private school you felt met your needs, given that you seem to have similar desires from the school as we have.

For the others -- my concern with starting in public and switching is that if we start in public K and find that we want to switch to private before grades 6 or 9, won't there be significantly fewer spots available at the private schools and much less opportunity to get in? It seems like most schools take a whole new class in K but might only have a handful of openings in 1st or 2nd grade because the only openings come from people moving or leaving.

Hi OP. I am the PP that you quoted above. Our child ended up at Sheridan, largely because we were interested in the progressive education model, and it felt like a really good match for our child when we toured. We have friends who left MoCo public schools over similar concerns and they ended up at a variety of places: Maret, GDS, Lowell, Grace Episcopal, St. Andrews, Sandy Spring Friends, and Aidan Montessori. You have lots of options, and the one that will work best depends on your family and your child.

Another thought. You mentioned in your initial post that K-12 in private was not financially possible for your family. I don't know if you are open to a religiously affiliated school, but Episcopal schools tend to be less expensive than independent schools. Perhaps this is a way to make more years in private school possible.

Also, MoCo has some good language immersion programs starting in K. Placement is by lottery, so you never know, but it may be worth a try. It gives you a good exit point to apply to private a few years down the road.

Best of luck to you.

Thanks! I was interested in Sheridan based on what I'd read about it, so I will dig a bit deeper on that one. I'm also interested in Lowell and Sandy Spring Friends, as well as a few others. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

We chose to send both children to private for elementary, public charter for middle, and private again for hs. It worked well for dd but didn't for ds who did not want to leave his middle school friends. Most of them went to our respected public hs. DD excelled while ds struggled all 4 yrs.

Each child is different. For us, it made financial sense to pull the for middle and start again with private for hs. By 13, most teens know where they'll be happiest. We should have listened to ds and let him decide.

My advice is start where it's best for your family, but stay focused on your child's happiness. One children get to middle school they know a lot about what works or doesn't for them. As parents, we have to pay close attention and stop trying to keep up with everyone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We chose to send both children to private for elementary, public charter for middle, and private again for hs. It worked well for dd but didn't for ds who did not want to leave his middle school friends. Most of them went to our respected public hs. DD excelled while ds struggled all 4 yrs.

Each child is different. For us, it made financial sense to pull the for middle and start again with private for hs. By 13, most teens know where they'll be happiest. We should have listened to ds and let him decide.

My advice is start where it's best for your family, but stay focused on your child's happiness. One children get to middle school they know a lot about what works or doesn't for them. As parents, we have to pay close attention and stop trying to keep up with everyone else.

Your post highlights why it can make sense to wait till middle school before making a school choice. At that age you and your child will know so much more about how s/he learns and in what kind of school s/he will thrive.

[Anonymous]

We're doing private K-8 for immersion and public HS. Wouldn't make sense otherwise.

[Anonymous]

We're doing private at least through 6th then reevaluating. Class size and foundational learning are important to us.