Walls Test Results

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They asked us about whether our kids is a self starter and could advocate for himself. The school sees itself as being best suited for toward independent, self driven students.

NP. True. And G*d help you if your child develops any sort of medical or mental health issue, an addiction (more common than you may imagine) or has a 504. BTDT.

What does "BTDT" mean?

Been there done that.

Thanks. What was your experience? I think my DD has ADD, anxiety & depression and will need an IEP. I've been holding on testing for ADD out of fear of stigmatizing and weakening chances for school selection. The anxiety & depression symptoms are newer and she's scheduled to see a psychotherapist next week. So any insight you have as we rank schools (SWW, Latin, DCI, Wilson, Banneker) would be helpful. She is in a paraochial school now. Thanks.

A few points - SWW and Banneker are application - so order matters. What is your child's preference between them? Most 8th graders I know have a POV between the 2. Whatever her preference between the 2, rank them that way.

Of the schools listed, I think Latin has the best reputation for supporting 504 needs. We are at a Wilson feeder and our current teachers are pushing to get our 504 converted to an IEP b/c they think our 8th grader with ADHD is going to get lost in the process at Wilson without the specific supports that the IEP offers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They asked us about whether our kids is a self starter and could advocate for himself. The school sees itself as being best suited for toward independent, self driven students.

NP. True. And G*d help you if your child develops any sort of medical or mental health issue, an addiction (more common than you may imagine) or has a 504. BTDT.

What does "BTDT" mean?

Been there done that.

Thanks. What was your experience? I think my DD has ADD, anxiety & depression and will need an IEP. I've been holding on testing for ADD out of fear of stigmatizing and weakening chances for school selection. The anxiety & depression symptoms are newer and she's scheduled to see a psychotherapist next week. So any insight you have as we rank schools (SWW, Latin, DCI, Wilson, Banneker) would be helpful. She is in a paraochial school now. Thanks.

Feeling bad that i detailed this thread, but you asked...

My kid developed an anxiety disorder while at SWW. Got a 504 with typical things in it - flash pass to leave the room for breaks, extended time on tests. Missed quite a bit of school and catching up was really tough -- getting class notes was problematic for example even though it was an accommodation in the 504. Some teachers implemented the 594, others not so much, so there was a need for frequent self-advocacy for my DD (hard when you have anxiety) and I wound up having to intervene and advocate a lot. Some never really got on board (NOTE - this is not unusual in all high schools!).

Things escalated and DS needed to leave SWW mid-year on advice of his doctor. Our IB is very low-performing so she was literally stranded without options. We placed her a very small private for the last 3 semesters of high school. It was not something we had prepared for financially so that was hard, and it was hard on our kid socially.

ADVICE -- get testing for ADHD now. Having a 504 or IEP will NOT affect admissions for any DC public or charter school -- they don't know you have it when you apply. As for stigma, your kid probably already feels it because they know that they are struggling in school. ADHD / Anxiety / Depression can present similarly and it's critical to know whether your kid has 1, 2 or all 3 of these before treating medically. Therapy is a good step.

Once you know the diagnosis and where they get in, then you have to have a blunt conversation with the about your kid's 505/IEP and decide whether you think they can accommodate it. In our case it was a struggle. Can't say if one of the others would have been better. It really depends on the individual. I just felt like we got little support from Walls at a time when we could have used it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Feeling bad that i detailed this thread, but you asked...

My kid developed an anxiety disorder while at SWW. Got a 504 with typical things in it - flash pass to leave the room for breaks, extended time on tests. Missed quite a bit of school and catching up was really tough -- getting class notes was problematic for example even though it was an accommodation in the 504. Some teachers implemented the 594, others not so much, so there was a need for frequent self-advocacy for my DD (hard when you have anxiety) and I wound up having to intervene and advocate a lot. Some never really got on board (NOTE - this is not unusual in all high schools!).

Things escalated and DS needed to leave SWW mid-year on advice of his doctor. Our IB is very low-performing so she was literally stranded without options. We placed her a very small private for the last 3 semesters of high school. It was not something we had prepared for financially so that was hard, and it was hard on our kid socially.

ADVICE -- get testing for ADHD now. Having a 504 or IEP will NOT affect admissions for any DC public or charter school -- they don't know you have it when you apply. As for stigma, your kid probably already feels it because they know that they are struggling in school. ADHD / Anxiety / Depression can present similarly and it's critical to know whether your kid has 1, 2 or all 3 of these before treating medically. Therapy is a good step.

Once you know the diagnosis and where they get in, then you have to have a blunt conversation with the about your kid's 505/IEP and decide whether you think they can accommodate it. In our case it was a struggle. Can't say if one of the others would have been better. It really depends on the individual. I just felt like we got little support from Walls at a time when we could have used it.

Thank you for sharing your experience

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Feeling bad that i detailed this thread, but you asked...

My kid developed an anxiety disorder while at SWW. Got a 504 with typical things in it - flash pass to leave the room for breaks, extended time on tests. Missed quite a bit of school and catching up was really tough -- getting class notes was problematic for example even though it was an accommodation in the 504. Some teachers implemented the 594, others not so much, so there was a need for frequent self-advocacy for my DD (hard when you have anxiety) and I wound up having to intervene and advocate a lot. Some never really got on board (NOTE - this is not unusual in all high schools!).

Things escalated and DS needed to leave SWW mid-year on advice of his doctor. Our IB is very low-performing so she was literally stranded without options. We placed her a very small private for the last 3 semesters of high school. It was not something we had prepared for financially so that was hard, and it was hard on our kid socially.

ADVICE -- get testing for ADHD now. Having a 504 or IEP will NOT affect admissions for any DC public or charter school -- they don't know you have it when you apply. As for stigma, your kid probably already feels it because they know that they are struggling in school. ADHD / Anxiety / Depression can present similarly and it's critical to know whether your kid has 1, 2 or all 3 of these before treating medically. Therapy is a good step.

Once you know the diagnosis and where they get in, then you have to have a blunt conversation with the about your kid's 505/IEP and decide whether you think they can accommodate it. In our case it was a struggle. Can't say if one of the others would have been better. It really depends on the individual. I just felt like we got little support from Walls at a time when we could have used it.

Thank you for sharing your experience

+1. This is very helpful. I'm sorry your daughter went through this and I hope she's doing better now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They asked us about whether our kids is a self starter and could advocate for himself. The school sees itself as being best suited for toward independent, self driven students.

NP. True. And G*d help you if your child develops any sort of medical or mental health issue, an addiction (more common than you may imagine) or has a 504. BTDT.

What does "BTDT" mean?

Been there done that.

Thanks. What was your experience? I think my DD has ADD, anxiety & depression and will need an IEP. I've been holding on testing for ADD out of fear of stigmatizing and weakening chances for school selection. The anxiety & depression symptoms are newer and she's scheduled to see a psychotherapist next week. So any insight you have as we rank schools (SWW, Latin, DCI, Wilson, Banneker) would be helpful. She is in a paraochial school now. Thanks.

A few points - SWW and Banneker are application - so order matters. What is your child's preference between them? Most 8th graders I know have a POV between the 2. Whatever her preference between the 2, rank them that way.

Of the schools listed, I think Latin has the best reputation for supporting 504 needs. We are at a Wilson feeder and our current teachers are pushing to get our 504 converted to an IEP b/c they think our 8th grader with ADHD is going to get lost in the process at Wilson without the specific supports that the IEP offers.

Private would be best. Sorry, but that's my take being familiar with all of the above. Have you looked at any parochial high schools. Also, don't hold out on testing with fear for school selection. That's just not how it works with private or public schools. Do you have anyone at the school you can speak with about this for guidance?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They asked us about whether our kids is a self starter and could advocate for himself. The school sees itself as being best suited for toward independent, self driven students.

NP. True. And G*d help you if your child develops any sort of medical or mental health issue, an addiction (more common than you may imagine) or has a 504. BTDT.

What does "BTDT" mean?

Been there done that.

Thanks. What was your experience? I think my DD has ADD, anxiety & depression and will need an IEP. I've been holding on testing for ADD out of fear of stigmatizing and weakening chances for school selection. The anxiety & depression symptoms are newer and she's scheduled to see a psychotherapist next week. So any insight you have as we rank schools (SWW, Latin, DCI, Wilson, Banneker) would be helpful. She is in a paraochial school now. Thanks.

A few points - SWW and Banneker are application - so order matters. What is your child's preference between them? Most 8th graders I know have a POV between the 2. Whatever her preference between the 2, rank them that way.

Of the schools listed, I think Latin has the best reputation for supporting 504 needs. We are at a Wilson feeder and our current teachers are pushing to get our 504 converted to an IEP b/c they think our 8th grader with ADHD is going to get lost in the process at Wilson without the specific supports that the IEP offers.

Private would be best. Sorry, but that's my take being familiar with all of the above. Have you looked at any parochial high schools. Also, don't hold out on testing with fear for school selection. That's just not how it works with private or public schools. Do you have anyone at the school you can speak with about this for guidance?

Well, I think differently. Maybe PP's DD is having anxiety and depression because her current school is not a good fit. But I agree with PP who said she should be tested ASAP. Maybe, all she needs is a new school! BTDT.

[Anonymous]

Anybody know what questions your kid was asked?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anybody know what questions your kid was asked?

Based on the limited information I could extract, my kid was asked why he's interested in SWW, about his exposures to other cultures, and something about current events/issues. In the parent portion, I was asked how we support our child academically and to discuss how he has grown in the last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anybody know what questions your kid was asked?

Based on the limited information I could extract, my kid was asked why he's interested in SWW, about his exposures to other cultures, and something about current events/issues. In the parent portion, I was asked how we support our child academically and to discuss how he has grown in the last year.

We may have had the same interviewers
Or each set went by the established script.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anybody know what questions your kid was asked?

Based on the limited information I could extract, my kid was asked why he's interested in SWW, about his exposures to other cultures, and something about current events/issues. In the parent portion, I was asked how we support our child academically and to discuss how he has grown in the last year.

We may have had the same interviewers
Or each set went by the established script.

There was a standard list of questions broken up into AM applicants & PM applicants. I'm unsure of why there were variations in AM & PM but the list of questions were the same in each interview.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
There was a standard list of questions broken up into AM applicants & PM applicants. I'm unsure of why there were variations in AM & PM but the list of questions were the same in each interview.

How do you know?

We interviewed in the AM

[Anonymous]

Gosh those were different questions than the ones we were asked. We were asked what we would do if our child was struggling academically and what his passions were. The teenagers interviewing were entirely disinterested.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Gosh those were different questions than the ones we were asked. We were asked what we would do if our child was struggling academically and what his passions were. The teenagers interviewing were entirely disinterested.

We had 1 teacher / 1 teacher. (Morning interview)

[Anonymous]

Typo - 1 teenager / 1 teacher

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
There was a standard list of questions broken up into AM applicants & PM applicants. I'm unsure of why there were variations in AM & PM but the list of questions were the same in each interview.

How do you know?

We interviewed in the AM

I know because The student and teacher were discussing what they were going to ask me and my partner, and the student said "Let's add this question from the PM and the rest AM".