MCPS language immersion placement decisions?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:we're so disappointed our K didnt get in. anyone have tips for what we can do to help foster spanish learning at home -- whether its an after school program, tutor or hwat-- especially if parents dont speak it?

Arco Iris Somos Saturday School is a great program. I think they also have some stuff after school. Senora Lupe runs the school and is a rockstar.

[Anonymous]

My DD got invitations to Burnt Mills, Page, and Rock Creek Forest. I have visited Burnt Mills and RCF but not Page. I never, in a million years, thought we would be offered all three so have not made a list weighing pros and cons of each. Assuming transportation is not an issue, what are my considerations? Is there a clear winner?

[Anonymous]

Wow! Talk about winning the lottery...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know why those in 30 under have a chance? Wouldn’t that mean 30 folks rejected?

I think they are just saying that historically, ~30 kids who were accepted turn out to be doing something else: private school, a different public, homeschool, w/ev. Moving. This year: don't enroll at all because of COVID! Who knows!?

I think a LOT of people apply just for heck of it, just in case they decide to try to make it worth. You don't need to make any plans in order to apply. When my oldest was in headed to K, she was invited to Chinese, and then low 30s for French, which was our preference. We declined the Chinese spot, so that was somebody on the waitlist that got in. Then we got a call two days before school started inviting her to the French program. We decided to decline because we had everything set up for her home school, and she was really anxious about kindergarten, and we didn't think it would be a good move. So there are lots of reasons people decline.

I kind of wonder if there will be more availability because the notices were later this year, there were fewer info sessions, and a general sense of wanting to avoid hassle, or less availability because people expect to start virtually in the fall, so school location won't matter. It would be a chance to try out the program without having to arrange transportation, aftercare, etc.

Also, if a child leaves during the school year, you can be offered a spot. I think they allow children to enter the immersion program up through January.

[Anonymous]

May I ask again about sibling preference, what is the rule?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:May I ask again about sibling preference, what is the rule?

The rule WAS that if you had one child in the program, younger siblings would be automatically admitted. It resulted in very, very few lottery spots actually being available, especially in the older programs like RCF, because most of the incoming K classes were siblings of older students. Last year, the link was discontinued, but students admitted before last year would still be able to bring in siblings. So if I had a child in immersion K right now, and one going to K in the fall, the younger one would not be given automatic admission. However, if I had a 1st grader in immersion, the younger one would be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DD got invitations to Burnt Mills, Page, and Rock Creek Forest. I have visited Burnt Mills and RCF but not Page. I never, in a million years, thought we would be offered all three so have not made a list weighing pros and cons of each. Assuming transportation is not an issue, what are my considerations? Is there a clear winner?

RCF is by far the most difficult one to get into. I have applied for two kids, and had waitlist numbers in the 200-300s. It was one of the very first programs and is well-established. My spouse actually used to teach immersion there many years ago, and hoped our kids would be able to go (didn't happen). Page is one of the newest programs, but a close friend has her DD there and is loving it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:we're so disappointed our K didnt get in. anyone have tips for what we can do to help foster spanish learning at home -- whether its an after school program, tutor or hwat-- especially if parents dont speak it?

Arco Iris Somos Saturday School is a great program. I think they also have some stuff after school. Senora Lupe runs the school and is a rockstar.

Agreed! My child attends and it’s really kept up the skills she developed in preschool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone ever gotten into an immersion program in second grade?

Anyone?

It's test in, so a much, much lower pool of interest. The students have to have a decent amount of language proficiency to get in. I used to teach at a school that ended up having several students leave for immersion midway through elementary, and they were generally international students whose families weren't planning to stay in the US.

Thank you. Yes, we have to test. I also wonder how fast we will have to decide. We are under 10.

My kid is 4 on the WL for second grade. I’m not sure how difficult the testing process is or whether any spots really become available in second grade. I’d heard first grade is easier because the class size increases.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone ever gotten into an immersion program in second grade?

Anyone?

It's test in, so a much, much lower pool of interest. The students have to have a decent amount of language proficiency to get in. I used to teach at a school that ended up having several students leave for immersion midway through elementary, and they were generally international students whose families weren't planning to stay in the US.

Thank you. Yes, we have to test. I also wonder how fast we will have to decide. We are under 10.

My kid is 4 on the WL for second grade. I’m not sure how difficult the testing process is or whether any spots really become available in second grade. I’d heard first grade is easier because the class size increases.

#4 for which program?

We are #7 for RCF. We are hoping my daughter gets in because it is closer to our house than our current immersion school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD got invitations to Burnt Mills, Page, and Rock Creek Forest. I have visited Burnt Mills and RCF but not Page. I never, in a million years, thought we would be offered all three so have not made a list weighing pros and cons of each. Assuming transportation is not an issue, what are my considerations? Is there a clear winner?

RCF is by far the most difficult one to get into. I have applied for two kids, and had waitlist numbers in the 200-300s. It was one of the very first programs and is well-established. My spouse actually used to teach immersion there many years ago, and hoped our kids would be able to go (didn't happen). Page is one of the newest programs, but a close friend has her DD there and is loving it.

Thank you for this information. We are definitely leaning in that direction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:May I ask again about sibling preference, what is the rule?

The rule WAS that if you had one child in the program, younger siblings would be automatically admitted. It resulted in very, very few lottery spots actually being available, especially in the older programs like RCF, because most of the incoming K classes were siblings of older students. Last year, the link was discontinued, but students admitted before last year would still be able to bring in siblings. So if I had a child in immersion K right now, and one going to K in the fall, the younger one would not be given automatic admission. However, if I had a 1st grader in immersion, the younger one would be.

The new process is that if a sibling is currently in the immersion program, you get two drawings for the other sibling. In other words, the other sibling gets two lottery draws and the best number is the one sent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:May I ask again about sibling preference, what is the rule?

The rule WAS that if you had one child in the program, younger siblings would be automatically admitted. It resulted in very, very few lottery spots actually being available, especially in the older programs like RCF, because most of the incoming K classes were siblings of older students. Last year, the link was discontinued, but students admitted before last year would still be able to bring in siblings. So if I had a child in immersion K right now, and one going to K in the fall, the younger one would not be given automatic admission. However, if I had a 1st grader in immersion, the younger one would be.

The new process is that if a sibling is currently in the immersion program, you get two drawings for the other sibling. In other words, the other sibling gets two lottery draws and the best number is the one sent.

This will probably affect our decision about not sending our older child as we live far from the immersion school and I feel it would be almost impossible for a younger sibling to get in.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know the process and timeline for testing those seeking spots in 2nd-5th grade immersion programs? I'm wondering if the parent has to confirm that they are accepting the spot before the student takes the test, or is the testing done first and then if the student passes then the parents make the decision? If the student is in another immersion program and accepts the new spot but doesn't pass the test, are they able to stay in their current program?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know the process and timeline for testing those seeking spots in 2nd-5th grade immersion programs? I'm wondering if the parent has to confirm that they are accepting the spot before the student takes the test, or is the testing done first and then if the student passes then the parents make the decision? If the student is in another immersion program and accepts the new spot but doesn't pass the test, are they able to stay in their current program?

Yes. I would like to know this as well. Thanks.