Georgetown Day School or Sidwell Friends?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

Oh please. WIS Is fine and you are being ridiculous. Stay in your lane.

You're so convincing. You offer so many reasoned arguments. Not convinced.

Talk to anyone who has left WIS who can actually talk about the problems with the quality of teaching and curriculum.

I don't need to argue with a troll nor convince a Sidwell parent. As a Sidwell parent, I would think it beneath you to criticize schools outside of the "big 3." You probably aren't even a Sidwell parent and probably didn't even get into WIS. LOL

OTOH, you do need to work on your grammar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

We're not Jewish, URM or wealthy democrats, yet our kid got into both GDS and Sidwell. So don't be discouraged from applying if your kid doesn't fall into one of those categories.

Us too and we landed at Sidwell.

On the above, GDS's COVID response was worse than Sidwell for sure (at least for HS, according to our many friends who have GDS HS students)

I'm curious what Sidwell did for HS last year? I have a GDS HS student and they were back in person 2 days per week in November and 4 days a week in late spring. That seemed to work okay given the circumstances.

Sidwell was generally the same. I don't get the comparison fail.

+2. And GDS lower and middle schools met 4 days/week starting last November. The biggest complaint among GDS parents in the fall was that the school wasted the nice weather in September and Octobber by not setting up outdoor tents and having instruction outdoors. I found the weekly in-school testing incredibly convenient and well-run. Also because the LMS building is brand new, GDS was able to upgrade the air filtration system very easily. No complaints here, given the circumstances, and very grateful that our kids were actually to go to school in person.

Let’s get real. Gds was a disaster
Pk-5 was HALF DAYS in December onward for FOUR days a week.
Didn’t go full days until late March for FOUR days.
Upper school did A group and B group and B group never got in the building except one say in 2020.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

We're not Jewish, URM or wealthy democrats, yet our kid got into both GDS and Sidwell. So don't be discouraged from applying if your kid doesn't fall into one of those categories.

Us too and we landed at Sidwell.

On the above, GDS's COVID response was worse than Sidwell for sure (at least for HS, according to our many friends who have GDS HS students)

I'm curious what Sidwell did for HS last year? I have a GDS HS student and they were back in person 2 days per week in November and 4 days a week in late spring. That seemed to work okay given the circumstances.

Sidwell was generally the same. I don't get the comparison fail.

+2. And GDS lower and middle schools met 4 days/week starting last November. The biggest complaint among GDS parents in the fall was that the school wasted the nice weather in September and Octobber by not setting up outdoor tents and having instruction outdoors. I found the weekly in-school testing incredibly convenient and well-run. Also because the LMS building is brand new, GDS was able to upgrade the air filtration system very easily. No complaints here, given the circumstances, and very grateful that our kids were actually to go to school in person.

Let’s get real. Gds was a disaster
Pk-5 was HALF DAYS in December onward for FOUR days a week.
Didn’t go full days until late March for FOUR days.
Upper school did A group and B group and B group never got in the building except one say in 2020.

What would you propose doing differently? Especially compared to other DC independents? I don't have a lower school student but was around for HS. Group A, admittedly, was in the building more in 2020. But 2021 winter/spring worked well, with few outbreaks or need to pull back. Athletic practices were also pretty regular.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

We're not Jewish, URM or wealthy democrats, yet our kid got into both GDS and Sidwell. So don't be discouraged from applying if your kid doesn't fall into one of those categories.

Us too and we landed at Sidwell.

On the above, GDS's COVID response was worse than Sidwell for sure (at least for HS, according to our many friends who have GDS HS students)

I'm curious what Sidwell did for HS last year? I have a GDS HS student and they were back in person 2 days per week in November and 4 days a week in late spring. That seemed to work okay given the circumstances.

Sidwell was generally the same. I don't get the comparison fail.

+2. And GDS lower and middle schools met 4 days/week starting last November. The biggest complaint among GDS parents in the fall was that the school wasted the nice weather in September and Octobber by not setting up outdoor tents and having instruction outdoors. I found the weekly in-school testing incredibly convenient and well-run. Also because the LMS building is brand new, GDS was able to upgrade the air filtration system very easily. No complaints here, given the circumstances, and very grateful that our kids were actually to go to school in person.

Let’s get real. Gds was a disaster
Pk-5 was HALF DAYS in December onward for FOUR days a week.
Didn’t go full days until late March for FOUR days.
Upper school did A group and B group and B group never got in the building except one say in 2020.

What would you propose doing differently? Especially compared to other DC independents? I don't have a lower school student but was around for HS. Group A, admittedly, was in the building more in 2020. But 2021 winter/spring worked well, with few outbreaks or need to pull back. Athletic practices were also pretty regular.

Is this a joke? Schools could have done what BVR did. In-person and remote options. Students in pods. Masks required at all times. Outdoor education in-person once a week for remote families. Hepa filters in every classroom. No shared supplies. Teachers got vaxxed as early as they could. Socially distant desks. Bi-weekly testing (and now weekly testing for this year). I would have proposed all of those things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

Oh please. WIS Is fine and you are being ridiculous. Stay in your lane.

You're so convincing. You offer so many reasoned arguments. Not convinced.

Talk to anyone who has left WIS who can actually talk about the problems with the quality of teaching and curriculum.

I don't need to argue with a troll nor convince a Sidwell parent. As a Sidwell parent, I would think it beneath you to criticize schools outside of the "big 3." You probably aren't even a Sidwell parent and probably didn't even get into WIS. LOL

OTOH, you do need to work on your grammar.

Ooooh, sick burn!! Working on your oppositional conversation badge for your hall monitor sash?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

We're not Jewish, URM or wealthy democrats, yet our kid got into both GDS and Sidwell. So don't be discouraged from applying if your kid doesn't fall into one of those categories.

Us too and we landed at Sidwell.

On the above, GDS's COVID response was worse than Sidwell for sure (at least for HS, according to our many friends who have GDS HS students)

I'm curious what Sidwell did for HS last year? I have a GDS HS student and they were back in person 2 days per week in November and 4 days a week in late spring. That seemed to work okay given the circumstances.

Sidwell was generally the same. I don't get the comparison fail.

+2. And GDS lower and middle schools met 4 days/week starting last November. The biggest complaint among GDS parents in the fall was that the school wasted the nice weather in September and Octobber by not setting up outdoor tents and having instruction outdoors. I found the weekly in-school testing incredibly convenient and well-run. Also because the LMS building is brand new, GDS was able to upgrade the air filtration system very easily. No complaints here, given the circumstances, and very grateful that our kids were actually to go to school in person.

Let’s get real. Gds was a disaster
Pk-5 was HALF DAYS in December onward for FOUR days a week.
Didn’t go full days until late March for FOUR days.
Upper school did A group and B group and B group never got in the building except one say in 2020.

What would you propose doing differently? Especially compared to other DC independents? I don't have a lower school student but was around for HS. Group A, admittedly, was in the building more in 2020. But 2021 winter/spring worked well, with few outbreaks or need to pull back. Athletic practices were also pretty regular.

Is this a joke? Schools could have done what BVR did. In-person and remote options. Students in pods. Masks required at all times. Outdoor education in-person once a week for remote families. Hepa filters in every classroom. No shared supplies. Teachers got vaxxed as early as they could. Socially distant desks. Bi-weekly testing (and now weekly testing for this year). I would have proposed all of those things.

Gds did all those things. I think they were too slow to bring students into the building, but they did not lack for mitigation. If anything, they were too cautious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

We're not Jewish, URM or wealthy democrats, yet our kid got into both GDS and Sidwell. So don't be discouraged from applying if your kid doesn't fall into one of those categories.

Us too and we landed at Sidwell.

On the above, GDS's COVID response was worse than Sidwell for sure (at least for HS, according to our many friends who have GDS HS students)

I'm curious what Sidwell did for HS last year? I have a GDS HS student and they were back in person 2 days per week in November and 4 days a week in late spring. That seemed to work okay given the circumstances.

Sidwell was generally the same. I don't get the comparison fail.

+2. And GDS lower and middle schools met 4 days/week starting last November. The biggest complaint among GDS parents in the fall was that the school wasted the nice weather in September and Octobber by not setting up outdoor tents and having instruction outdoors. I found the weekly in-school testing incredibly convenient and well-run. Also because the LMS building is brand new, GDS was able to upgrade the air filtration system very easily. No complaints here, given the circumstances, and very grateful that our kids were actually to go to school in person.

Let’s get real. Gds was a disaster
Pk-5 was HALF DAYS in December onward for FOUR days a week.
Didn’t go full days until late March for FOUR days.
Upper school did A group and B group and B group never got in the building except one say in 2020.

What would you propose doing differently? Especially compared to other DC independents? I don't have a lower school student but was around for HS. Group A, admittedly, was in the building more in 2020. But 2021 winter/spring worked well, with few outbreaks or need to pull back. Athletic practices were also pretty regular.

Is this a joke? Schools could have done what BVR did. In-person and remote options. Students in pods. Masks required at all times. Outdoor education in-person once a week for remote families. Hepa filters in every classroom. No shared supplies. Teachers got vaxxed as early as they could. Socially distant desks. Bi-weekly testing (and now weekly testing for this year). I would have proposed all of those things.

BVR is only PK-3, and fewer numbers overall. GDS lower school went back 4 days in November and had all those mitigation measures. GDS lower school spent substantial time outdoors as well. And the original discussion was about HS, which didn't differ from Sidwell.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

We're not Jewish, URM or wealthy democrats, yet our kid got into both GDS and Sidwell. So don't be discouraged from applying if your kid doesn't fall into one of those categories.

Us too and we landed at Sidwell.

On the above, GDS's COVID response was worse than Sidwell for sure (at least for HS, according to our many friends who have GDS HS students)

I'm curious what Sidwell did for HS last year? I have a GDS HS student and they were back in person 2 days per week in November and 4 days a week in late spring. That seemed to work okay given the circumstances.

Sidwell was generally the same. I don't get the comparison fail.

+2. And GDS lower and middle schools met 4 days/week starting last November. The biggest complaint among GDS parents in the fall was that the school wasted the nice weather in September and Octobber by not setting up outdoor tents and having instruction outdoors. I found the weekly in-school testing incredibly convenient and well-run. Also because the LMS building is brand new, GDS was able to upgrade the air filtration system very easily. No complaints here, given the circumstances, and very grateful that our kids were actually to go to school in person.

Let’s get real. Gds was a disaster
Pk-5 was HALF DAYS in December onward for FOUR days a week.
Didn’t go full days until late March for FOUR days.
Upper school did A group and B group and B group never got in the building except one say in 2020.

What would you propose doing differently? Especially compared to other DC independents? I don't have a lower school student but was around for HS. Group A, admittedly, was in the building more in 2020. But 2021 winter/spring worked well, with few outbreaks or need to pull back. Athletic practices were also pretty regular.

Is this a joke? Schools could have done what BVR did. In-person and remote options. Students in pods. Masks required at all times. Outdoor education in-person once a week for remote families. Hepa filters in every classroom. No shared supplies. Teachers got vaxxed as early as they could. Socially distant desks. Bi-weekly testing (and now weekly testing for this year). I would have proposed all of those things.

Gds did all those things. I think they were too slow to bring students into the building, but they did not lack for mitigation. If anything, they were too cautious.

They did them in spring of 2021…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

And if add that they both accept very “average” kids too. Depends on many factors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

Oh please. WIS Is fine and you are being ridiculous. Stay in your lane.

You're so convincing. You offer so many reasoned arguments. Not convinced.

Talk to anyone who has left WIS who can actually talk about the problems with the quality of teaching and curriculum.

I don't need to argue with a troll nor convince a Sidwell parent. As a Sidwell parent, I would think it beneath you to criticize schools outside of the "big 3." You probably aren't even a Sidwell parent and probably didn't even get into WIS. LOL

OTOH, you do need to work on your grammar.

Ooooh, sick burn!! Working on your oppositional conversation badge for your hall monitor sash?

And yet here you are responding. You just can’t resist, can you? Even now, your thumbs are just itching to let loose. Go ahead. You’ll feel better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good luck getting into either - you should apply to both and more and cross your fingers.

This. +1000

I'd like to win the lottery and I'm wondering if I should buy a Ferrari or a boat first - please advise.

I’d go with a Ferrari or Lamborghini first so you can then hitch your yacht to the back. Please put a “ Honk if you love DCUM” sticker on the boat and car so we know to wave at you!

Okay, I absolutely want one of these stickers now!

[Anonymous]

Neither.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Is this a joke? Schools could have done what BVR did. In-person and remote options. Students in pods. Masks required at all times. Outdoor education in-person once a week for remote families. Hepa filters in every classroom. No shared supplies. Teachers got vaxxed as early as they could. Socially distant desks. Bi-weekly testing (and now weekly testing for this year). I would have proposed all of those things.

You just outed yourself as the parent of young children only. You obviously do not have HS children because the curricular considerations of HS students are vastly different than those of young elementary children. For one, you can't "pod" HS students all day the way you can with young children - HSers have different math, language, science, history, literature, etc. classes. The logistics are much more complicated than keeping 10 kids with 1 teacher for 7 hours a day straight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whether your son gets into either school will depend on how bright he is and whether you as a family and he as a kid fit into said school's culture. Apply, but don't set your heart on being admitted. There are a lot of quirky factors on whether you'll be admitted to either school. At GDS, it helps if you're Jewish or URM. At Sidwell, it helps if you're a wealthy, influential democrat or an URM.

I grew up in Quaker schools (Philly), but believe me Sidwell is NOT A QUAKER SCHOOL. Maybe it was once upon a time, but it's now a school for the wealthy elite of DC. The headmaster is sleazy and into schmoozing with prominent Democrats whose kids are treated with special kid gloves. Lest people say this is sour grapes, I have a child enrolled, and she loves her teachers and classmates, but I am not fond of the school administration, especially the headmaster, who needs to go. Sidwell's COVID response was pathetic. Probably the worse of the Big 3.

You use progressive education and liberal politics as though they're interchangeable. They're not. Progressive education is a specific pedagogy. GDS is somewhat progressive. Sidwell is not.

WIS is NOT well-respected in the area except by WIS parents and their gullible friends.

We're not Jewish, URM or wealthy democrats, yet our kid got into both GDS and Sidwell. So don't be discouraged from applying if your kid doesn't fall into one of those categories.

Us too and we landed at Sidwell.

On the above, GDS's COVID response was worse than Sidwell for sure (at least for HS, according to our many friends who have GDS HS students)

I'm curious what Sidwell did for HS last year? I have a GDS HS student and they were back in person 2 days per week in November and 4 days a week in late spring. That seemed to work okay given the circumstances.

Sidwell was generally the same. I don't get the comparison fail.

+2. And GDS lower and middle schools met 4 days/week starting last November. The biggest complaint among GDS parents in the fall was that the school wasted the nice weather in September and Octobber by not setting up outdoor tents and having instruction outdoors. I found the weekly in-school testing incredibly convenient and well-run. Also because the LMS building is brand new, GDS was able to upgrade the air filtration system very easily. No complaints here, given the circumstances, and very grateful that our kids were actually to go to school in person.

Let’s get real. Gds was a disaster
Pk-5 was HALF DAYS in December onward for FOUR days a week.
Didn’t go full days until late March for FOUR days.
Upper school did A group and B group and B group never got in the building except one say in 2020.

What would you propose doing differently? Especially compared to other DC independents? I don't have a lower school student but was around for HS. Group A, admittedly, was in the building more in 2020. But 2021 winter/spring worked well, with few outbreaks or need to pull back. Athletic practices were also pretty regular.

Is this a joke? Schools could have done what BVR did. In-person and remote options. Students in pods. Masks required at all times. Outdoor education in-person once a week for remote families. Hepa filters in every classroom. No shared supplies. Teachers got vaxxed as early as they could. Socially distant desks. Bi-weekly testing (and now weekly testing for this year). I would have proposed all of those things.

Gds did all those things. I think they were too slow to bring students into the building, but they did not lack for mitigation. If anything, they were too cautious.

They did them in spring of 2021…

I should probably stop responding since you appear to be trolling. Weekly testing started in November. There were outside lunches and classes. There were large filtration devices in classrooms and throughout the buildings. LS/MS were 4 days by November IIRC. HS was 2 days in person in November until March and then 4 days in person until the end of the school year. All sports teams had practices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Is this a joke? Schools could have done what BVR did. In-person and remote options. Students in pods. Masks required at all times. Outdoor education in-person once a week for remote families. Hepa filters in every classroom. No shared supplies. Teachers got vaxxed as early as they could. Socially distant desks. Bi-weekly testing (and now weekly testing for this year). I would have proposed all of those things.

You just outed yourself as the parent of young children only. You obviously do not have HS children because the curricular considerations of HS students are vastly different than those of young elementary children. For one, you can't "pod" HS students all day the way you can with young children - HSers have different math, language, science, history, literature, etc. classes. The logistics are much more complicated than keeping 10 kids with 1 teacher for 7 hours a day straight.

Yeah, younger kids at GDS who barely got any school. You got me!