Decision re: WIS and others

[Anonymous]

We are trying to decide between a couple of schools for our 3-year-old, including WIS, Lowell, and The River School. We loved WIS, which is why we applied at 3, rather than wait for PreK. But like most parents, I am now trying to make sure I make the right decision. I was wondering if there are any current WIS parents out there who can talk a little about the first year. I love the idea of immersion, but am concerned that my child will find it difficult. Is there a phase of unhappiness at school? If so, how long does it last?

Anyone think we would be making the wrong choice, please also speak up. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

My only concern with WIS is that I have heard there can be a bit more turnover in the student body because it is popular with diplomat families, World Bank families etc... families that may come and go from DC.

For what it is worth, we applied to various pre-school programs for our son and got into St. Pats, and Lowell. We ended up keeping him where he was and applying to pre-K programs at pre-K through 12 schools that more squarely fit what we were looking for for our son. If I had to do it all over again, I would have just avoided the first round of applications and waited to apply for pre-K programs -- more options.

No perfect answer though, and even if you get your child into a pre-school/pre-K through 12 school, I would urge you to reassess periodically to ensure that the school continues to be the best fit for your child.

[Anonymous]

I am a WIS parent whose child entered at age 3. There is a BIG advantage in starting young. Three year olds will learn the language very quickly. My DC had no problems with the target language and never even expressed concern about not understanding. The younger, the better - and the PreK teachers are very loving and nurturing. Also, they will have three years of full immersion before they begin the bilingual (half day Spanish or French/half day English) program in grade 1. Their Spanish/French will be very well established by then. By the time my DC reached K, he was very fluent and gained great confidence in helping the newly arrived Kindergartners who had no Spanish. And don't worry about their English skills - my DC was reading English chapter books before entering grade 1 without having any English instruction at all. The PreK class is mixed with three and four year olds.

In addition, If WIS is your first choice for K-12, it becomes more difficult to get admission in K since most of the PreK kids move up to K.

As to the pp who mentioned the high turnover of diplomats at WIS, this is really a myth. My DC has been in the school for 4 years now and there has been no more turnover than in any other DC school. Sure there are some diplomats there, but there are tons of lifers as well. Out of his entire grade, I can think of only a handful of kids who have moved over the past few years.

Good luck! WIS is a great place.

[Anonymous]

WIS parent here: congrats on your offer!

Our child was quite happy the first year (preK-4), despite limited exposure to the immersion language before starting. The teachers in the preK and K program are warm and loving, which takes the edge off being at a "big school" (this was a concern for us in transferring from a small preschool) and learning a new language. Our child was pretty tired at the end of the day and week, which is not necessarily a bad thing: weekend naps made a brief return. BTW, the early childhood classes have a terrific movement/drama/dance teacher, and the end-of-year performance she choreographs is not to be missed.

If the admissions staff determined that your child was likely to excel in language immersion, then he/she probably will. Is your child highly verbal, very inquisitive, and resilient and flexible when faced with new situations? For specific concerns, you should definitely call and talk to them.

As a previous poster mentioned, some parents worry that their kids will fall behind in pre-reading or reading in preK/K, since they are immersed in Spanish all day. Our child is several grades ahead in reading in both English and the target language, so we've not seen this at all.

On the other schools you're considering: WIS is not as progressive (educationally speaking) as Lowell, which as I understand it, is among the most progressive private schools in the city. The IB Primary Years Program certainly has many holistic and progressive aspects, but WIS will definitely feel different from Lowell.

As times goes on, it looks to me like WIS kids have to be pretty academic to do well. Even in the early grades, homework is in 2 languages, with additional nightly reading in both languages. It's a lot, but it works, and the kids (as you must have seen when you visited) are uniformly engaged and happy, whether they're working in English or in the target language(s). They are really a phenomenal bunch of kids---at least to me.

I don't know anyone with children at the River School, so can't compare at all.

Turnover: we've seen very little, and certainly less than we expected. I think my child's class lost only 1 child (moving overseas) last year.

Good luck with your decision!

[Anonymous]

I can't speak about WIS and Lowell, though I have heard many great things about WIS. I am a River School parent, and while I think River School has a great program through Pre-K, many people try to get their kids into other schools starting in Pre-K and K. The quality of the teachers can be very uneven, and the administration does not respond well to parents' concerns and criticisms about the quality of education their child is receiving. And quite frankly, the facilities are not the best. But if you only plan to stay a few years, River is great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are trying to decide between a couple of schools for our 3-year-old, including WIS, Lowell, and The River School. We loved WIS, which is why we applied at 3, rather than wait for PreK. But like most parents, I am now trying to make sure I make the right decision. I was wondering if there are any current WIS parents out there who can talk a little about the first year. I love the idea of immersion, but am concerned that my child will find it difficult. Is there a phase of unhappiness at school? If so, how long does it last?

Anyone think we would be making the wrong choice, please also speak up. Thanks!

We found ourselves in the same situation a few years ago. We were accepted by those three schools plus several others, and we went for WIS. We are delighted with how things are going for our child. I totally second what previous posters wrote about exposure to foreign-language instruction at the pre-K level. The program is superb, and teachers are so nurturing and well-prepared that children absorb skills and contents without even realizing it. After a few months they are interacting naturally and competently in the target language. And in the meantime the process is anything but mechanical and arid. Children may adjust to it at different speeds but something clicks at a certain point, sooner than you think, and after that pivotal moment learning evolves very fast. I have not been aware of unhappiness in my child's class at all. Rather, all kids seem very enthusiastic. The curriculum is very well conceived. It is creative but also structured and, above all, truly interdisciplinary. Different subject matters are connected through units of inquiry.
Facilities are very good and expansion is also being planned for the near future. The outdoor area is very enjoyable, and aftercare + extracurricular activities are really superb. I have not found anything comparable in all the top private schools we considered.
The choice is ultimately yours, of course, and much also depends on your child's personality and on your priorities. But, in our personal case, we felt WIS was incomparably superior to the other options you mention.

[Anonymous]

NP here with a question for the WIS parents. Do you speak the language your child is being immersed in? How do you think the experience would be different if neither of the parents spoke anything but English?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP here with a question for the WIS parents. Do you speak the language your child is being immersed in? How do you think the experience would be different if neither of the parents spoke anything but English?

I'm not a WIS parent, but we did attend a WIS open house, and they addressed this question there. What they told us is that there are lots of families who don't speak the target language, and the kids do great. If the child needs help with her homework, she can get help at school, or she could translate for her parents, who can then help. It really didn't seem to be a big deal at all.

FWIW, we decided not to apply this year since DC is doing so well at current preschool, but we will apply next year. We were impressed with WIS.

[Anonymous]

Original poster - Just wanted to thank everyone for their responses. You all have been really helpful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP here with a question for the WIS parents. Do you speak the language your child is being immersed in? How do you think the experience would be different if neither of the parents spoke anything but English?

Hi, we speak the language even if it is not our native tongue, but judging from many other families' experiences there is no major difference in performance and outcome. The school has very clear protocols to communicate with parents about assignments in the foreign language, and soon students become very proficient and independent and do not need their parents' help. Teachers encourage students to do everything by themselves, which, in my personal opinion, is a terrific teaching and learning strategy.

[Anonymous]

We are also deciding between WIS and other schools for DC. WIS just seems to offer such a different experience from other schools that it is hard to compare two schools...from just open houses and playdates. DH and I disagree between WIS and Beauviour for our DC. Any advice? Which school does what better?

[Anonymous]

WIS parent here again. I just want to add that for many WIS families, Spanish or French is their child's THIRD language. My DC has many classmates that speak an entirely different language at home, and they all do fine. Further evidence that early language learning is key - young children are hard-wired to learn multiple languages at the same time if they do so in a natural setting.

[Anonymous]

We are thinking about WIS for our daughter for next year, when she will be 3. I've only heard great things about it, for the most part. We would be thinking about having her there through high school. The only negatives I've heard of with WIS is that it doesn't have the long-established relationships with prestigious universities that would help students get accepted (doesn't have the name recognition that Sidwell or Holton Arms does). Many people in my area (Fairfax County) are happy having their children in public schools here. Someone who doesn't know that much about WIS recently opined that Langley is a better school academically than WIS. I don't think that can be true. . . My daughter seems to be an artistic type. I think she will go in for drama and dance and music. How is WIS in those?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I can't speak about WIS and Lowell, though I have heard many great things about WIS. I am a River School parent, and while I think River School has a great program through Pre-K, many people try to get their kids into other schools starting in Pre-K and K. The quality of the teachers can be very uneven, and the administration does not respond well to parents' concerns and criticisms about the quality of education their child is receiving. And quite frankly, the facilities are not the best. But if you only plan to stay a few years, River is great.

i am also a river school parent and think that the above is an accurate description of the school. the administration is very unresponsive and overdefensive if challenged which is unacceptable for the tuition that they charge and the promises they make during your initial orientation. i think that it's a great program for the younger ones but beware: parents who plan to move their child to another school to begin a k-12 program will have to face the hostility of rachel goldsten who may or may not get your child's recommendations out in the mail.

[Anonymous]

WIS is a long day for a 3 year old. They will be in school their whole lives. I'd go with River.