Moving to Bethesda--have kids going to Bannockburn & Pyle-best way to meet kids before school starts
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librahim
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Hi,
My family is moving to Bethesda at the end of June from Millburn, NJ. We have 4 kids. Our oldest is a boy who will be a 7th grader at Pyle, we have a boy going into 5th and a girl going into 3rd grade at Bannockburn and we also have a 2 1/2 year old girl. Our family has gone through a lot of transitions in the last 3 years so I'd really like to find ways for my kids to try and meet some future classmates this summer. Any thoughts on how best to go about that? Summer camps, etc. Any recommendations and any other advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much! |
Anonymous
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Join the Bannockburn pool. https://bannockburnpool.com/
Or any other nearby pool if this one's full or you don't like the vibe. There are nice ones at Seven Locks and at Carderock which are also neighborhoods that feed in to Pyle/Whitman. Suggest your children sign up for the swim teams. You should get on this right away as many teams have already started their seasons around here. For summer camps I would check to see if the aftercare provider at Bannockburn has one. |
Anonymous
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Hello,
We moved in February from Haddonfield to Pyle/Whitman. The kids had a really easy transition (grades 6, 7, 9). The kids in the schools were overwhelmingly nice/welcoming and they have found the academics to be much, much easier (lower expectations and lots of grade inflation). For your younger kids I would look for camps at the parks closest to your house. For the older ones look for any local sports/theater camps in areas that they are interested in. Have a BBQ or cocktails and ice cream party soon after you move in - it's a great way for the kids to meet those in the area. Perhaps the most surprising thing about the move from NJ is that teachers have no power. The union must not be nearly as strong as in NJ. Most importantly - eat lots of pizza before you move. There are a couple of decent places here but we have yet to find anything that comes close to the quality of pizza that you can get pretty much anywhere in NJ. We are happy here. People are a similar level of friendliness, there are more outdoor activities; really our only concern is the rigor of the schools. |
Anonymous
| Join the PTA listserv for both schools. There should be PTA contact info in the registration packets. Our ES has at least one social event before the start of school each year at a local park. |
Anonymous
| The pool idea is great. I would stick with Bannockburn Pool, Merrimack Pool or Palisades Pool if you want to meet kids from Bannockburn E.S. These pools are probably full for regular memberships but you can get a late summer membership to some of them for the month of August. You can join the Bannockburn neighborhood list serve and post that you would like to have a meet up with kids your kids' ages. |
Anonymous
| Try Mama Lucia for great pizza. |
Anonymous
You must be kidding, right? |
Anonymous
I'm not the pp you quoted, but I'm from NY. Compared to other pizza places around here, Mamma Lucia is a step towards the right genre of pizza. In any NY or NJ town, it would be maybe the third best option. |
librahim
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Thank you so much to all of you for all the great suggestions. I truly appreciate it. I hope this reaches all of you. I'm sorry, I am very technologically incompetent and am still trying to figure out this listserv.
And we will definitely eat as much pizza as we can before we move 
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Anonymous
| On the school issue, you may find it to be a big adjustment to deal with a countywide school district. There is much more bureaucracy than you get with town-based school districts like in the northeast. And if if the snow is bad in northern, rural parts the county, your kids will end up with a snow day too. |
Anonymous
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We moved here from another state last Summer. I had our kids in a summer camp at a local private school (they attend public) where there were lots of kids from all the different publics in the area - I think people mix it up quite a bit.
And sometimes its nice to have a summer camp friend who isn't necessarily at the same school - but obviously you all have to make an effort to keep that up, when summer is over. |
Anonymous
| My kids attend Bannockburn, and through the PTA, there are parents who volunteer to welcome new families. So definitely reach out to the PTA. The PTA contact info is on the BES website. I agree about trying to get a late summer membership to Merrimack, Palisades, or Bannockburn pool. As for camps, there are lots of options. Popular ones are Holton Arms Creative Summer, Landon, Glen Echo, and Head First. Welcome to our community! |
Anonymous
| Don't forget Norwood for the younger ones. Bethesda is a surprisingly big area and Bannockburn is one of the smallest schools. At most camps (and outside of school activities) you'll find a mix of kids from a bunch of the elementary schools that feed in to Pyle/Whitman and BCC. |
Anonymous
| The Carderock pool has some memberships available and it also offers camps. There are plenty of Bannockburn kids there. You cannot get into Palisades without a zillion year wait and all the homes on Persimmon Tree are actually closer to Carderock ES/Carderock pool but are zoned for Bannockburn. |
Anonymous
Pi and Beer (or whatever it is called on Wisconsin) is pretty good. It isn't NY style but still some of the best pizza we have had in the area. NY transplant |