What is Poplar Tree ES like?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well I wish I had found this sooner. We bought in the neighborhood last year and my kids will be attending in 2024-2025 school year. I'm really hoping it's not that bad here.

Don't believe anything you hear on this site. Talk to your neighbors in real life.

+1. People here go to tremendous lengths to trash talk specific schools in order to keep up reputations of their own school. Quite often criticism is based only on rumors that were spread online or gossip they hear from a friend. Sometimes it's PTA drama.

I suggest you look at Twitter and Instagram accounts associated with your school of interest. Teachers, administrators, clubs, etc often have these accounts. That has given me so much insight into all the great activities and events for kids going on at our school that most people said was terrible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well I wish I had found this sooner. We bought in the neighborhood last year and my kids will be attending in 2024-2025 school year. I'm really hoping it's not that bad here.

Don't believe anything you hear on this site. Talk to your neighbors in real life.

+1. People here go to tremendous lengths to trash talk specific schools in order to keep up reputations of their own school. Quite often criticism is based only on rumors that were spread online or gossip they hear from a friend. Sometimes it's PTA drama.

I suggest you look at Twitter and Instagram accounts associated with your school of interest. Teachers, administrators, clubs, etc often have these accounts. That has given me so much insight into all the great activities and events for kids going on at our school that most people said was terrible.

In addition, if you talk to people in real life--or on a forum where you can see someone's history-- you can assess their reasonableness, their character, their understanding of situations. On an anonymous site like this you have no idea who someone is or why they are saying it.

[Anonymous]

Poplar Tree isn’t a great school. Lots of problem kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Poplar Tree isn’t a great school. Lots of problem kids.

This has not been our experience. DS in in the school's AAP Center program and it has been excellent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So ONE school board member has the authority to move boundaries this specifically, twice in 2 years?

I’m skeptical.

The kids from that neighborhood were at Poplar Tree all along. She had them moved in 2011. There were far fewer lower income families with children who lived there prior to the recession.

The actions of a school board member decades ago has nothing to do with the character of the school today. I would not base any decisions off this bad judgement. Kathy Smith did not / does not represent the Poplar Tree school culture or community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Poplar Tree isn’t a great school. Lots of problem kids.

I wouldn't say there's a lot of problem kids. Definitely problem kids but no more or less than any other middle class SES school. A lot of teachers have quit but that seems to be a nationwide problem in the United States.

There are two dominant ethnic groups here, white and Indian. If you want to be in with the white ethnic group, join the PTA and play sports. There's one Indian mom at that school that hosts a bunch of expensive parties and playdates to get her kid "in" with that group. You could do that too if you're rich and have nothing better to do with your money. A few of the moms gossip about her and I feel bad because she bends over backwards to accommodate them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Poplar Tree isn’t a great school. Lots of problem kids.

I wouldn't say there's a lot of problem kids. Definitely problem kids but no more or less than any other middle class SES school. A lot of teachers have quit but that seems to be a nationwide problem in the United States.

There are two dominant ethnic groups here, white and Indian. If you want to be in with the white ethnic group, join the PTA and play sports. There's one Indian mom at that school that hosts a bunch of expensive parties and playdates to get her kid "in" with that group. You could do that too if you're rich and have nothing better to do with your money. A few of the moms gossip about her and I feel bad because she bends over backwards to accommodate them.

Yikes, I think I know this person...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well I wish I had found this sooner. We bought in the neighborhood last year and my kids will be attending in 2024-2025 school year. I'm really hoping it's not that bad here.

Don't believe anything you hear on this site. Talk to your neighbors in real life.

+1. People here go to tremendous lengths to trash talk specific schools in order to keep up reputations of their own school. Quite often criticism is based only on rumors that were spread online or gossip they hear from a friend. Sometimes it's PTA drama.

I suggest you look at Twitter and Instagram accounts associated with your school of interest. Teachers, administrators, clubs, etc often have these accounts. That has given me so much insight into all the great activities and events for kids going on at our school that most people said was terrible.

I'm going to burst everyones bubble.....FCPS schools are pretty much the same. I know it makes you feel better to think otherwise but trust me I've worked all over the county.....FCPS is FCPS is FCPS. Sorry

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well I wish I had found this sooner. We bought in the neighborhood last year and my kids will be attending in 2024-2025 school year. I'm really hoping it's not that bad here.

Don't believe anything you hear on this site. Talk to your neighbors in real life.

+1. People here go to tremendous lengths to trash talk specific schools in order to keep up reputations of their own school. Quite often criticism is based only on rumors that were spread online or gossip they hear from a friend. Sometimes it's PTA drama.

I suggest you look at Twitter and Instagram accounts associated with your school of interest. Teachers, administrators, clubs, etc often have these accounts. That has given me so much insight into all the great activities and events for kids going on at our school that most people said was terrible.

I'm going to burst everyones bubble.....FCPS schools are pretty much the same. I know it makes you feel better to think otherwise but trust me I've worked all over the county.....FCPS is FCPS is FCPS. Sorry

What does this mean? All FCPS schools are terrible?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well I wish I had found this sooner. We bought in the neighborhood last year and my kids will be attending in 2024-2025 school year. I'm really hoping it's not that bad here.

Don't believe anything you hear on this site. Talk to your neighbors in real life.

+1. People here go to tremendous lengths to trash talk specific schools in order to keep up reputations of their own school. Quite often criticism is based only on rumors that were spread online or gossip they hear from a friend. Sometimes it's PTA drama.

I suggest you look at Twitter and Instagram accounts associated with your school of interest. Teachers, administrators, clubs, etc often have these accounts. That has given me so much insight into all the great activities and events for kids going on at our school that most people said was terrible.

I'm going to burst everyones bubble.....FCPS schools are pretty much the same. I know it makes you feel better to think otherwise but trust me I've worked all over the county.....FCPS is FCPS is FCPS. Sorry

What does this mean? All FCPS schools are terrible?

Not PP. I think it means that all schools in similar SES are largely the same. Poplar Tree is your average UMC elementary school. Few FARMs kids, no students from townhomes or apartments, tight-knit community close to the school. Involved parents, sometimes entitled kids.