Public vs Private (Please weigh in and help us make a decision)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I go the other way..start in public. See how it goes. If it works you get the benefits of the neighbor hood school and the cost savings. I am sure he will be accepted privately again with high test scores and after a year of K you might know more about his learning style/interests etc when choosing where to apply.

You're "sure"? I think not.

OP here. This has been a big part of our hand-wringing. How likely is it that we are blowing an opportunity if we start in public? Does it actually get more difficult to matriculate into a private school if we start, say, in third grade or 5th?

Yes, more difficult plus your child will only be actively learning for a small portion of school day, rest of time will be spent reading to self or helping other kids. Meanwhile private kids will be learning grammar, spelling, potentially foreign language and music. My bright child eventually disengaged and hated school. Private turned him around but would have been much better experience if we had an opportunity like yours! Be thankful and go for it! Haven't you already had to commit?

This plain isn't accurate.

I agree. Our experience included all of the above in APS. OP, good luck with your decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DS is 5 yo and scored in the 99.8% across domains on the WPSI. I know, not the biggest deal (socially and emotionally the kid is definitely a standard issue 5 year old) but we are trying to make some good decisions for him and our family and I think I am losing my mind trying to balance all the variables. We have been accepted in, and offered a generous financial aid package, at a very well-regarded private school. We also live in Montgomery County and have excellent schools in our neighborhood.

If we go the private route, we will still be on board for approx 6-7 k a year. Obviously, there is no expense for our neighborhood school. Also, the private school is a haul on the beltway (can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 17 hours depending on the mornings traffic). I love the idea of our neighborhood PTA and a cohesive neighborhood school experience...but...DS is in PK now and his current teacher has been pretty emphatic that he needs an accelerated and differentiated learning curriculum both to foster his growth and to keep him from becoming a behavioral issue. The school we have been accepted into looks fun, engaging, really delightful...but is it necessary?

We can absolutely supplement at home, but there are still the several hours a day he is in school...does anyone have any feedback on having gone through the hand-wringing over making this decision and have some rear-view advice they can offer?

Thank you!

If you think he will be a math and science kid, the Montgomery, Fairfax and Arlington schools offer much more than almost every private school out there.

[Anonymous]

I would have done the same thing. Congrats and hope he enjoys private school.

[Anonymous]

OP, From where we're sitting a few years out of K you absolutely made the right decision.

Our DS has an almost identical profile to yours and we put him in public K and it was a disaster. Behavior that the pre-K teacher found amusing and goofy became a reason for the K teacher to dole out punishments. It took us two years in private before he regained his confidence and he's taken off ever since.

[Anonymous]

Thanks to everyone who weighed in. A lot of great food for thought and I appreciate the thoughtful support for both sides.

[Anonymous]

I don't suppose OP is still on this forum? If so, I'd love an update on how it's going! We were in an almost identical situation with our daughter - now a few weeks before the start of school, I'm starting to have buyer's remorse!