What schools for PreK3 should we realistically apply for on Capitol Hill?

[Anonymous]

We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

[Anonymous]

SWS isn't pie-in-the-sky. Their only preference is sibling preference, so at least you have a chance! Brent and Peabody are impossibilities unless you're in bounds for the Cluster. Are you applying for your IB school?

Also, I'd apply for Payne, Miner, Wilson if free pre-k is important to you. Also maybe Appletree.

And definitely CHM-Logan and Two Rivers.

[Anonymous]

Yes, that is pie in the sky. SWS is like .01% chance, the rest of them zero chance because of the in-boundary preference.

I would suggest you look at Tyler, Two Rivers Young, Payne, and the new Stokes campus east of the river if you're into languages.

[Anonymous]

Charter schools, sws, and chml don't have people with in boundary preference, but your odds aren't good anywhere but your inbounds school. Definitely visit it and list it if you'd rather have your kid there thsn whatever you're doing now. Appletrees have fewer sibs because it's only pk so that might work for you. Eagle academy capitol riverfront is close to you and tier one, so you should visit it. That campus is closing in the next few years though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

Make sure you list your IB school on the list, which is either Payne or Tyler? In any case, both should be on your list. You should also add Appletree Lincoln Park and SW.

[Anonymous]

Aren't you zoned for Payne? Start there. It's likely a good choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

Make sure you list your IB school on the list, which is either Payne or Tyler? In any case, both should be on your list. You should also add Appletree Lincoln Park and SW.

Our inbound elementary schools are Watkins or Peabody, according this this site, http://dcatlas.dcgis.dc.gov/schools/, but is there an inbound preference factor that influences acceptance when applying for Prek3? I didn't know there was.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

Make sure you list your IB school on the list, which is either Payne or Tyler? In any case, both should be on your list. You should also add Appletree Lincoln Park and SW.

Our inbound elementary schools are Watkins or Peabody, according this this site, http://dcatlas.dcgis.dc.gov/schools/, but is there an inbound preference factor that influences acceptance when applying for Prek3? I didn't know there was.

Yes, there is in-boundary preference for PK3, just not "right to attend" at all schools. From myschooldc.org (http://www.myschooldc.org/apply/applying-to-PK)...

DCPS in-boundary PK3 and PK4 programs

An in-boundary school is a DCPS school that a student has a right to attend for grades K-12 based on where the student lives. However the “right to attend” is not extended to children in PK3 or PK4 and there is no guarantee of a lottery match or waitlist offer. If a family seeks to enroll their student in their in-boundary PK3 or PK4 program, they must select that school as one of their 12 selections on their My School DC application and rank it in the order they prefer. PK3 or PK4 applicants will be awarded an “in-boundary” lottery preference at their in-boundary school and, at the time of enrollment, will be required to provide proof of residency at the guardian’s address entered on the My School DC application.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

Make sure you list your IB school on the list, which is either Payne or Tyler? In any case, both should be on your list. You should also add Appletree Lincoln Park and SW.

Our inbound elementary schools are Watkins or Peabody, according this this site, http://dcatlas.dcgis.dc.gov/schools/, but is there an inbound preference factor that influences acceptance when applying for Prek3? I didn't know there was.

You have a realistic shot at Peabody. You have priority, with only IB Peabody families with siblings in Cluster ahead of you. SWS has long waitlist but only sibling priority -- some years that's meant 8-10 open seats for PK3, but it was closer to 15 last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

Make sure you list your IB school on the list, which is either Payne or Tyler? In any case, both should be on your list. You should also add Appletree Lincoln Park and SW.

Our inbound elementary schools are Watkins or Peabody, according this this site, http://dcatlas.dcgis.dc.gov/schools/, but is there an inbound preference factor that influences acceptance when applying for Prek3? I didn't know there was.

Yes, there is in-boundary preference for PK3, just not "right to attend" at all schools. From myschooldc.org (http://www.myschooldc.org/apply/applying-to-PK)...

DCPS in-boundary PK3 and PK4 programs

An in-boundary school is a DCPS school that a student has a right to attend for grades K-12 based on where the student lives. However the “right to attend” is not extended to children in PK3 or PK4 and there is no guarantee of a lottery match or waitlist offer. If a family seeks to enroll their student in their in-boundary PK3 or PK4 program, they must select that school as one of their 12 selections on their My School DC application and rank it in the order they prefer. PK3 or PK4 applicants will be awarded an “in-boundary” lottery preference at their in-boundary school and, at the time of enrollment, will be required to provide proof of residency at the guardian’s address entered on the My School DC application.

Thank you! Then I guess I should put Peabody at the top of my list, as it's our inbound for Kindergarten. Is it still a good school? I've been told it was historically the school parents sought after on the Hill.

I wish I had reams of distilled data on this stuff (wait lists, quality, etc.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

Make sure you list your IB school on the list, which is either Payne or Tyler? In any case, both should be on your list. You should also add Appletree Lincoln Park and SW.

Our inbound elementary schools are Watkins or Peabody, according this this site, http://dcatlas.dcgis.dc.gov/schools/, but is there an inbound preference factor that influences acceptance when applying for Prek3? I didn't know there was.

If you are truly close to the Potomac metro, you may have a proximity preference to either Tyler or Payne too since Peabody is over 1/2 mile away. While proximity is the lowest preference it may help you with Payne or Tyler if you have it. Peabody has IB kids waitlisted every year that don't get in eventually until K.

[Anonymous]

Are Payne and Tyler decent schools?

[Anonymous]

This is kind of a loaded question. It depends on what is most important to you - convenience, language immersion, Montessori, going to your in-bounds school and continuing with those peers through 5th or myriad of other factors. If you want to go to your in-bounds school you'll want to put it on your list. Many Capitol Hill schools are hard to get into to even with the IB preference, because sibling preference takes most of the slots, but if you are in bounds for Tyler or Payne you may be just fine. You might also benefit from meeting with a local school consultant to help you understand the lottery and narrow your choices. There are still open houses happening, but many have passed. We found meeting with a local expert, while pricey, was extremely helpful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Potomac metro. Our child will be playing the lottery for Prek-3. We have no sibling preference. I don't know the intricacies of the lottery system like some other posters.

Acceptance into Brent, SWS, Peabody, Van Ness would be ideal, but are those just pie in the sky choices?

Is there a list of close by, good schools, that someone in the know, can recommend we should be applying for? I really don't want to be spinning my wheels applying for schools our child can't get into because of a long wait list. Any tips appreciated.

Make sure you list your IB school on the list, which is either Payne or Tyler? In any case, both should be on your list. You should also add Appletree Lincoln Park and SW.

Our inbound elementary schools are Watkins or Peabody, according this this site, http://dcatlas.dcgis.dc.gov/schools/, but is there an inbound preference factor that influences acceptance when applying for Prek3? I didn't know there was.

Yes, there is in-boundary preference for PK3, just not "right to attend" at all schools. From myschooldc.org (http://www.myschooldc.org/apply/applying-to-PK)...

DCPS in-boundary PK3 and PK4 programs

An in-boundary school is a DCPS school that a student has a right to attend for grades K-12 based on where the student lives. However the “right to attend” is not extended to children in PK3 or PK4 and there is no guarantee of a lottery match or waitlist offer. If a family seeks to enroll their student in their in-boundary PK3 or PK4 program, they must select that school as one of their 12 selections on their My School DC application and rank it in the order they prefer. PK3 or PK4 applicants will be awarded an “in-boundary” lottery preference at their in-boundary school and, at the time of enrollment, will be required to provide proof of residency at the guardian’s address entered on the My School DC application.

Thank you! Then I guess I should put Peabody at the top of my list, as it's our inbound for Kindergarten. Is it still a good school? I've been told it was historically the school parents sought after on the Hill.

I wish I had reams of distilled data on this stuff (wait lists, quality, etc.)

No. How you order your list does not help you get in. Your placement at Peabody or on the waitlist will depend on how good a lottery number you have. Rank the schools in order of your actual preference.

Having said that, Peabody is very good so you will probably rank it pretty high on your list.

[Anonymous]

Read the materials on the myschooldc site. it really does explain the lottery process well. Call them if you need to. For quality, standardized tests start at third grade (so, not super relevant to pk) so visiting helps.

You have a good shot at Peabody. If your lottery draw isn't good enough to get you in there, it probably won't be good enough to get you into any other school that waitlists a lot of pk kids.

You should rank schools in order of your true preference. If you like sws more than Peabody for example, rank it that way. Otherwise, you risk getting into a school you like less and not getting on the wait list for a school you like more.