Which APS middle and high school for an anxious child?

[Anonymous]

Back to the topic at hand, my DC has a 504 for anxiety and depression which we put in place when they were at Kenmore, and the teachers and admin there were wonderful. It was an overall great experience for DC. Advanced classes for DC, but also arts and technology which allowed them to express themselves in different ways. Kenmore is also an ESPN Top 5 Special Olympics Unified Champion School for 2018-19 -- they do a great job of inclusivity.

https://www.specialolympics.org/stories/impact/kenmore-middle-school-becomes-final-espn-top-5-banner-school-of-the-2018-2019-school-year

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn may be small, sure, but it’s pretty intense academically and really isn’t a place for kids with special needs. I think she’d be better off in one of the neighborhood schools, probably Wakefield.

Haha no, it follows the same curriculum as the rest of APS, with similar academic pathways. Just in a not overcrowded school in a gorgeous building

Two of my kids went to HB. I believe I know more about the school than you do.

So a random lottery school somehow ends up academic more advanced without any admission criteria? You are full of BS. It’s not a magnet, it’s lottery ticket.

Are you for real?

Yes, the academic profile of the average HB student is higher than the average at any of the neighborhood high schools, not because it’s a magnet school with admissions criteria, but because it tends to attract higher achievers as lottery applicants. It’s not like every 5th grader in the county applies to HB; the large majority don’t, and I suspect some families have never even heard of it.

It’s not that complicated, idiot.

It's not only the kids, it's the schedule. Kids take I think one more class than regular middle schools, so they only have each class four days instead of five. So they have less time to get through the same curriculum, which means the pace is quicker.

Oh, wow I’m going to print this and send to school board since the inequity that is HBW is just yawning wider. WL is overcrowded and being supersized, while HB students are capped in size with a academic enrichment. Holy absolute F.

do you also think it's inequitable that WL and TJ students can access IB curriculum but the rest of the county does not? or do you just hate HB?

WL accepts almost ALL IB applicants and has for years.

if you apply to WL for IB from out of boundary you have to do the full IB program or if not you are sent back to your home school. Anyone zoned for WL can take just a few IB classes. Tell me how that's equitable.

It's equitable because in-boundary W-L students have access to the full AP course of study as well. They should not be forced into taking IB. Back in the day, the W-L community agreed to IB only if the AP courses similarly expanded. The other two high schools were then supposed to come up with their unique programs to attract students: Wakefield has the Senior Project, and Yorktown has R.O.C.S.

Whatever ROCS is. And the senior project is hardly a program - it's a full=year project in lieu of the other schools' "senior experiences." Wakefield's special "program" is AP network, which again, really isn't a program.
Secondly, IB SHOULD be a program and WL students should NOT be able to only partially participate. ALL Wakefield students have the same access to whatever the AP Network affords. Can't speak to YHS because I never even heard of ROCS, which (along with your own ignorance of Wakefield's "program") should give you an idea of the true significance of the other high school's programs v. IB at WL.

Your ridiculous response that it is equitable because all students districted to WL have access to the classes reflects either an enormous ignorance or an extremely limited understanding of the meaning of equity. It's equitable because it's equitable within the one school???

I will clarify, IB at WL should be full-time only; but I don't believe all students should have to participate in the IB program. Just that none of them should be able to pick and choose. Either it's a curriculum and academic program offering a unique diploma, or it isn't. And when students NOT living within the boundary of WL HAVE to be full-time IB, that is NOT equitable even within WL.

One last thing:
Wakefield has the immersion program which leads to a bilingual diploma. Unlike IB at WL, this is not just open to all Wakefield students to choose a few classes. If you're in the immersion program, you're in the immersion program. If you're not, you're not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn may be small, sure, but it’s pretty intense academically and really isn’t a place for kids with special needs. I think she’d be better off in one of the neighborhood schools, probably Wakefield.

Haha no, it follows the same curriculum as the rest of APS, with similar academic pathways. Just in a not overcrowded school in a gorgeous building

Two of my kids went to HB. I believe I know more about the school than you do.

So a random lottery school somehow ends up academic more advanced without any admission criteria? You are full of BS. It’s not a magnet, it’s lottery ticket.

Are you for real?

Yes, the academic profile of the average HB student is higher than the average at any of the neighborhood high schools, not because it’s a magnet school with admissions criteria, but because it tends to attract higher achievers as lottery applicants. It’s not like every 5th grader in the county applies to HB; the large majority don’t, and I suspect some families have never even heard of it.

It’s not that complicated, idiot.

It's not only the kids, it's the schedule. Kids take I think one more class than regular middle schools, so they only have each class four days instead of five. So they have less time to get through the same curriculum, which means the pace is quicker.

Oh, wow I’m going to print this and send to school board since the inequity that is HBW is just yawning wider. WL is overcrowded and being supersized, while HB students are capped in size with a academic enrichment. Holy absolute F.

do you also think it's inequitable that WL and TJ students can access IB curriculum but the rest of the county does not? or do you just hate HB?

WL accepts almost ALL IB applicants and has for years.

if you apply to WL for IB from out of boundary you have to do the full IB program or if not you are sent back to your home school. Anyone zoned for WL can take just a few IB classes. Tell me how that's equitable.

It's equitable because in-boundary W-L students have access to the full AP course of study as well. They should not be forced into taking IB. Back in the day, the W-L community agreed to IB only if the AP courses similarly expanded. The other two high schools were then supposed to come up with their unique programs to attract students: Wakefield has the Senior Project, and Yorktown has R.O.C.S.

Whatever ROCS is. And the senior project is hardly a program - it's a full=year project in lieu of the other schools' "senior experiences." Wakefield's special "program" is AP network, which again, really isn't a program.
Secondly, IB SHOULD be a program and WL students should NOT be able to only partially participate. ALL Wakefield students have the same access to whatever the AP Network affords. Can't speak to YHS because I never even heard of ROCS, which (along with your own ignorance of Wakefield's "program") should give you an idea of the true significance of the other high school's programs v. IB at WL.

Your ridiculous response that it is equitable because all students districted to WL have access to the classes reflects either an enormous ignorance or an extremely limited understanding of the meaning of equity. It's equitable because it's equitable within the one school???

All county high schools have the same base course of study which includes a full AP program at each of the high schools. This is the result of years of planning from the 1970s-1990s. There are other programs on top of that at the three high schools. IB at W-L. Wakefield also has high school language immersion, COHORT, freshmen houses, etc. Yorktown's R.O.C.S. stands for Respect Others Community Self, which encompasses the school's focus on social-emotional learning. Programs throughout the year support that pedagogy. If there is enough community pushback against the status quo, then perhaps things will change. But for the past 30 or so years, this has been the APS model as designed on the concept of equity and the desire for more high school options back in the 1990s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn may be small, sure, but it’s pretty intense academically and really isn’t a place for kids with special needs. I think she’d be better off in one of the neighborhood schools, probably Wakefield.

Haha no, it follows the same curriculum as the rest of APS, with similar academic pathways. Just in a not overcrowded school in a gorgeous building

Two of my kids went to HB. I believe I know more about the school than you do.

So a random lottery school somehow ends up academic more advanced without any admission criteria? You are full of BS. It’s not a magnet, it’s lottery ticket.

Are you for real?

Yes, the academic profile of the average HB student is higher than the average at any of the neighborhood high schools, not because it’s a magnet school with admissions criteria, but because it tends to attract higher achievers as lottery applicants. It’s not like every 5th grader in the county applies to HB; the large majority don’t, and I suspect some families have never even heard of it.

It’s not that complicated, idiot.

It's not only the kids, it's the schedule. Kids take I think one more class than regular middle schools, so they only have each class four days instead of five. So they have less time to get through the same curriculum, which means the pace is quicker.

Oh, wow I’m going to print this and send to school board since the inequity that is HBW is just yawning wider. WL is overcrowded and being supersized, while HB students are capped in size with a academic enrichment. Holy absolute F.

do you also think it's inequitable that WL and TJ students can access IB curriculum but the rest of the county does not? or do you just hate HB?

WL accepts almost ALL IB applicants and has for years.

if you apply to WL for IB from out of boundary you have to do the full IB program or if not you are sent back to your home school. Anyone zoned for WL can take just a few IB classes. Tell me how that's equitable.

It's equitable because in-boundary W-L students have access to the full AP course of study as well. They should not be forced into taking IB. Back in the day, the W-L community agreed to IB only if the AP courses similarly expanded. The other two high schools were then supposed to come up with their unique programs to attract students: Wakefield has the Senior Project, and Yorktown has R.O.C.S.

Whatever ROCS is. And the senior project is hardly a program - it's a full=year project in lieu of the other schools' "senior experiences." Wakefield's special "program" is AP network, which again, really isn't a program.
Secondly, IB SHOULD be a program and WL students should NOT be able to only partially participate. ALL Wakefield students have the same access to whatever the AP Network affords. Can't speak to YHS because I never even heard of ROCS, which (along with your own ignorance of Wakefield's "program") should give you an idea of the true significance of the other high school's programs v. IB at WL.

Your ridiculous response that it is equitable because all students districted to WL have access to the classes reflects either an enormous ignorance or an extremely limited understanding of the meaning of equity. It's equitable because it's equitable within the one school???

All county high schools have the same base course of study which includes a full AP program at each of the high schools. This is the result of years of planning from the 1970s-1990s. There are other programs on top of that at the three high schools. IB at W-L. Wakefield also has high school language immersion, COHORT, freshmen houses, etc. Yorktown's R.O.C.S. stands for Respect Others Community Self, which encompasses the school's focus on social-emotional learning. Programs throughout the year support that pedagogy. If there is enough community pushback against the status quo, then perhaps things will change. But for the past 30 or so years, this has been the APS model as designed on the concept of equity and the desire for more high school options back in the 1990s.

Can you all start your own thread? Come on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn may be small, sure, but it’s pretty intense academically and really isn’t a place for kids with special needs. I think she’d be better off in one of the neighborhood schools, probably Wakefield.

Haha no, it follows the same curriculum as the rest of APS, with similar academic pathways. Just in a not overcrowded school in a gorgeous building

Two of my kids went to HB. I believe I know more about the school than you do.

So a random lottery school somehow ends up academic more advanced without any admission criteria? You are full of BS. It’s not a magnet, it’s lottery ticket.

Are you for real?

Yes, the academic profile of the average HB student is higher than the average at any of the neighborhood high schools, not because it’s a magnet school with admissions criteria, but because it tends to attract higher achievers as lottery applicants. It’s not like every 5th grader in the county applies to HB; the large majority don’t, and I suspect some families have never even heard of it.

It’s not that complicated, idiot.

It's not only the kids, it's the schedule. Kids take I think one more class than regular middle schools, so they only have each class four days instead of five. So they have less time to get through the same curriculum, which means the pace is quicker.

Oh, wow I’m going to print this and send to school board since the inequity that is HBW is just yawning wider. WL is overcrowded and being supersized, while HB students are capped in size with a academic enrichment. Holy absolute F.

do you also think it's inequitable that WL and TJ students can access IB curriculum but the rest of the county does not? or do you just hate HB?

WL accepts almost ALL IB applicants and has for years.

if you apply to WL for IB from out of boundary you have to do the full IB program or if not you are sent back to your home school. Anyone zoned for WL can take just a few IB classes. Tell me how that's equitable.

It's equitable because in-boundary W-L students have access to the full AP course of study as well. They should not be forced into taking IB. Back in the day, the W-L community agreed to IB only if the AP courses similarly expanded. The other two high schools were then supposed to come up with their unique programs to attract students: Wakefield has the Senior Project, and Yorktown has R.O.C.S.

Whatever ROCS is. And the senior project is hardly a program - it's a full=year project in lieu of the other schools' "senior experiences." Wakefield's special "program" is AP network, which again, really isn't a program.
Secondly, IB SHOULD be a program and WL students should NOT be able to only partially participate. ALL Wakefield students have the same access to whatever the AP Network affords. Can't speak to YHS because I never even heard of ROCS, which (along with your own ignorance of Wakefield's "program") should give you an idea of the true significance of the other high school's programs v. IB at WL.

Your ridiculous response that it is equitable because all students districted to WL have access to the classes reflects either an enormous ignorance or an extremely limited understanding of the meaning of equity. It's equitable because it's equitable within the one school???

I will clarify, IB at WL should be full-time only; but I don't believe all students should have to participate in the IB program. Just that none of them should be able to pick and choose. Either it's a curriculum and academic program offering a unique diploma, or it isn't. And when students NOT living within the boundary of WL HAVE to be full-time IB, that is NOT equitable even within WL.

Are there limits to how many students can take a particular IB class? I assumed that IB classes are available to non-IB students if there's room, but otherwise, IB students have priority. Is that not the case?

We're zoned for W-L, but only one of my kids did the full IB diploma. If they had had to transfer to make room for someone doing full IB, I would have thought that was fair, because I think IB should be available for everyone who meets the requirements (my non-IB kids did, they just didn't want to do the course, sigh). OTOH, one of my kids wanted to do AP Physics C and couldn't. Had we been at another high school, they could have. I don't have my undies in a bunch about that. Each neighborhood school having advantages and disadvantages seems fair to me (things don't have to be equal to be equitable).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn may be small, sure, but it’s pretty intense academically and really isn’t a place for kids with special needs. I think she’d be better off in one of the neighborhood schools, probably Wakefield.

Haha no, it follows the same curriculum as the rest of APS, with similar academic pathways. Just in a not overcrowded school in a gorgeous building

Two of my kids went to HB. I believe I know more about the school than you do.

So a random lottery school somehow ends up academic more advanced without any admission criteria? You are full of BS. It’s not a magnet, it’s lottery ticket.

Are you for real?

Yes, the academic profile of the average HB student is higher than the average at any of the neighborhood high schools, not because it’s a magnet school with admissions criteria, but because it tends to attract higher achievers as lottery applicants. It’s not like every 5th grader in the county applies to HB; the large majority don’t, and I suspect some families have never even heard of it.

It’s not that complicated, idiot.

It's not only the kids, it's the schedule. Kids take I think one more class than regular middle schools, so they only have each class four days instead of five. So they have less time to get through the same curriculum, which means the pace is quicker.

Oh, wow I’m going to print this and send to school board since the inequity that is HBW is just yawning wider. WL is overcrowded and being supersized, while HB students are capped in size with a academic enrichment. Holy absolute F.

do you also think it's inequitable that WL and TJ students can access IB curriculum but the rest of the county does not? or do you just hate HB?

WL accepts almost ALL IB applicants and has for years.

if you apply to WL for IB from out of boundary you have to do the full IB program or if not you are sent back to your home school. Anyone zoned for WL can take just a few IB classes. Tell me how that's equitable.

It's equitable because in-boundary W-L students have access to the full AP course of study as well. They should not be forced into taking IB. Back in the day, the W-L community agreed to IB only if the AP courses similarly expanded. The other two high schools were then supposed to come up with their unique programs to attract students: Wakefield has the Senior Project, and Yorktown has R.O.C.S.

You're missing the point, perhaps intentionally. It's not equitable for the students who don't live in the WL zone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn may be small, sure, but it’s pretty intense academically and really isn’t a place for kids with special needs. I think she’d be better off in one of the neighborhood schools, probably Wakefield.

Haha no, it follows the same curriculum as the rest of APS, with similar academic pathways. Just in a not overcrowded school in a gorgeous building

Two of my kids went to HB. I believe I know more about the school than you do.

So a random lottery school somehow ends up academic more advanced without any admission criteria? You are full of BS. It’s not a magnet, it’s lottery ticket.

Are you for real?

Yes, the academic profile of the average HB student is higher than the average at any of the neighborhood high schools, not because it’s a magnet school with admissions criteria, but because it tends to attract higher achievers as lottery applicants. It’s not like every 5th grader in the county applies to HB; the large majority don’t, and I suspect some families have never even heard of it.

It’s not that complicated, idiot.

It's not only the kids, it's the schedule. Kids take I think one more class than regular middle schools, so they only have each class four days instead of five. So they have less time to get through the same curriculum, which means the pace is quicker.

Oh, wow I’m going to print this and send to school board since the inequity that is HBW is just yawning wider. WL is overcrowded and being supersized, while HB students are capped in size with a academic enrichment. Holy absolute F.

do you also think it's inequitable that WL and TJ students can access IB curriculum but the rest of the county does not? or do you just hate HB?

WL accepts almost ALL IB applicants and has for years.

if you apply to WL for IB from out of boundary you have to do the full IB program or if not you are sent back to your home school. Anyone zoned for WL can take just a few IB classes. Tell me how that's equitable.

It's equitable because in-boundary W-L students have access to the full AP course of study as well. They should not be forced into taking IB. Back in the day, the W-L community agreed to IB only if the AP courses similarly expanded. The other two high schools were then supposed to come up with their unique programs to attract students: Wakefield has the Senior Project, and Yorktown has R.O.C.S.

You're missing the point, perhaps intentionally. It's not equitable for the students who don't live in the WL zone.

Then push for change: (1) perhaps allow IB transfers to take W-L's AP courses and not do IB if they change their minds (2) Create new programs that could be perceived as equitable at the other schools. (3) Or make W-L a "program" like H-B and Arlington Tech, but then there are issues with accreditation. Students would have to play VHSL sports at their home schools (Wakefield and Yorktown), and filling the W-L school campus with interested students might be difficult. (4) Or maybe an inherent inequity is just a part of an imperfect system. All the local school systems have inherent inequities. (5) Revised school boundaries are another solution to help with inequity. Or maybe make all the high schools lottery based regardless of any special program. (6) Or eliminate IB entirely.

Regarding the OP's questions, the R.O.C.S. program at Yorktown may be worth investigating.

[Anonymous]

We have a child with the same issues, maybe more ADHD than anxiety, but interrelated, and we chose Arlington Tech because it's a small school, so the teachers know the kids, the adminsitrators know the kids, etc. and project-based learning makes it easier to get the work done for kids with these issues, we think.

[Anonymous]

We are looking at Swanson for our child with an IEP. He has some behavioral issues with acting out when frustrated, although they have been improving a lot as he ages he does need sympathy and support. Any thoughts on whether Swanson would be good? Thanks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is OP. This was a mixed bag of responses! I should have said which neighborhood school, since this is really a question about where to look for housing. We can decide whether to apply for HB Woodlawn or not later. (Although I definitely appreciate that advice.) So of the neighborhood schools, which one(s) are best or good for her?

The lottery of HBW is a ridiculous long shot, so set that aside. I would actually aim for Williamsburg and Yorktown. They are not academic focused, because by and large it’s wealthy families who already have a path for their child and it doesn’t depend on grades. They are intense about sports though. But if your kid stays away from lacrosse and such it’s pretty chill.

no, no, no, avoid WMS like the plague for a student with disabilities.