Best elementary school in Arlington

[Anonymous]

How can you tell your school is not one of the 'best' in Arlington (hint: it's not the SOL scores)?

1) The school has a teacher retention problem. A serious one.
2) The PTA participation drops off.
3) Families choose to pull kids out and pay private tuition.
4) Families choose to transfer kids to another APS school (and not because of a move).
5) Kids are unhappy and stressed.
6) The environment is cold.
7) The administration is unresponsive to the average parent.
8) Communication is not there. Serious issues do not warrant a telephone call, e.g., bullying.
9) Good, well-behaved students and non-pestering parents are the lowest priority, e.g., squeaky wheels get whatever they want.
10) Kids are seen as 'data'. No mention of getting a child to love learning--solely 'research has shown...x=higher test scores'.
11) There is almost no free time and very little recess built into the day.
12) Homework is excessive and more than the National Standard. It is also non-relevant.
13) SOL study packets are heavily stressed for 1/2 the year.
14) Students have to walk with their hands behind their backs.
15) Special treatment is shown and the superior are designated with 'bling' or the teacher of their choosing.
16) School frowns on any after-school activity, especially if is a sport.
17) There are no smile from the front line of the school.
18) Parents are not treated respectfully.
19) False lines of communication. We want to hear what you want to say (translation: there is never a good time to discuss).
20) Reassessments are not done. They can never be wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How can you tell your school is not one of the 'best' in Arlington (hint: it's not the SOL scores)?

1) The school has a teacher retention problem. A serious one.
2) The PTA participation drops off.
3) Families choose to pull kids out and pay private tuition.
4) Families choose to transfer kids to another APS school (and not because of a move).
5) Kids are unhappy and stressed.
6) The environment is cold.
7) The administration is unresponsive to the average parent.
8) Communication is not there. Serious issues do not warrant a telephone call, e.g., bullying.
9) Good, well-behaved students and non-pestering parents are the lowest priority, e.g., squeaky wheels get whatever they want.
10) Kids are seen as 'data'. No mention of getting a child to love learning--solely 'research has shown...x=higher test scores'.
11) There is almost no free time and very little recess built into the day.
12) Homework is excessive and more than the National Standard. It is also non-relevant.
13) SOL study packets are heavily stressed for 1/2 the year.
14) Students have to walk with their hands behind their backs.
15) Special treatment is shown and the superior are designated with 'bling' or the teacher of their choosing.
16) School frowns on any after-school activity, especially if is a sport.
17) There are no smile from the front line of the school.
18) Parents are not treated respectfully.
19) False lines of communication. We want to hear what you want to say (translation: there is never a good time to discuss).
20) Reassessments are not done. They can never be wrong.

Hmmm...I think I know which school this would encompass.

[Anonymous]

.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Maybe Patrick Henry should be added to the list? I've always heard good things about the school.

Patrick Henry Elementary School Named 2015 Blue Ribbon School
Henry One of Only Seven Public Schools in Virginia to Receive This Honor

http://www.apsva.us/Page/31938

I've heard mixed reviews from parents


Spoken like a true N. Arlington snob! The state obviously thinks it's the best of the bunch. That should mean something.

No, that's not obvious.

Pretty obvious.

[Anonymous]

McKinley FTW!

[Anonymous]

Sounds like people are jumping on ASFS pretty hard - and it is not justified. I have kids in ASFS, and I think it is a great school. Our daughter and son have made friends with kids in their class, and have kept the friendships through the years despite being in different classes. I've liked all the teachers so far (five different ones to date) and like the PTA. I'm not super involved, but they put on great events and do a lot for the school. So far, I like the fact that Ms. Begley runs a tight ship, and it has not created any hardships on our kids. The school is very, very diverse - lots of multicultural children, so I do wonder if resources are being diverted from the traditional programs to assist students where English is not their native language. But part of the diversity is simply children whose parents have international jobs, and happen to live in the zone. I wanted a school where it appears that the parents take education seriously at home, since that is where the large differences occur between schools - it is not the funding level per se, it is how involved the parents are with their children at home. For some reason, people like to speak poorly about ASFS, and in my opinion, it is unjustified - some may be speaking the truth, but some also appear to have an agenda.

[Anonymous]

Regarding ASFS, I tend to agree with the 15:56 poster. Although I personally think that there is too much homework and Ms. Begley runs a tight ship, my kids love it there, have lots of friends and have generally had very good teachers (with only one exception in several years at the school). I agree that all of the bashing is somewhat unjustified.

[Anonymous]

We left ASF for private school. My kids, of course, made friends there. We did not like the philosophy or amount of homework. It was too rigid. We wish there were better choices for our neighborhood school--it was immersion or an overly homework/test centric environment. If it were a choice school, I'd agree with previous posters. For those that were zoned - I get why they would be unhappy. Did my kids learn a great deal learn while there? Yes. It is academically sound, but that's all I can say.

We have found middle road and are much happier now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:ATS and Science Focus have the highest SOL scores.

At one of those and hate it. Kids have been there since K. They are now 2nd and 4th.

I've heard they are both terrible.

We have a 3rd grader and 5th grader at ASF. We've been there since our first born started Kindergarten. We've had some fabulous teachers. I hate the environment--too restrictive. Too authoritarian. Not warm on a whole (minus the teachers that do their best to work within the restrictions set above).
The teach to test is stifling. Some of the homework is truly idiotic. The kids can't go on the field Nov-April--it gets covered with a blankie.

Sensitive kids get crushed in this restrictive environment. There is also a focus on the squeaky wheels with the normal parents getting the shaft. Special treatment is shown. A lot of 4th grade parents are upset that one class got to just roll from 3rd to 4th with the same class/teacher. The rest were screwed.

I think about private school a lot, but we're almost out.

I thought ATS was the restrictive one??!
Why is ASF restrictive?
The class keeping the teacher from 3rd to 4th - wow! How did that happen? Is that a common thing?!

Not sure.

[Anonymous]

To 20:17 -- which private school did you choose? How hard is it to be admitted into a private school in the early elementary grades, say 2d or 3d? We are also considering private school, but aren't sure what our options would be given that we missed the big entrance years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We left ASF for private school. My kids, of course, made friends there. We did not like the philosophy or amount of homework. It was too rigid. We wish there were better choices for our neighborhood school--it was immersion or an overly homework/test centric environment. If it were a choice school, I'd agree with previous posters. For those that were zoned - I get why they would be unhappy. Did my kids learn a great deal learn while there? Yes. It is academically sound, but that's all I can say.

We have found middle road and are much happier now.

I think you touched on a point that frustrates a lot of parents in Arlington both inside & outside the Key boundary. Immersion shouldn't be forced on anyone, but the alernative should be a regular neighborhood school. ASFS as a "choice" should actually be a choice, not something that you are either forced into or can buy your way into, depending upon your philosophy.

[Anonymous]

Exactly. I wish we had just a regular 'ole neighborhood school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:ATS and Science Focus have the highest SOL scores.

At one of those and hate it. Kids have been there since K. They are now 2nd and 4th.

I've heard they are both terrible.

We have a 3rd grader and 5th grader at ASF. We've been there since our first born started Kindergarten. We've had some fabulous teachers. I hate the environment--too restrictive. Too authoritarian. Not warm on a whole (minus the teachers that do their best to work within the restrictions set above).
The teach to test is stifling. Some of the homework is truly idiotic. The kids can't go on the field Nov-April--it gets covered with a blankie.

Sensitive kids get crushed in this restrictive environment. There is also a focus on the squeaky wheels with the normal parents getting the shaft. Special treatment is shown. A lot of 4th grade parents are upset that one class got to just roll from 3rd to 4th with the same class/teacher. The rest were screwed.

I think about private school a lot, but we're almost out.

I thought ATS was the restrictive one??!
Why is ASF restrictive?
The class keeping the teacher from 3rd to 4th - wow! How did that happen? Is that a common thing?!

That wouldn't happen at our Arl. ES -- we had one favorite teacher who moved from 1st grade to 2nd grade and the principal specifically did not put any of her 1st grade kids into her 2nd grade class. Worked out well for us -- DS1 had her for first grade. DS2 was sad to have not gotten her in 1st but then thrilled to have her for 2nd.

[Anonymous]

At our APS neighborhood school there is a "bubble" grade that requires one more teacher than the grade above it. One year an entire class remained with the same teacher from k to first grade.

As that bubble year has advanced each year a teacher has advanced along with them- a different teacher each year- but only one time did the entire class remain with the same teacher.

I don't know what the rationale might be for keeping the same teacher with an entire class from one year to the next. Maybe it makes things easier, but it was a one time only thing at our school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At our APS neighborhood school there is a "bubble" grade that requires one more teacher than the grade above it. One year an entire class remained with the same teacher from k to first grade.

As that bubble year has advanced each year a teacher has advanced along with them- a different teacher each year- but only one time did the entire class remain with the same teacher.

I don't know what the rationale might be for keeping the same teacher with an entire class from one year to the next. Maybe it makes things easier, but it was a one time only thing at our school.

It's a parental prefence thing or means to keep one more teacher from leaving.

If they wanted a teacher to move to a different grade--there's no need to keep the entire class together and it demonstrates preferential treatment.