Did anyone find primary day too "academic" or structured?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:it’s relative absence on this forum. Cute little place, with rather mundane academics. No one breaking down doors to figure out how to get in.

That has more to do with PDS going from PK-2 (i.e., you have to apply again elsewhere within 4 years) than anything about the school's educational merits. For parents looking to send their kids to a (P)K-8 or (P)K-12, PDS would be a non-starter. It's a great school if you're okay with the limited number of years. We were, and are quite pleased.

Exactly! Very much a function of PDS having only 100 families at one time vs. a PK-12 grade school which could have well over 1000 families at a time (and therefore more alumni). With higher grade levels, there is also a large number of kids from public schools and other private schools (K-6, K-8) that will be looking and interested in talking about a school that goes to 12th grade. The so called "absence on the forum" has nothing to do with quality. PDS attracts a smaller subsets of families that are interested in a private school focused on the early years and located in the suburbs. There are a lot of families interested in the school but that don't want to have to go through the application process again after 2nd grade. There are families that prefer that model because it gives them the chance to reevaluate their child's strengths and interest and pick a private school that best aligns with the kids needs (same sex, co-ed, sports focus, art / music focus, smaller school, bigger school, etc.) It is hard to know what your 4 year old will be like when they are 8-9 years old.

. Really good point about parents in the suburbs, wanting a school focused on children in the early years. Still, PDS does not seem to be on par academically with Beauvoir, NCRC, Concord Hill or Kindergarten at Stone Ridge ( co-ed). Mr Lawrence was formerly the Lower School Head of Stone Ridge. PDS has a ways to go before it is considered a top tier school. The students who got into Sidwell etc. May have gotten into them because they were legacies or of above averaged ability. Enough said.

[Anonymous]

PDS is indeed a top tier PK-2 experience. And its tuition goes 100% for its PK-2 students, unless the $44k/ year PK-2 SFS experience.

PDS is more academic and traditional than any of the play-based and progressive Beauvoirs, GDS', and SFS.'

You would really know where your kids' skills, strengths and weaknesses were at the end of 2nd grade at PDS. You would not know that at the K-12 play around holistic school we are at. It's not the focus - the focus where we're at is 'foster a love of learning and values' through fun hands-on stuff and then ramp it up in 3rd grade, 6th grade and two more cranks up for 9th grade. I almost call it a bait and switch regarding how easy the learning environment is "teaching the student to their level or letting them choose what to do half the day" in lower lower school versus the rude awakening they suffer in later grades.

[Anonymous]

BTW, PDS and NPS intakes at our K-12 were impressive across the board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PDS is indeed a top tier PK-2 experience. And its tuition goes 100% for its PK-2 students, unless the $44k/ year PK-2 SFS experience.

PDS is more academic and traditional than any of the play-based and progressive Beauvoirs, GDS', and SFS.'

You would really know where your kids' skills, strengths and weaknesses were at the end of 2nd grade at PDS. You would not know that at the K-12 play around holistic school we are at. It's not the focus - the focus where we're at is 'foster a love of learning and values' through fun hands-on stuff and then ramp it up in 3rd grade, 6th grade and two more cranks up for 9th grade. I almost call it a bait and switch regarding how easy the learning environment is "teaching the student to their level or letting them choose what to do half the day" in lower lower school versus the rude awakening they suffer in later grades.

Interesting third paragraph. I too do not consider the class schedule in the early years pretty playful and artistic. The opposite of my nephews in catholic school elsewhere. When we get together I can easily see that he has covered more reading and math than our kids here in a large private. He also has homework each night - to read- and summer workbooks now.

[Anonymous]

Do consider

[Anonymous]

they call it a culture class, learn basic words and greetings. more importantly they practice the new sounds unique to spanish, french and chinese.

not many kids at 1st or 2nd grade (in America) can hear a foreign language and correctly ID it as Sp, FR, or Ch.

also helps them have more cultural and language knowledge when choosing their dedicated language in 3rd grade in next private school.

SFS lower school spanish class is also more cultural with songs, greetings, holidays, geography and basic words.

If you want drills, vocab and grammar do a weekend class at an institute.

- anthro / linguists Prof. (kids did not go to PDS, but I was impressed by the program when we went on the tour and met new headmaster).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The academics at PDS are top notch (except
for the language program)We have been very happy with our daughter's teachers throughout the years. The parent community is awful (insufferable, jappy mothers) but other than that the school is lovely.
The school is very small which is nice for young children.
The language program is a joke - the children "learn" three foreign languages once a week for 20-25 minute sessions.

Yes this! Wasted part of each week. My DC would be better off with exposure to one language more frequently. 3 languages for 20 mins/week is an absolute waste of time and money (for the faculty they have to hire). I’m hopeful this will change before I send my younger child.

Hopefully the school will take note of these suggestions and make some changes. The Development Office can make a huge difference in the culture of a school by being inclusive and welcoming diversity within the parent body. Parent cliques continue into Holton and Landon and the kids become cliquey as a result. These cliques often become the “cool” group, the sports stars and continue to exclude and make other, perfectly nice kids, feel “ less than”
It is literally perpetuated for generations.

Grandmother, Former Holton and Landon Parent

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Still, PDS does not seem to be on par academically with Beauvoir, NCRC, Concord Hill or Kindergarten at Stone Ridge ( co-ed).

I don’t know how you could credibly make this assertion in an apples-to-apples way, except maybe with Concord Hill which covers the same grades.

The PDS exmissions record to schools like Sidwell and GDS also seems to refute your views about its academics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are friends with a family that had one kid at PDS and one at Sidwell. The older kid only went to Sidwell. The second kid went to PDS before also going to Sidwell. They were shocked by how much more the kid at PDS learned in the early grades compared to the sibling at Sidwell for the early years. He really thrived and the parents were thrilled with the schools curriculum. The PDS sibling was a much more advanced reader.

I am concerned to with the non-traditional privates. They seem to allow kids to only practice to their strengths and interests and not overcome their weaknesses. And I'm talking about things like reading, handwriting, math, etc. Not dance versus 3D art or computer work. Basic foundational skills that need to be mastered and then instinct before age 7 or 8. Why does this only begin in 3rd or 4th grade at many of the privates? Too much social civics time for ages 5-8?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:they call it a culture class, learn basic words and greetings. more importantly they practice the new sounds unique to spanish, french and chinese.

not many kids at 1st or 2nd grade (in America) can hear a foreign language and correctly ID it as Sp, FR, or Ch.

also helps them have more cultural and language knowledge when choosing their dedicated language in 3rd grade in next private school.

SFS lower school spanish class is also more cultural with songs, greetings, holidays, geography and basic words.

If you want drills, vocab and grammar do a weekend class at an institute.

- anthro / linguists Prof. (kids did not go to PDS, but I was impressed by the program when we went on the tour and met new headmaster).

Yes, I’m a current parent and although it’s considered a “culture class”, it’s a lot of sit still and be quiet. That time
could be better used as an additional outdoor time, especially for the PreK and K classes.

[Anonymous]

never looks quiet when I go past that classroom. everyone is v engaged and interactively listening/responding.

Its one teacher, 6 kids chatting and learning about a country, language and culture. It's the room right off the lobby, can't miss it. right next to the music room, also not quiet.

Look - it's clear you don't like something so figure it out and make changes so you're happier. If paying $36k to GDS for 2-3 daily recesses, 1 daily gym class and 1 daily naptime per 7-hour day is preferred to you for PK and K, go for it.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, anyone who thinks that foreign language instruction in PK or early elementary years anywhere (except at WIS or the French or German-specific schools) is with fluency or even proficiency as an end goal is fooling themselves. I mean, getting kids these age to learn how to read and write English is already hard enough.

So I'm totally fine that my kids are getting some basic exposure to multiple cultures/languages at PDS than in-depth coverage of one. There's plenty of time for them to choose and specialize in later years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are friends with a family that had one kid at PDS and one at Sidwell. The older kid only went to Sidwell. The second kid went to PDS before also going to Sidwell. They were shocked by how much more the kid at PDS learned in the early grades compared to the sibling at Sidwell for the early years. He really thrived and the parents were thrilled with the schools curriculum. The PDS sibling was a much more advanced reader.

I am concerned to with the non-traditional privates. They seem to allow kids to only practice to their strengths and interests and not overcome their weaknesses. And I'm talking about things like reading, handwriting, math, etc. Not dance versus 3D art or computer work. Basic foundational skills that need to be mastered and then instinct before age 7 or 8. Why does this only begin in 3rd or 4th grade at many of the privates? Too much social civics time for ages 5-8?

At our Big 3, the kids are not required to read until 1st grade. This is a BIG plus for us. PK is playtime, with a tiny bit of HWT workbook and some math activities thrown in (apart from science and cultural content). I personally don't care whether my child has solid handwriting by K or knows how to segment words at the end of PK (my kid didn't know), or that he can count by 5s before April in PK. I know he will acquire these very basic skills in time. It is a different approach. If I wanted acquisition of skills more quickly, I would send him to our neighborhood public elementary school.

[Anonymous]

I think the PDS curriculum is a good balance between what you would find in public (except with much more personalized attention) and the Big 3.

[Anonymous]

At our Big 3 the parents teach the kids number literacy and reading at home or on the weekends so all that playtime during M-F doesn't matter to learning. Parents pick up the slack.

I guess at public we'd have to pick up the extracurricular slack .