Anyone residing in upper MoCo sends DC to Takoma Primary Magnet?

[Anonymous]

Does anyone who lives in upper county has DC attend Takoma ES Primary Magnet?
I know that's a long commute, but I just wonder if it is manageable.
How long exactly is the commute and are you and is your DC happy with the whole experience despite long commute?
Are you able to manage volunteering and build a strong connection with the school despite the distance?

Thank you in advance!!

[Anonymous]

just wanted to bump this up, i'm interested too!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:just wanted to bump this up, i'm interested too!!

We do and it is a very long commute. It adds an hour and a half to my commute a day. Is it worth it? Depends. To me personally no. That is a lot of time every day. Good luck in your decision. Volunteering is also challenging due to the fact that the commute is so long.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:just wanted to bump this up, i'm interested too!!

We do and it is a very long commute. It adds an hour and a half to my commute a day. Is it worth it? Depends. To me personally no. That is a lot of time every day. Good luck in your decision. Volunteering is also challenging due to the fact that the commute is so long.

PP, can you explain what the magnet actually entails? I'm told it's "science and social studies" but it's unclear what the kids actually get besides some homogenous grouping time each week. Any light you can shed would be great, since we're trying to figure out if it's worthwhile to apply (and I hope OP might be interested in the info too!). Many thanks.

[Anonymous]

When we did it a few years back, the magnet kids did advanced math, were grouped by reading, and were also taken out for special pull-out programs. We were particularly impressed with a 2nd grade magnet "economics" semester, at the end of which the kids did little skits on things like "opportunity cost".

We found the magnet worked much better for the grades that were housed in TPES (K-2) than for the grades that were housed in Piney Branch ES (3-5). At Piney Branch, math continued to be strong, but kids were grouped homogeneously in classrooms with 6-8 kids who couldn't read, and despite grouping by reading ability, the poor teachers were stretched too thin and just couldn't meet everybody's needs. But this was a few years ago, and things may have changed since our time.

[Anonymous]

I'm the PP who asked about this. Thanks for the info. It's confusing because the MCPS website says this about the TPES magnet:

"Program Description: The Takoma Park Elementary School Primary Magnet focuses on science and social studies. While instruction is based on the MCPS curriculum, students in this program will have opportunities to enrich and extend their learning beyond the grade-level goals. In particular, students are encouraged to:
Ask questions
Gather data
Organize data
Use data
Evaluate data
Present information"

And then it says:
"Does your child like to:

Design his or her own science experiments and test them out?
Make connections between social studies topics and current events?
Use a variety of resources and technologies to communicate his or her ideas?
Work cooperatively with his or her friends on projects?"

So I am really confused. I couldn't go to the orientation meeting. What you are describing doesn't sound much like what the MCPS website describes and I'm wondering if they've changed it that much because I have heard there have been changes in the program. I don't know anyone who currently has a child in the magnet. Anyway, thanks again.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I was surprised to get a response. Thank you!
How long was the commute for your DC? Did he/she take the school bus or did you drive him/her?
It does seem like a long commute for kids that age.
I was hoping for a longest commute of maybe less than an hour by school bus, but is that unrealistic?
I also appreciate your thought on whether it was worth it.
I really wish there were mutiple locations with a primary magnet program...

[Anonymous]

For what it's worth - I have heard that there is a fair amount of resentment among "downcounty" families when "upcounty families" take up spots at TPES. The feeling being that there are already strong elementary schools in other clusters while the magnet is the only good option for a lot of downcounty kids.

[Anonymous]

OP again.

Thank you for your perspective.

I wish we lived in one of those clusters you mentioned.
I thought "downcounty" schools like Bethesda had those good schools with strong differentiated curriculum.
We live in "upper upper" county --pretty much in the middle of nowhere-- where differentiated instruction is not readily given to advanced students.
In my opinion, it is not fair to us that the only primary magnet school is located so far away from the center of the county, but I understand the need for it to be there in Takoma Park. I wish there was another one somewhere else to balance it out.

I can't afford my time to worry about what "downcounty" families might think about...
I can only afford my time to think about what is best for my child.

[Anonymous]

Hi OP. I'm the poster that posted about the resentment. When I said "upcounty" I meant the B-CC, Whitman, Richard Montgomery clusters. I totally agree with you that there should be more than one primary magnet school in MoCo. Heck - I grew up in a school district in the midwest with far fewer resources, serving far fewer families and there were 3 primary magnet programs.

[Anonymous]

PP--Thanks for the clarification.
To me, pretty much the rest of the county is downcounty.

[Anonymous]

I had a child a TPES many years ago and from what I understand, the program has been so whittled away and so watered down as to be unrecognizable. A shell of it's former self. Sad. but it was never about academic excellence. Like most MCPS magnets, its original purpose was to keep middle class, educated families in the down county. Down county being silver spring east and near the Beltway. Generally, MCPS is hostile to the very notion that the needs of every child cannot be met in the child's home school. On either end of the spectrum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi OP. I'm the poster that posted about the resentment. When I said "upcounty" I meant the B-CC, Whitman, Richard Montgomery clusters. I totally agree with you that there should be more than one primary magnet school in MoCo. Heck - I grew up in a school district in the midwest with far fewer resources, serving far fewer families and there were 3 primary magnet programs.

BCC is still considered "downcounty," although not necessarily the "red zone." I think you're confusing the two terms. Sadly, "upcounty" has a better connotation.

Upcounty = Darnestown, Quince Orchard, etc.

[Anonymous]

OP again.

Thanks 05:20 for your perspective. So far I have not heard many positive opinions about the program. That is disappointing.

On another thread I heard other people talk about "meaningful, challenging work" vs. "busywork." I was hoping the program is rigorous in the sense that it offers the former. Is that no longer true?

Did anyone in recent years have a good experience with this program, which I might be able to consider worthwhile despite a long commute?
At this point, I'm ready for disappointment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had a child a TPES many years ago and from what I understand, the program has been so whittled away and so watered down as to be unrecognizable. A shell of it's former self. Sad. but it was never about academic excellence. Like most MCPS magnets, its original purpose was to keep middle class, educated families in the down county. Down county being silver spring east and near the Beltway. Generally, MCPS is hostile to the very notion that the needs of every child cannot be met in the child's home school. On either end of the spectrum.

That's interesting because when I read the website and view the Power point presentation from the last open house, it really sounds good. I'm turned off by their insistence that if you submit your child for testing and are offered a spot, you are expected to attend. That seems a bit overbearing. I am considering the program but wish it were true that every child's needs can be met in the home school. I don't think my kid's needs are being met at all, there are too many remedial readers in the classroom. Not their fault, they just don't speak English at home so they don't get much support with homework.