Anonymous wrote:I would look at Montessori schools, they're usually desperate for 6th graders, and then your DD would be around kids younger than she is rather than older. But not Shining Stars because it's a hot mess and collapsing.

Get on the wait-list for Sojourner Truth, like right now.

I'm so curious- I've seen Sojourner Truth recommended twice now, and I'm wondering why that school for this child? I'm not super familiar with DCPS, have never heard of it, and the website didn't clarify much.

I'm a big fan of Montessori, personally (Montessori K-6 grad!), but I worry that it might be a little loosey-goosey for a child who is going to need some serious remedial attention in her academics.

Thank you so much to everyone who has responded so far. I'm totally new to this whole world and hearing everyone's suggestions and justifications has been incredibly helpful as I start to form a picture of what different schools have a reputation for. Please do keep the recs and the thoughts coming!

Anonymous wrote:OP, if this is a medical or child welfare context, you may have more options for partial days or something. Maybe call Home and Hospital.

It isn't an official child welfare case (just a voluntary legal custody transfer of a blood relative- again, long story). Because she's not on any child welfare radars at all, I don't think we have access to the same workarounds like half-days that we would if it were through CPS.

OP here. Thanks everyone for the thoughts. As I said, I know that middle school inherently involves chaos. I think what we're looking for is a relatively low-violence, relatively strong SPED, relatively well-run school compared to other schools in DC.

To answer the other questions I saw: This would be for this year, unfortunately (yup, I know the late date knocks out a lot of schools). And no, we are not moving toward a private placement. Sixth grade. And continuing the homeschooling would be really hard as both of us work. In a real pinch, we could get on the waitlist for a spot somewhere really perfect for next year and somehow juggle homeschooling for another year. But I'm leaning towards biting the bullet this year and finding somewhere "pretty good but not perfect" so she isn't isolated for another year.

I’ve been having trouble finding recent thoughts on Capital City PCS or Inspired Learning for middle school when I’ve searched DCUM and thought I'd pick your brains.
This is for a middle school child attending in-person school for the very first time in their life (long story), so I’d be particularly interested in peer culture, special education resources (particularly for academics), teaching quality, etc. We’re really looking for a public or charter middle school in DC (it does have to be in DC) that is going to be an exceptionally gentle, warm introduction to in-person school. Low-chaos, or I guess as low-chaos as it's possible to find in a middle school

I’d love to hear any input on either of the schools I mentioned, or if anyone has suggestions for other public or charter schools we might not have considered!

Thanks!