Reply to GDS or WIS for elementary school?

Forum Index » Private & Independent Schools

Reply to "GDS or WIS for elementary school? "

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]OP, what non-English language do you speak and will that also be the language of rotation?

If it's French, I'd pick WIS. If it's Spanish, you might want to consider Oyster-Adams Bilingual public school if you live in the Oyster school boundary in DC. The Spanish instruction is arguably better than WIS elementary, and it's free and very diverse/international.

If it's neither, then the schools are probably equal.

GDS is a very progressive and liberal school in the American context. (Not much political diversity.) [b]Some kids do well with the relative lack of structure and flexibility. [/b]Some do not. We have one of each type of child.

For us, ultimately we put both in WIS for language and the global IB school network. Our travel is not always predictable, but there is some degree of consistency with IB.

As to sports, for elementary school, it really doesn't matter much. Most schools don't have organized teams until middle school. There are many recreational programs for younger kids through private organizations and the city Parks and Recreation department, including fencing, aquatics, etc.

Hope this helps.[/quote]

I have two children at GDS, and I'm always a bit surprised when people say this about GDS. There is a lot of structure in the school curriculum from PK all the way through the middle school. (There may be more flexibility at the HS level, but my kids are in the MS.) The children have a place to be at every minute of every day, the classes are on a tight itinerary, and the curriculum is highly integrated across subject areas, which indicates to me a fairly high level of structure in the curriculum. While it is true that GDS meets children's needs--esp in the lower school--depending on where they are developmentally, there are learning goals and assignments. It's not a "loosey-goosey" school, except for the fact that the kids do not have uniforms and they are allowed the freedom to walk to their classes by themselves. There is a lot of happy, exuberant (and, yes, occasionally loud) chatter between classes, which perhaps gives the impression that the kids are let loose upon the school, but that is far from the actual reality.[/quote]

The point was not about curriculum structure, but about behavior expectations. Compared to many schools overseas, the GDS culture would be shockingly "loosey goosey." Referring to a teacher by the first name would be unimaginable in some countries. It is not bad or good, it was just very different. Parents are likely more sensitive to this than children.

If the OP will be travelling frequently over the years, they may want to consider that it might be challenging for the kids to cycle between the unique environment of GDS and more traditional schools.

Of course, every child is different and OP's children are quite young. It is probably impossible to compare the longer term value of these [u]very different[/u] schooling options. Apples and oranges. Both are nutritious.[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics