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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anon156][quote=Anonymous]OP what kinds of behaviors did your DD have in her current school?  [/quote]

Replying back to teachers, general rudeness, being overexcited in corridors (being loud or running around), and some physical incidents too but nothing particularly malicious or bullying. She is good academically and really smart but negative about the way she is perceived by others and tends to hang around with troubling children. Maybe the high academic standards of WW will force her to get back on track or maybe she will feel rejected (as children are too focused on studying) and in that case, I wonder if her behavior might become an issue. Not really sure about how easy it is to get excluded from WW or in fact any other MoCO school...[/quote]

This is a NP with two children at Whitman. First, let me say that I find your honesty refreshing. You describe your daughter without making it seem like you blame yourself, which is hard to do. A few factors that are important to predicting whether your concerns are valid or not are:

What age would your DD be joining Whitman? Will she be new, or joining along with all of the other 9th graders?
How far are you moving? Will she be essentially starting over, or still connected with old friends?
Is she motivated to do well in school? (I know these behaviors are often seen as indicators kids are not, but that's not always the case)

My DD started there in 9th, coming from the feeder middle school. The start did not go well, with some of the behaviors you describe, but I expect milder. No physical incidents, but skipping classes, rudeness to teachers, etc. Totally inexcusable but rooted in anxiety and depression, big time. We knew that. A year and a half later we are in a much better place, and the grades show it. Some of it is greater maturity, but some of it is me stepping in at the first sign of a problem. The admin needs to know you care and are keeping an eye - then they will too. Otherwise, unless there are major problems, she will fly below the radar and can continue down a negative path for too long before someone notices. While I hate to be that sort of intervening parent, it was critical to getting my DD back on track when she was slightly derailed.

I will say this - it is hard for merely "smart" students at Whitman, because everyone is above grade level. This is something my DD is still dealing with. But I don't know if it's much better at other nearby schools. It's also a farce because there are SO many kids with crazy GPAs achieved via the semester system. So if she's very insecure this could be an issue, but she may also find herself with fantastic grades, which can help boost her confidence and perhaps deter some of the other attention-seeking behaviors.

It's a big school. I've talked to my DD about the fact that there are many paths through it - most of which are good choices. Your DD will probably find one, but you need to keep an eye on things from the start. There are negative paths too, and you have to act quickly if she takes a few steps down one. I do think the majority of the teachers are good (but certainly not all). Good luck!
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