Reply to Is there a way to get my son into a school other than our assigned ES?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Wow, not what I was expecting when I clicked this thread.

I teach at Weller Road.  I had all of my students eventually get online for distance learning. There were a lot of issues because we ran out of chromebooks to distribute, and hotspots for wifi, and had to get more, which was a ridiculous process.  Also, we had many students with both parents still working, so they ended up with babysitters who were juggling multiple students.  Technology was difficult for everyone, even with my own children.

I had a few, but not that many, parents unable to read any language. The bigger problems were parents who had not gone to school in the US and came from cultures that treated parents differently in school. For example, in some countries, especially in central America, teachers are the boss and parents are not welcome to "interfere."  The school is majority Hispanic and there are very few white students.  High ESOL, but ESOL does not mean "speaks no English."  I've had many students that I was surprised were still in ESOL.

We have a high allocation for ESOL and special ed teachers, so lots of supports and co-teaching. We also have an elementary talent coach, who works with enrichment for high students in the primary grades.  Classes are small, like 14-17 students each. Before distance learning, I met with every student for guided reading every day.

Is it perfect? No. The students face many challenges. But they work hard. Their parents are mostly as involved as their situation allows. Bullying is an issue in the way that it seems to be in most schools. Isolated incidents that are dealt with, but I dont see a widespread culture of it. OP, if you are moving from CA for work and renting only for a year out of convenience, (rather than out of necessity) then you will likely find that your children are different than the typical WR student. But that doesnt mean they won't have any friends or be able to form meaningful relationships during this experience.

As far as options for different schools.. the immersion lottery has already happened. If your DC is entering 4th grade, testing for the Center for Enriched Studies happened in February, but it's possible to inquire about testing over the summer. The best scenario would be getting into the wait pool, but the wait pool is not a list. Students are pulled from it at random, so your DC would have as equal a shot as any other student admitted to the pool.

Finally, it's interesting that everyone assumes OP is white.[/quote]

Unless you are a parent of a non-Spanish speaking kid at a title I school, you really aren’t equipped to say how a kid will fit in or what his experience will be. You aren’t out on the playground at recess. You have no clue about play dates or sports or birthday parties and if the English speaking kid is included. You can’t say if the parents will be able to make friends with parents at school.

And I hope you realize that the demographics at Weller Road are dramatically different from other title I schools which are more diverse and not skewed heavily to Spanish speakers. [/quote]

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