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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]We sent our kids to APS all the way through 8th and then private Big3 HS.   Our kids did very well and had no issue coming from APS, they were well prepared.  But, our private HS experience was vastly different than our public school friend at W&L and Yorktown.  To each their own, but we were very happy for the children to experience the rigor of private for the HS years.  I would not send my kids to private ES and expect some big difference…unless I was at a not great ES or alternatively my kid had a lot of needs.  Just my two cents.  [/quote]

Was it mostly a difference in academic rigor between your experience and your friends W&L/Yorktown experiences?[/quote]

Academic and social differences.  I wouldn’t pay for private school for a different social experience, however.  Plenty of great/bright kids in APS that I would’ve been more than happy for my kids to socialize with.  Some weirdos in both systems so whatever; sort of a wash and kid dependent.

Academically, there were many differences but two biggest for us were: (1) amount of homework and (2) writing.   My kids were doing 1.5-3 hours of homework starting in 9.  Nothing like this for kids’ APS peers.  Freshman/sophomore years in APS, kids peers in APS were still not really doing homework.   This meant there lives were very different.  My kids didn’t have free time in the same way that APS kids do.  Many families don’t want this, I get it.  Next, the writing.  My kids were writing many page papers starting in 9, many times per year, with significant feedback/editing from their teachers with multiple rounds of submission.  This wasn’t possible in APS and wasn’t the experience of my children’s peers.   [/quote]

Weird. My kid in private had less homework than friends in public for 9th/10th. WL kids started doing APs in 9th and/or were doing IB.

By 11th, it seemed about the same. 
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My post was specific to my children’s experience at a Big3 private.  I am certain you could find a range of different experiences at the various private schools across DC. [/quote]

Your kids were doing APs in 9th? 
[/quote]
That’s fairly common in APS, at least with families I know. It makes sense considering you can start high school credit classes in 7th grade. [/quote]

Yes, very common in APS. Along with the hours of homework. On top of sports, activities, etc.

Maybe the PP doesn’t know any of the high-achieving kids in APS if he thinks they have lots of free time. 
[/quote]

Look, I get that you all feel defensive about your own child’s experience.  I do know high achieving kids, taking all your will APs.  And, unfortunately, the work at the Cathedral Schools/Sidwell/GDS/Potomac is significantly more difficult and robust.  You a pretend otherwise if it helps you sleep.  You can also tell yourself that it’s better for your kid to enjoy HS and “find their interests.”   All of that is justifiable.  But pretending the workload is similar for the brightest kids is incorrect.  [/quote]

I'm not defensive at all. Just trying to understand how you have such a skewed perception about the amount of homework and free time in APS high schools: [i]"Freshman/sophomore years in APS, kids peers in APS were still not really doing homework" [/i]

While that may be true for your kid's friends, many freshman/sophomores in APS do have solid amounts of homework; they are taking APs, etc.

[/quote]

Look, I get that there are kids doing homework in APS.  My kids friends were doing homework in MS, but that’s only because they didn’t finish the work in class.  My kids never had homework because they finished.  This is true for my kids friend in IB and APs at YHS and W&L freshman and sophomore year.  These are the top kids, sorry you don’t believe me.  It’s nothing like the every night 1.5-3 hrs at a top private for those first rwo years of HS.   Maybe you are thinking more like junior year?   Maybe you are thinking about your own kids experience?   Were they as efficient as you really think?   It’s a meaningful difference between public and privates for OP to consider.  Plus, of course, the writing.  [/quote]

So your kids *did* have homework in MS; they just finished it at school, as many kids do.

Yes, I don’t believe you that your kids’ friends were in AP/IB in 9th/10th and had no homework.

It’s disingenuous to say that APS doesn’t assign homework in MS/HS. 
[/quote]

The point of homework is to reinforce a lesson that was taught earlier in the day to evaluate and build retention and independent understanding.  Finishing it in class when you JUST had the lesson defeats the purpose of it -- they should be using class time for instruction or seminars on the material, and then have independent home work derived from work that shows mastery and capable with synthesis of other academic skills.  [/quote]

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