OP here. I want to thank everyone for fulfilling my prediction of criticism of the school and questions about why they’ve gone through their waitlist!

It's not for every kid or every parent, but lots of families think it's an amazing school. I trust that the message reached people who are interested in a school like Lee and I hope some might take the opportunity to have their kid there.

For what it's worth, my kid has been there for six years. He's doing well with academics and *loves* the school for the freedom and creativity it allows. I'm so glad he gets to go there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This. We left Lee after PK3. My child learned very little academics. They could fold a mean towel and wash a window.

Sorry they weren't drilling your 3-year-old on reading and math!

I get what you mean, but there comes a time when you start to see the things your kid has not "chosen" to learn become damaging around peers. Our kid was 6 and never nailed the alphabet in his 3 years there. And I get that butterfly releases and baking are fun, but I'd rather do those fun things at home than try to pretend I'm qualified to teach elementary reading and math.

This. Gosh, I wonder why their ECE waitlist is long but they're having a hard time with 1st and 2nd, when parents actually want their child to not be failing reading and math.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This. We left Lee after PK3. My child learned very little academics. They could fold a mean towel and wash a window.

Sorry they weren't drilling your 3-year-old on reading and math!

I get what you mean, but there comes a time when you start to see the things your kid has not "chosen" to learn become damaging around peers. Our kid was 6 and never nailed the alphabet in his 3 years there. And I get that butterfly releases and baking are fun, but I'd rather do those fun things at home than try to pretend I'm qualified to teach elementary reading and math.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is next, they don't have terrible test scores and an achievement gap like the Grand Canyon?

It's Montessori, they don't have to teach kids how to read and do math, they just instill a magic love of learning and the kids will learn these things on their own, at a time TBD.

This. We left Lee after PK3. My child learned very little academics. They could fold a mean towel and wash a window.

Super prepared to be a Victorian housemaid with all that pewter-polishing!

Anonymous wrote:

This. We left Lee after PK3. My child learned very little academics. They could fold a mean towel and wash a window.

Sorry they weren't drilling your 3-year-old on reading and math!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is next, they don't have terrible test scores and an achievement gap like the Grand Canyon?

It's Montessori, they don't have to teach kids how to read and do math, they just instill a magic love of learning and the kids will learn these things on their own, at a time TBD.

This. We left Lee after PK3. My child learned very little academics. They could fold a mean towel and wash a window.

Anonymous wrote:What is next, they don't have terrible test scores and an achievement gap like the Grand Canyon?

It's Montessori, they don't have to teach kids how to read and do math, they just instill a magic love of learning and the kids will learn these things on their own, at a time TBD.

What is next, they don't have terrible test scores and an achievement gap like the Grand Canyon?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some slots have opened up for 1st and 2nd grades at Lee Brookland. Kind of late for a transfer, but it’s a great school. (Read comments below for criticism of the school and questions about why they’ve gone through their waitlist!)

Here’s the email from the school about it:

Hi Brookland families!

As you may know, we still have spots available this school year for 1st and 2nd-grade students! Since we usually have a significant waitlist for all grades, this is a great opportunity for more families to access a high-quality, public Montessori education. Please spread the word with your friends, family, and neighbors, and encourage them to apply by submitting a post-lottery application through My School DC and selecting Brookland. Families will then be offered a seat and can complete the rest of the enrollment process virtually. Depending on how fast application and enrollment are completed, new students could start as soon as Thursday!

Please reach out to me (joshua@leemontessori.org) or Christy (cdickens@leemontessori.org, 202-779-9740) with any questions about enrollment. You can also find more information for prospective families at: https://leemontessori.org/admissions. We look forward to new families that join us because of YOU!

They do not usually have a significant waitlist for all grades! FFS.

https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/aaron2446/viz/MSDCSeatsandWaitlistOfferData_draft/MSDCPublicDisplay

It's absurd. They nearly cleared their waitlist for 1st just last year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh, I would have thought SSMA would run into trouble more quickly than Lee.

SSMA has cleared most of their waitlsits.
Heck, even ITS is on the short waitlist list for 1st grade.
Mundo Verde has no waitlists above PK4.
This isn't a Lee issue, this is a DCPCSB allowing too many charters to open in Ward 5 issue.
(and hey, Hyde-Addison doesn't have a waitlist either).

It's crazy to think about, but the 1st graders this year are the ones who did the half year of PK3 before the pandemic hit. And the PK3 kids across the district were COVID infants

Well yes, but having a short waitlist <10 kids in late September is a totally different thing from having actual vacant seats. Nobody gets less city funding because they have 9 kids on the waitlist rather than 10.

Anonymous wrote:Huh, I would have thought SSMA would run into trouble more quickly than Lee.

SSMA has cleared most of their waitlsits.
Heck, even ITS is on the short waitlist list for 1st grade.
Mundo Verde has no waitlists above PK4.
This isn't a Lee issue, this is a DCPCSB allowing too many charters to open in Ward 5 issue.
(and hey, Hyde-Addison doesn't have a waitlist either).

It's crazy to think about, but the 1st graders this year are the ones who did the half year of PK3 before the pandemic hit. And the PK3 kids across the district were COVID infants

Huh, I would have thought SSMA would run into trouble more quickly than Lee.

Anonymous wrote:Some slots have opened up for 1st and 2nd grades at Lee Brookland. Kind of late for a transfer, but it’s a great school. (Read comments below for criticism of the school and questions about why they’ve gone through their waitlist!)

Here’s the email from the school about it:

Hi Brookland families!

As you may know, we still have spots available this school year for 1st and 2nd-grade students! Since we usually have a significant waitlist for all grades, this is a great opportunity for more families to access a high-quality, public Montessori education. Please spread the word with your friends, family, and neighbors, and encourage them to apply by submitting a post-lottery application through My School DC and selecting Brookland. Families will then be offered a seat and can complete the rest of the enrollment process virtually. Depending on how fast application and enrollment are completed, new students could start as soon as Thursday!

Please reach out to me (joshua@leemontessori.org) or Christy (cdickens@leemontessori.org, 202-779-9740) with any questions about enrollment. You can also find more information for prospective families at: https://leemontessori.org/admissions. We look forward to new families that join us because of YOU!

They do not usually have a significant waitlist for all grades! FFS.

https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/aaron2446/viz/MSDCSeatsandWaitlistOfferData_draft/MSDCPublicDisplay

Ouch. Have a lot of people left?

Some slots have opened up for 1st and 2nd grades at Lee Brookland. Kind of late for a transfer, but it’s a great school. (Read comments below for criticism of the school and questions about why they’ve gone through their waitlist!)

Here’s the email from the school about it:

Hi Brookland families!

As you may know, we still have spots available this school year for 1st and 2nd-grade students! Since we usually have a significant waitlist for all grades, this is a great opportunity for more families to access a high-quality, public Montessori education. Please spread the word with your friends, family, and neighbors, and encourage them to apply by submitting a post-lottery application through My School DC and selecting Brookland. Families will then be offered a seat and can complete the rest of the enrollment process virtually. Depending on how fast application and enrollment are completed, new students could start as soon as Thursday!

Please reach out to me (joshua@leemontessori.org) or Christy (cdickens@leemontessori.org, 202-779-9740) with any questions about enrollment. You can also find more information for prospective families at: https://leemontessori.org/admissions. We look forward to new families that join us because of YOU!