Anonymous wrote:Interesting…. Pre pandemic my child went to Rosemary Hills. There were 8 K classes with 25 students per class. At the time it was one teacher per class, no paras. This was surprising to me. The school has always had a slightly higher FARMS number then CCES.

I previously lived in Chevy Chase. Many sent kids to private over RH. Then, in 3rd kids went to CCES. This is why CCES has a lower FARMS number. The bussed CES kids do not lower the number. Most are being bussed because their home school cannot meet their educational needs.

FWIW…. I found RH was a great fit for my child. Child loved riding the bus. School is only K-2, so everything truly developmentally appropriate. My child had 2 great teachers and one “meh” teacher. The only downside for me was the horrible curriculum, but this is not unique to the school.

Pre-pandemic, as now, there were paras. They rotate among the classes.

Interesting…. Pre pandemic my child went to Rosemary Hills. There were 8 K classes with 25 students per class. At the time it was one teacher per class, no paras. This was surprising to me. The school has always had a slightly higher FARMS number then CCES.

I previously lived in Chevy Chase. Many sent kids to private over RH. Then, in 3rd kids went to CCES. This is why CCES has a lower FARMS number. The bussed CES kids do not lower the number. Most are being bussed because their home school cannot meet their educational needs.

FWIW…. I found RH was a great fit for my child. Child loved riding the bus. School is only K-2, so everything truly developmentally appropriate. My child had 2 great teachers and one “meh” teacher. The only downside for me was the horrible curriculum, but this is not unique to the school.

According to the MCPS schools dashboard, 42% of RHES students receive FARMs now or in the past. I don’t know what the breakdown is now vs in the past.

You can look up schools here:

https://app.powerbi.com/view?r=eyJrIjoiNjYzYTUwMzMtYzlmMy00ZDkxLWFmNjMtZDk0ZjUyYmMyZjM5IiwidCI6ImRkZjc1NWU5LWJjZDYtNGE1ZS1hNDcyLTdjMzc4YTc4YzZjNyIsImMiOjF9

Anonymous wrote:Can someone explain what a focus school is?

It’s a school that iMCPS puts more resources into because it has a relatively high share of students who receive FARMs, but not as high as a Title 1. That’s why class sizes are smaller.

Anonymous wrote:How did they become a focus school? This surprised me. Isn't CCES far from focus?

I think CCES is only slightly lower poverty than RUES, and that’s because of the CES kids who come in.

Anonymous wrote:Can someone explain what a focus school is?

The technical definition is something along the lines of "a school with a substantial achievement gap between student populations." In reality, it's a "bridge" between Title I schools (the highest FARMS rates) and those with relatively low numbers of poor/working class kids.

Federal Title I funds are technically available for schools with more than 40% of kids receiving FARMS. However, there are many more schools that meet that criteria in MCPS than there is money, and some of them are approaching 100% FARMS. So MCPS divides those schools into two tiers. "Title I" schools get most of the federal funds, but a smaller amount is reserved for "Focus" schools. In practice, this means more teachers/staff, lower class sizes, etc.

The trick is that class sizes can only go as small as there is space in the school. I don't know about RHES but there are Focus Schools with larger class sizes than the recommended cap because they are out of room to add another classroom.

How did they become a focus school? This surprised me. Isn't CCES far from focus?

Can someone explain what a focus school is?

OP, you could have asked in one of the other threads. Or did you call school to ask if you have a rising K? class sizes will be under 20 if a focus school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone talking about rosemary hills lately?

I agree it is odd. That’s three threads in two weeks. Odd.

I have a theory. That neighborhood is very popular with GS-15 types who wanted access to B-CC for high school but figured they would just pay for private for early ES. Now that federal jobs are far less stable, they are considering their local public school for the first time.

I wonder though how many federal workers in MoCo send their kids to private school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone talking about rosemary hills lately?

I agree it is odd. That’s three threads in two weeks. Odd.

I have a theory. That neighborhood is very popular with GS-15 types who wanted access to B-CC for high school but figured they would just pay for private for early ES. Now that federal jobs are far less stable, they are considering their local public school for the first time.

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone talking about rosemary hills lately?

I agree it is odd. That’s three threads in two weeks. Odd.

Why is everyone talking about rosemary hills lately?

The class size next year is 19 because it will be a focus school. That's true for all classes K-2. For PK it may be smaller.

There is a main teacher all day, and some paras that are in for key parts of the day (typically ELA, math blocks and not other times). I'm not sure though whether focus status also brings more paras. There are also other teacher will will push in at times to help specific kids - e.g., ELD teachers, SPED teachers - but they are not wokring with all the kids.

At recess across MCPS there is 1 adult for every 50 kids. But RHES seems to have a good number of parent volunteers who show up every day, esp for K.

You might want to call the school and ask to join a tour. I think they are monthly. Good luck.

Can anyone shed light on the size of Rosemary Hills' kindergarten classes? I've heard mention of a plan to reduce class sizes next year.
Also, is it truly only one teacher per kindergarten class for the whole day, or do other teachers push-in/ come in to help at times?
Are there additional staff on the playground at recess and during lunch?

Thanks for any insight!