MCPS elem schools are definitely rigorous...esp in Bethesda/Potomac. A little too rigorous if you as me. Both my kids were placed in advanced math classes beginning in grade one and have been accelerated ever since. It was tough helping my sweet first graders adjust to the rigors of 3rd grade math at age 6. If I had it to do all over again, I would have wanted my kids in a smaller class with one teacher all day building foundations rather than accelerating kids so quickly and introducing bulky homework packets and stressful test prep... Not to mention the class switching. One year DD had 3 teachers in 3 different classrooms in first grade - one HR teacher, a reading teacher, and a math teacher.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go visit both and see what you think will work for your child. We are zoned for another ES in the Whitman cluster and decided it wasn't a good fit for one of our children so went the private school route. But now we are back in public for high school and are very pleased with it.

Since you've been to both, I think you should have a good idea. Which one is more rigorous in academics? Public or private?

There is a huge range in private schools and a huge range within a grade at a public school. So it's not a bright line answer. I think the public schools are very rigorous. In fact the reason many people want private schools at the elementary level is to have a more flexibility in the curriculum and more time for art, music and PE. At the high school level I think only 1 or 2 private high schools are as good as Whitman for smart high achieving kids.

For high achieving kids the Blair magnet program is better than any private high school, and cheaper too. Then again, there is a certain antipathy towards sending kids to Silver Spring. As for BT--they don't lebel your kids as gifted, have very, very involved parents and a certain bigwig has a child there (I think).

I think people are happy to send their kids to the Blair magnet or RM IB but the number who get in is tiny compared to the high school population so most people don't really focus on that as a realistic option. I mention Whitman because that's the HS the Burning Tree feeds to (and which my kid happens to go to). The nice thing about it is that it is also good for high achieving kids (as are many other MCPS high schools) in part because not all the top kids have been siphoned off to magnet schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go visit both and see what you think will work for your child. We are zoned for another ES in the Whitman cluster and decided it wasn't a good fit for one of our children so went the private school route. But now we are back in public for high school and are very pleased with it.

Since you've been to both, I think you should have a good idea. Which one is more rigorous in academics? Public or private?

There is a huge range in private schools and a huge range within a grade at a public school. So it's not a bright line answer. I think the public schools are very rigorous. In fact the reason many people want private schools at the elementary level is to have a more flexibility in the curriculum and more time for art, music and PE. At the high school level I think only 1 or 2 private high schools are as good as Whitman for smart high achieving kids.

For high achieving kids the Blair magnet program is better than any private high school, and cheaper too. Then again, there is a certain antipathy towards sending kids to Silver Spring. As for BT--they don't lebel your kids as gifted, have very, very involved parents and a certain bigwig has a child there (I think).

As far as public elementary schools go in MC, you can't get much better then Burning Tree. The new principal and vice principal are wonderful; the PTA is very generous and supportive; the teachers are great; some really good extra-curricula stuff; very warm and supportive enviornment....

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go visit both and see what you think will work for your child. We are zoned for another ES in the Whitman cluster and decided it wasn't a good fit for one of our children so went the private school route. But now we are back in public for high school and are very pleased with it.

Since you've been to both, I think you should have a good idea. Which one is more rigorous in academics? Public or private?

There is a huge range in private schools and a huge range within a grade at a public school. So it's not a bright line answer. I think the public schools are very rigorous. In fact the reason many people want private schools at the elementary level is to have a more flexibility in the curriculum and more time for art, music and PE. At the high school level I think only 1 or 2 private high schools are as good as Whitman for smart high achieving kids.

Anonymous wrote:Go visit both and see what you think will work for your child. We are zoned for another ES in the Whitman cluster and decided it wasn't a good fit for one of our children so went the private school route. But now we are back in public for high school and are very pleased with it.

Since you've been to both, I think you should have a good idea. Which one is more rigorous in academics? Public or private?

Go visit both and see what you think will work for your child. We are zoned for another ES in the Whitman cluster and decided it wasn't a good fit for one of our children so went the private school route. But now we are back in public for high school and are very pleased with it.

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone experienced both, and can you compare them? Having such a tough time with this. I know admissions to private schools aren't easy, but we can get it paid for by grandparents and have extremely strong connections. Are we short changing our child? Please help.

Impressive

The students transfered to private school because it was always the parents plan to send their children to private and instead of sending their children to Primary Day or some other private they used Burning Tree for K-2.

Isn't this the elem that Starr's kids attend?

School listed begin with grade 3.

Anonymous wrote:Some families at Burning Tree send their children to Burning Tree for K-2 and then transfer to private schools. Landon, Holton, and other privates receive BT applicants all the time and the students are very succesful at the privates they attend. Why not enroll your children and see if you like the school.

Why did they transfer to private after starting at Burning Tree? Is not rigorous curriculum one of the reasons?

Some families at Burning Tree send their children to Burning Tree for K-2 and then transfer to private schools. Landon, Holton, and other privates receive BT applicants all the time and the students are very succesful at the privates they attend. Why not enroll your children and see if you like the school.

Has anyone experienced both, and can you compare them? Having such a tough time with this. I know admissions to private schools aren't easy, but we can get it paid for by grandparents and have extremely strong connections. Are we short changing our child? Please help.