Freedom Hill and Haycock aren't near a library. Parts of the area zoned for Haycock are walkable to the Metro or shops in the City oF Falls Church. The areas assigned to Freedom Hill aren't considered particularly walkable, though they are convenient for driving to the malls at Tysons.

You would only use Haycock for AAP in this scenario, but Lemon Road and Westgate are in walking distance to the Pimmit/Tysons Library. We enjoy walking there very much and it is open more hours than others as a regional library.

Parts of Louise Archer, Cunningham Park, Vienna, and maybe Freedom Hill, Wolftrap and Marshall Road if you walk a bit further are in walking distance of the Vienna library.

Haycock is fine, but there are plenty of houses between $600-$800. Perhaps not so many in Vienna and Archer which are older neighborhoods with many teardowns, but as you get several blocks away from 123, there are several houses in that price range with 4 bedrooms. Prices fluctuate too from year to year.

If you think you can't afford McLean, I'm assuming you want to keep the price under $750K or $800K. If that's the case, Haycock may have an advantage over Vienna, in that the houses zoned for Vienna tend either to be very nice, expensive new homes over $1M or older, more afforable houses that are not in great condition - with not a lot in between. The area zoned for Haycock has more houses in the $650K-$800K that are livable and in good condition.

I would say go for Vienna and Archer; Haycock is a great choice obviously if you want to pay more money for the house....it's all trade-offs.

Of the options and your desires, I'd go for Vienna Elementary. Most homes that feed into it are walking distance to a lot of amenities. The library, grocery stores, community center, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. It's supposed to be a great school, no personal experience there though.

AAP is Fairfax County's "gifted" program. Some schools have dedicated AAP centers and others have local level IV AAP. Kids can choose to stay at their assigned school or go to the dedicated center school if they are selected for AAP. This happens in 3rd grade. If the school has neither service, then the child can still stay at the assigned school and forego the AAP classes or go the the AAP center school.

Vienna Elementary doesn't have either AAP designation, so if your child were selected for AAP then you would have the option of sending your child to Louise Archer which would be the closest AAP center school or staying at Vienna El. with the regular curriculum.

I wouldn't base where you buy your home on which schools have AAP centers unless you know for a fact that your child will be attending one. If they get in you always have the option of sending them to an AAP center. I'd choose your neighborhood, that's where you will be spending more of your time.

SOLs are Virginia's Standards of Learning test. These are given in certain grades not every grade. They don't really impact your child's grades, they are more for the school to see if everyone is progressing properly. They need this for funding.

Good luck you your move!

Also, the areas closest to the Patrick Henry Library in Vienna are zoned for either Marshall Road ES or Vienna ES.

Freedom Hill and Haycock aren't near a library. Parts of the area zoned for Haycock are walkable to the Metro or shops in the City oF Falls Church. The areas assigned to Freedom Hill aren't considered particularly walkable, though they are convenient for driving to the malls at Tysons.

The areas around Haycock ES are closer to the West Falls Church Metro station that the areas around Archer ES are to the Vienna station. The areas closest to the Vienna Metro are assigned to Marshall Road ES and Mosby Woods ES.

Anonymous wrote:Can I ask why those schools in particular? They seem a little random not being all AAP centers or in the same area for instance. Marshall Road, Cunningham Park, Westbriar, and Wolftrap are all as close or closer than Archer to Tysons and metro. Westgate, Stenwood, and Lemon Road are all closer to Tysons than Haycock. And no McLean schools are listed either like Spring Hill, Kent Gardens or Colvin Run.

op here. The schools are based purely on areas we are considering moving. We like the community feel of Vienna and want some proximity to Metro if we move there. However, we hear Haycock is a great school (and also close to Metro). We've ruled out Mclean b/c we're priced out there for the type/size of home we want.

Ideally we want a home that is walking distance to a library or some sort of amenities and in a great ES district. Hence the schools listed above (although not so sure of Freedom Hill). To be honest, I am so so new to understanding elementary schools and I'm from overseas so am unfamiliar with the AAP and SOL and other test systems you have here. I need to brush up on these things quickly.

Haycock and Archer are widely regarded as some of the best in FCPS. Vienna and Freedom Hill are great, but get less press.

Can I ask why those schools in particular? They seem a little random not being all AAP centers or in the same area for instance. Marshall Road, Cunningham Park, Westbriar, and Wolftrap are all as close or closer than Archer to Tysons and metro. Westgate, Stenwood, and Lemon Road are all closer to Tysons than Haycock. And no McLean schools are listed either like Spring Hill, Kent Gardens or Colvin Run.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Sorry, I didn't mean Haycock twice, but rather Vienna ES!

It's much smaller than the other schools, with under 400 students. Never heard anything bad about it, and people in Vienna seem to prefer it to Cunningham Park. It was also recently renovated.

OP here. Sorry, I didn't mean Haycock twice, but rather Vienna ES!

Haycock and Archer are older schools with large AAP enrollments.

Freedom Hill doesn't have a big AAP program, but was recently renovated. It has a higher percentage of low-income kids and students learning English as a second language than Archer or Haycock.

All of the schools are above-capacity, so expect your kids to spend some time in trailers, particularly at Haycock or Archer. FCPS just moved some kids from Freedom Hill to Lemon Road to reduce the expected overcrowding.

Haycock has the best location for those who commute to DC. Freedom Hill has a Vienna address, but is very close to Tysons. Archer is in a residential area in the NW section of the Town of Vienna, several miles west of Tysons.

Well, between Haycock and Haycock, I'd definitely go with Haycock.

We will be moving at the end of the year and trying to decide on where based in schools. How do these schools compare?