Anonymous
Post 04/08/2014 09:53     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I think it really depends on whether you like where you're living now vs. whether you'd like to live in Bethesda-ES-zone Bethesda.


No, it isn't really. For a lot of parents, it is about whether you want a good educational option for your kids through high school. The OP is smart to look into these things. Presumably as a parent, she's beyond the 20-something mentality of only thinking about your own desires.


Oh for heaven's sake. The OP is inbounds for Oyster-Adams, and the child is starting pre-K4 next fall. It would be absurd to move to Bethesda now just so that the child can go to Whitman in 10 years.


BE is in the B-CC cluster, not Whitman.
Anonymous
Post 04/08/2014 08:51     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:We're zoned for Bethesda ES. I would prefer to send my kid to Oyster. We're here because it's walkable, the commute is easy for both me and DH, the schools are good and we were able to buy a small single family home.

I would think carefully about what the move would do to your commute. You can move to Bethesda for high school--doesn't oyster go through 8th?--but you can't get back all the extra time spent on the metro or in a car.


We lived quite near Oyster but weren't in boundary at the time so we moved to a walkable Bethesda neighborhood. I don't think we would have moved if we had been in bounds for Oyster but we're very happy where we are. We commute by metro so if you can live near metro you can reduce commute time (Dupont to Bethesda probably only adds 10 min of train time).
Anonymous
Post 04/03/2014 21:01     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We were wait-listed in the high hundreds for all our top picks for prek-4. (Yes, mainly the sought-after charters but we figured we'd give it a shot!) I know I am way ahead of myself right now but I'm looking down the line towards kindergarten. We have the opportunity to move IB for Bethesda Elementary this fall. Currently, we are IB for Oyster. I am on the fence about the language immersion aspect of Oyster for my own child's needs (though would fully get behind it if we did indeed go for K) but it's all we have at this point unless our luck changes next year in the lottery. WWYD?


As an Oyster parent, I would encourage you to move to Bethesda. I really want a parent community that is strongly committed to bilingualism. I would prefer to have one less fence sitter at Oyster. Good luck (sincerely) in Bethesda!


This comment alone would sent me to Bethesda.
PP


Great--that's the point! Please move to Bethesda, Oyster doesn't need you.
Anonymous
Post 04/03/2014 16:41     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
We're zoned for Bethesda ES. I would prefer to send my kid to Oyster. We're here because it's walkable, the commute is easy for both me and DH, the schools are good and we were able to buy a small single family home.

I would think carefully about what the move would do to your commute. You can move to Bethesda for high school--doesn't oyster go through 8th?--but you can't get back all the extra time spent on the metro or in a car.
Anonymous
Post 04/03/2014 10:51     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:I would personally chose Bethesda Elementary, but it depends on your criteria. If you like the Bethesda cluster but are considering language immersion, have you looked at Rock Creek Forest? Same pyramid, and it sounds like your child would be starting right in time to go straight into the new school.


Except it is quite difficult to get into that program by lottery. (There is no preference for living in bounds for the school.)
Anonymous
Post 04/03/2014 10:32     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We were wait-listed in the high hundreds for all our top picks for prek-4. (Yes, mainly the sought-after charters but we figured we'd give it a shot!) I know I am way ahead of myself right now but I'm looking down the line towards kindergarten. We have the opportunity to move IB for Bethesda Elementary this fall. Currently, we are IB for Oyster. I am on the fence about the language immersion aspect of Oyster for my own child's needs (though would fully get behind it if we did indeed go for K) but it's all we have at this point unless our luck changes next year in the lottery. WWYD?


As an Oyster parent, I would encourage you to move to Bethesda. I really want a parent community that is strongly committed to bilingualism. I would prefer to have one less fence sitter at Oyster. Good luck (sincerely) in Bethesda!


This comment alone would sent me to Bethesda.
PP
Anonymous
Post 04/03/2014 10:25     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
I would personally chose Bethesda Elementary, but it depends on your criteria. If you like the Bethesda cluster but are considering language immersion, have you looked at Rock Creek Forest? Same pyramid, and it sounds like your child would be starting right in time to go straight into the new school.
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 23:19     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:We were wait-listed in the high hundreds for all our top picks for prek-4. (Yes, mainly the sought-after charters but we figured we'd give it a shot!) I know I am way ahead of myself right now but I'm looking down the line towards kindergarten. We have the opportunity to move IB for Bethesda Elementary this fall. Currently, we are IB for Oyster. I am on the fence about the language immersion aspect of Oyster for my own child's needs (though would fully get behind it if we did indeed go for K) but it's all we have at this point unless our luck changes next year in the lottery. WWYD?


As an Oyster parent, I would encourage you to move to Bethesda. I really want a parent community that is strongly committed to bilingualism. I would prefer to have one less fence sitter at Oyster. Good luck (sincerely) in Bethesda!
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 21:36     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
I would choose Oyster. Better life skills (more diversity). Better rounded education (early bilingualism is invaluable and can't be recreated later on). Deal with middle school options once you're closer to that age.
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 21:05     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I think it really depends on whether you like where you're living now vs. whether you'd like to live in Bethesda-ES-zone Bethesda.


No, it isn't really. For a lot of parents, it is about whether you want a good educational option for your kids through high school. The OP is smart to look into these things. Presumably as a parent, she's beyond the 20-something mentality of only thinking about your own desires.


Oh for heaven's sake. The OP is inbounds for Oyster-Adams, and the child is starting pre-K4 next fall. It would be absurd to move to Bethesda now just so that the child can go to Whitman in 10 years.
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 20:53     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
Anonymous wrote:I think it really depends on whether you like where you're living now vs. whether you'd like to live in Bethesda-ES-zone Bethesda.


No, it isn't really. For a lot of parents, it is about whether you want a good educational option for your kids through high school. The OP is smart to look into these things. Presumably as a parent, she's beyond the 20-something mentality of only thinking about your own desires.
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 20:38     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
I think it really depends on whether you like where you're living now vs. whether you'd like to live in Bethesda-ES-zone Bethesda.
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 20:34     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
I think it really depends on whether you want immersion. Personally I would, but I can see the other side.
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 20:32     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
If you are really looking down the line, Bethesda is the way to go since middle and high school non-magnets are MUCH stronger.
Anonymous
Post 04/02/2014 20:26     Subject: Very different, but if you had to choose Bethesda Elementary v. Oyster Adams
We were wait-listed in the high hundreds for all our top picks for prek-4. (Yes, mainly the sought-after charters but we figured we'd give it a shot!) I know I am way ahead of myself right now but I'm looking down the line towards kindergarten. We have the opportunity to move IB for Bethesda Elementary this fall. Currently, we are IB for Oyster. I am on the fence about the language immersion aspect of Oyster for my own child's needs (though would fully get behind it if we did indeed go for K) but it's all we have at this point unless our luck changes next year in the lottery. WWYD?