Toured the school several years ago, and asked how the school viewed their mission and was told flat out they were not a special needs school. When I mentioned to someone who had a child there, they laughed and said that was not the case. More recently, when I toured, the school was far more circumspect about their mission, not using the term hybrid but kind of indicating they were willing to work with different types of learners. I think they have a new administration and are using new language on their website, etc. When recently touring and looking at one of the lower level reading groups, it seemed to me that the level of that particular group was more than a year behind. But if they are dealing with certain learning disabilities in the early grades that wouldn't be surprising. They seem to make good use of technology and the kids seem pretty independent. But overall the school didn't seem that engaging. Didn't see any real interaction with the kids, but no obvious bad behavior either. I do think parents see different things on tours but it is only one snapshot in time, while parents with actual children there may have a different experience.

Anonymous wrote:I visited the open house. I was impressed with what the administrators had to say. They spend something like an hour a day on executive function skills. Great for a child who needs it but it wasn't an area of need for my child. When we took the tour, I was also underwhelmed. I just couldn't see my son being engaged in the classroom. What did impress me was how respectful the students were of one another. I have many friends with kids there who have had wonderful experiences but all had LD or significant ADHD but no disruptive behaviors (they won't take a child who has begavioral issues).

The thing that really impressed me was the amount of time they spend on writing instruction.

So what are your child's needs if he doesn't have ADHD or an LD or executive function issues? Did you find a school that can address them?

I visited the open house. I was impressed with what the administrators had to say. They spend something like an hour a day on executive function skills. Great for a child who needs it but it wasn't an area of need for my child. When we took the tour, I was also underwhelmed. I just couldn't see my son being engaged in the classroom. What did impress me was how respectful the students were of one another. I have many friends with kids there who have had wonderful experiences but all had LD or significant ADHD but no disruptive behaviors (they won't take a child who has begavioral issues).

The thing that really impressed me was the amount of time they spend on writing instruction.

Not in the classic sense. They are a hybrid, just as PP said. If your kids has anything more than a mild need, they will probably not make it at McLean, or even into McLean.

It's been described to us as a hybrid school. They told us they can accommodate kids up to one year behind in math/reading. Not everyone at the school would qualify for an IEP, but all have parents who think they need small class sizes/more individualized attention.

Is this a special needs school or not? Can't tell. Thx