Anonymous wrote:WIll 2Rivers Young go to middle school eventually?

Yes. It's not 100% clear whether the children from Young will feed to the middle school campus that is on 4th Street. The Young building has been renovated to provide classrooms through 5th grade, but there is like a whole additional part of the building that has not yet been renovated that could be renovated to provide space for middle school, so it is possible that middle school would be provided there. Either way, though, 2Rivers Young will provide a path through middle school.

WIll 2Rivers Young go to middle school eventually?

PK3 parent here.

I think the expeditionary learning approach is terrific for preschoolers. In PK3 last semester, the expedition was storytelling. So they focused on books and plays -- learned all about the different elements of a story, the different roles that are involved in writing a book (author vs. illustrator), incorporated the expedition into the drama class that they take a few times a week by doing plays, took a field trip to see a play, and ultimately wrote and illustrated their own story and wrote and performed a play for the parents at Showcase. At the Showcase, we received our daughter's first draft (she dictated it to the teacher, who typed it up), which was colorful but only about a paragraph long. The teachers worked with the children to expand their stories, and the final product was a story (with matching pictures, illustrated by our child) that I was really delighted by -- it was colorful and imaginative, with a surprising amount of detail. For my child, at least, having a semester-long project really allowed her to engage with and become deeply interested in what she was working on. I noticed that during the semester her interest in and engagement with books (like when we did bedtime reading) also increased. This semester, their expedition is gardening -- they are planting flowers on the Young campus and learning about the parts of flowers/plants, etc.

I like the school culture (with its focus on caring for your community and related principles like being considerate, working hard, etc.) quite a bit. I like that they truly reinforce their principles both in the classroom and through things like community meeting. I like that the school is small, which encourages a true sense of community because everyone seems to know everyone. The principal (Mr. Guy) and assistant principal (Ms. Ann) are at the door almost every day during arrival and drop-off (and if they aren't someone else, like the drama teacher or counselor, is) and they know my child (and, it appears, the other children) by name.

The great outdoor space cannot be overstated. There is a huge lawn and a very big, brand-new playground. The kids not only make use of it during school, but you will see kids running around and playing on it both before and after school.

I'm not sure how they use the assessment performed at orientation, except maybe as a baseline for skills and to identify children who might need additional assistance? I will say that it really opened my eyes -- I wasn't aware that my child was able to do several of the things she successfully performed during the evaluation. In any event, the assessment was pretty fast and my child seemed to enjoy it (it is play-based things like asking the child to complete a simple puzzle, asking the child to draw shapes or a line or whatever, and answering some simple questions).

I wish aftercare ran a bit longer (like 6:30 instead of just 6) as it can be a bit logistically challenging for one parent to pick up both my baby from daycare and my child from Young on the days when the other parent is out of town. But I actually have been generally pleased with the aftercare and the on-site folks -- they separate the children by grade (so the little PK3 kids aren't in the same room with, say, the 1st graders), and at least in the PK3 room, the teacher I see at pickup is truly lovely and seems to really be fond of the kids (and my child is in turn very fond of her). I also like that you can pay by the day and, if you reserve a day in advance and then decide you don't need it, you can get a credit for the day's fee to be used toward a different day as long as you cancel the night before.

Do you think the curriculum works well for PK students?

YES.


Can you give an example of an expedition?
-Ask the school. They will tell you what the expeditions are for each grade. My kid is PK4 and it was nutrition. They learned food groups, what foods provide are good for different parts of your body, they went to a farm, grocery store, cooked, drew, sang, interviewed a nutritionist etc. My child loved it.

Now they are learning about building. They interviewed an architect, visited a construction site, drew thier own blueprints, visited the Building Museum. They built a birdhouse- without a blueprint which so they could experience chaos and the need for plans while building. The

next day they built with blueprints.

What do you like most about the community?
-They seem to do a good job with hiring good people.


Did you feel the assessment given at the parent orientation actually helped the teacher better educate your child?
-Don't know what you are talking about.

What areas do you think could use some improvement?
-Not in love with aftercare but it seems to be getting better. It is alright.

P.S. The views of the river, the golf course, the metro train, and the Arboretum are beautiful. Have spotted the bald eagles - the ones nesting at the Arboretum- more than once.

I was matched to Young and would love to hear more. Thanks!

Anonymous wrote:PreK4 parent here. Loving 2Rivers@Young and would go as far to say it's better than the 4th Street campus. Same awesome staff, same awesome curriculum, with a larger building, tons of green space, better parking, and large, brand new playground. Very warm, friendly community. If you have specific questions, let me know and I'd be happy to answer.

Do you think the curriculum works well for PK students? Can you give an example of an expedition? What do you like most about the community? Did you feel the assessment given at the parent orientation actually helped the teacher better educate your child? What areas do you think could use some improvement?

I was matched to Young and would love to hear more. Thanks!

PreK4 parent here. Loving 2Rivers@Young and would go as far to say it's better than the 4th Street campus. Same awesome staff, same awesome curriculum, with a larger building, tons of green space, better parking, and large, brand new playground. Very warm, friendly community. If you have specific questions, let me know and I'd be happy to answer.

We were matched for PK3 and sibling is on the PK4 waitlist.

Current parent here -- we are in PK3. We have been SO pleased this year. I'm happy to answer any specific questions. In general, we love the school, the culture, the teachers and admin, and the curriculum, and have been really pleased with how much our child has learned and progressed this year. The building is a wonderful facility, and it has an awesome outdoor space and brand-new large playground. We wish it weren't located quite so far out, but we have a car, so the commute has been manageable for us (we live on the Hill).

Anonymous wrote:Were you matched in the lottery or are they already calling the WL? (Mostly just curious bc we have some top 10 WLs elsewhere)

14:43 here: We were matched in the lottery.

Were you matched in the lottery or are they already calling the WL? (Mostly just curious bc we have some top 10 WLs elsewhere)

NP here - we were accepted for PK4 though its kind of a drive for us. I suspect we'll give it up if our <#5 spot at Lee or Stokes moves.

Do you mind if I ask for what grade? We are on the WL for PK4 and trying to gauge movement.

I was wondering if anyone would be willing to chat about their experience with the school, we have just been offered a spot. Thanks!