Anonymous wrote:I was really impressed by the Eastern Magnet's open house tonight. The program sounds amazing and the staff were dynamic and very good at expressing what opportunities Eastern can offer. The projects throughout the curriculum sound fun, demanding, and packed with growth opportunities.

Yes, I was also impressed tonight. The teachers and students were so enthusiastic and the curriculum looked great. We were at the TPMS open house last night, too, and it was also impressive, but I think we are leaning towards Eastern for my kid. Will take a week or so to consider trade offs and decide.

I was really impressed by the Eastern Magnet's open house tonight. The program sounds amazing and the staff were dynamic and very good at expressing what opportunities Eastern can offer. The projects throughout the curriculum sound fun, demanding, and packed with growth opportunities.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a great program in a not-so-great school, and it feels divided, like two schools in one building. My kid learned how to write/read/research - skills that are invaluable. And she had fun in all those cool classes. Gym and Art and math/science were not so great. So it's a trade-off. One we'd do again - the enriched instruction is really amazing - but know what you're getting.

I doubt most parents would send their kids to Eastern if it wasn't split up. Easter is a slipping into being a very high poverty baby sitting and ESOL program.

It’s not split up for about half the time. Magnet kids are in the same science, math and gym classes for sixth. So we ARE sending them with the general eastern population.

My Eastern magnet kid hasn't really had any major complaints about the non-Humanities classes—neither loves nor hates them. PE is a little boring, but fine; although she doesn't love math in general, I can see that her IM teacher is really quite good: organized and communicative, and gives them lots of enrichment and application of the concepts; her science teacher is engaged and upbeat, even though the class is mostly easy worksheets with the occasional lab thrown in. Band has been good, too. It's not all that high-pressure, which she likes, and she likes the director.

Her biggest complaint is that the halls are very crowded and sometimes rowdy, without much discipline being applied that she can see (although the halls don't really feel dangerous or anything, she says, just chaotic). Getting to and from her locker in time can be hard sometimes. Says she sees kids in the bathroom skipping class sometimes. Not sure if she'd be aware of drugs or smoking/juuling, unless it were shoved under her nose, but if it's there it's not really rampant or obvious. The facility is definitely long overdue for repairs and updates, and in some spots it looks pretty shabby, despite the best efforts of the staff to brighten it up with murals and displays of students' work.

For my kid, the program has been great. Challenging and interesting content, with a lot of responsibility. Organization and attention to detail have been a huge issue, but I gather that's the case for a lot of kids, and the 6th grade teachers do try give them some support as they're growing into the program. It does cause a bit of stress, but I'm just glad to see her working through all that executive-function stuff now, rather than later, when the stakes are higher.

Her favorite classes have been the 6th grade literature elective and media classes, neither of which she'd get anything like at her home school. Even with the hard work and challenging volume of material, she's still glad she chose Eastern. She doesn't have a very long bus ride, though, so that probably makes a difference.

Good luck OP and your DC. I'm particularly fond of the reading teacher who has become a friend since DC was there. She's amazing and really taught my kid how to read more closely.

Original poster here - These responses are all incredibly helpful. Thank you very much - I noticed some of the projects they worked on (documentary filmmaking etc) also seemed pretty intriguing. Looking forward to learning more at the orientation.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a great program in a not-so-great school, and it feels divided, like two schools in one building. My kid learned how to write/read/research - skills that are invaluable. And she had fun in all those cool classes. Gym and Art and math/science were not so great. So it's a trade-off. One we'd do again - the enriched instruction is really amazing - but know what you're getting.

I doubt most parents would send their kids to Eastern if it wasn't split up. Easter is a slipping into being a very high poverty baby sitting and ESOL program.

It’s not split up for about half the time. Magnet kids are in the same science, math and gym classes for sixth. So we ARE sending them with the general eastern population.

I think it’s easier to supplement math and science than the humanities.

Anonymous wrote:DD is finishing 8th this year, and I recommend the program with the same qualifications the above PPs make. In particular, her math teacher in 6th grade was absolutely terrible, and I think she got really discouraged in math. (I think that that teacher has retired.) Her science instruction has been OK, but not stellar (but neither was her older sibling's science instruction at the home middle school, so that's a wash).

Overall though it's been a great experience for her, even given the additional commute and time constraints. To that extent, I disagree with 11:03 about good but not amazing -- my kid has absolutely thrived in a way that she would not have at the home middle school. In particular, the media classes have been her favorites and I'm amazed at what these kids produce. The NY trip is like nothing else. And the peer group has been stellar. For her (and our family) worth the stress, although obviously our experience cannot be universalized.

As with anything in life, there are trade-offs -- in our dd's case they were worth it. I recommend going to the open house -- that's what sold her on it when she was deciding what she wanted to do.

I agree with all of this - my DS is finishing 8th this year and it has been an invaluable experience. His younger brother is in neighborhood school, and Eastern's humanities instruction is far beyond the neighborhood school for writing and critical thinking. They ask ALOT from these kids, but the kids rise to the challenge. I also agree that Math/Science and even languages are not stellar. The neighborhood school shines more brightly in those areas, especially languages.

Anonymous wrote:It's a great program in a not-so-great school, and it feels divided, like two schools in one building. My kid learned how to write/read/research - skills that are invaluable. And she had fun in all those cool classes. Gym and Art and math/science were not so great. So it's a trade-off. One we'd do again - the enriched instruction is really amazing - but know what you're getting.

I doubt most parents would send their kids to Eastern if it wasn't split up. Easter is a slipping into being a very high poverty baby sitting and ESOL program.

DD is finishing 8th this year, and I recommend the program with the same qualifications the above PPs make. In particular, her math teacher in 6th grade was absolutely terrible, and I think she got really discouraged in math. (I think that that teacher has retired.) Her science instruction has been OK, but not stellar (but neither was her older sibling's science instruction at the home middle school, so that's a wash).

Overall though it's been a great experience for her, even given the additional commute and time constraints. To that extent, I disagree with 11:03 about good but not amazing -- my kid has absolutely thrived in a way that she would not have at the home middle school. In particular, the media classes have been her favorites and I'm amazed at what these kids produce. The NY trip is like nothing else. And the peer group has been stellar. For her (and our family) worth the stress, although obviously our experience cannot be universalized.

As with anything in life, there are trade-offs -- in our dd's case they were worth it. I recommend going to the open house -- that's what sold her on it when she was deciding what she wanted to do.

Anonymous wrote:It's a great program in a not-so-great school, and it feels divided, like two schools in one building. My kid learned how to write/read/research - skills that are invaluable. And she had fun in all those cool classes. Gym and Art and math/science were not so great. So it's a trade-off. One we'd do again - the enriched instruction is really amazing - but know what you're getting.

Agreed. The reading, writing, and research skills my child learned (now in 8th grade) are invaluable. The teachers are all amazing and the classes are all interdependent. Science is ok, it depends on what teacher your child gets, and the math teachers are mostly fine-- the general curriculum covers new topics. However, the commute is very long, almost an hour each way. DD dances and had to go late to some classes. As for homework, time management is key and there isn't too much. Overall, excellent program with great kids in it.

Anonymous wrote:It's a great program in a not-so-great school, and it feels divided, like two schools in one building. My kid learned how to write/read/research - skills that are invaluable. And she had fun in all those cool classes. Gym and Art and math/science were not so great. So it's a trade-off. One we'd do again - the enriched instruction is really amazing - but know what you're getting.

My child is in 6th grade. I agree with this. It’s an oddly divided experience IMO. Science especially is not great.
It has been a good experience, but not amazing. Certainly not worth all the stress parents whose child was rejected are making it be.

It's a great program in a not-so-great school, and it feels divided, like two schools in one building. My kid learned how to write/read/research - skills that are invaluable. And she had fun in all those cool classes. Gym and Art and math/science were not so great. So it's a trade-off. One we'd do again - the enriched instruction is really amazing - but know what you're getting.

I am hesitant to share as it has been a while -- DC is an upperclassman now and some teachers/administrators have changed since then. A couple of favorite teachers are gone, but then again so are two problematic ones (one of those only lasted a year teaching in the program). Overall, it was a positive experience, but DC felt more connected to the program than to the overall school, if that makes sense. The school felt segregated, and at the time all of the PTSA officers were magnet parents, for example. Also, the selection system was different, so my kid went to Eastern with 8 classmates. All things considered, we are glad our kid went there and DC is thriving in high school, but it certainly wasn't a perfect program/experience. Good luck!

Has anyone gone through this program and would you be able to share your views and experiences?

Thank you.