And the ones who are not happy and whose kids are falling behind don’t return. That is the benefit of a private school. You can talk about how great all the kids are because you are under no obligation to continue teaching the kids that are struggling. And all the parents whose kids are there love it because if they didn’t, they would leave. Then they are simply disgruntled.

I think the reason people are mention the kids who don’t get into AAP attending Nysmith is because there are families who move their kids to private school in Third Grade if the kid does not make it into AAP. I don’t have any first hand experience with this so I am reading what has been posted here in context.

I am sure Nysmith is awesome. The campus looks great. As with most private schools, there are some amazing benefits to attending. I am positive that my son will get a great education in the public schools because his parents are involved parents and we keep an eye on what he is learning and how he is progressing. And I would rather put the money that we could be spending on private school into a college fun and our retirement fund.

I am glad that the kids at Nysmith love it and that the parents think is is great. I am glad it is there. I suspect that a kid who does well in AAP woud do well there and vice versa. We all want the best for our kids and are doing our best to give it to them.

I don't understand the assertion that Nysmith is for kids who didn't get into AAP. We have no experience with AAP, but I thought it started in 3rd grade, while most Nysmith students start well before then.

Our kids have been at Nysmith a long time and we have had a wonderful experience. Again, we can't compare Nysmith to AAP since we didn't choose that route, but we have no regrets in sending our kids to Nysmith. Our kids have had classes of 11-16 kids (with 2 teachers in each classroom). We love the small ratio as it is conducive to individualized instruction. The curriculum is definitely advanced and challenging, in a great way. Starting in Kindergarten, the kids transition from class to class for each new subject taught by a subject matter specialist, which my kids love. They take foreign language and computers starting in Kindergarten, and start math differentiation very early. It is demanding, but also quite fun for the kids. They get in the car after school always telling me that they love school, and wanting to tell me all the fun things they did that day. Of course some kids are more advanced than others, but the lowest math groups are at least 1-2 levels ahead of grade level. And the highest are incredible. But it's not all about math - they engage and challenge the kids in all classes, and if you are truly falling behind or having trouble, it seems that someone recognizes that (maybe parents) and the kid may not return the following year.

I am guessing that AAP varies from school to school and some kids have an equally wonderful experience, so not knocking that. But I wish people would stop bashing Nysmith based on an anecdote or rumor they heard, when those of us with firsthand experience are mostly quite happy.

If your child gets accepted to Nysmith, and you have the resourses, do not hesitate to send them. I'm sure you will be pleased with the school. The only parents that I know of that have had and issue with the school, are parents who's children have had to leave due to behavioral problems. Private schools aren't bound, like public schools are, to keep children that are disruptive or disrespectful.

The impression I'm getting as a FCPS AAP parent is that Nysmith is both a better environment for highly gifted kids and is a dumping ground for AAP rejects. The two ideas are not mutually exclusive.

The biggest gripe I have with AAP is that it's very rigid with almost no latitude for kids who are well above grade level to meet their potential. The classes are too big and the schools don't have the financial resources to deliver individualized education to anyone.

Since Nysmith has much smaller class sizes and very flexible leveling for students, it's more likely to meet both the exceptionally advanced learners and the kids who couldn't get into AAP at their own levels.

This is my child's first year at Nysmith. We have been so pleased with the school, that we are transferring our daughter there for next year. Three families that we are friends with have children in AAP. All three of the families feel that the program at Nysmith is stronger than their childrens AAP experience. Two of the families have decided to apply for their children to attend Nysmith for next year; the third family finds the tuition to be out of reach for them but would love for their son to go if they could swing it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids are at one of the supposedly "good" centers. The peers are strong students, there are plenty of excellent opportunities, the expectations are high. The teaching is inconsistent, to put it nicely. I am very disappointed. I have no doubt that Nysmith and others do a better job, regardless of whether or not the kids there did or didn't get into AAP. Look, I am sure there aren't a lot of 150 IQ kids at any of the schools. Most "gifted" kids are a little above average kids from households that value education. So a kid scores a 125 vs 140 on the CoGat--big deal. Certainly mine fit into that broad category and AAP is a breeze for them.

There are a number of reasons to choose public over private but I don't doubt that the Nysmith kids are getting a better education.

With 10-12 students per class? No.

Not sure what your point is. What is ideal in your view? In my mind, 10-12 per class is a great ratio. My kids are in public and we are thrilled when we have "only" 24 or 25.

Anonymous wrote:My kids are at one of the supposedly "good" centers. The peers are strong students, there are plenty of excellent opportunities, the expectations are high. The teaching is inconsistent, to put it nicely. I am very disappointed. I have no doubt that Nysmith and others do a better job, regardless of whether or not the kids there did or didn't get into AAP. Look, I am sure there aren't a lot of 150 IQ kids at any of the schools. Most "gifted" kids are a little above average kids from households that value education. So a kid scores a 125 vs 140 on the CoGat--big deal. Certainly mine fit into that broad category and AAP is a breeze for them.

There are a number of reasons to choose public over private but I don't doubt that the Nysmith kids are getting a better education.

With 10-12 students per class? No.

Nysmith is where the AAP rejects go

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nysmith's curriculum is by far superior to AAP.

Says...who? Again, I’m sure it’s better in some things and not in others and vice versa. As for the awards, look at this hyped up example: http://www.nysmith.com/nysmith-team-wins-highest-honors-in-wordmasters-challenge/

Fcps does wordmasters as well and scores very high, but doesn’t put blow by blows in the connection newspaper

Nysmith didn’t even place last year. Fcps: Spring Hill elem, Louise Archer, haycock, etc all did: https://www.wordmasterschallenge.com/year-end-results-2017-2018

Anonymous wrote:Nysmith's curriculum is by far superior to AAP.

Says...who? Again, I’m sure it’s better in some things and not in others and vice versa. As for the awards, look at this hyped up example: http://www.nysmith.com/nysmith-team-wins-highest-honors-in-wordmasters-challenge/

Fcps does wordmasters as well and scores very high, but doesn’t put blow by blows in the connection newspaper

My kids are at one of the supposedly "good" centers. The peers are strong students, there are plenty of excellent opportunities, the expectations are high. The teaching is inconsistent, to put it nicely. I am very disappointed. I have no doubt that Nysmith and others do a better job, regardless of whether or not the kids there did or didn't get into AAP. Look, I am sure there aren't a lot of 150 IQ kids at any of the schools. Most "gifted" kids are a little above average kids from households that value education. So a kid scores a 125 vs 140 on the CoGat--big deal. Certainly mine fit into that broad category and AAP is a breeze for them.

There are a number of reasons to choose public over private but I don't doubt that the Nysmith kids are getting a better education.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow, are they like, scrounging for applicants for next year? So not even subtle, Nysmith Admissions Lady.

12:04 PP here, and not at all affiliated with Nysmith. I think a lot of us are unimpressed with AAP, wish we could afford private school, and have a bit of a naive, grass-is-greener view of privates.

It is an impressive list of accomplishments, but I'm not sure how much of it is due to the school programs and how much of it is due to motivated kids and parents who were going to win things no matter where they attended school.

Nysmith kids need to participate in Science Fair, since 4th grade. That is part of their science curriculum. For 6-8, they have internal Science Fair competition, and the winners get to represent the school at George Mason competition. Likewise, 5th-8th grades all kids participate in Geography bee, History bee and spelling bee. This year, more than 200 students qualify for regional history bee. So all these accomplishments are indeed affiliated/cultivated by the school.

Anonymous wrote:Wow, are they like, scrounging for applicants for next year? So not even subtle, Nysmith Admissions Lady.

12:04 PP here, and not at all affiliated with Nysmith. I think a lot of us are unimpressed with AAP, wish we could afford private school, and have a bit of a naive, grass-is-greener view of privates.

It is an impressive list of accomplishments, but I'm not sure how much of it is due to the school programs and how much of it is due to motivated kids and parents who were going to win things no matter where they attended school.

Wow, are they like, scrounging for applicants for next year? So not even subtle, Nysmith Admissions Lady.

Nysmith students certainly have an impressive list of awards: http://www.nysmith.com/awards/