Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in Northwest DC and went to a big three. I did not have fun in high school. It was exhausting and stressful and not fun. I worked so hard I averaged 5 to 6 hours of sleep a night. Sorry.

i think it's terrible that kids in the DMV work harder in HS than college. Awful.

I grew up in Friday Night Lights land and worked harder in HS than in college (and yes, I went to a college that even the DCUM crowd thinks is very prestigious, blah, blah blah). Most everyone works harder in HS than in college, because in college you go to class for like 3 hours a day 4 days a week. That is not a helpful comparison.

Do kids in dc privates have to much HW? In my opinion, YES. It's ridiculous. They need more sleep. Way more. They are working way harder than they will in college, but they'd still be working harder than they will in college at my Friday Night Lights school. DC privates need to calm it down with the "rigor." You can have rigor without creating a generation of sleep-deprived stress cases.

Anonymous wrote:If you're anything like me, you will be sorry you raised kids here. It is nothing like that dreamy, suburban upbringing you (and I) had. Especially at the NWDC privates. I have two high schoolers there now and they HATE it. My DD especially wishes she had grown up the way I did, and not the way her crazy, miserable faither, who grew up in DC and also went to one of the elitist privates did. If you can go back to Miami, you should. I would in a heartbeat, but my husband got us trapped here.

Do you mind being more specific (without outing yourself, of course!) DH and I in strikingly similar situation. I'm trying to convince him to move before our kids get too much older (they are in NWDC private lower and middles right now). Thank you!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that you see it that way. I heard people saying they were into their own sports and activities but liked supporting their classmates in the activities they were not themselves into and enjoying the school spirit at school-wide events. Even geeks and fencers can have fun at a football game or school concert. Did you only do your own thing and never participated in the larger life of your school?

Where are the crowds supporting the fencing team? Why does football have to be the life of the school? So very glad to not be in Friday Nights culture anymore. Different strokes for different folks.

The point was that students can cheer other students doing a sport/activity AND do a sport/activity themselves. There should be opportunities for both.

Anonymous wrote:^ so, yeah, if you’re any your kid to have a social life and know that it’s okay to be less than perfect, there are certain “elite” schools in the district you should avoid.

I say this as a graduate of several elite schools btw. I would never put my kids through what I went through.

You can have both. Our kids are top achievers, social and cool. You just have to get yourself some gorgeous, smart and talented ones, stop cramping their style, and you’re all set!

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that you see it that way. I heard people saying they were into their own sports and activities but liked supporting their classmates in the activities they were not themselves into and enjoying the school spirit at school-wide events. Even geeks and fencers can have fun at a football game or school concert. Did you only do your own thing and never participated in the larger life of your school?

Where are the crowds supporting the fencing team? Why does football have to be the life of the school? So very glad to not be in Friday Nights culture anymore. Different strokes for different folks.