Anonymous
Post 12/07/2023 09:11     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:Hi!

Our family will be moving to DC in July 2024 from Australia. We have two kids 12(m) and 9(f)

Reading various posts it seems schooling can be tricky in DC.

We have applied for schools like WIS and the British International school. Also not opposed to public schools.

Any other private / public school suggestions for a couple of pretty nice kids who are a bit nerdy, relaxed and are from a pretty progressive family?

A sense of which schools are easier to get into would also be appreciated if possible.

Thanks so much!


I wouldnt do wis or british international school. I sent my kids to british school and would not recommend a for profit school. I had friends who sent their kid to wis and it was mixed.

I dont live in dc proper but i'm sure someone can give you tips. I personally think these schools are overpriced.. sidwell, gds unless your company is paying i woukdnt do it.

Anonymous
Post 12/07/2023 09:09     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Potomac School is disliked by the NW DC crowd, probably because it is (just barely) across the river in Virginia. It has good school bus service to NW DC, ith a regular schedule. There actually are a fair number of Potomac students who live in NW DC. So it might be another option.
Anonymous
Post 12/07/2023 08:56     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Thanks so much for all the responses! So much good information.

We will be living near the Naval Observatory in north west DC. So Sidwell, WIS campuses and the British School are close by. Other schools in the area appear to be Maret, Edmund Burke, National Cathedral girls, Sheridan. Very open to travel if it means the kids feel happy and safe!

We will be in DC for a few years only.

Cathedral schools (National Cathedral for girls and St Albans for boys) are both very close (around the National Cathedral). Both schools start in 4th grade. You need to apply now for next year.

You have a good list. What grades will your children be in next? I would suggest looking beyond the international (British School and WIS), particularly if you are only staying a year or two. A K-8 like Sheridan might be good in this instance because it is small and absorbs new kids pretty easily. (Meaning they are very welcome and adapt quickly.) They have a number of diplomatic families as well. It just depends on whether you will have any high schoolers during your stay here.



Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 21:48     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Thanks so much for all the responses! So much good information.

We will be living near the Naval Observatory in north west DC. So Sidwell, WIS campuses and the British School are close by. Other schools in the area appear to be Maret, Edmund Burke, National Cathedral girls, Sheridan. Very open to travel if it means the kids feel happy and safe!

We will be in DC for a few years only.

Cathedral schools (National Cathedral for girls and St Albans for boys) are both very close (around the National Cathedral). Both schools start in 4th grade. You need to apply now for next year.



This is very important. Deadlines for the 2024-25 school year are the first week in January. You really need to apply ASAP.
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 17:28     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:Oh, and the US notoriously does not use Commonwealth English spelling, so your kids might need to adapt if in a US private/public rather than an international school.


Correction - the US underwent a spelling reform with Webster making many words follow a consistent set of rules and patterns. British English has not had a similar spelling reform and is more inconsistent.
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 17:21     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Aussie here.

The embassy will not give you advice for obvious reasons. However, if you reach out to the Community Liaison Officer they may connect you to the informal parent groups which exist and these could be an invaluable source of advice. Try this email clo.washington@dfat.gov.au. Almost all of the embassy’s Australian families send their children to public schools.

Regarding privates, presumably you’re aware of the steep fees compared to many Australian schools and the application deadlines. If you have already applied to WIS, presumably you’re aware that your youngest would be entering the full language immersion programme ( I think!) and your eldest would have some serious language classes.


Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 16:56     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:Thanks so much for all the responses! So much good information.

We will be living near the Naval Observatory in north west DC. So Sidwell, WIS campuses and the British School are close by. Other schools in the area appear to be Maret, Edmund Burke, National Cathedral girls, Sheridan. Very open to travel if it means the kids feel happy and safe!

We will be in DC for a few years only.

Cathedral schools (National Cathedral for girls and St Albans for boys) are both very close (around the National Cathedral). Both schools start in 4th grade. You need to apply now for next year.







Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 15:46     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
There’s an Aussie dad that I know well at Maret. He seems to be fairly well tolerated even though he can’t understand soccer rules, only cricket. And tuition is still a bit lower than peer schools, so I definitely recommend taking a look.
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 15:29     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Thanks so much for all the responses! So much good information.

We will be living near the Naval Observatory in north west DC. So Sidwell, WIS campuses and the British School are close by. Other schools in the area appear to be Maret, Edmund Burke, National Cathedral girls, Sheridan. Very open to travel if it means the kids feel happy and safe!

We will be in DC for a few years only.







Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 14:49     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:Check out Oneness-Family School, it's a Montessori school in Chevy Chase, MD and goes up through Middle School (there's a high school too, but different location). It's a very international school - my 9 year old is there now and doing great - relaxed, nerdy, and pretty progressive are definitely words I would use to describe his classmates/families! And, it's pretty easy to get into too


Different PP here, question, is it true they blend the classrooms, and it is really unstructured?
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 14:31     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:The above is good info BUT no one has mentioned the annual cost of tuition! Many private school in and around dc are quite expensive — more than $35,000 per year per student


Closer to (or above) $50K, but who's counting?
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 13:35     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:Any other private / public school suggestions for a couple of pretty nice kids who are a bit nerdy, relaxed and are from a pretty progressive family?


If you're considering living in Maryland, you'd get more responses about public schools in the Montgomery County Public Schools forum: https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/show/44.page
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 13:30     Subject: Re:Australian needing advice on schools
I have worked with a number of different Aussies and their kids attended public schools in FCPS.
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 13:15     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Anonymous wrote:The above is good info BUT no one has mentioned the annual cost of tuition! Many private school in and around dc are quite expensive — more than $35,000 per year per student


Too private schools are actually 50+
Anonymous
Post 12/06/2023 13:11     Subject: Australian needing advice on schools
Where you live is by far the most important factor.