Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can’t tell if this is a serious post or not. You want to send your kid to public school but don’t like or approve of everything that happens in a public school?

OP here. This is a serious post. We can’t homeschool and can’t afford most private schools. So this is what we have.

I realize my views are outside of the norm but also feel that being on screens, testing, being given homework, and being graded this young are all detrimental to the experience of childhood and unnecessary.

If any other parents hold similar views, how have you coped? I think you can opt out of homework? We would stay screen-free at home.

We lived in DC and sent our kids to a charter Montessori. Which everyone else in this thread send to not understand is also public school. Then we moved to MCPS when they were older and sadly everything is on screens

OP here. I truly wish there were public Montessori options. I think PG County also has a public Montessori.

You are both professionals, with degrees for Ivy's or strong schools, as you brag. Change jobs and find a way to pay for private. How do you pay for child care now? Or, homeschool.

Where’s the brag? I literally said in the first post that we sacrificed our childhoods for academics.

Hearing mixed responses, it sounds like MCPS might be better than I feared in the early years and that looking into alternatives isn’t a bad idea.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can’t tell if this is a serious post or not. You want to send your kid to public school but don’t like or approve of everything that happens in a public school?

OP here. This is a serious post. We can’t homeschool and can’t afford most private schools. So this is what we have.

I realize my views are outside of the norm but also feel that being on screens, testing, being given homework, and being graded this young are all detrimental to the experience of childhood and unnecessary.

If any other parents hold similar views, how have you coped? I think you can opt out of homework? We would stay screen-free at home.

We lived in DC and sent our kids to a charter Montessori. Which everyone else in this thread send to not understand is also public school. Then we moved to MCPS when they were older and sadly everything is on screens

OP here. I truly wish there were public Montessori options. I think PG County also has a public Montessori.

You are both professionals, with degrees for Ivy's or strong schools, as you brag. Change jobs and find a way to pay for private. How do you pay for child care now? Or, homeschool.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can’t tell if this is a serious post or not. You want to send your kid to public school but don’t like or approve of everything that happens in a public school?

OP here. This is a serious post. We can’t homeschool and can’t afford most private schools. So this is what we have.

I realize my views are outside of the norm but also feel that being on screens, testing, being given homework, and being graded this young are all detrimental to the experience of childhood and unnecessary.

If any other parents hold similar views, how have you coped? I think you can opt out of homework? We would stay screen-free at home.

We lived in DC and sent our kids to a charter Montessori. Which everyone else in this thread send to not understand is also public school. Then we moved to MCPS when they were older and sadly everything is on screens

OP here. I truly wish there were public Montessori options. I think PG County also has a public Montessori.

Can you relocate to a rural area, smaller city, or different part of the country? You will not find that sort of healthy environment in the DC area.

Or just going farther out, you may find a healthier environment. There is a low-cost private that fits your description but it is near Baltimore.

Starting in MS, it is screens all the time at MCPS.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can’t tell if this is a serious post or not. You want to send your kid to public school but don’t like or approve of everything that happens in a public school?

OP here. This is a serious post. We can’t homeschool and can’t afford most private schools. So this is what we have.

I realize my views are outside of the norm but also feel that being on screens, testing, being given homework, and being graded this young are all detrimental to the experience of childhood and unnecessary.

If any other parents hold similar views, how have you coped? I think you can opt out of homework? We would stay screen-free at home.

We lived in DC and sent our kids to a charter Montessori. Which everyone else in this thread send to not understand is also public school. Then we moved to MCPS when they were older and sadly everything is on screens

OP here. I truly wish there were public Montessori options. I think PG County also has a public Montessori.

Takoma Park parent here with two kids who have gone through the public schools. I think you will find like minded families. it can be helpful to reach out, organize with them, and reinforce norms related to screens and in favor of in person and outdoor play. Screen use in classrooms ramped way up during the pandemic across the county and Takoma schools were no different. If there has been a failure to recalibrate post-pandemuc, my sense is that its not because there's a cohort of meritocratic parents in love with testing and measurement but that the schools are trying to do a lot with a little and somehow got stuck in the trap of digitized platforms being the solution. It's wrongheaded but i think parents can assert some boundaries with teachers, share their concerns with principals and the PTA regularly, and band together to create healthier norms within friend groups.

You won't need to worry about grades. In kindergarten and 1st, the "grades" aren't letter grades. Instead, it is language about "demonstrating", "progressing," "not yet demonstrated," etc. This is helpful to see where your child may have some needs to work on at home. Not necessarily academic topics, either. The topics are things like following directions, for example. That is also why homework isn't anything to worry about for the first few years. There is no graded work in kindergarten and first grade. They start to give grades in 2nd grade at TPES (maybe everywhere, I don't know). There are plenty of parents at TPES who are no screen or low screen families, but also plenty who use screens regularly. It's a mix. You will be able to find other parents who have the same no screen approach, but your child may make friends with families who have different ideas about screens. Since you asked for tips, hosting playdates at your house can help make sure the playdate is about play and not watching TV together. In addition, there are some good after school programs that pick up from TPES (walking) and have an outdoor component. I think Nature Lab is one.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to get some perspective. We are a no-screens family hoping our child can receive a low pressure but meaningful education. We aren’t fans of testing, grades, or homework. We prioritize outdoor time. Both parents went to public school and did well but feel we sacrificed our childhoods for school and want to avoid that for our kids.

How crazy is MCPS going to make us feel? Is there anything we can do to have a better experience? Zoned to Takoma ES for kindergarten next year.

\

Get parenting classes.

Move your kids to a small religious private they don't value education just like you.

There is seriously something wrong with you or you are a troll.

This is OP. I’m an Ivy grad and my husband also went to a prestigious college. We value education, but done in a healthy manner.

To others providing helpful responses and clarification, thank you!!

You can afford private.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to get some perspective. We are a no-screens family hoping our child can receive a low pressure but meaningful education. We aren’t fans of testing, grades, or homework. We prioritize outdoor time. Both parents went to public school and did well but feel we sacrificed our childhoods for school and want to avoid that for our kids.

How crazy is MCPS going to make us feel? Is there anything we can do to have a better experience? Zoned to Takoma ES for kindergarten next year.

You might be okay until 2nd or 3rd grade. After that, testing. Testing on screens. More screen time in 4th and 5th. Then major screen time in 6-12.

Takoma Park MS has gone downhill. I don't know if that trend will continue.

Agree. Unfortunately the current principal is a disaster. Dr G at TPES is great though

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can’t tell if this is a serious post or not. You want to send your kid to public school but don’t like or approve of everything that happens in a public school?

OP here. This is a serious post. We can’t homeschool and can’t afford most private schools. So this is what we have.

I realize my views are outside of the norm but also feel that being on screens, testing, being given homework, and being graded this young are all detrimental to the experience of childhood and unnecessary.

If any other parents hold similar views, how have you coped? I think you can opt out of homework? We would stay screen-free at home.

We lived in DC and sent our kids to a charter Montessori. Which everyone else in this thread send to not understand is also public school. Then we moved to MCPS when they were older and sadly everything is on screens

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to get some perspective. We are a no-screens family hoping our child can receive a low pressure but meaningful education. We aren’t fans of testing, grades, or homework. We prioritize outdoor time. Both parents went to public school and did well but feel we sacrificed our childhoods for school and want to avoid that for our kids.

How crazy is MCPS going to make us feel? Is there anything we can do to have a better experience? Zoned to Takoma ES for kindergarten next year.

\

Get parenting classes.

Move your kids to a small religious private they don't value education just like you.

There is seriously something wrong with you or you are a troll.

This is OP. I’m an Ivy grad and my husband also went to a prestigious college. We value education, but done in a healthy manner.

To others providing helpful responses and clarification, thank you!!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can’t tell if this is a serious post or not. You want to send your kid to public school but don’t like or approve of everything that happens in a public school?

OP here. This is a serious post. We can’t homeschool and can’t afford most private schools. So this is what we have.

I realize my views are outside of the norm but also feel that being on screens, testing, being given homework, and being graded this young are all detrimental to the experience of childhood and unnecessary.

If any other parents hold similar views, how have you coped? I think you can opt out of homework? We would stay screen-free at home.

We sent our kid to private. 🙃

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to get some perspective. We are a no-screens family hoping our child can receive a low pressure but meaningful education. We aren’t fans of testing, grades, or homework. We prioritize outdoor time. Both parents went to public school and did well but feel we sacrificed our childhoods for school and want to avoid that for our kids.

How crazy is MCPS going to make us feel? Is there anything we can do to have a better experience? Zoned to Takoma ES for kindergarten next year.

You might be okay until 2nd or 3rd grade. After that, testing. Testing on screens. More screen time in 4th and 5th. Then major screen time in 6-12.

Takoma Park MS has gone downhill. I don't know if that trend will continue.

It is easy to simply opt out of homework in K-2 at TPES. As long as your kiddo understands the material, there is no need to reinforce with a worksheet at home, and we haven't ever had any teachers worry about it. To get more movement, because outdoor time is limited, walk to and from school if you can. Plenty of people walk with their kindergarteners, it is a mile for us and no problem. That also avoids your kids watching cartoons while they wait for the bus at the end of the day. As for screens in class, it depends on the teacher but there is a huge flatscreen that takes the place of a blackboard and they write on that and show visuals. It is actually kind of cool. But the reality is that screens are integrated into the curriculum. I wish there was more physical activity, but that is just the reality of public school these days.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can’t tell if this is a serious post or not. You want to send your kid to public school but don’t like or approve of everything that happens in a public school?

OP here. This is a serious post. We can’t homeschool and can’t afford most private schools. So this is what we have.

I realize my views are outside of the norm but also feel that being on screens, testing, being given homework, and being graded this young are all detrimental to the experience of childhood and unnecessary.

If any other parents hold similar views, how have you coped? I think you can opt out of homework? We would stay screen-free at home.

K-2 "homework" takes 10 minutes. It isn't graded. It's one math worksheet. You could skip it, but it's just practice. And then there are "tricky words," etc. which you're already doing anyway through reading with your kid. It's really not a hill to die on.

I don’t think their academics are great but you don’t want academics and need child care so try this place. https://www.silveroakscooperative.org/