Anonymous wrote:Our daughter was at Norwood from k-3rd. The workload was just basic and nothing special for my daughter. I never felt a part of the parent community- quite cliquey and toxic. We left for Bullis and could not be happier- such an amazing environment for my daughter!

As a current parent, I could not disagree more regarding the parent community at Norwood. I have found it to be very welcoming and down to earth for the most part. Maybe it's cohort dependent. Glad to hear Bullis has been great, as we will definitely be looking at it for HS.

I can't speak to the Norwood curriculum in K-3, but when my kids started in 5th and 6th, we found the workload and classes to be very good. The 7th and 8th grade years were particularly challenging. We still have one child at Norwood and the one who graduated was more than prepared for high school.

Anonymous wrote:Our daughter was at Norwood from k-3rd. The workload was just basic and nothing special for my daughter. I never felt a part of the parent community- quite cliquey and toxic. We left for Bullis and could not be happier- such an amazing environment for my daughter!

I felt the same re the workload while there - had to push for more challenging work and they were sometimes responsive to it. I do think more could be done to make them stand out as a school.

My kids went to PDS and loved it! There was no homework in Kindergarten. When kids graduate, they go to a range of schools, including Holton, Landon, Stone Ridge, Sidwell, GDS, Bullis, WES, and St. Andrew’s.

Our daughter was at Norwood from k-3rd. The workload was just basic and nothing special for my daughter. I never felt a part of the parent community- quite cliquey and toxic. We left for Bullis and could not be happier- such an amazing environment for my daughter!

Anonymous wrote:Current PDS parent simply not true regarding HW. This is my second child to go through K and HW was not part of the curriculum.

+1 on this. Wonderful experience, nurturing and challenging in the right ways.

Current PDS parent simply not true regarding HW. This is my second child to go through K and HW was not part of the curriculum.

Not sure of the overall trend, but I know of several families who did primary day and then bullis at 3rd grade.

Do kids who do private preK/K through 2 tend to go to public or private for grades 3-12?

I was given good advice to try public or a private preK - 2 for the early years…by grade 2 you’ll know whether public is working for your kid, or if you did a private preK - 2 you’ll know confidently whether public or a private K-12 is better for them. Grade 3 more spots open up at private schools.

Concord Hill is incredibly warm and developmentally appropriate. It’s small but still has two full classrooms per grade. Two certified teachers per classroom. The curriculum is crystal clear and they use data tracking to monitor your child’s progress but also don’t overly rely upon tech too soon. They start and end the day on the playground. They really seem to meet the child where they are and maximize their own potential. Outplacement is impressive as well. The admissions team is highly responsive. Our family toured countless places and left blown away by CH.

Anonymous wrote:OP… have you toured Concord Hill? Their program is dreamy! Might be worth getting in a late application. It was our favorite place, just sadly too far away.

What is dreamy about the Concord Hill program?

Forget Norwood- just not worth the money. Go for Bullis. If that doesn't work- public is best option.

If you’re WL at these schools and hoping to get in…I would honestly spend some time looking at your public school more closely, talking to current parents. My DS was WL at 2 of these schools and we decided to go public, couldn’t be happier with our decision. Of course depends where but ours is a small enough neighborhood school and is a better fit than we assumed.

Anonymous wrote:OP… have you toured Concord Hill? Their program is dreamy! Might be worth getting in a late application. It was our favorite place, just sadly too far away.

OP here, I have also heard incredible things! But didn’t apply also because of distance.