I have an active DD at Beauvoir. I think the OP might want to give some descriptions of the behavior she's concerned about, and that description would help others respond as constructively as possible. I'm a;sp thinking you need to ask the school if there's a parent family you could talk to to get their impressions. Some people will say I'm nuts to suggest this; others will say it will send a red flag to admissions. However, I really, really think that the OP and others who are anxious are getting all kinds of bad intel from posters here (and I say this as someone who similarly believed the rumors until we enrolled DD at the school that honestly now seems perfect for her).

I also will make this point: you could ask the same question of any school (independent or public) in this region. I can tell you that our experiences and our friends' and family's experiences are pretty much on par with what we're seeing at Beauvoir. If a child has an organic challenge that makes sitting still (in an age appropriate way -- remember, it's different for a 4 year old than an 9 year old), parents are naturally going to wonder about how the school will address that. Further, parents *should* wonder about this since it is vital that parents, administrators, and teachers all understand how to approach a challenge such as a child with an inability to sit still during a brief morning meeting (for example).

Does Beauvoir expect children to do their best to follow established rules and guidelines? Yes. Should Beauvoir expect this (again -- note I'm saying "children to do their best" not "children to be perfect"). In my opinion, the answer is "yes, and the school should provide explanations and support for why this behavior is expected and help the children to achieve their best." Does Beauvoir provide these explanations and support? In our experience, yes. Again, OP, if you posed this exact question and you asked it substituting any number of school names for Beauvoir, I honestly think you'd get the same answers -- some dissatisfied parents, some speculators, and some parents whose experiences are positive and whose active children are thriving. I hope you can find some peace with your decision. We certainly have found it for DD.

Anonymous wrote:Our kids are perfectly active, perfectly messy, perfectly imperfect. And they are perfectly happy at Beauvoir. I'm quite surprised at some of the earlier posts.

PP - I am sure they are. That said, there are ranges of "perfectly active, perfectly messy and perfectly imperfect."

Our kids are perfectly active, perfectly messy, perfectly imperfect. And they are perfectly happy at Beauvoir. I'm quite surprised at some of the earlier posts.

Whether it's true or not, Beauvoir has the reputation of only wanting "perfect" kids.

I had no idea Beauvoir had this reputation. We are a VA family considering the school and we thought that the kids looked incredibly happy and acted like normal kids. They were loud, chatty and seemed to be having fun wherever we saw them.

Anonymous wrote:As a PP (but not OP), the above comments about active kids are exactly what worries me - will my normal but more active child be seen/judged as an outlier or somewhat 'different' b/c all of the other kids are so calm in comparison?

Regardless of your child's intelligence, social skills, etc... if your child is more active, meaning has trouble sitting still in group, you will hear about it. I would think that your child would not be the only one like this in the class (perhaps one or two more), but you will be expected to deal with it. Some schools are better trained and more sympathetic than others at dealing with this type of thing.

21:07 is a fake post. Just ignore it.

As a PP (but not OP), the above comments about active kids are exactly what worries me - will my normal but more active child be seen/judged as an outlier or somewhat 'different' b/c all of the other kids are so calm in comparison?

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Beauvoir parent here. If you have an "active" child - euphemism for ADHD, disruptive, or quasi-sociapathic child - stop the @#$$ sending your kids to Beauvoir. With 3 kids, we've spent nearly 500K tuition at that place, only to feel like we're playing Russian Roulette ever year when we get the class placement lists. Invariably, our sweet, well behaved kids ended up with these so called "active" children. We might have well been in public school . . . in the hood. The poor teachers spent more time making sure these kids didn't tear up the classrooms, other kids, or themselves, who could learn anything?[/quote]

I'm sorry, but I don't think a Beauvoir Mom would post this.[/quote]

Then perhaps you should move to a public school in the hood! BTW, my active child does not tear up the classroom, other kids or himself. His preschool teachers give us nothing but good reports of his behavior at school. Active does not mean disruptive or ADHD. Perhaps you should have spent some of your $500K educating yourself.[/quote]


I wouldn't take above posters comment so much to heart. I don't think a Beauvoir parent would be so vicious in a public forum about children in the existing community. Smells like a troll. I will say there are always a couple boys in each class that don't go on to STA for poor conduct reasons, but I don't think 2 or 3 impulsive and spoiled rotten boys is equal to what one finds in DCPS. In DCPS , on average, about 50% of each classroom is below grade level in reading and math and about 10 of the kids in EACH class of 30 are in need of special ed services that they are not getting. Certainly above posters comparison is not an equal one. It is hardly the same as the irritation of sharing a school with a family that is raising their kid to be a brat and you can't do much to shield your DC because they give $$$$$ to the annual fund. Hardly the same.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Beauvoir parent here. If you have an "active" child - euphemism for ADHD, disruptive, or quasi-sociapathic child - stop the @#$$ sending your kids to Beauvoir. With 3 kids, we've spent nearly 500K tuition at that place, only to feel like we're playing Russian Roulette ever year when we get the class placement lists. Invariably, our sweet, well behaved kids ended up with these so called "active" children. We might have well been in public school . . . in the hood. The poor teachers spent more time making sure these kids didn't tear up the classrooms, other kids, or themselves, who could learn anything?

I'm sorry, but I don't think a Beauvoir Mom would post this.

Then perhaps you should move to a public school in the hood! BTW, my active child does not tear up the classroom, other kids or himself. His preschool teachers give us nothing but good reports of his behavior at school. Active does not mean disruptive or ADHD. Perhaps you should have spent some of your $500K educating yourself.

Give Beauvoir a chance. As a PP pointed out, it has a beautiful playground, and unlike other schools we looked at, has two scheduled recess periods every day. Kids get lots of time to run and play and shout. My son loves it.

Anonymous wrote:Beauvoir parent here. If you have an "active" child - euphemism for ADHD, disruptive, or quasi-sociapathic child - stop the @#$$ sending your kids to Beauvoir. With 3 kids, we've spent nearly 500K tuition at that place, only to feel like we're playing Russian Roulette ever year when we get the class placement lists. Invariably, our sweet, well behaved kids ended up with these so called "active" children. We might have well been in public school . . . in the hood. The poor teachers spent more time making sure these kids didn't tear up the classrooms, other kids, or themselves, who could learn anything?

I'm sorry, but I don't think a Beauvoir Mom would post this.

Beauvoir parent here. If you have an "active" child - euphemism for ADHD, disruptive, or quasi-sociapathic child - stop the @#$$ sending your kids to Beauvoir. With 3 kids, we've spent nearly 500K tuition at that place, only to feel like we're playing Russian Roulette ever year when we get the class placement lists. Invariably, our sweet, well behaved kids ended up with these so called "active" children. We might have well been in public school . . . in the hood. The poor teachers spent more time making sure these kids didn't tear up the classrooms, other kids, or themselves, who could learn anything?

Anonymous wrote:We have an "active" child and decided not to apply to Beauvoir. WPPSI was high, loves learning, very social, etc... but, needs to move. We did not want our child to be viewed as a behavioral problem and felt pretty confident that DC would be, possibly by school and parents (I think the tone of several posters implying that ("bad") active children are "unruly" says it all).

That is a real shame. Have you seen the Beauvoir play ground : 10 acres with 4 zip lines, 2 tunnel slides, soccer and basket ball courts, an outdoor pool, swings and a sand box , a garden and a green house. Then there is the Bishop's Garden where they go to draw and journal, Holmstead woods where they adopt a tree and follow its life cycle for a whole year. Learning to build a survival structure in the woods and build a fire from scratch on a camp retreat. Lot's and lot's for an active kid.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Another Beauvoir mom with an active child. I love the school, but if your child ever has trouble sitting through circle time or morning meeting at preschool, I think you should consider looking elsewhere.

Alternatively, you could ask yourself why a 2 or 3 year old should be required to "sit still in circle time" How about learning self -manahemnt one on one at home until KDG.

Beauvoir does not even start until Pre-K. There are no 2 and 3-year olds (except for a very smll program for 3-year old siblings).

Sorry to be unclear. I wasn't speaking of 2 or 3 year olds at Beauvoir, just chiming in in a general sense. I will bud out.