Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 14:18     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:We were planning on Appletree but just got news that we got into Shining Stars. The new SS location in Glover Park is actually quite convenient for us, somewhat more convenient than Appletree, but both locations are quite workable. What would you choose? Can parents chime in with experiences at both schools? I have researched Appletree a lot, but had not spent much time looking at Shining Stars.

A few thoughts:
-I know that Appletree only goes to PS/PK. This is not a concern for us (as we have a good neighborhood school that we'd choose starting in K).
-I know the philosophies are quite different: Shining Stars is montessori, while AT is structured and more academic. I can see pros and cons to both and I'm not sure which one would fit my child better.
-SS seems to have a shorter day than AT. This could be a benefit for us given that 8am-3pm sounds like a long day for a 3 YO. Thoughts?

Questions:
-How is the community at Shining Stars? Are the families friendly?
-What is the quality of the teacher like at SS? I know there was some discontent about organization, a major change in location at the last minute, etc. But besides some lack of administrative organization, is it a warm place with good teachers? Will my kid have fun at SS?

Please chime in with any thoughts on either school!


I'm not certain about SS hours (though I think they start at 8am - perhaps they finish at 3pm?) but Appletree doesn't start until 8:45am (actually they really start at 9am but you need to be there by 8:45am and won't be allowed in if you arrive after 9am) and finishes at 3.15pm. Appletree certainly doesn't have a school day that is longer than standard.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 13:26     Subject: Re:Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
If you aren't planning to stay with SS till well into elementary, I'd let a potential long term family have that spot and go with apple tree till pk4 or K. Unless you really want your daughter to have Montessori exposure, then plan on pk3-k and starting your IB at 1st grade. Will you be tempted to start at pk4 or k for social reasons (so she is well integrated with her long-term classmates, then go AT).
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 12:37     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:Is AT-CH still in a basement? Where do they go for outside?

That's another factor you might want to look at. SS's new location has big bright windows with a playground right next door. No crossing streets!


There is a playground next door that they use.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 12:36     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Quote:
FWIW, Montessori is just as "academic" if not more so in it's methods which can be quite rigid. It's not a play based curriculum.

SSMA Family PP here:

I agree there is some rigidity to method, but it's not academic in that there aren't drills. Letters and math are taught through manipulatives with the idea the concepts are learned intrinidically. The Montessori classroom seems so ordered and calm vs the more traditional classrooms I toured.


Why do we constantly see the insinuation that academic = drills or that Appletree = drills or even Appletree = academic. I want to clear up this misconception, children at Appletree are not taught by "drilling". Learning is fun, they "play games" to learn numbers and letters and ultimately to read and write (rhyming words, talking about beginning sounds, ending sounds, being read to etc). They are not sitting in rows chanting numbers or letters and getting hit with rulers when they say the wrong thing.


I think that's a really fair point (this is OP). I guess maybe the right word is more of a traditional or teacher-led type of instruction? I definitely don't think a creative way of teaching kids letters, numbers, etc is a bad thing at all.

Ah, i am so torn!


To some extent it might depend on your kid. My child LOVED Appletree. And she thrived there to the extent that she is so well prepared for kindergarten that she could actually (academically, not socially) skip a grade or two. The major downside is that it only lasts for two years and that after such a great experience for the first two years, you might find (as I anticipate) that nothing can quite compare!

That said, the Montessori method also has many great positives. It's just very different in approach. I'd be most concerned about the longevity of SS based on their track record to date. From what I've heard their implementation of the Montessori method is excellent and the results are good. But I'm not sure if I could overcome my concerns about their abilities to run a school after the most recent debacle (with the location) and problems I've heard from other parents about communication. That was why we ultimately turned them down.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 12:26     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Is AT-CH still in a basement? Where do they go for outside?

That's another factor you might want to look at. SS's new location has big bright windows with a playground right next door. No crossing streets!
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 12:09     Subject: Re:Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It sounds like your kid will be fine at either school or even your "good neighborhood school". So if you have 2-3 good options, stop worrying. Pick one and spend the extra time playing with your kid instead of hand wringing over which school to pick.


DH, is that you? This is good advice that I should follow!


I am a husband, but not yours. My kids are both at my neighborhood school, so no hand wringing for me. But cheers to your husband if he thinks that way.


Thanks, other person's DH. our neighborhood school is not an option yet (starts at PK4). But I agree that AT and SSMA are both good options, and we'll be in good hands regardless.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 12:03     Subject: Re:Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It sounds like your kid will be fine at either school or even your "good neighborhood school". So if you have 2-3 good options, stop worrying. Pick one and spend the extra time playing with your kid instead of hand wringing over which school to pick.


DH, is that you? This is good advice that I should follow!


I am a husband, but not yours. My kids are both at my neighborhood school, so no hand wringing for me. But cheers to your husband if he thinks that way.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 12:00     Subject: Re:Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:It sounds like your kid will be fine at either school or even your "good neighborhood school". So if you have 2-3 good options, stop worrying. Pick one and spend the extra time playing with your kid instead of hand wringing over which school to pick.


DH, is that you? This is good advice that I should follow!
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 11:57     Subject: Re:Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
It sounds like your kid will be fine at either school or even your "good neighborhood school". So if you have 2-3 good options, stop worrying. Pick one and spend the extra time playing with your kid instead of hand wringing over which school to pick.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 11:53     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Quote:
FWIW, Montessori is just as "academic" if not more so in it's methods which can be quite rigid. It's not a play based curriculum.

SSMA Family PP here:

I agree there is some rigidity to method, but it's not academic in that there aren't drills. Letters and math are taught through manipulatives with the idea the concepts are learned intrinidically. The Montessori classroom seems so ordered and calm vs the more traditional classrooms I toured.


Why do we constantly see the insinuation that academic = drills or that Appletree = drills or even Appletree = academic. I want to clear up this misconception, children at Appletree are not taught by "drilling". Learning is fun, they "play games" to learn numbers and letters and ultimately to read and write (rhyming words, talking about beginning sounds, ending sounds, being read to etc). They are not sitting in rows chanting numbers or letters and getting hit with rulers when they say the wrong thing.


I think that's a really fair point (this is OP). I guess maybe the right word is more of a traditional or teacher-led type of instruction? I definitely don't think a creative way of teaching kids letters, numbers, etc is a bad thing at all.

Ah, i am so torn!
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 11:49     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:Quote:
FWIW, Montessori is just as "academic" if not more so in it's methods which can be quite rigid. It's not a play based curriculum.

SSMA Family PP here:

I agree there is some rigidity to method, but it's not academic in that there aren't drills. Letters and math are taught through manipulatives with the idea the concepts are learned intrinidically. The Montessori classroom seems so ordered and calm vs the more traditional classrooms I toured.


Why do we constantly see the insinuation that academic = drills or that Appletree = drills or even Appletree = academic. I want to clear up this misconception, children at Appletree are not taught by "drilling". Learning is fun, they "play games" to learn numbers and letters and ultimately to read and write (rhyming words, talking about beginning sounds, ending sounds, being read to etc). They are not sitting in rows chanting numbers or letters and getting hit with rulers when they say the wrong thing.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 11:47     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
PP here, I should note that we left after the three year cycle and are happy we waited instead of stopping in year two, as we had talked about doing.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 11:45     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Because you have a neighborhood school as a back up option, I would hands down choose Montessori over AT. You should be willing to, however, commit to the three year cycle. Just because your child might not like an activity in year one is not a reason to take the child out, because children change quickly and all of the activities, even the practical life skills, build on one another. Kids may not like everything and the beauty with Montessori is that there are multiple activities that attack the same skill in a little bit different way. I have been pretty hard on SSMA and would not send my kid there--I would choose private Montessori before I would deal with their disorganization (and in fact did) because of my personality; however, given the choice between AT and SSMA I would hands down choose Montessori over AT. This is from a parent who has left Montessori because I think and IB/Expeditionary learning model is better for my kid, but absolutely the years she spent in Montessori were fantastic, she learned a great deal, and grew as well. The inquiry based approach within a disciplined environment can't be beat.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 11:44     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Anonymous wrote:This would be a no-brainer for me in favor of SSMA, if the location worked. We are on the waitlist and really liked the school when we toured it last year. Now that there is a permanent director in place, I think some of the administrative hassles will go away. I really did not like Appletree when I visited, and we didn't apply. In the "free choice" time that we saw, I observed a group of 4 or 5 four-year-old students seemingly being grilled on math facts. Teacher was writing on a white board, "1+1=?" and that sort of thing. It was just too structured for what we were looking for. I think that Montessori is more in line with what I'd like for my kid. I did Montessori from 3-5 years old and remember just loving it. OP, if you do go with SSMA, I think you should plan to stay through K, so your child could be there from 3-5, assuming it's a good fit. Montessori works best when it is done for the entire primary classroom.

Best of luck - let us know what you decide!


OP, 1. this poster doesn't understand Montessori or AT if she thinks it's not "structured". 2. her experience in 15 minutes of an AT classroom is nothing like my experience sending my child there for 2 years and visiting frequently. Apart from anything else they do not have an activity called "free choice" - she may mean "centers" when the kids get to chose whether to go to dramatic play, construction station, investigation location, the library etc. While that takes place, the teacher may work with small groups playing games to increase their literacy and numeracy. None of this is anywhere close to drilling. It's also no more academic than what happens in a Montessori classroom.

If you're only planning 2 years, AT is the no-brainer choice - their kids are happy, inquisitive and ready to learn by K - thrilled with going to school every day. If you need a longer term choice, think long and hard about the admin hassles and incompetence at SS and whether you can put up with them.
Anonymous
Post 08/14/2014 11:38     Subject: Help! Shining Stars or AppleTree CH?
Quote:
FWIW, Montessori is just as "academic" if not more so in it's methods which can be quite rigid. It's not a play based curriculum.

SSMA Family PP here:

I agree there is some rigidity to method, but it's not academic in that there aren't drills. Letters and math are taught through manipulatives with the idea the concepts are learned intrinidically. The Montessori classroom seems so ordered and calm vs the more traditional classrooms I toured.