They definitely do differentiate in kindergarten in ACPS. Both for math and reading. It should start shortly. The first month is about getting to know the kids, figuring out what they know, class rules, etc. I would give it more time before rushing to a decision about whether it works for you. I don't think the private or catholic schools are that more academic. They offer other things, which may be important to you, or may not be worth the extra money. My child is in another ACPS school, has strong academics, and is getting what he needs. But I also think good learners can learn a lot on their own.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there no sadder phrase in the English language than "rigorous full-day preK"? Poor kiddo.

I don't see the problem with this characterization. There is a big difference if prep level between a child who does a half-day play based preschool vs a kid who is with a nanny vs a kid who is in a full day preschool with an academic component and smartboards in the prek classes.

My child is not in K now, but attended St. Anthony's Day School in Old Town since he was 1.5 years old. I can confidently say that he was in a "rigorous prek program" where he learned to read and write and do math much earlier than his peers simply because of the situation. Now I have heard that SADS has smartboards in the prek classes, so kids leaving there are way ahead of the kindergarten curve and might be bored for the first several months in public kindergarten.

Gotta agree with PP and others on this forum. CHILL! It's kindergarten. Is your child also advanced emotionally, socially, physically? Is he the leader in his class? I doubt it. There is something every kid can learn in kindergarten, no matter how freaking rigorous his preK program was -- not the least that sometimes in life he will have to do things that are boring because the world doesn't revolve around exactly where he is at the moment.

People who are worried about their kids falling behind or forgetting things they learned in PreK in kindergarten, need to sit down and watch a copy of "Race to Nowhere" right away. If you're worried about your child somehow becoming less smart than you don't have a smart kid, you have one with a lot of facts crammed prematurely into his head. The point of elementary school is learning how to learn, how to get along with people and how to be responsible for your work, etc. not taking HS algebra in 6th grade.

I have kids in college, high school and middle school -- and I can tell you that what they learned in grade school or how advanced they were matters very little. I'm sure if I had been constantly monitoring their work and how challenging it was, I could have worked myself into a fine state at some of the boring worksheets or coloring. But I'm not the teacher. So I chose to focus on what mattered and my kids are doing fine.

Public schools have to meet the needs of all kids. When my oldest was in kindergarten in Boston, I think he spent most of his day watching Disney movies because the schools were trying to bring poorer kids whose parents couldn't pay for preK into the school system. So half of his class was a year younger than he was and had never been to any school. Was he as challenged as he was in his private preK? Probably not, but he's now at a top college doing great because he's bright, inquisitive and was always learning new things even if teachers weren't spoon-feeding it to him.

OP, it does sound like you might be better off at a private school -- but no school is going to do things 100% the way you want them to.

Anonymous wrote:Is there no sadder phrase in the English language than "rigorous full-day preK"? Poor kiddo.

Seriously. My God they're 5 and under.

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are there any other LCTA parents who have gone through kindergarten there and can give advice? I have been really disappointed thus far. All the school seems to focus on is behavior and discipline, and not on academics at all. My child was reading and writing well before he entered K there and now he is actually regressing and forgetting skills he knew. The kids haven't been tested yet or broken into reading groups. No books coming home. All I have been getting is a behavior chart and some cut and paste projects.

Will this improve? I am very concerned that he is going backwards at this school. Other friends with kindergarteners in private and other elementaries are doing more schoolwork!

I'm no fan of ACPS, but K isn't for academics. The first half is for teaching them how to be students, which is developmentally appropriate. K isn't supposed to be academic.

That's fine and good but in this area with lots of working parents, many kids enter k from full-day prek which essentially is kindergarten already. Does the school do anything to meet their level or must they sit bored for 6 months and lose the info they learned already? I thought ACPS differentiated in K.

No, they don't. Went through it with two kids and moved to Arlington. ACPS is really a poor system.

That said, your expectations are a little too heightened for K.

Actually, yes they do. My daughter was placed in a reading group specific to her skill set, beginning the early weeks of October last year. The K students worked as a unit for reading, and the children were grouped according to ability and needs. Absolutely there was differentiation.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Very discouraged at these comments generally. Wish we had known bc we had other options besides LCTA and opted to try it over both private and parochial schools.

Oh well, you will likely have these same options next year. I doubt that a year at Lyles Crouch will impact his Ivy League applications down the road.

Anonymous wrote:Is there no sadder phrase in the English language than "rigorous full-day preK"? Poor kiddo.

I don't see the problem with this characterization. There is a big difference if prep level between a child who does a half-day play based preschool vs a kid who is with a nanny vs a kid who is in a full day preschool with an academic component and smartboards in the prek classes.

My child is not in K now, but attended St. Anthony's Day School in Old Town since he was 1.5 years old. I can confidently say that he was in a "rigorous prek program" where he learned to read and write and do math much earlier than his peers simply because of the situation. Now I have heard that SADS has smartboards in the prek classes, so kids leaving there are way ahead of the kindergarten curve and might be bored for the first several months in public kindergarten.

LCTA is considered a public magnet school so there is an expectation that it is relatively better somehow. If you look at 2013-2014 ACPS test scores, Lyles Crouch performed best and is the top ranked elementary in the city. Ranked 150 in the state, which is above MANY of the FCPS schools mentioned on this board.

OP, if your child seems happy, I would wait another month and then talk to the teacher. I think the schoolwork will ramp up once all the kids are settled

As far as ACPS elementary schools go, you are at one of the best.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Very discouraged at these comments generally. Wish we had known bc we had other options besides LCTA and opted to try it over both private and parochial schools.

Did you talk to your neighbors? I would think they would have clued you in.

Well, there have been many threads, but on those threads there are also quite a few people that have posted positive things about their experience in ACPS schools. I know I will now be immediately derided as an irrational "booster", but I really hope OP would speak with fellow parents of current students at Lyles-Crouch (and other neighborhood folks who opted for something else) rather than go off of the anonymous ACPS haters on this site. It's not that I think the system is perfect (really, not at all) but I think the amount of vitriol and contempt portrayed on this site is way overblown.

Is there no sadder phrase in the English language than "rigorous full-day preK"? Poor kiddo.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Very discouraged at these comments generally. Wish we had known bc we had other options besides LCTA and opted to try it over both private and parochial schools.

How could you not know that ACPS suck? It is a huge topic over and over on this board.

The OP may not be a frequent visitor to this site. Plus, this school is a magnet school with a "traditional" focus similar to ATS in Arlington, so it may be above the perceptions of the other elementary schools in Alexandria.

I don't think Lyles Crouch is a magnet school.

Also, I don't think ATS is all that great either. And it also has a rigorous heavy-discipline environment.