Anonymous
Post 02/27/2020 10:39     Subject: PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:CMI is accessible from Park View and great for ECE if you don’t get Bruce Monroe.


If you don't get into Bruce Monroe in-bounds, you probably won't get into CMI, either.


So unfortunately we aren’t going to rank CMI. I’ll share just for any other parent reading this trying to decide - I went to the Saturday open house and loved the campus and the outdoor space and was so excited about it. Then we went on a tour during the afternoon when class was actually in session. Two of the pre k rooms were blaring loud music (ex. Frozen soundtrack). The big bright windows had dark curtains over them inexplicably. The rooms just looked like chaos. We are at a daycare now with a mixed age room so I’m not a stranger to what free play in a class with ages 3-5 looks like - but what we saw at CMI just seemed nuts. The teachers looked depressed and not engaged. Other school tours have just had a really different, calmer feel to me, even during free play time.

I was really bummed because the location is great and I was so prepared to love it, but we won’t rank it.


I'm not sure what you walked in on, but my kid is in PK3 at CMI and it's unbelievably awesome. She's even happier than at her prior federal daycare, which I also loved. Tours are tough because you only get a snapshot and I know that first impressions mean a lot. But our experience has been nothing but fantastic. And, as for depressed teachers, there have been some tough bugs going around school so it's possible someone was not feeling well that day-- but who knows. I've had bad tours of schools before that other people say are great, so I know how it can affect your viewpoint. Good luck!


PP, why do you think CMI went so much deeper into its waitlist last year? And why is the waitlist so much shorter than in prior years?
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2020 10:22     Subject: PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:CMI is accessible from Park View and great for ECE if you don’t get Bruce Monroe.


If you don't get into Bruce Monroe in-bounds, you probably won't get into CMI, either.


So unfortunately we aren’t going to rank CMI. I’ll share just for any other parent reading this trying to decide - I went to the Saturday open house and loved the campus and the outdoor space and was so excited about it. Then we went on a tour during the afternoon when class was actually in session. Two of the pre k rooms were blaring loud music (ex. Frozen soundtrack). The big bright windows had dark curtains over them inexplicably. The rooms just looked like chaos. We are at a daycare now with a mixed age room so I’m not a stranger to what free play in a class with ages 3-5 looks like - but what we saw at CMI just seemed nuts. The teachers looked depressed and not engaged. Other school tours have just had a really different, calmer feel to me, even during free play time.

I was really bummed because the location is great and I was so prepared to love it, but we won’t rank it.


I'm not sure what you walked in on, but my kid is in PK3 at CMI and it's unbelievably awesome. She's even happier than at her prior federal daycare, which I also loved. Tours are tough because you only get a snapshot and I know that first impressions mean a lot. But our experience has been nothing but fantastic. And, as for depressed teachers, there have been some tough bugs going around school so it's possible someone was not feeling well that day-- but who knows. I've had bad tours of schools before that other people say are great, so I know how it can affect your viewpoint. Good luck!
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2020 10:15     Subject: PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:CMI is accessible from Park View and great for ECE if you don’t get Bruce Monroe.


If you don't get into Bruce Monroe in-bounds, you probably won't get into CMI, either.


So unfortunately we aren’t going to rank CMI. I’ll share just for any other parent reading this trying to decide - I went to the Saturday open house and loved the campus and the outdoor space and was so excited about it. Then we went on a tour during the afternoon when class was actually in session. Two of the pre k rooms were blaring loud music (ex. Frozen soundtrack). The big bright windows had dark curtains over them inexplicably. The rooms just looked like chaos. We are at a daycare now with a mixed age room so I’m not a stranger to what free play in a class with ages 3-5 looks like - but what we saw at CMI just seemed nuts. The teachers looked depressed and not engaged. Other school tours have just had a really different, calmer feel to me, even during free play time.

I was really bummed because the location is great and I was so prepared to love it, but we won’t rank it.
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2020 10:14     Subject: PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:CMI is accessible from Park View and great for ECE if you don’t get Bruce Monroe.


If you don't get into Bruce Monroe in-bounds, you probably won't get into CMI, either.


CMI went super deep into its waitlist this year though.
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2020 09:06     Subject: PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:CMI is accessible from Park View and great for ECE if you don’t get Bruce Monroe.


If you don't get into Bruce Monroe in-bounds, you probably won't get into CMI, either.
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 22:58     Subject: PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
CMI is accessible from Park View and great for ECE if you don’t get Bruce Monroe.
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 22:51     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
I’d consider Barnard too, it’s a good neighborhood school
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 21:48     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I would second adding Height. It cleared its waitlist last year so a good safety. In full disclosure, my PK-3er goes there and I know folks count it as a safety but we really love it. Plus it’s one of the few schools with an extended day and before care which allows for a lot more flexibility around drop off and pick ups.


I hadn't even heard of this school! Thanks. Can you share more of what you like about it? Does it have a decent outdoor space or do they use local parks?


They have a really great group of preschool teachers. We constantly rave about ours and from talking to parents in other rooms, we aren’t alone. They manage to strike a really good balance of being really warm and interactive while also teaching them a lot about numbers and letters. My preschooler has learned a lot this year and he is genuinely excited to be there everyday. For preschool, that’s really all I can ask for.
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 19:44     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Thanks all - you've been a huge help. One more quick question - is it worth adding Tubman, or is that not worth it if we're OOB? The location is still good for us.
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 19:02     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:What about Bethune? It gets mixed reviews but the more recent reviews I have heard seem pretty good.


We’re at Bethune and pleasantly surprised how good it’s been. Though it’s 50/50 Spanish (yes agree that 100% is better for ECE), so that may not be what OP is going for. Though I will day not to be turned off by immersion. Their brains are MUCH more flexible than you think and kids adjust really quickly (plus the teachers speak some English to the kids that really don’t understand anything).
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 18:50     Subject: PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Full immersion model is the way to do it. At this age they learn so quickly if they’re fully immersed and it doesn’t impact their school readiness. Studies show no long-term ramifications once they move to English instruction (although there may be a temporary lag in things like spelling that disappears within a year), but they are much more bilingual than with 50/50 instruction.

I downgraded bilingual schools where they don’t start with 90% immersion.
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 18:24     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I would second adding Height. It cleared its waitlist last year so a good safety. In full disclosure, my PK-3er goes there and I know folks count it as a safety but we really love it. Plus it’s one of the few schools with an extended day and before care which allows for a lot more flexibility around drop off and pick ups.


I hadn't even heard of this school! Thanks. Can you share more of what you like about it? Does it have a decent outdoor space or do they use local parks?


Not PP but I went to an open house there. They have a dedicated playground for their PKers and it is pretty nice.
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 16:45     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:I would second adding Height. It cleared its waitlist last year so a good safety. In full disclosure, my PK-3er goes there and I know folks count it as a safety but we really love it. Plus it’s one of the few schools with an extended day and before care which allows for a lot more flexibility around drop off and pick ups.


I hadn't even heard of this school! Thanks. Can you share more of what you like about it? Does it have a decent outdoor space or do they use local parks?
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 16:42     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
I would second adding Height. It cleared its waitlist last year so a good safety. In full disclosure, my PK-3er goes there and I know folks count it as a safety but we really love it. Plus it’s one of the few schools with an extended day and before care which allows for a lot more flexibility around drop off and pick ups.
Anonymous
Post 02/26/2020 16:38     Subject: Re:PK3 list critique - Park View/Petworth
Anonymous wrote:How do you feel about Breakthrough's Takoma campus? You'll be moved there pretty quickly.


So we have to move anyway in the next year or so (new baby/running out of space) so if we got into Breakthrough and loved it, we'd consider moving close to join Takoma. The building seems great and they were talking about adding a new playground when I visited the Petworth open house. The same is kind of true for any of the Brookland schools, if we got in somewhere we adored, we'd likely just factor that into our eventual move.