Here's a vote for Luxmanor ES in N. Bethesda. Our DD is in first grade, so maybe things will be different as she gets older, but it's pretty nurturing. Yes, there are academics. It's not the first grade I remember. Of course, it all comes down to the teacher, staff and principal. We've been very lucky/pleased with the teachers we've had in K and 1st and the staff and principal couldn't be better.

Anonymous wrote:I have been a MoCo teacher for almost 12 years.
I have found the teachers and administrators at Highland View ES to be relaxed and most nurturing towards the students and towards each other. The principal is also quite relaxed, but very effective. Bullying is minimal.

I wish I could work there but unfortunately there are no openings as none of the teachers want to transfer elsewhere in the county.

Highland View is our school, and our family loves it. I am glad to see that a teacher agrees!

Takoma Park Elem. (K-2) and Piney Branch (3-5). Sweet, nurturing schools that also keep your child engaged and excelling.

I have been a MoCo teacher for almost 12 years.
I have found the teachers and administrators at Highland View ES to be relaxed and most nurturing towards the students and towards each other. The principal is also quite relaxed, but very effective. Bullying is minimal.

I wish I could work there but unfortunately there are no openings as none of the teachers want to transfer elsewhere in the county.

Takoma Park ES is a good, laid-back school. My colleague's daughter goes there. Our school is Glenallan ES in Silver Spring. Excellent new principal, a focus on academics for sure (this is Montgomery County after all) but a refreshing approach to teach kids to be good stewards of the environment, of younger kids who need help, and of each other. They emphasize the whole person as a citizen of the world. It's a very international community. I have never seen this in a public school so I LOVE this part of their education.

NCLB is a total disaster. But I suspect that before NCLB MoCo schools were still this way....and I suspect if NCLB goes away, MCPS will still have its reputation to maintain and that the culture will remain. I'm only guessing...

Anonymous wrote:Feeling nurtured, safe, and part of a community are all correlated with academic achievement. So, if these schools are just pressure cookers for testing, they are missing the boat entirely.

Which is precisely why NCLB is such a disaster.