Anonymous wrote:The WSHS math department is very strong, particularly for upper level math, and most of the sciences are fine, but the physics department is a hot mess.

Chem is very strong too.

There is no physics “department” at ws, lol.

The WSHS math department is very strong, particularly for upper level math, and most of the sciences are fine, but the physics department is a hot mess.

OP here and would like to thank everyone.

Would consider Robinson however it would be a more difficult commute going OT Alexandria.

Good to know that LBSS and WSHS both are strong in art programs. Would a STEM-focus student thrive in WSHS?

We are not in any hurry to move. Not plan to move until school is over and do need to consider if TJ comes in play.

Thanks again!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While in performing arts West Springfield and Lake Braddock are pretty equal, the fine arts department at Lake Braddock is far superior. Our family has experience with both schools and both art departments. Visit both schools before you make your decision. No school is perfect, but you can find a school with strengths in the areas that matter to your children.

I would strongly disagree with this statement.

Lake Braddock has a fractured fine arts department with little collaboration between the programs, particularly with regards to the plays and musicals.

The schools are equivalent in terms of fine arts quality, with the program as WSHS much more collaborative than LB.

What are you talking about?

There is GREAT collaboration between programs, starting with this past spring's musical 1776, thanks to the new choral director Andrea Harmon, with a partnership with RL Mirabal for theatre and Clayton Allen for orchestra. They will be performing Ragtime this year.

That is great to hear!

I had always heard from kids in the LB theater community that the theater kids did only the play, and the choir kids only did the musical, and there was no crossing over between the factions due to warring teachers.

I am happy to hear that they have a new choir teacher who now works with the theater program instead of against each other.

The kids were losing out on a comprehensive theater education by having such separation and discord between the two programs.

I will also say that when they performed with WSHS Madrigals at the German exchange concert, the LB top choir did a lovely job.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While in performing arts West Springfield and Lake Braddock are pretty equal, the fine arts department at Lake Braddock is far superior. Our family has experience with both schools and both art departments. Visit both schools before you make your decision. No school is perfect, but you can find a school with strengths in the areas that matter to your children.

I would strongly disagree with this statement.

Lake Braddock has a fractured fine arts department with little collaboration between the programs, particularly with regards to the plays and musicals.

The schools are equivalent in terms of fine arts quality, with the program as WSHS much more collaborative than LB.

What are you talking about?

There is GREAT collaboration between programs, starting with this past spring's musical 1776, thanks to the new choral director Andrea Harmon, with a partnership with RL Mirabal for theatre and Clayton Allen for orchestra. They will be performing Ragtime this year.

That is great to hear!

I had always heard from kids in the LB theater community that the theater kids did only the play, and the choir kids only did the musical, and there was no crossing over between the factions due to warring teachers.

I am happy to hear that they have a new choir teacher who now works with the theater program instead of against each other.

The kids were losing out on a comprehensive theater education by having such separation and discord between the two programs.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While in performing arts West Springfield and Lake Braddock are pretty equal, the fine arts department at Lake Braddock is far superior. Our family has experience with both schools and both art departments. Visit both schools before you make your decision. No school is perfect, but you can find a school with strengths in the areas that matter to your children.

I would strongly disagree with this statement.

Lake Braddock has a fractured fine arts department with little collaboration between the programs, particularly with regards to the plays and musicals.

The schools are equivalent in terms of fine arts quality, with the program as WSHS much more collaborative than LB.

What are you talking about?

There is GREAT collaboration between programs, starting with this past spring's musical 1776, thanks to the new choral director Andrea Harmon, with a partnership with RL Mirabal for theatre and Clayton Allen for orchestra. They will be performing Ragtime this year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP. You're making a good case to avoid West Springfield, PP.

I apologize.

It is a per peeve of mine when teachers or people claiming to be teachers (or principals too) post to dcum during the school day, especially if they post repeatedly.

Either they are not actually teachers and are posting in a misleading or inaccurate way, or they are teachers and they should be in class teaching or working on other school related tasks, not surfing the web and posting on dcum.

And after 9:00 AM, any teacher in fcps has started their school day.

It bothers me whether it is a thread about elementary, high school or middle schools, and I will make a similar observation no matter what the school is.

Or maybe...I am currently on maternity leave and the baby is sleeping. Imagine that.

Anonymous wrote:DP. You're making a good case to avoid West Springfield, PP.

I apologize.

It is a per peeve of mine when teachers or people claiming to be teachers (or principals too) post to dcum during the school day, especially if they post repeatedly.

Either they are not actually teachers and are posting in a misleading or inaccurate way, or they are teachers and they should be in class teaching or working on other school related tasks, not surfing the web and posting on dcum.

And after 9:00 AM, any teacher in fcps has started their school day.

It bothers me whether it is a thread about elementary, high school or middle schools, and I will make a similar observation no matter what the school is.

DP. You're making a good case to avoid West Springfield, PP.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:West Springfield would be the worst commute of the three to your workplaces. Also, the school is incredibly focused on the SOLs - maybe beneficial for weaker students, but stifling for stronger ones. The school has also completely embraced the constant retakes, no grades lower than 50 movement - not great preparation for college. The other two choices are better options.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria.

I don't think you know what you are talking about with regards to SOLs.

Very few if any kids need to take the SOLs there, any more than at any of those other schools. It is silly for you to make up things when you do not know what you are talking about.

West Springfield is further south than the other options, making it a worse commute to both Fairfax County government and to Alexandria. High schoolers take 2 English SOLs, 3 history SOLs, 2-3 science SOLs, and math SOLs through Algebra 2, so plenty of kids at all high schools are in classes with SOL tests. It is absolutely true that West Springfield places a great emphasis on making sure each student's raw SOL score is as high as it can possibly be, pushing students to spend time memorizing for the SOLs as opposed to completing assignments that require higher order thinking and research skills. Plus, the SAT scores there are by far the lowest.

You are absolutely incorrect regarding focus on SOLs. I cannot even imagine where you are getting this information from.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria of the options she presented. Are you familiar with traffic patterns in that area?

OP, you will be fine with any of the schools you are looking at.

I am an FCPS teacher and I know which schools are test driven and which schools focus extensively on mastery learning. West Springfield falls into both of those camps.

90 minutes into the school day and you have spent the entire morning trolling dcum to take about another school's focus and rigor.

So either you are not actually a teacher, or you are a very poor teacher who spends her day surfing the internet on her phone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:West Springfield would be the worst commute of the three to your workplaces. Also, the school is incredibly focused on the SOLs - maybe beneficial for weaker students, but stifling for stronger ones. The school has also completely embraced the constant retakes, no grades lower than 50 movement - not great preparation for college. The other two choices are better options.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria.

I don't think you know what you are talking about with regards to SOLs.

Very few if any kids need to take the SOLs there, any more than at any of those other schools. It is silly for you to make up things when you do not know what you are talking about.

West Springfield is further south than the other options, making it a worse commute to both Fairfax County government and to Alexandria. High schoolers take 2 English SOLs, 3 history SOLs, 2-3 science SOLs, and math SOLs through Algebra 2, so plenty of kids at all high schools are in classes with SOL tests. It is absolutely true that West Springfield places a great emphasis on making sure each student's raw SOL score is as high as it can possibly be, pushing students to spend time memorizing for the SOLs as opposed to completing assignments that require higher order thinking and research skills. Plus, the SAT scores there are by far the lowest.

You are absolutely incorrect regarding focus on SOLs. I cannot even imagine where you are getting this information from.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria of the options she presented. Are you familiar with traffic patterns in that area?

OP, you will be fine with any of the schools you are looking at.

I am an FCPS teacher and I know which schools are test driven and which schools focus extensively on mastery learning. West Springfield falls into both of those camps.

+1000. I'd avoid West Springfield.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:West Springfield would be the worst commute of the three to your workplaces. Also, the school is incredibly focused on the SOLs - maybe beneficial for weaker students, but stifling for stronger ones. The school has also completely embraced the constant retakes, no grades lower than 50 movement - not great preparation for college. The other two choices are better options.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria.

I don't think you know what you are talking about with regards to SOLs.

Very few if any kids need to take the SOLs there, any more than at any of those other schools. It is silly for you to make up things when you do not know what you are talking about.

West Springfield is further south than the other options, making it a worse commute to both Fairfax County government and to Alexandria. High schoolers take 2 English SOLs, 3 history SOLs, 2-3 science SOLs, and math SOLs through Algebra 2, so plenty of kids at all high schools are in classes with SOL tests. It is absolutely true that West Springfield places a great emphasis on making sure each student's raw SOL score is as high as it can possibly be, pushing students to spend time memorizing for the SOLs as opposed to completing assignments that require higher order thinking and research skills. Plus, the SAT scores there are by far the lowest.

You are absolutely incorrect regarding focus on SOLs. I cannot even imagine where you are getting this information from.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria of the options she presented. Are you familiar with traffic patterns in that area?

OP, you will be fine with any of the schools you are looking at.

I am an FCPS teacher and I know which schools are test driven and which schools focus extensively on mastery learning. West Springfield falls into both of those camps.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:West Springfield would be the worst commute of the three to your workplaces. Also, the school is incredibly focused on the SOLs - maybe beneficial for weaker students, but stifling for stronger ones. The school has also completely embraced the constant retakes, no grades lower than 50 movement - not great preparation for college. The other two choices are better options.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria.

I don't think you know what you are talking about with regards to SOLs.

Very few if any kids need to take the SOLs there, any more than at any of those other schools. It is silly for you to make up things when you do not know what you are talking about.

West Springfield is further south than the other options, making it a worse commute to both Fairfax County government and to Alexandria. High schoolers take 2 English SOLs, 3 history SOLs, 2-3 science SOLs, and math SOLs through Algebra 2, so plenty of kids at all high schools are in classes with SOL tests. It is absolutely true that West Springfield places a great emphasis on making sure each student's raw SOL score is as high as it can possibly be, pushing students to spend time memorizing for the SOLs as opposed to completing assignments that require higher order thinking and research skills. Plus, the SAT scores there are by far the lowest.

You are absolutely incorrect regarding focus on SOLs. I cannot even imagine where you are getting this information from.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria of the options she presented. Are you familiar with traffic patterns in that area?

OP, you will be fine with any of the schools you are looking at.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:West Springfield would be the worst commute of the three to your workplaces. Also, the school is incredibly focused on the SOLs - maybe beneficial for weaker students, but stifling for stronger ones. The school has also completely embraced the constant retakes, no grades lower than 50 movement - not great preparation for college. The other two choices are better options.

West Springfield is the best commute to Alexandria.

I don't think you know what you are talking about with regards to SOLs.

Very few if any kids need to take the SOLs there, any more than at any of those other schools. It is silly for you to make up things when you do not know what you are talking about.

West Springfield is further south than the other options, making it a worse commute to both Fairfax County government and to Alexandria. High schoolers take 2 English SOLs, 3 history SOLs, 2-3 science SOLs, and math SOLs through Algebra 2, so plenty of kids at all high schools are in classes with SOL tests. It is absolutely true that West Springfield places a great emphasis on making sure each student's raw SOL score is as high as it can possibly be, pushing students to spend time memorizing for the SOLs as opposed to completing assignments that require higher order thinking and research skills. Plus, the SAT scores there are by far the lowest.