Let's think far ahead....Kindergarten.

OhSewCrafty · April 2012

There are two options for kindergarten here and though we still have several years, I'm torn.

The university campus I work at has an elementary school on it and accepts 20 kids for each class level K to 5. So, in kindergarten you basically meet your classmates for the next 6 years, then go off to middle school (grades 6-8) and meet the rest of the district. The school's test scores are off the charts and its basically a little learning lab for the student teachers and child development majors on campus. They focus on team teaching and more collaborative teaching methods which are successful, but different from the rest of the district.

The other option is the regular elementary school in town, which also has above average test scores. C would be in a slightly larger class, but would meet lots of different kids as he went up through the years. At 4th grade, all of the off campus elementary schools join into an "intermediate" school for 4th and 5th. They change classes, have "lockers," can join sports and music groups, and get ready for middle school together.

One side has academic benefits out the wazoo, but children tend to act more home schooled social wise when they get dumped into middle school. The other side has great academics, but also the added social benefits like sports, more exposure to other kids, etc.

If we want him in the smaller school, we need to put him on the waiting list within the next year (I'm not even kidding). We'd get priority since I work at the university, but if we join in too late, we won't get a choice and be sent off campus.

WWYD? What is more important - especially for a kid who is showing more introverted personality traits already, but will be on the older side (going to kindergarten at 5 turning 6) and may require more of an academic challenge to stay interested?

lrn327 · April 2012

Absolutely option 1, and I wish I had the opportunity for my C. I went to a magnet program for late elementary and middle so it was really similar to what you mentioned. I stayed in magnet classes for high school but we got dumped into a bigger school with other kids in it. I have more of an introverted personality too, and I promise that I'm just fine. Obviously he'll be close friends with his 19 classmates, but that is not a bad thing at all. The opportunities he gets from the small class size and learning lab environment will be wonderful. Besides, you very well could switch jobs again by the time of middle school, right?

OhSewCrafty · April 2012

lrn327:
Absolutely option 1, and I wish I had the opportunity for my C. I went to a magnet program for late elementary and middle so it was really similar to what you mentioned. I stayed in magnet classes for high school but we got dumped into a bigger school with other kids in it. I have more of an introverted personality too, and I promise that I'm just fine. Obviously he'll be close friends with his 19 classmates, but that is not a bad thing at all. The opportunities he gets from the small class size and learning lab environment will be wonderful. Besides, you very well could switch jobs again by the time of middle school, right?

This is also very true.

I am very extroverted and DH is very introverted. I think I'm just having a hard time seeing this as an exciting opportunity for C because for me, it sounds suffocating and boring to be in such a small environment. I need to figure out how to take care of introverts. Stick out tongue Who knows, C could flip flop back and forth, but he definitely has his father's personality at the moment. Hehe

Thank you for your perspective!

missmuffin87 · April 2012

I personally feel that if both schools have good academics you should go with public school. The smaller school sounds great for little kids but after a while you are going to want him to have more exposure to typical social settings and the public intermediate school sounds great. But you don't want to transfer him into that setting after being completely sheltered for 4 years. I tend to think that maybe the smaller school would be great for kindergarten and kids don't get that attached to friends at age 6. Could you send him to the small school, then transfer him to public school for first grade? If not, I would just go with public school. As long as you are involved in his education he can succeed academically, but social skills need to be learned in the hallways, yo.

EVM1216 · April 2012

I'm also terribly biased towards the better academic opportunities. Also, if C is introverted he will probably do better with a smaller more familiar group of kids. And at the university there is probably more opportunity for one on one time with a teacher or student teacher, which when I was an introverted kindergartner I needed. I couldn't concentrate with all of the other 34 kids running around, but if they took me to the hallway and explained something to me one on one I got it right away, I was just too overwhelmed to learn in such a busy setting.

Plus, if C doesn't seem to enjoy the smaller school, or he doesn't fit in with the other kids you can always changed to the other good schools in the area. You're lucky to have so many options!

OhSewCrafty · April 2012

rachelrm87:
I personally feel that if both schools have good academics you should go with public school. The smaller school sounds great for little kids but after a while you are going to want him to have more exposure to typical social settings and the public intermediate school sounds great. But you don't want to transfer him into that setting after being completely sheltered for 4 years. I tend to think that maybe the smaller school would be great for kindergarten and kids don't get that attached to friends at age 6. Could you send him to the small school, then transfer him to public school for first grade? If not, I would just go with public school. As long as you are involved in his education he can succeed academically, but social skills need to be learned in the hallways, yo.

This is what made me question it in the first place. At first I was like, well of course he'll go on campus, but then realized this.

Nicole0012 · April 2012

Hope I'm not stepping on the toes of those who've had experiences like your first option, but as a public school teacher, I would most definitely go with the second option. I think the social benefits, coupled with the school's outstanding academic record, make it a no-brainer. I find the social aspect to be incredibly important, as it's a skill that follows you throughout life and can set you apart from others in the career field even later in life (Waaaahh! I don't even want to think that far ahead yet!)

I think I would feel like I was depriving Miles of certain things that I truly value by placing him in option one.

OhSewCrafty · April 2012

EVM1216:
I'm also terribly biased towards the better academic opportunities. Also, if C is introverted he will probably do better with a smaller more familiar group of kids. And at the university there is probably more opportunity for one on one time with a teacher or student teacher, which when I was an introverted kindergartner I needed. I couldn't concentrate with all of the other 34 kids running around, but if they took me to the hallway and explained something to me one on one I got it right away, I was just too overwhelmed to learn in such a busy setting.
Plus, if C doesn't seem to enjoy the smaller school, or he doesn't fit in with the other kids you can always changed to the other good schools in the area. You're lucky to have so many options!

These are the kind of anecdotal stories I am looking for - like I said, I'm extroverted and wouldn't think of something like this when considering this choice. DH thinks its too early to even worry about it (which is sort of right, but still).

Nicole0012 · April 2012

rachelrm87:
I personally feel that if both schools have good academics you should go with public school. The smaller school sounds great for little kids but after a while you are going to want him to have more exposure to typical social settings and the public intermediate school sounds great. But you don't want to transfer him into that setting after being completely sheltered for 4 years. I tend to think that maybe the smaller school would be great for kindergarten and kids don't get that attached to friends at age 6. Could you send him to the small school, then transfer him to public school for first grade? If not, I would just go with public school. As long as you are involved in his education he can succeed academically, but social skills need to be learned in the hallways, yo.

YES!

OhSewCrafty · April 2012

Bump fart.

Nicole0012 · April 2012

OhSewCrafty:
EVM1216:
I'm also terribly biased towards the better academic opportunities. Also, if C is introverted he will probably do better with a smaller more familiar group of kids. And at the university there is probably more opportunity for one on one time with a teacher or student teacher, which when I was an introverted kindergartner I needed. I couldn't concentrate with all of the other 34 kids running around, but if they took me to the hallway and explained something to me one on one I got it right away, I was just too overwhelmed to learn in such a busy setting.
Plus, if C doesn't seem to enjoy the smaller school, or he doesn't fit in with the other kids you can always changed to the other good schools in the area. You're lucky to have so many options!
These are the kind of anecdotal stories I am looking for - like I said, I'm extroverted and wouldn't think of something like this when considering this choice. DH thinks its too early to even worry about it (which is sort of right, but still).

If it's a good school, C will be offered smaller group opportunities and one-on-one interactions with teachers to learn outside of the larger class environment.

lulu8109 · April 2012

That's really really tough. I'm inclined to go the regular elementary school route. I'd worry that, if he's an introvert, the shock from going from a tight-knit setting for K-5 to a bigger school might be a bit much to handle. I am an introvert and I think that change might be intimidating for a kid.

My DH is an extrovert, but C is taking after me. It's really important to me to socialize C because I don't want him to end up like me, hahaha.

Def get on the list for the smaller school, just to cover your bases. Then you can spend the next few years deciding

OhSewCrafty · April 2012

Nicole0012:
Hope I'm not stepping on the toes of those who've had experiences like your first option, but as a public school teacher, I would most definitely go with the second option. I think the social benefits, coupled with the school's outstanding academic record, make it a no-brainer. I find the social aspect to be incredibly important, as it's a skill that follows you throughout life and can set you apart from others in the career field even later in life (Waaaahh! I don't even want to think that far ahead yet!)
I think I would feel like I was depriving Miles of certain things that I truly value by placing him in option one.

Don't get me wrong, the on campus school is 100% public, part of the county school district. Its just more specialized than the others. They don't fill the elementary schools by your address around here, you just pick one and go apply. If they are full, you go to the next and so on. Its weird.

EVM1216 · April 2012

This is probably the cray over protective part of me coming out, but I don't know what a first or second grader needs to learn from the hallways. But I was always and awkward kid that got teased, so I was miserable any place that wasn't well supervised by a teacher. FWIW, I went to private school with the same 50 kids in my grade from K-8, so I may have done better a school with a larger population, but based on DH's experience at the local larger public school probably not. (Poor DD has terrible genes when it comes to being picked on.)

GrayGhost13 · April 2012

I vote the academically advanced program all the way. Kids are pretty adaptable to different social situations, but getting a strong academic education in the basics is essential to all his secondary education.

Since you said you're looking for anecdotes, I'll mention that I was homeschooled for 3rd through 5th grades. People like to share all kinds of negative anecdotes about how kids in homeschool are immature and behind other students, but for me it was the exact opposite. I did extra-curriculars, so I did interact with other kids regularly, but at home, we were really rigorously focused on the academic basics (reading, writing, math). When I went back to public school in 6th, I had no problem fitting back in but I was way ahead of my peers academically. I ended up skipping 7th grade and graduating HS at 16 and college at 19, top of my class in both. And I was plenty social (maybe a 'lil too social in college Embarrassed LOL).

Andplusalso, it would be easy enough to switch him to the public school later if the smaller school isn't clicking after the first year or so, but it sounds like it would be impossible to do the opposite.

HTH!

bosha711 · April 2012

EVM1216:
I'm also terribly biased towards the better academic opportunities. Also, if C is introverted he will probably do better with a smaller more familiar group of kids. And at the university there is probably more opportunity for one on one time with a teacher or student teacher, which when I was an introverted kindergartner I needed. I couldn't concentrate with all of the other 34 kids running around, but if they took me to the hallway and explained something to me one on one I got it right away, I was just too overwhelmed to learn in such a busy setting.
Plus, if C doesn't seem to enjoy the smaller school, or he doesn't fit in with the other kids you can always changed to the other good schools in the area. You're lucky to have so many options!

I agree w/ all of this!

And kudos to you for even thinking about this stuff now! I get overwhelmed just thinking about nursery school.

Five Months to Plan · April 2012

I am a public school teacher and I went to public school. As you said the first option is public but specialized. I would pick the first for sure. I think you can socialize him with sports, music etc. I know middle school is tough and although it would be a tough transition, I think that option 1 could give him a great strong foundation to start middle school. Just my 2 cents.

[Deleted User] · April 2012

I don't want to think about this stuff yet. YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!!!!!!!!1!!1!111!!!!

sokmonkee3517 · April 2012

Get him on the list ASAP! If you think it isn't working, there is no waiting list for public school but if public school isn't working for him, you can't go back.

Sonadora · April 2012

One, no question.

TripMomma · April 2012

I would probably lean toward option #1. I would then add some sports (T-ball, soccer etc) outside of class to get some more social interaction.

kj07 · April 2012

I'm sure I'm biased by my own experiences, but option 1 for sure.

My mom was all about private school education but my dad was all about public schools. We lived in a neighborhood that fed into the best of the three elementary schools. I was a smart, relatively introverted kid. It was very very easy for me to skate along, even with the gifted program I would get bored and read books under my desk. It got to the point where in 4th grade I failed several tests because I never bothered to look up to realize that a test was happening. And because I was a smart and polite kid, the teacher didn't give me a lot of attention.

For middle school my parents switched me to a smaller Catholic school. It ran from K-8 and had about 35-40 kids per grade. I did much better there, but had to unlearn all the bad skating through habits that I'd picked up. I went to a Catholic high school that had about 100-125 kids per grade and had a fine time making friends and graduated in the top 10 for my class.

I had a lot of opportunities for friendships outside of school - I had friends from my neighborhood, my girl scout troop, and in dance and sports teams.

To this day my closest friends are two girls that grew up 2 houses away from me, a girl from college, a girl from my Brownie troop who later transferred into my high school, and a girl I first met in 5th grade.

OhSewCrafty · April 2012

Thank you so much for all of your stories and experiences! Several of you mentioned getting on the list and seeing how things work out and you're right - we can always be taken off the list, but can't be put on as easily. A lot can change personality wise over the next several years and I think as he grows up a bit more the decision may become more clear. :-)

pitterpatter129 · April 2012

I'd go for the university school. You can always move him later if you don't like it.

watermellens · April 2012

Nicole0012:
Hope I'm not stepping on the toes of those who've had experiences like your first option, but as a public school teacher, I would most definitely go with the second option. I think the social benefits, coupled with the school's outstanding academic record, make it a no-brainer. I find the social aspect to be incredibly important, as it's a skill that follows you throughout life and can set you apart from others in the career field even later in life (Waaaahh! I don't even want to think that far ahead yet!)
I think I would feel like I was depriving Miles of certain things that I truly value by placing him in option one.

Ditto all of this...I'm a Kindergarten teacher if that makes any difference

IncogNeato · April 2012

They both sound like good options.

And to be perfectly honest as a teacher, test scores are most highly correlated with the education level of the parents, not the quality of teaching. That's the secret that no one wants to talk about.

So I wouldn't spend much time comparing test scores, since what you're really comparing there is parent involvement. I would go visit and see how you feel about the atmosphere.

watermellens · April 2012

IncogNeato:
They both sound like good options.
And to be perfectly honest as a teacher, test scores are most highly correlated with the education level of the parents, not the quality of teaching. That's the secret that no one wants to talk about.
So I wouldn't spend much time comparing test scores, since what you're really comparing there is parent involvement. I would go visit and see how you feel about the atmosphere.

I was thinking about this too...and hello, does anyone know about what happened on last week's 8th grade test in NYS? Like the major ELA test that has teachers, parents and kids praying that they'll all make it through before bed each night? The gist was that there was this question about a pineapple challenging a rabbit to a race, the rabbit doesn't know if he should b/c a pineapple can't walk, so why could he race? The other animals are skeptical, but in the end they race, the rabbit wins and they all eat the pineapple. The question is "so who is wiser?"

Wow, really??? and these test scores are determining who is "smart" and who does or does not require services. And not to mention they cost NYS over $30 million. Yikes.

Moral of the story is test scores don't mean that much Stick out tongue

utlawgirl · April 2012

Option 1, for sure! Get on the list, at least, and you can always change your mind later.

pitterpatter129 · April 2012

IncogNeato:

They both sound like good options.

And to be perfectly honest as a teacher, test scores are most highly correlated with the education level of the parents, not the quality of teaching. That's the secret that no one wants to talk about.

So I wouldn't spend much time comparing test scores, since what you're really comparing there is parent involvement. I would go visit and see how you feel about the atmosphere.

I love you. My district is now tracking test scores and basing teacher pay on them. I work in a high poverty, low parent involvement school...

Mommysaurus123 · April 2012

I think you should do the on-campus school. If he is introverted, maybe being around the same 20 kids will give him more confidence to speak up than being around 28 kids that change every year, KWIM?

Plus, I would expect his class would change a little each year as well...

I just think it's a great opportunity that I think also listens to parents more than a larger elementary school could.

Want a personalized experience?

Let's think far ahead....Kindergarten.

Re: Let's think far ahead....Kindergarten.

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