Reston :
Fairfax Underground
Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
ExcitedAunty
()
Date: September 17, 2009 08:08PM
My sister and her husband are planning on moving to this area soon. I am doing a bit of research for her as far as what good grade schools might be in the Reston area. Can anyone suggest a nice school in a safe neighborhood?
Re: Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
al
()
Date: October 28, 2009 01:28PM
I second the "not Dogwood"
Sunrise & Armstrong have good reps
Sunrise & Armstrong have good reps
Re: Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
graymoose1
()
Date: October 29, 2009 11:01PM
Dogwood
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W.W.S.D. what would Scooby Doo
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W.W.S.D. what would Scooby Doo
Re: Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
mom of highschooler
()
Date: November 11, 2009 04:25PM
Don't buy a house here!!! Your student would have to go to South Lakes High. Please do your research and learn about the rankings of all the high schools according to sol/sat scores.(The fcps website will have all the information but can be confusing).
Re: Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
whatsome
()
Date: May 22, 2012 11:07PM
mom of highschooler Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Don't buy a house here!!! Your student would have
> to go to South Lakes High. Please do your
> research and learn about the rankings of all the
> high schools according to sol/sat scores.(The fcps
> website will have all the information but can be
> confusing).
Good advice here. You need to make sure that your kids go to a school that has the highest average test scores. Everyone knows that the ONLY factor that decides whether your kid will be a smart and successful person or an idiot failure is the average test scores of his/her school.
-------------------------------------------------------
> Don't buy a house here!!! Your student would have
> to go to South Lakes High. Please do your
> research and learn about the rankings of all the
> high schools according to sol/sat scores.(The fcps
> website will have all the information but can be
> confusing).
Good advice here. You need to make sure that your kids go to a school that has the highest average test scores. Everyone knows that the ONLY factor that decides whether your kid will be a smart and successful person or an idiot failure is the average test scores of his/her school.
Re: Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
Carlos
()
Date: May 30, 2012 04:13PM
Not Terraset.
In regards to South Lakes HS: I've got kids in McLean HS (from a previous marriage) and in SLHS, and I gotta say that the difference in the amount of homework assigned differs significantly. My son who attends SLHS hardly ever gets any homework, while my daughter who attends MHS gets at least two hours nearly every day.
If you are concerned about the quality of education, I'd advise against SLHS.
In regards to South Lakes HS: I've got kids in McLean HS (from a previous marriage) and in SLHS, and I gotta say that the difference in the amount of homework assigned differs significantly. My son who attends SLHS hardly ever gets any homework, while my daughter who attends MHS gets at least two hours nearly every day.
If you are concerned about the quality of education, I'd advise against SLHS.
Re: Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
Jill
()
Date: June 17, 2012 11:24AM
My kids (now 16 and 18) went to Sunrise Valley, and I thought it was a good experience. I had some perspective, because my older one had gone to Terraset for kindergarten and the first couple of months of first grade. In theory the schools are all equal, but there are some important factors that make a difference.
Sunrise Valley has an army of parent volunteers, making the class size effectively lower. Having served in this army, I can tell you you do real work with small groups of kids, giving them lots of attention per kid and leaving the teacher to work with a smaller group than she would otherwise.
Sunrise Valley is a gifted center. My kids were both in the gifted program, and every one of their teachers was inspired. I guess that's because teachers love to teach kids who love to learn. In theory kids from all the different elementary schools have an equal chance of getting into the gifted program, but I don't think it works that way in practice. (I would imagine FCPS has stats on this, although I never tried to find them.) A friend with a second grader at Terraset told me her daughter's teacher got all excited, telling her the child *might* be one of the one or two kids in the class that would get into the gifted program. Meanwhile, at Sunrise Valley, when my second grader had to be excused from class for a special assembly for kids who had just been accepted to the gifted program, a third of the class went with her. It looks like Sunrise Valley kids have a much better shot at the gifted program just because they're at Sunrise Valley. I certainly am grateful that my kids had that chance.
Upthread are some negative comments about South Lakes High School. My older daughter just graduated from there and I thought it was a good experience for her. South Lakes has the International Baccalaureate program, in which students who are willing to put in extra effort get a diploma that is respected around the world -- a valuable thing these days, I think, when the American educational system has such a lousy reputation. In the IB diploma program, students work at the college level for maybe half their courses for the last two years of high school. (My little one, who just finished 10th grade, took two college-level courses this past year. She took AP Government, one of the few AP courses offered (other advanced courses are IB) as well as Higher-Level IB Math, in which calculus is introduced). South Lakes offers plenty of academic challenges for bright students who want to pursue them.
Sunrise Valley has an army of parent volunteers, making the class size effectively lower. Having served in this army, I can tell you you do real work with small groups of kids, giving them lots of attention per kid and leaving the teacher to work with a smaller group than she would otherwise.
Sunrise Valley is a gifted center. My kids were both in the gifted program, and every one of their teachers was inspired. I guess that's because teachers love to teach kids who love to learn. In theory kids from all the different elementary schools have an equal chance of getting into the gifted program, but I don't think it works that way in practice. (I would imagine FCPS has stats on this, although I never tried to find them.) A friend with a second grader at Terraset told me her daughter's teacher got all excited, telling her the child *might* be one of the one or two kids in the class that would get into the gifted program. Meanwhile, at Sunrise Valley, when my second grader had to be excused from class for a special assembly for kids who had just been accepted to the gifted program, a third of the class went with her. It looks like Sunrise Valley kids have a much better shot at the gifted program just because they're at Sunrise Valley. I certainly am grateful that my kids had that chance.
Upthread are some negative comments about South Lakes High School. My older daughter just graduated from there and I thought it was a good experience for her. South Lakes has the International Baccalaureate program, in which students who are willing to put in extra effort get a diploma that is respected around the world -- a valuable thing these days, I think, when the American educational system has such a lousy reputation. In the IB diploma program, students work at the college level for maybe half their courses for the last two years of high school. (My little one, who just finished 10th grade, took two college-level courses this past year. She took AP Government, one of the few AP courses offered (other advanced courses are IB) as well as Higher-Level IB Math, in which calculus is introduced). South Lakes offers plenty of academic challenges for bright students who want to pursue them.
Re: Good Local Grade Schools
Posted by:
Reston
()
Date: July 04, 2012 10:13PM
The astronaut schools - Armstrong and Crossfield - are good.
For an additional evaluation point, look at the percentage of kids participating in the free/reduced lunch program. Prefer lower ratios. I'm not saying that poor people are stupid, but I am saying that rich people provide better support their child's education.
From personal experience as a student, getting stuck with a bunch of kids whose primary language is not English drags down the quality of education for all. The kids weren't stupid because they didn't speak English. They took up all the teachers' time with the language barrier and little/no help from their parents. That said, watch the boundaries so you don't end up in a central american (Herndon) school.
South Lakes High School has a bad reputation. Many paid extra for their house to attend Oakton High School only to be redistricted into SLHS. You bet they were pissed.
I figure that this recent redistricting, possible future redistricting, and a decade of time passing will change all high schools. SLHS will get better or worse, or they could be going to a different school.
For an additional evaluation point, look at the percentage of kids participating in the free/reduced lunch program. Prefer lower ratios. I'm not saying that poor people are stupid, but I am saying that rich people provide better support their child's education.
From personal experience as a student, getting stuck with a bunch of kids whose primary language is not English drags down the quality of education for all. The kids weren't stupid because they didn't speak English. They took up all the teachers' time with the language barrier and little/no help from their parents. That said, watch the boundaries so you don't end up in a central american (Herndon) school.
South Lakes High School has a bad reputation. Many paid extra for their house to attend Oakton High School only to be redistricted into SLHS. You bet they were pissed.
I figure that this recent redistricting, possible future redistricting, and a decade of time passing will change all high schools. SLHS will get better or worse, or they could be going to a different school.