Kindergarten/elementary School Advice in Mountain View

Hi M.,
My daughter started Kinder at Huff Elementary in Mountain View. It is a great school, at the time it was ranked very high(2001), but there were way too many politics involved and we had a bad experience with a teacher (no longer at the school). We decided to go private at that time and visited several schools in the Los Altos/Mt.View area. We were not a church going family, but did not rule out the religious school system. After many visits we found the school for us.
Miramonte School in Los Altos. miramonte is a Pre-K thru 8th school and has about 180 kids. The school is a Seventh Day Adventist School and practices traditional Christian values.
I knew nothing about the SDA religion or teachings, but found out quickly that it is not much different than your standard Christian School. At first we though this is way too good to be true. The kids are so happy! The teachers are teaching because it is what they want to do. The kids are treated as individuals and taught that way as well. The older kids interact with the younger ones and respectfully. WOW! My daughter started at Miramonte School at the end of First Grade. She is now in Sixth grade and we have loved every minute of it. The Staff and the parents are like a big family. The teachers get to know the kids before they teach them and the kids get to know all of the teachers as well.
We have no regrets leaving the public school system.
Miramonte will be having visitors day on January 17th from 8:00 am 'til noon. http://www.miramonteschool.org/ Please join us for free breakfast and lunch while your child gets to know the teacher and play with other kinder students. I hope you will look into Miramonte and if it's not the school for your son I wish you luck in your search.
Shari

Consider PACT, the alternative public school in Mountain View. It's a K-5 parent-participation public school. My daughter's in 1st grade there and we love it. Progressive educational philosophy; lots of hands-on learning and small group work, and individualized teaching; focus on community and citizenship, international population; field trips, a wonderful school garden. It's a small, friendly community of families who are choosing to be highly involved in their kids' education.

Hi M. -

I have a Kinder who started this year -- she's at Huff Elementary, and she loves it. One of the reasons *I* really like it is because it is a very good mix of socio-economic and cultural families. This level of integration is very difficult to find in the Bay Area, where generally one culture dominates heavily. In my daughter's class, she has classmates who are Latino/a (Central and South American), French, Afro-American, East Indian, Japanese, Chinese and Caucasian.

The school has a very strong community of parents, but it isn't overkill. Similarly, the program is a good mix of academics, art, music and science through sensory, and play. They put a strong emphasis on reading and writing through expressive work.

Ironically, one of the best parts of my daughter's day is afterschool care onsite -- run by the YMCA, the program is excellent -- the kids are given both structured activities (art, sports, etc) and plenty of time to just PLAY. The leaders are great, and it is a mutual lovefest every time she skips over from Kindergarten.

All in all -- it is a wonderful day for my daughter, and I wouldn't change a thing. BTW, my son went to schools in Los Altos. While the schools are excellent, there is little cultural diversity, and the emphasis on academics, homework, etc. is too much for kids -- they need to play and create, not spend their early lives studying!

Good luck!

J.

Dear Mother of 2 in Mtn View,

My only advice is just to keep in mind that everything starts at the home front. my daughter went to kindergarten at a public school. my husband and I both went to public schools and we turned out pretty well, all things considered. we tend to want more for our kids and we want to give what is best for them. so what we ended up transferring her to a private school thinking that we will be expecting a lot more, esp when we were paying for what we think is "better education." she started her year there as a first grader. we had her there for one year and really nothing "wow" happened. My daughter did not display anything "special" just because is going to a private school. although, we were expecting something special.
Basically, we didnt get what we expected from this private school. Not all school are the same, of course. so, we took her out from the private school. she went back to the same public school that she started (back in kindergarten). She was very anxious that she was starting a new school and making new friends again and not to mention, that she will be missing her friends at the private school.
We were hoping for the best and her year as a 2nd grader was excellent. she did well in math and reading. by the end of her 2nd grade,her reading and comprehension was at a 3rd grade level. Now, that she is in 3rd grade (public), she is reading in 4th grade level. in 3rd grade, the school is having the students practice on their oral communication by having students give "speeches" or "oral reports."

there are advantages to a private school as well as the public schools. private school, the teachers are not mandated to have a teaching credential, only a BA degree. In public, you have to have a teaching credential and some, if not most, may already have their masters degree in education + they are required to maintain continuation education. They are constantly being trained by the STATE.

Truly, it is your own discretion to decide what is good for your child. I wish well in looking for that right school.

ps. sorry, didnt mean to drag my response.

St. Andrew's Episcopal in Saratoga is a fantastic school. I have a third grader there and my 5 year old son will be tested in February for either kinder or 1st (for entry in August 2008). My son currently attends Future Assets Child Development Center in San Jose (off DeAnza Blvd. between Saratoga and Cupertino) and is in a great kinder class of 7.