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Old 01-28-2014, 06:00 PM
 
Location: Orange Park, FL
116 posts, read 194,695 times
Reputation: 33

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I live in Buffalo, NY with my family but want to relocate to the metro Atlanta area. Is there anything important I need to know about how the school systems work as far as picking a school and registering? For example, we were thinking about moving to Tennessee, but changed out mind for a few reasons. But, I read in TN schools, they have like a lottery system...so I'm assuming you don't necessarily go to the school in which the county you live in is in. I'm hoping GA does not have anything like that.

Also, I don't want my kids to go to a huge school where they'd get lost in the crowd and the teacher-student ratio is unfavorable. Especially since my current 4th grader goes to a smaller sized school. So what schools in metro Atlanta are very large so I can avoid sending them there? Thanks.
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Old 01-28-2014, 06:07 PM
 
Location: Ono Island, Orange Beach, AL
10,733 posts, read 13,273,321 times
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Unless go with a private school, your children will attend the school in the district where you live. The majority of schools here are large - par for the course in a large population metro area. There are a few smaller ones, and I'm sure someone here can think of them.
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Old 01-28-2014, 06:30 PM
 
Location: Orange Park, FL
116 posts, read 194,695 times
Reputation: 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by AnsleyPark View Post
Unless go with a private school, your children will attend the school in the district where you live. The majority of schools here are large - par for the course in a large population metro area. There are a few smaller ones, and I'm sure someone here can think of them.
Don't private schools cost way more?
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Old 01-28-2014, 06:37 PM
 
Location: Ono Island, Orange Beach, AL
10,733 posts, read 13,273,321 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pcsn0122 View Post
Don't private schools cost way more?
Oh, yes. And you are still paying for public schools through property taxes. Most of the Intown privates will run you $20-25k per year
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Old 01-28-2014, 07:20 PM
 
Location: MMU->ABE->ATL->ASH
9,317 posts, read 20,908,751 times
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Many of the school are "Big" but they are also Physical big schools, The thing you need to look at is class size. At the Elementary level it really does not matter if there are Four 4th grade class rooms or 12, They will all have more or less the same number of kids in each class.

At the Middle and High school level the number of bodies in the school make a little more importance, due to them moving around the building, but also the buildings are bigger also.

In your search to move to the Atlanta area, you should look at work vs commute 1st, then where to live.
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Old 01-28-2014, 08:22 PM
 
Location: Orange Park, FL
116 posts, read 194,695 times
Reputation: 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by flyonpa View Post
Many of the school are "Big" but they are also Physical big schools, The thing you need to look at is class size. At the Elementary level it really does not matter if there are Four 4th grade class rooms or 12, They will all have more or less the same number of kids in each class.

At the Middle and High school level the number of bodies in the school make a little more importance, due to them moving around the building, but also the buildings are bigger also.

In your search to move to the Atlanta area, you should look at work vs commute 1st, then where to live.
Commute time is not a factor in our decision on where to live. My husband is an over the road truck driver and i stay home with the kids. So as long as a highway is somewhat nearby by when he leaves each week, its no problem.
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Old 01-28-2014, 08:41 PM
 
2,411 posts, read 2,762,983 times
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If you are willing to move further out to Oconee County--near Athens, GA --the schools are excellent and much smaller than many of the metro suburban schools (like the Gwinnett Schools--which are good but huge). Highways 78 and 316 and 441 are there. City of Decatur's schools are not so big and very good, but housing is expensive.
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Old 01-28-2014, 09:05 PM
 
Location: Georgia
4,578 posts, read 5,622,686 times
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In most of Georgia, the schools are organized by counties -- each county administers the schools in their county as they see fit. There are some exceptions, such as the City of Atlanta Public Schools (which are in Fulton County, but are a separate school system).

In most areas, you go to your neighborhood school -- which is why so many parents arriving in Atlanta all have the same question: "What are the best schools?" However, there are other options, such as Charter Schools. Find | Start | Georgia Charter Schools Association These are neighborhood schools that come under a separate "charter" and are administered by a charter committee instead of by the school board direction. Charter schools have to take kids that are districted to that school, but can accept kids from other areas within the county if there is room (sometimes there is a lottery to fill spaces at popular charter schools.

There are also some magnet schools where you can apply for special curriculums such as math, science, the arts, etc., depending on your child's interests and strengths. There are also some specialized schools, depending on your child's interests (i.e., DeKalb School of the Arts). Again, depends on your county.

Small can be good -- but I agree with flyonpa -- don't worry about the size of the school so much as the class size. If your child is in the 4th grade now, they really only have one more year of elementary school before they hit middle school, and while small class size is preferable, it's hard to find in areas that feed into the highly desirable high schools due to the sheer number of people flocking to those schools.

And yes, private schools are pricey in Atlanta. In-town, between $15-20,000 a year. And not much less in the northern suburbs.
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Old 01-29-2014, 12:23 AM
 
10,333 posts, read 11,328,356 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pcsn0122 View Post
Also, I don't want my kids to go to a huge school where they'd get lost in the crowd and the teacher-student ratio is unfavorable. Especially since my current 4th grader goes to a smaller sized school. So what schools in metro Atlanta are very large so I can avoid sending them there? Thanks.
Gwinnett County generally has the largest schools in the state of Georgia with many of Gwinnett's schools having enrollments of 3,000 or more students because of the very-high rate of population growth in the county.

Of the areas that you named on the other thread, only in Acworth, Woodstock, Dacula and Loganville would school size potentially be a major problem because of the continued high rates of population growth in those areas.
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Old 01-29-2014, 01:50 AM
 
Location: Atlanta
2,862 posts, read 3,796,252 times
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I am not sure exactly how you define "lottery system" or what exactly about that system in TN was unappealing to you, but Charter Schools here have a lottery system. I think even with that system, the students must come from the district. Atlanta metro overall seems exceptionally stringent about students attending schools within their districts.

I was shocked to see news coverage about parents being prosecuted for using the grandparents' address, but that's a different topic. I have come to understand that rigidity may have a lot to do with taxes paid in various counties, and many other places don't have so many counties so it's not so much of an issue.

If you are worried about students from a different district attending the school, then that's not likely. If your are worried about your children being forced to go to school in a different district, then that's not going to happen.

For the smaller size requirement (not students per classroom but school), then you'll probably have to select a private school.
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