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Old 06-27-2014, 11:30 AM
 
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We finally bought our home last year and have been considering a new move, but keeping the current home to lease out. we have 1 small child going to 3rd grade and we are working on child #2 .
Current home is in NW Austin, current school is Laurel Mountain Elm..

House #1 is in Laurel Mountain's district...but, dare I say, the teachers at the school are terrible. but the house is to die for with lots of storage.

House #2 is in Cat Mountain and Doss Elementary is the school. Heard good things about Doss but could always learn more. This home is very nice with the biggest yard.

House#3 is off Bee Caves Road and the school is Eanes Elementary. expensive house, but worth every penny given the houses in the area. the house across the street looks like a millionaire lives there.

House #4 is in Barton Creek and the school is Barton Creek Elementary...another very expensive home but it has extras left by the previous owner like a playscape, tile/kitchen upgrades and a fountain with coy pond in the backyard.

and House #5 is in Riverplace and the school is River Place Elementary. This is the biggest house for the money and the previous owner is moving to the Netherlands leaving a King size bed that looks barely slept in, and a gigantic stainless grill on the back deck. So I'm kind of leaning towards this house already but still could use some advice.

Each house is amazing with extra incentives, but I want to make sure I consider my little one(s) and the schools they will attend. Not really concerned with Jr High/High Schools at this time.

So any advice is most appreciated. thanks.
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Old 06-27-2014, 11:36 AM
 
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Big fan of Doss. My two eldest went there - really liked that area too, just outgrew the home.
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Old 06-27-2014, 11:58 AM
 
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How long are you planning to stay there? All of those elementary schools are good, but if you plan on being there through middle and high school, I would go with Eanes.
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Old 06-27-2014, 12:32 PM
 
Location: Warrior Country
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Originally Posted by mm57553 View Post
How long are you planning to stay there? All of those elementary schools are good, but if you plan on being there through middle and high school, I would go with Eanes.
I would go with the Laurel Mountain track & the Doss track (& possibly even the River Place track) over WL - eanes.
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Old 06-27-2014, 01:05 PM
 
Location: central Austin
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In the last two years, I have heard nothing but complaints from parents of Doss kids! Don't know what is going on over there. All the schools you have listed are good, but not sure how to advise you if you don't like Laurel Mountain, the common wisdom is that it is a great school -- as are all the schools you listed including Doss. Why wasn't LM a good fit for your family? That might help us give better advice.
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Old 06-27-2014, 02:11 PM
 
550 posts, read 516,959 times
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Originally Posted by mm57553 View Post
How long are you planning to stay there? All of those elementary schools are good, but if you plan on being there through middle and high school, I would go with Eanes.
This will hopefully be our last move. anchor. We are trying to stay within 3800-4500 sq. ft...

I've heard and read good things about Eanes ISD..
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Old 06-27-2014, 02:14 PM
 
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Originally Posted by hound 109 View Post
I would go with the Laurel Mountain track & the Doss track (& possibly even the River Place track) over WL - eanes.
My wife really likes the house over there. and we both like the fact Canyon Vista is the middle school and Westwood is the Highschool in this district.
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Old 06-27-2014, 02:26 PM
 
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Originally Posted by centralaustinite View Post
In the last two years, I have heard nothing but complaints from parents of Doss kids! Don't know what is going on over there. All the schools you have listed are good, but not sure how to advise you if you don't like Laurel Mountain, the common wisdom is that it is a great school -- as are all the schools you listed including Doss. Why wasn't LM a good fit for your family? That might help us give better advice.
Well, the teachers seem disconnected at most times. More concerned with school events than teaching the kids. my kid came home all the time with tales of making Snicker castles with crumbled Oreos and Skittles as rocks...or ice cream day..lol..and we specifically told the teacher that our kid is not allowed to eat that stuff..and hardly anything about what they learned. this one teacher had to be a diabetic because she would have all sorts of candy and cookies on her desk in the classroom. I think she used the stuff as a reward because my kid came home a few times with oreos crunched up between her teeth..lol.

And now this last years teacher took about 6 vacations during the year because my kid always complained that she was never there.

The Principal is a sweetheart and so is the Vice Principal, but the teachers they employ?...

much to be desired.

I'll guess we'll consider the house by LM and suffer through 4-5th grade and get to Canyon Vista.
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Old 06-27-2014, 04:52 PM
 
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Wow- this all makes me realize how different families can have such different experiences at the same schools. I have a friend who moved her children to Laurel Mountain last year (from a very reputable private school in Austin) and could not be HAPPIER! Lots of praise for her children's teachers, and this is coming from a very discerning parent with high expectations for her kids' educational experience. Her kids have some accommodations for learning differences, so perhaps they have had some teachers and aides with excellent experience to work with her kids.

So with that caveat in mind, Eanes Elementary is another school that most parents I know are quite happy with.

Good luck with your decision!
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Old 06-28-2014, 06:27 AM
 
7,742 posts, read 15,128,422 times
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Originally Posted by OneFormula View Post
Well, the teachers seem disconnected at most times. More concerned with school events than teaching the kids. my kid came home all the time with tales of making Snicker castles with crumbled Oreos and Skittles as rocks...or ice cream day..lol..and we specifically told the teacher that our kid is not allowed to eat that stuff..and hardly anything about what they learned. this one teacher had to be a diabetic because she would have all sorts of candy and cookies on her desk in the classroom. I think she used the stuff as a reward because my kid came home a few times with oreos crunched up between her teeth..lol.

And now this last years teacher took about 6 vacations during the year because my kid always complained that she was never there.

The Principal is a sweetheart and so is the Vice Principal, but the teachers they employ?...

much to be desired.

I'll guess we'll consider the house by LM and suffer through 4-5th grade and get to Canyon Vista.
We feed into laurel mountain too. The kids at laurel mountain are the best prepared entering canyon vista but there are always bad teachers. You have to get involved to find out who the good teachers are for your child. My wife does PTA, helps in the classroom, brings gifts to the office staff etc. Doing this you get to know other parents who can help you to navigate your teachers for the next year. If you dont get involved, any school will be luck of the draw.

When you fill out the form for the next year (already done, so too late) you can use specific language to ensure that you get the teacher you want and any other kids your child should be with. Teachers have latitude in selecting some of the students. You cant name a teacher by name, but you can write something like "my child would thrive in a challenging environment that is heavily focused on math and science." We also met with some of the 1st grade teachers to see who we liked.

Also keep in mind that teachers have lives too and a good teacher could have life events that could be a distraction in a particular year (parent getting cancer and having to go to MD anderson a lot, having a baby of their own etc).

Our neighbor is a substitute teacher and gave us the inside scoop for kindergarten. Our kindergarten teacher was awesome. She sent pictures from the classroom multiple times per week, sent home weekly email summaries of what the kids have done and at the end of the year made a personalized yearbook for every single kid in the class.

We have already discovered who the best 1st grade teacher is for our child. Each teacher has a different style, one 1st grade teacher is very hardcore emphasizing math and science (not for us). Others are more relaxed and nurturing etc.

The music teacher is terrible and the kids rarely ever touched a musical instrument and mostly just watched videos.

Last edited by Austin97; 06-28-2014 at 06:53 AM..
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