Dallas Private Pre Schools (Lamplighter and St. Alcuin) (Spring, Early: spring break, house)

[BATexan]

Our 3 yr old just got into both programs (Early Childhood at Lamplighter and Primary at St. Alcuin) and I was wondering if anyone has first hand experience with either of these schools? I know they're both great programs but we don't have much info on either school besides the general informational materials from the admissions offices.

Would love to hear any thoughts!

[FarNorthDallas]

If I had that decision to make, I would go with Lamplighter.

[BATexan]

I know they're both highly regarded. Is there anything in particular driving that comment (e.g., preference for non-montessori, history of the programs, your kids' experiences)?

Thanks!

[TXNGL]

Originally Posted by BATexan

Our 3 yr old just got into both programs (Early Childhood at Lamplighter and Primary at St. Alcuin) and I was wondering if anyone has first hand experience with either of these schools? I know they're both great programs but we don't have much info on either school besides the general informational materials from the admissions offices.

Would love to hear any thoughts!

Way back in the stone age , I went to Lamplighter. Seriously, it was a looong time ago so I'm not much help here, but one thing I'd keep in mind is that Lamplighter ends in 4th grade, St. Alcuin ends in 8th. Most people at Lamplighter are going to want their children to go on to another private school for 5th grade...all those 4th graders are going to be competing for spots at schools with only a few openings for 5th grade. That would make me nervous. At the same time, they must be doing something right because after all these years they haven't extended the program to 6th grade, which seems to me a more "normal" cut-off time if you're trying to send your kid onto one of the elite Dallas private schools.
Just something to keep in mind. Good luck!

[FarNorthDallas]

Well, I think some of the other private schools admit a bigger group at 5th grade due to Lamplighter kids coming in.

I looked at St. Alcuin way back when and I toured it and went to the parent's meeting and I was so impressed. But, alas, they told all of us there at the open house that they were full and the waiting list was full, too. This was back in the dot.com boom when folks were flush with funds.

I did not look at Lamplighter as there was simply no hope of getting in. But I am a Dallas native and my son is in a private school that gets kids from all over the place including St. Alcuin and Lamplighter and the reports I hear now are Lamplighter is still just amazing, but St. Alcuin isn't as great as it once was, although still good. Course, you have to consider whether you want Montessori or not. Turns out my son would not have done well with Montessori as he isn't particularly self-motivating when it comes to academics. He just doesn't buy in, so he needs direct instruction. A lot of it. Constantly.

I would also say now is the time to get into a hard to get into private school like Lamplighter. I bet numbers are down for next year for some schools due to the economy. My friend works for a country club and says resignations are coming in every single day - and this is one of the more expensive clubs in town - and these are the people whose kids are in private schools.

[TXNGL]

Well, I think some of the other private schools admit a bigger group at 5th grade due to Lamplighter kids coming in. >>

I wondered if that was the case. Something else I wanted to add for the poster, have you toured the schools? I can't speak for St. Alcuin, but Lamplighter's campus is beautiful.

[Big G]

The big-name private schools (St. Mark's, Greenhill, etc.) DO increase their class size at 5th grade, but it's a pretty big leap to assume they do that solely to accomodate Lamplighter kids. For the private schools, 5th grade marks the start of middle school, and it's a logical entry point for new students, where 4th grade and 6th grade would not be.

The 5th grade spots are still very heavily contested. Athletic skill seems to be a not-insignificant factor - the schools are already looking ahead to building their HS sports teams at this grade level.

As far as the original question - St. Alcuin is full-blown Montessori, so make sure you understand and and comfortable with that approach. The type of people who are into the Montessori philosophy and the type of people who send their kids to Dallas private schools would seem, to me, to have little overlap. YMMV.

[BATexan]

[/quote]
As far as the original question - St. Alcuin is full-blown Montessori, so make sure you understand and and comfortable with that approach. The type of people who are into the Montessori philosophy and the type of people who send their kids to Dallas private schools would seem, to me, to have little overlap. YMMV.[/quote]

Thanks for the info. It sounds like people may actually move their kids into the K-12 private schools earlier (St. Marks, Greenhill, Hockaday, etc.), so they don't end up having to stress about transitioning them at 5th grade.

Btw, what is YMMV? Do you think most people who send their kids to private school are pretentious, status seeking folks who are less interested in child development? I defn hope that's not the case.

[BATexan]

Thanks TXNGL and FarNorthDallas...good to know you had a good experience there (albeit a while ago)! Have toured both facilities and they're both really nice.

FND - have you heard anything specific about St. Alcuin or is it just a broad sense that things have diminished?

[jtrichel]

Take it from someone who now has a Ph.D in this topic :-)

We researched this whole situation quite extensively. We have two boys and we have an ultimate goal of getting them into Cistercian or St. Marks, in that order of preference. One thing that Lamplighter has on their website that you might not have noticed is placement statistics for their "graduating" 4th graders. It is what sealed the deal for us. Check this out: The Lamplighter School: Beyond Lamplighter

Approximately 3-4 per year going Cistercian, 7-8 going to St. Marks... that's every single year. to The truly skeptical might point out that many of these kids come from involved parents, high wealth/connected, etc. so that they would be entering these private schools anyway. While that may be partially true, who cares?...I think that the statistics are pretty impressive, especially for Cistercian, which is arguably one of the (if not the) most difficult school to get into in the area.

Of course, all of this doesn't mean that Lamplighter (or even private school) is "better" than public school, etc. Some will find all this a bit ridiculous for 3 year olds... but we have determined that there does seem to be some pre-k/K/lower schools that have better history of preparing young kids for the more rigorous private school environments.

All this said, we have one boy in his second year at Lamplighter and another to start the following. We have been pleased overall. Depending on your personal style, etc. you might find the North Dallas bubble factor a bit annoying at times (we do), but there are more "normal" families there too. The school knows how popular it is, so the administration is not particularly warm/fuzzy about making you feel wanted, loved, part of the community, etc. all the time. I have heard from some parents who are annoyed by that. For us, its all about the education experience for our son, and that has been wonderful. He has Science class in a working barn with real animals, he loves to read, math class, drama, art, "motor gym" and he is in Spanish classes and speaks some basic spanish, his vocabulary has exploded, etc...all at age 3. The teachers are very nice, involved, email/call frequently and are available readily. If we could do it all over again, we would put him in Lamplighter every time. He loves going to school, in fact he has been complaining all this week (Spring Break) that he wants to get back.

Feel free to email jbtrichel@aol.com if you want any more details.