Babylon / West Babylon / West Islip Elementary / Middle Schools (Sayville, Oakdale: fit in, house)

[Stockrock]

We are looking to move into the Baylon / West Babylon / West Islip area from Manhattan. We have been house hunting for a bit and I am curious about the best schools in the area. We really wanted to live in Babylon Village, but are finding prices a bit too high for us there, so we have expanded our search wider. A major concern for us is the school districts. So hard to tell which schools within the districts are great and which ones to stay away from just based on the stats - which frankly all look pretty much the same. Looking for some advice from locals about which places are the best in education and community. Thanks in advance!

[Burb]

Babylon Village Resident with kids in West Babylon Elementary and Middle School here. We're exremely happy with the schools. We just attended the orientation for next years freshmen class at the high school as well. The faculty and school made a top notch impression, as well as the students and parents.

Wherever you buy, I strongly recommend visiting the school your child will attend before going in to contract.

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by Burb

Babylon Village Resident with kids in West Babylon Elementary and Middle School here. We're exremely happy with the schools. We just attended the orientation for next years freshmen class at the high school as well. The faculty and school made a top notch impression, as well as the students and parents.

Wherever you buy, I strongly recommend visiting the school your child will attend before going in to contract.

Great advice!

[Walter Greenspan]

Stockrock, in case you are unfamiliar with the local geography:

What people refer to colloquially as "towns" are actually villages and hamlets, which are within actual towns; and, because villages and hamlets are referred to as "towns", then, many times, the error is compounded when actual towns are referred to as "townships".

Also, many colloquially refer to a "downtown business district" in a hamlet as a "village".

http://www.city-data.com/forum/new-y...-glossary.html and http://www.city-data.com/forum/long-...-resource.html may be of some help to you in understanding the geography of "Lawn Guyland".

http://www.city-data.com/forum/long-...you-think.html may help you understand the great geographic confusions caused by non-conforming ZIP Code postal zones.

When you do find a house that you like, you can find out in which community (city, village or CDP) that house is actually located, which is oftentimes different from the community named in that house's mailing address, by using the Census Bureau's online address search function. (CDP or Census Designated Place is the Census Bureau equivalent for a hamlet in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.)

And, very importantly, among other things, the Census Bureau's online address search function also indicates in which school district an address is located.

[KENNY GUIDO]

west islip is the best of all 3.

[quikmove]

we've been looking as well, started out in sayville, then to bayport, then onto the babylon area now we are in west islip. love the appeal of sayville and the community feel to it, how would you rate that with the west islip area?

[darkar344]

I would definitely say that West Islip is the top school district. There is not a bad school in the district. My son is now finishing Kindergarten at Westbrook Elementary and I can not say enough about the teachers and the entire staff. They all care about the kids as if there own. Not to mention their creativity approach to learning. Not sure if applicable to you or not, but the Special Education services in the district are out standing as well. Good Luck to you and your family.

[Burb]

Originally Posted by quikmove

we've been looking as well, started out in sayville, then to bayport, then onto the babylon area now we are in west islip. love the appeal of sayville and the community feel to it, how would you rate that with the west islip area?

I'd choose Sayville over W Islip in a heartbeat IF I was not a city commuter, Oakdale too. i agree with you liking the community "feel" of the area. Since I am a commuter, I would choose W Islip if only given the 2 options, the advantage of ready access to the Babylon express trains and shorter commutes make up the difference.

[totallyfrazzled]

Sayville has an actual "village downtown" whereas West Islip does not. So it depends on how you feel about the two very different vibes.

On the plus side for a "village" you'll have a lot of retail, commercial, and restaurants all in one place. On the minus side, you'll have a lot more traffic congestion through the Montauk Highway sections that run through Sayville proper than anywhere on West Islip's part of Montauk Highway.

West Islip residents do have the amenities of Babylon Village right next door though. Just like Oakdale residents have the amenities of Sayville's downtown right next door.

[quikmove]

what about bohemia? how does that fit into the picture. connetquot schools seem good, but what about the area and types of people?