What's it like living in Lexington? (people, information)

[Malishka]

Originally Posted by claiz

@Malishka - I recently moved to that area (I can walk to the Old Reservoir from my house). It's not the most prestigious part of Lexington but it is certainly nice and I like it a lot. PM if you want to know more.

Thank you! I certainly will pm you if we move there! Can you swim in reservoir?

[claiz]

Yes you can in the summer time (you need to buy a swim tag for both Reservoir and town pool) - in the winter time it's also a place to pond skate and play pick up ice hockey (at your own risk, of course).

[Malishka]

Originally Posted by claiz

Yes you can in the summer time (you need to buy a swim tag for both Reservoir and town pool) - in the winter time it's also a place to pond skate and play pick up ice hockey (at your own risk, of course).

Oh wow I always wanted to skate on the real pond! I wonder if they had any accidents there... But that's very much off topic here... thank you for the info!

[495neighbor]

Originally Posted by claiz

Yes you can in the summer time (you need to buy a swim tag for both Reservoir and town pool) - in the winter time it's also a place to pond skate and play pick up ice hockey (at your own risk, of course).

Do you have to live in Lexington to skate on the pond? I want to do it.

[claiz]

@495neighbor - I never tried so I don't know for sure, but I don't see why you cannot do it.

[Parsec]

Originally Posted by 495neighbor

Do you have to live in Lexington to skate on the pond? I want to do it.

As long as you don't get caught

Seriously though, there are many ponds in Metrowest that are closer for you to skate on. Every town should have a few.

[GraceT]

The commute from Lexington to Back Bay on Rt. 2 would take a half hour, maybe 45 mins. A much better commute than taking 90/95 in traffic. And, if you don't want to drive all the way in, you can always park at Alewife and take the T. Would still be under an hour total.

[leecar]

Lexington is the perfect town on paper; good schools, historic, everyday conveniences, great recreation programs for kids and adults, etc. We actually thought we would end up there, as we have many family members who grew up there and live there now. We spend a good amount of time there visiting family, playing in the playgrounds, attending nephew's sporting events, even swimming at the Res and town pool (which are great!). To me there just seems to be something missing -- it feels cold I guess. I don't get any warmth or friendliness. I'm sure this sounds awfully corny, but just my experience over the last 15 years or so spending time there. My sister often says she wishes they had stayed in JP, where they lived before moving to Lexington.

Needham is also a town with lots of recreation opportunities for kids, good schools, great town center, and 3 commuter rail stations. We have many friends who moved to Needham from JP, WR, Roslindale and have been quite happy, and the commute via commuter rail to Back Bay or Downtown is a breeze. Hope that helps a bit!

[TasCool]

On the schools:

Lexington definitely has amazing kids going there, but the school curriculum is pretty average I'd say.

-The kids are all intelligent because of going to some sort of math program (and many who live there are Asian, hence have Asian parents). Most kids go to RSM, but you could always choose other options like Kumon or Math & More, which definitely have a different feel. See what works for your kid. This doesn't mean kids in Lexington aren't good at other subjects too! Math is just definitely one of their strong points.
-As I mentioned before, a lot of Lexington's residents are Asian and the stereotype is kinda true. I mean, Asian parents do have high expectations (this is coming from an Asian student herself). A lot of kids that aren't Asian are very good at subjects too, though.This means a lot of the kids study EVERY DAY. It may not be apparent in elementary school, but you'll definitely notice in middle school.
-In reference to what I wrote above, this means while school math may seem easy, getting on the math team is TOUGH. There's great competition. Of course, getting onto the Science Bowl team is also tough. Please don't be too hard on your kids if they don't get in.
-There are plenty of clubs out there, like the Scratch club and the Homework club.
-There are ESL classes.
-A lot of the English teachers are pretty strict.
-The METCO program is essentially where kids from Boston come to Lexington to go to school. They have a special bus.

Extracurriculars:
-A lot of kids in Lexington have private lessons for an instrument, violins or pianos being the top choice. Having private lessons aren't totally necessary because in 4th-grade, students get in-school lessons for a string instrument.
-LITERALLY EVERY KID IN LEXINGTON PLAYS A SPORT. Popular choices are basketball, hockey, and soccer. Try to get them to start in elementary school. They could do town sports or school sports. School sports start in middle school, so most students do town sports.
-A handful of kids have art lessons, again, not really necessary.

Phones:
-I'd say you should give your kid a phone in middle school. With going to clubs and half-days, it's just a good idea.
-They have to keep their phone in their locker during the school day.

Half-Days:
-Elementary schools have a half-day every Thursday. The meaning's pretty obvious.
-Sometimes the middle schools and high schools will have a half-day. Lot's of kids go to the town center, which is why I said they should have a phone. A lot of the time they just walk around and go to Ranc's.

[BosYuppie]

The last post is from 2013, the OP's kids are probably well into their schooling wherever they are now.