Moving from the netherlands to MA vicinity Boston NEED HELP!!!! (Worcester: house, neighborhoods)

[micky]

Hello everybody I'am new to this forum and I need help.
In sept/ okt we will be moving to MA but before we move, in july we will be going over to find a house and a school for our daughter.
We were thinking about the area's Lexington, Arlington and Waltham because of there location close to the highway. What we see on the map
My husband is going to work in Leominster he does't want to drive more than 45 min 1 way.
We want to live near Boston, I don't want to live in to of a small town. I prefer something of a city not to big either.

I have been looking for school for my daughter, private school fee's are to much so looking to find a good public school in these area's. My daughter is dyslectic so the classes should not be to big and also no speciaal classes were she will be isolated and have a brand like she is stupid because she is not.
My daughter atends a montessori here in the Netherlands

Please can you help me, really need all the help I can get

[ChunkyMonkey]

Leominster is quite a long way from Boston. Just a word of warning, Route 2 the major highway is only really major from Rte 128 (The inner ring road) to Cambridge. Outside of that it becomes a slow 2 lane road that goes through some farm country even before you get to I-495. So, it might take longer than you know. You should look into Concord. It is not like Boston, but it probably has a lot of international professionals like you. I think the schools there are quite good too.

There is a commuter rail line to North Leominster. MBTA Commuter Rail > Fitchburg / South Acton Lines Schedules and Maps
However, I'm not sure if your husband's office is near there or not.

[b52]

Originally Posted by micky

Hello everybody I'am new to this forum and I need help.
In sept/ okt we will be moving to MA but before we move, in july we will be going over to find a house and a school for our daughter.
We were thinking about the area's Lexington, Arlington and Waltham because of there location close to the highway. What we see on the map
My husband is going to work in Leominster he does't want to drive more than 45 min 1 way.
We want to live near Boston, I don't want to live in to of a small town. I prefer something of a city not to big either.

I have been looking for school for my daughter, private school fee's are to much so looking to find a good public school in these area's. My daughter is dyslectic so the classes should not be to big and also no speciaal classes were she will be isolated and have a brand like she is stupid because she is not.
My daughter atends a montessori here in the Netherlands

Please can you help me, really need all the help I can get

The Massachusets Department of Education's website profiles every school in Massachusetts, including private and charter schools. There are many things to consider and the site will give you a centralized place to do some comparisons. Also as I've suggested here before, Weichert Realty has an excellent site and you need to work with a good realtor. Go there and click on MA then point and click for the info on housing you want. Their site will give you neighborhood info and tell you which schools are nearby. I am a teacher and I have raised a disabled child. You definitely want to find a school with programs to fit your child's needs. Just because a school has good MCAS scores does not mean they have a suitable program for a child with dyslexia. Children in US schools are protected by the Individuals With Disabilities Act (laws). You should commit it to memory. Good Luck to you. I think you will love New England!

[surfingatwork]

Originally Posted by micky

Hello everybody I'am new to this forum and I need help.
In sept/ okt we will be moving to MA but before we move, in july we will be going over to find a house and a school for our daughter.
We were thinking about the area's Lexington, Arlington and Waltham because of there location close to the highway. What we see on the map
My husband is going to work in Leominster he does't want to drive more than 45 min 1 way.
We want to live near Boston, I don't want to live in to of a small town. I prefer something of a city not to big either.

I have been looking for school for my daughter, private school fee's are to much so looking to find a good public school in these area's. My daughter is dyslectic so the classes should not be to big and also no speciaal classes were she will be isolated and have a brand like she is stupid because she is not.
My daughter atends a montessori here in the Netherlands

Please can you help me, really need all the help I can get

The nice thing about living in Lexington or Arlington is you'll be close to route 2 which is what your husband will take to get to lemonister. Also even though it may seem far it should be an easy drive because he'll be going in the opposite direction of boston traffic. In order to get to route 2 from waltham you'll have to travel route 95 and if the traffic is bad it could take you an hour just to travel from route 95 to route 2 (or you could take route 117 the whole way and deal with lights, etc.). Personally i would stick to looking at towns that have direct access to route 2.

[micky]

Chunkymonky thank you, concord looks a little rural for me. I do want to live in city/ town.

B52 thank you for the realtor site this helps alot. It's very diffecult to look from afar. In july we will be there looking for a house and school for our daughter.
What kind of program should I look for that fits my child need
I really don't know how the schools work in the states.
I'am very confused very. I want to do the best for my child.
What is this extactly Children in US schools are protected by the Individuals With Disabilities Act (laws).
I have been reading about AP course thing.... what is this Help

Surfingatwork thank you my husband wants a 45 min drive to work not longer. And I want to live in a city/ town. Boston will be to far for him. I wont be working (very strange for me) I don't want to live in the middle of nowhere
What town would you recommend (other too) that have direct acces to route 2
I have a list with all of the things a want. Long list

Thanks to you all Micky

[surfingatwork]

mmmm... well since you want more city like than town like belmont which is next to arlington and north cambridge. You'll have a difficult time finding something city like that is less than 45 minutes from leominster.

[nooneknowsmyname]

[quote=micky;797889]Chunkymonky thank you, concord looks a little rural for me. I do want to live in city/ town.

Leominster is a long way from Boston. The closest city to Leominster is Worcester, which although it is the second largest city (after Boston) is a small city with a population of approximately 180,000 people. Worcester is bordered by the towns of Auburn, Grafton, Holden, Leicester, Millbury, Paxton, Shrewsbury, and West Boylston. Leominster is about 23 miles from Worcester and is accessible via Route 190.

[ontheroad]

micky, where do you live in Holland? Perhaps I can recommend a city/town that feels like what you want. I lived in Amsterdam for many years and perhaps my familiarity with the Netherlands (as a comparison) might help.

[scarletfire]

It's true, Leominster is far from Boston and it would not be a fun drive in the snow, but I imagine the drive would only take about an hour and your husband would be going against traffic. There's also a Commuter Rail station in N. Leominster. I'm not sure of the commute time from North Station in Boston but you can find this information at MBTA.com > Commuter Rail Maps and Schedules

Also, I wouldn't really recommend Worcester as a center of great culture, and the public school system is not well regarded compared with other areas. There are two pretty neighborhoods there but honestly I find it quite lacking compared with Boston and Cambridge.

For schools, you might start with sites such as Massachusetts Town Information- MA Community data - Boston.com that list student/teacher ratios and per pupil spending and then once you narrow down your search, contact the individual school regarding what learning tools they provide to students with dyslexia. It's quite common so hopefully many schools today understand how to help students to foster a love of learning and of reading. Boston Magazine also puts out some good information on various school systems. You might be able to find this on their website. If not please let me know and I can see if I can find a copy here. I know I had filed old copies away in my office somewhere.

If you're looking for info on Montessori school here please let me know. I have a friend who works at the Montessori school in Natick and can recommend others that are well regarded. I don't know if they are all so expensive.

Will you have a chance to visit here before you settle on a community? Sometimes I think it really helps to drive around and get a feel for the town.

Best of wishes!

[scarletfire]

Re: Waltham, Lexington, Arlington, I don't suspect you will find Waltham schools to be so great and some areas are sort of gritty.

I know there's another member here who used to live in Lexington so hopefully she can comment on the schools there.