[anainesvs]

Hello,
I am planning to relocate to Laning/EL/Okemos area.
I am wondering how users of the Okemos school feel about the school.
I recently visited Okemos schools and was shocked by the class size (30 kids/group, 1 group of 60 kids split in 2 teachers).
I do not think that personnel/teachers can really keep up with the children in such big groups.
Also concerns us that 5th grade and after, students change schools very 2 years... teachers will not know the student body, and who is in trouble, who is good influence, etc.

I search for a private academically high-achieving school, but I did not find one.

Is the overcrowded impression we had a problem truly?
Is there a good private option, (small class size, control and knowledge of kids in the school?)
other school district that do not pull hundreds of kids in the same grade together?

Thank you for your comments.

[mjlo]

Okemos is one of the more elite school districts in the Lansing area if not the state from what I understand.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by anainesvs

Hello,
I am planning to relocate to Laning/EL/Okemos area.
I am wondering how users of the Okemos school feel about the school.
I recently visited Okemos schools and was shocked by the class size (30 kids/group, 1 group of 60 kids split in 2 teachers).
I do not think that personnel/teachers can really keep up with the children in such big groups.
Also concerns us that 5th grade and after, students change schools very 2 years... teachers will not know the student body, and who is in trouble, who is good influence, etc.

I search for a private academically high-achieving school, but I did not find one.

Is the overcrowded impression we had a problem truly?
Is there a good private option, (small class size, control and knowledge of kids in the school?)
other school district that do not pull hundreds of kids in the same grade together?

Thank you for your comments.

Why would kids changing schools every two years after 5th grade be a bad thing? That actually makes for smaller schools, which is what you're advocating for...

[teachbeach]

Okemos schools continue to be one of the top in the state. That being said, East Lansing and Haslett schools are also very good and in the same area surrounding the University. Many people choose one over the other (Okemos, Haslett, East Lansing) for academics, sports, diversity in student culture and climate, expanded course offerings in non traditional areas, community education, extra curricular offerings etc. You might want to visit the other two schools and get a feel for them as well.

Having been an educator in a very high performing school/competitive public school district for 33 years, I'll preach that the reinforcement at home and from home is the BEST indicator of success in a student. The schools see your children for 6 hours a day, what a parent/guardian does the other 18 hours should support/reinforce/enhance/expand the foundation of the time spent in the classroom. The most successful students are those who have a strong, consistent support system of outside the classroom.

Lansing Catholic and Lansing Christian are the private schools in the area; I'm not familiar with their academic programs.

[jaynarie]

You will find 30 students in a class pretty much everywhere you go in Michigan.
I have 34 this year. I had 31 last year. It is the norm.

[Sharks With Lasers]

Basically all of the private schools in Michigan are either religious, or for young children (usually 6th grade and under.) This is definitely true in the Greater Lansing Area. I suppose you could commute to Bloomfield Hills and send your kids to Cranbrook or something like that.

But seriously, Okemos (and East Lansing if I recall correctly) are like in the top 5 percent of all schools (public or private) in the nation. If they aren't good enough for your kids, then not very many places are going to be.

[anainesvs]

Thank you to all the people that answer my query. Your feedback is very useful.
If someone has a particular experience/feedback about Kinawa school I will appreciate it very much. It is an Okemos school but the 'greatschools' score looks much lower than the other schools, and I wonder why.
Best, and thank you again for the responses.

[ckhthankgod]

Why not look into East Lansing or Haslett Schools, both of which are also very good?

[Pellinen]

My son went to Kinawa (moved to Chippewa this year). We came from a different state (and honestly quite mediocre school district) and despite being a good student there my son really struggled at Kinawa. It was eye-opening for me to see the difference in education standards and expectations. The academics in Okemos schools is strong and the teachers are very good. Being demanding the teachers are also very helpful. They stayed after school with my son many times and he improved significantly. I can see a huge difference between our old schools and Okemos ones. He loves Chippewa much more than Kinawa though - better teachers, more interesting classes, week-long camp coming next month

[chh]

I'm in high school right now - 30 kids in a class is normal, and any decent teacher manages the class well and maintains a relationship with most of the students in their class. And since okemos is a very high performing school, I'd think most of the teachers there are more than capable to handle a class of 30 students.