Schools in S. NH (Manchester, Nashua: 2013, how much, construction)

[NHForester]

Originally Posted by bavariantransplant

The question was regarding school systems, town v. town. Not how to raise a child.

It is not a matter of how you raise your child at all. Even if you send them to the best school system, they can fail. The best school systems will still have lazy/poor teachers just as the worst systems can have great teachers. Be involved. Hold their teachers accountable. Be a pain in the arse if you have to. No one will be a better advocate for your child than you.

Disclaimer: Wife is Speech Pathologist at a NH public school system. I am not anti public education.

[GotBackHome]

Originally Posted by NHForester

It is not a matter of how you raise your child at all. Even if you send them to the best school system, they can fail. The best school systems will still have lazy/poor teachers just as the worst systems can have great teachers. Be involved. Hold their teachers accountable. Be a pain in the arse if you have to. No one will be a better advocate for your child than you.

Oh there's lots of being a pain in the arse and being an advocate for the child - and unfortunately sometimes holding the teacher accountable! If there isn't a balance, and parents admitting to the faults of the child (when the child is at fault of course) there is disaster.

Because the teachers are being held accountable without any home balance, we have dumb things like the No Child Left Behind so now kids are taught to take the tests instead of being taught to learn.

Sure, some parents are a PitA and advocating for their child, but sometimes the teacher is correct: Johnny/Janey IS a troublemaker, not doing their work and the guilty party. Even the best teachers can't teach when a parent insists 'oh not MY child, MY child would never behave like that' ... when they really do.

so... it's a mix. sometimes it's the teachers/school system, sometimes it is how you raised your child. Please do not discount one in favor of the other, both are necessary for success.

[bavariantransplant]

I have three children at different levels of education. This thread is not about parents its about schools, specifically, which ones have the best academic reputations and scope of resources, nothing else. To continue my first sentence, both my wife and I are very involved and never had to be a pain in the ass, as a matter of fact, I consider myself fairly successful (and my wife) at both job and home and have yet to feel like I need to be a pain in the ass. Set the example, and soon the species of pain in the ass will be extinct.

Anyway, back to the topic of schools that have best academic reputation and resources ...

[NHartphotog]

Exeter has good schools, but they should--property taxes are beyond insane. People buy here when their kids need this school system, and sell the moment the kids age out.

[bavariantransplant]

Exeter higher then $20.00 per 1k value?

[bavariantransplant]

Originally Posted by Valerie C

I'm in Londonderry, and 2 of my 3 kids have been educated here. The schools are the main reason I chose this town. Is it the BEST? The flagship of NH? That's doubtful--we've been deemed a district in need of improvement more than once in the last couple of years. We've become a magnet district for many with special needs BECAUSE of the strong schools. Well guess what... if you concentrate on providing the best services possible for special needs, something else needs to slip. Would I chose Londonderry again? Maybe... probably... the music program IS amazing, one of the best in the state. It's a nice community, and we enjoy living here. A very high percentage of LHS graduates do go on to 4-year university, some to the ivies, but you'd likely have to look in a higher income per capita to get a higher percentage that continues on to Harvard, etc.

Other towns/schools systems I'd consider: Hollis (Hollis-Brookline HS), Bedford, Windham, Amherst (Souhegan HS), Hampstead (and also Chester/Auburn) Pinkerton HS. Away from Rte 93, SAU 16 (the Exeter district) and Lee/Durham/Madbury (Oyster River). OR and Sau 16 towns are closer to the seacoast, but all the towns (except Exeter) are pretty rural in nature (no pun intended )

Are you looking for performance of ALL grades, or are you mainly concerned with HS results?

Mainly HS but the HS gets their kids from their respective k-8 schools so they should sort of go hand in hand, no?

[bavariantransplant]

So Pinkerton Academy is good and the towns that feed into that are ... Derry, Chester and Auburn.

The list so far for a search area solely based on schools with solid academic records and large scope of resources:
Hollis
Bedford
Windham
Amherst
Hampstead
Chester
Auburn
Exeter
Lee
Durham
Madbury
Londonderry
Derry

Madbury, NH to Hollis, NH - Google Maps

[maire8]

If you're considering Amherst (or Mont Vernon), make sure to read up on Souhegan High School's "principles." Souhegan was created based on a somewhat unique premise, guided by the views of Ted Sizer and the Coalition of Essential Schools.
The basic result of this is that students there have some freedoms that students in most other high schools don't (including calling teachers by their first names, walking the halls without passes, etc.), and students also have a real voice in decisions that in most districts are usually made solely by the administration and/or school board.

Some parents love this, and some don't. Some kids do well with this, and some don't. So it's good for prospective residents to be aware of this before deciding to relocate there.

[C2ShiningC]

From your first post, I am assuming you have done a search and probably read my other posts, but just in case you haven't:

Originally Posted by C2ShiningC

My own personal experience with NH schools is through three family members who have gone through the Londonderry public school system. None ever had problems with bullying, drugs or anything negative at all. All received excellent educations, and all three were accepted into the top schools in the country in their chosen fields of study. Two have graduated with undergrad and graduate degrees from two of those top schools, and the third is in their last year at one of those schools, and will also be attending graduate school. Two are employed at top companies in their fields. All are intelligent, creative, well-rounded individuals, and successful and happy. I have seen much the same with their friends from the same school system."

The last family member graduated from Londonderry High School four years ago, so Valerie's information is more current.

[GotBackHome]

Hollis is a great school system (assuming you are following the standard school theories around the country), a lot of parental & tax support - and a nice place to live. nashua is easier to get to for shopping, and Boston is only 45 min (off-hours) away.