Relocating to Northern Virginia ASAP (Arlington, McLean: for sale, real estate market, to rent)

[JD984]

Given what you've described, I'd lend my voice to those urging you to look in Loudoun County. In general, the high schools there have smaller enrollment than those in Fairfax County. The high schools in the western part of Fairfax tend to have particularly high enrollments. For example, Herndon HS has over 2200 students and Westfield HS (which serves other parts of Herndon) has roughtly 2900.

[mimom3]

My only problem with Loudoun County is that I can't find a high school there with a Robotics team. This is a big deal to my son. I am trying to look at the positives so that I can convince him otherwise.

[arielmina]

Can't help you on the robotics team, but perhaps he can start one? The schools in Loudoun, especially western Loudoun (west of Leesburg) are excellent. And the commute from Hamilton, Purcellville, Round Hill areas (just off route 7) is an easy 35 minutes to Herndon, provided you live close to town and not on a dirt road You can absolutely get a nice piece of property with your budget. 3 acres would be easy...with a beautiful house and gorgeous countryside. (but i am biased )

Oh and if you look in the Purcellville/Round Hill area, they are opening a new high school this fall, Woodgrove, so I'd assume there would be some ability to set up some new clubs etc.

[normie]

Robotics? I'd called Riverbend Middle School and ask what high school they recommend. Riverbend Middle school had a fantastic robotics team at one point, they might still for all I know. You might find the article below interesting:

Loudoun County Public Schools | News Archive (http://cmsweb1.loudoun.k12.va.us/509759161361/cwp/view.asp?A=3&Q=461135&C=81043 - broken link)

By the way, the student in the article went to Potomac Falls High School, which points towards Countryside (and a few other north Sterling communities).

[michgc]

Both Oakton and Madison have good reputations. I cannot address your special needs issue, but perhaps you can call the schools and maybe they could let you speak to the special needs teachers or perhaps other parents? As far as commute to Herndon - it would be very easy and against traffic. It would probably be about 20 minutes plus or minus depending on where in Oakton or Vienna you'd choose to live and whether you'd take the Toll Road or Route 7.

[OrangeFish]

Originally Posted by mimom3

My only problem with Loudoun County is that I can't find a high school there with a Robotics team. This is a big deal to my son. I am trying to look at the positives so that I can convince him otherwise.

I suggest Googling to find contact info for Team Tiki out of McLean. They had/have one of the strongest robotics teams in the state (both at the middle school level with FIRST LEGO League and with FIRST Tech Challenge at the high school level). They could probably hook you up with a team in Loudoun County.

[LynchburgLover]

Here's an article about Clarke County High School in Berryville (just a little further west of Loudoun)
It says they have a robotics team http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarke_...ille,_Virginia)

[mimom3]

Thank you all for the suggestions. I am going to fly out and check out the areas and hopefully rent a house. My goal is to get out there by labor day-that's enough to give me a heart attack!

[DC Oldtimer]

Appears to me that a number of Fairfax County schools have robotics teams:

Career and Technical Education

All Fairfax County schools are good. Very good, in fact. In terms of faculty, I dont believe that some are better than others. Students at a highly rated school, such as Woodson, do not have high scores because the faculty is better, but because the student body is composed of kids whose parents are high academic achievers.

There should be a chart on the Fairfax County public school website that shows the AP offerings at each school. It's my understanding that if the high school to which kids in your neighborhood are assigned does not offer the AP courses that your child wants, you can ask to be assigned to one that does. For example, Annandale High School does not have as many AP offerings as some of the other high schools. I'm told that kids who want more AP offerings can go to Lake Braddock instead.

[Jujube_Vet]

I think you should really check out Falls Church City. The class sizes are small (between 100-130 kids per graduating class). The school system is excellent, especially for the high-achieving and special needs students. Your kids will know, and be known, by all their teachers. The high school (George Mason High) has an excellent Robotics team that went to State Finals. The coach there is excellent and was so proud of the kids who put forth the effort to win that distinction. Just because you are used to 3 acre lots, don't discount this little city. You can find a home easily now with 3BR/2Ba on 1/4 acre for about $600K. This would obviously be less elbow room than you are used to but you can bike/walk to everything you need and there are plentiful parks to stretch out.