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So there is also a sort of world-view question to consider. Of the schools where your child will be spending less time in front of a screen, there are conservative and/or Christian schools and also more liberal, earthy schools, and even a couple of schools that are both Christian and earthy.
If you are liberal or ok with liberal-ish school, I would recommend Galloway, Paideia, High Meadows School, The Children's School and Cliff Valley School. It's not that these schools have no screens at all, but that their curricula get the kids up and out of their seats doing hands-on activities.
If you are Christian but want a very hands-on, out-of-the-box curriculum, try Intown Community School.
If you want straight up, Classical Christian without a lot of screen-time, the award goes to Heritage Prep in midtown/Morningside. (Not to be confused with Heritage School in Newnan)
If you want Classical but not religious, apply for the lottery to attend Atlanta Classical Academy.
Westminster does an amazing job of integrating disciplines and getting kids involved in hands-on activities. I would put it in the list with Paideia and Galloway, actually. Do not rule it out. The resources there allow kids to explore the outdoors often. There are multiple playgrounds and two gymnasiums just for the lower school and acres and acres of woods and streams.
One of the things that many of the private schools offer above the public schools toward this end is student-teacher ratio. Look for a private school with two teachers per 18 children, vs the one teacher to 20+ students in many of the public schools. This is an indicator that the kids will have some extra freedom--to move about the building, the outdoors and get away from screens. Often the screens are babysitters, if you ask me. More teachers = fewer screens.
You've missed the window for some of the most competitive private schools, but there are many hidden gems in this city to which you can still apply. I've listed some of them above. And there are others if you are continuing your search.
As always, excellent private school advice from AtlJan!
I would also add Trinity School to your list. It is K - 6 so everything at the school, including use of technology, is focused on the early/middle learner. I see technology at Trinity incorporated in creative ways such as as a component of their Maker Space use and with their movie/podcast recording studio. They have a lovely good, old-fashioned library that reflects their continued appreciation for looking at pictures and reading books that require flipping paper pages!
Appreciate the insight, AtlJan! We'll definitely look at those options.
One that has been on our short list (but that I (1) haven't connected with yet, and (2) we technically missed the deadline on but I'm hoping will let us put in a week or so late given circumstances) is AIS; thoughts there? How about Springmont?
You mentioned pretty much all the others on our radar and then some, so I appreciate that!
On timelines generally we're on track to be able to get apps in by the end of this month - so we've technically missed a couple but I'm hoping they might afford us a little flexibility given circumstances. If not, so be it.
I probably should have given some indication of the ideal before - but Atlanta Classical, were it private and/or more likely than not in terms of admission, would probably be our ideal option.
We go to church every week (mainline protestant denomination), but that said we're more of the mind to have the concrete religious/biblical education come from us/the church we specifically choose, and go with a school that has a supportive environment spiritual/religious environment in a general sense, but not an overt/"hardcore" Christian element - just on those points (ignoring the tech issue for a moment) and from the reading I've done, closer to a Westminster or Lovett in that regard (or even a Pace notwithstanding that it's non-religious) than to a Heritage Prep or Intown Community School.
As far as timelines, we are on track to get applications in for the schools due at the end of January (or later); the ones that we've missed (that I'm still reaching out to on the chance they'll let us submit late given our situation) are Westminster (and maybe Lovett?)
I concur 100% with the screens-as-babysitters concern; that's ultimately our main issue (and what we've seen in many places). My fear more generally is just that without a concrete screen use philosophy it can be a slippery slope. I'm not reassured when I'm told that my kid can choose whether to use a screen or not.
The staffing levels of the ones I've spoken to are reassuring.
We are continuing our search and I definitely appreciate the detail and the insight!
To cut to the chase - based on our own career and educational experience, my wife and I are both cynical at best about excessive technology or screen time in the classroom. For instance, Westminster brags about being an "Apple Distinguished School". That's not a selling point for us.
Hi there. I've had two daughters at Westminster. Westminster does employ those cool "magic" whiteboards in the class room, which seem to be a very good teaching tool. Westminster also provides each child with a MacBook to use during the school year.
That having been said, it is not as if the kids use their computers as their primary learning aides. They all study from "real" books and perform handwritten homework assignments. The technology is used as an adjunct to traditional teaching methods / and aids. The kids use their computers for research, of course, for writing their papers, etc. Oftentimes, the teachers will maintain online learning tools, schedules, syllabi, and the like. But, the computers and the Internet by no means have replaced the traditional in-classroom learning experience and paper-based assignments.
I probably should have given some indication of the ideal before - but Atlanta Classical, were it private and/or more likely than not in terms of admission, would probably be our ideal option.
I was going to mention this one. We applied for and got accepted into Atlanta Classical. As our kid has some special needs, so we went to meet the staff and left very turned off by their approach. What it boiled down to was "Kids don't learn from other kids or from playing together. Kids learn from teachers. So, we don't do group activities and don't place much value in recess. Kids are here to sit and listen to their teachers." To me, that's a terrible way to teach anything outside of basic fact memorization. It works fine for learning who the 7th President was or what year the Civil War was fought. Things that are good to know, but provide no practical backbone in actual learning. And for a kid who is hungry to learn based on experiences, we decided it would not work at all for him.
I was going to mention this one. We applied for and got accepted into Atlanta Classical. As our kid has some special needs, so we went to meet the staff and left very turned off by their approach. What it boiled down to was "Kids don't learn from other kids or from playing together. Kids learn from teachers. So, we don't do group activities and don't place much value in recess. Kids are here to sit and listen to their teachers." To me, that's a terrible way to teach anything outside of basic fact memorization. It works fine for learning who the 7th President was or what year the Civil War was fought. Things that are good to know, but provide no practical backbone in actual learning. And for a kid who is hungry to learn based on experiences, we decided it would not work at all for him.
I'm with you, Sami, ACA is too strictly teacher-led for my kids--they thrive in a mix of teacher-led and project-based type environment. However, if the OP is into ACA, two that come to mind are Whitefield Academy and Woodward Academy--both have busses from Buckhead (or maybe Whitefield's is a parent shuttle, not sure).
If you like ACA, I can't imagine you would want Springmont. Springmont is a great school, but way different from ACA. Have you visited ACA?
Good on you for circling back and asking about AIS. No matter how many times someone says he/she is considering AIS, the person responding always leaves it off. Not sure why.
I provided a fairly detailed recent post about the school that you should be able to find by doing a keyword search.
On technology, kids use the IPad in 5k for reading Epic for a few mins a few times a week (but most reading is just from library- or classroom-selected regular books) and they use the IPAD sometimes for programming robots as part of class activity (AIS is STEAM certified). Other than that, its all manipulatives and paper and pencil. In fact, 5k starts daily writing workshop (pencil and paper) and the kids write daily along with other academic activity. There are no keyboarding lessons or anything like what Atlanta Public Schools is requiring kids to do because they have to get them ready for computer testing.
In second grade, a bit of Epic reading (again, most reading is from typical library books), some Ipad computer coding as part of the STEAM curricular and that's it. Math talks are sometimes facilitated by using a smartboard.
The primary does not use books so be aware of that. They are true inquiry-based so they will learn a ton but it won't be because they have a reading, math, science and social studies book because they will not. If that concerns you, you can just get your child a math workbook, for example, but the kids are very strong academically with the current system given it is an international baccalaureate school and inquiry-based. Their IB will be much diff from public school IB because they don't take time to teach to the test because they don't have to and they line up their curriculum with IB schools around the world as opposed to trying to deal with state of Ga standards and testing.
Note that it is STEAM certified so while your children will not be inundated with screen time, they will experience coding and that sort of technological focus on a weekly or biweekly basis more than likely.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BobbyJayATL
Appreciate the insight, AtlJan! We'll definitely look at those options.
One that has been on our short list (but that I (1) haven't connected with yet, and (2) we technically missed the deadline on but I'm hoping will let us put in a week or so late given circumstances) is AIS; thoughts there? How about Springmont?
You mentioned pretty much all the others on our radar and then some, so I appreciate that!
On timelines generally we're on track to be able to get apps in by the end of this month - so we've technically missed a couple but I'm hoping they might afford us a little flexibility given circumstances. If not, so be it.
I probably should have given some indication of the ideal before - but Atlanta Classical, were it private and/or more likely than not in terms of admission, would probably be our ideal option.
We go to church every week (mainline protestant denomination), but that said we're more of the mind to have the concrete religious/biblical education come from us/the church we specifically choose, and go with a school that has a supportive environment spiritual/religious environment in a general sense, but not an overt/"hardcore" Christian element - just on those points (ignoring the tech issue for a moment) and from the reading I've done, closer to a Westminster or Lovett in that regard (or even a Pace notwithstanding that it's non-religious) than to a Heritage Prep or Intown Community School.
As far as timelines, we are on track to get applications in for the schools due at the end of January (or later); the ones that we've missed (that I'm still reaching out to on the chance they'll let us submit late given our situation) are Westminster (and maybe Lovett?)
I concur 100% with the screens-as-babysitters concern; that's ultimately our main issue (and what we've seen in many places). My fear more generally is just that without a concrete screen use philosophy it can be a slippery slope. I'm not reassured when I'm told that my kid can choose whether to use a screen or not.
The staffing levels of the ones I've spoken to are reassuring.
We are continuing our search and I definitely appreciate the detail and the insight!
ACA is too strictly teacher-led for my kids--they thrive in a mix of teacher-led and project-based type environment.
If you like ACA, I can't imagine you would want Springmont. Springmont is a great school, but way different from ACA. Have you visited ACA?
I appreciate the insights into ACA. We haven't visited, but I'm familiar with the concept (including the Hillsdale involvement - we live in DC now, and I've met in my years here a few of the people involved in a professional sense).
A mix of teacher and independent work is certainly preferred, but if I had to pick one side of that coin, it would PROBABLY be teacher led at the stage they're at.
They're in (or have just wrapped up) an age 3 - K montessori program where we live now, and frankly have thrived in it. My concern when it comes to continuing with montessori/waldorf/etc beyond where they are now is that while the independence they've achieved in large part based on that model is awesome, I have trouble seeing how the model will help them build the knowledge base they need. But I'm open to being proven wrong or shown the error of my ways, which is why we're leaving Springmont on the table today.
Unfortunately given our circumstances it's unlikely we'd visit ACA until after the lottery draw (we'll be spending a week in Atlanta mid-month, but will be focusing on private school visits since for most if not all it's a required, or at least HIGHLY suggested, part of the application process). Our thought process there is that we're 99% sure we'll live in the city anyway (as opposed to other jurisdictions), probably renting initially anyway, so if we get a lease before end of February there's no harm in getting in the lottery (and no point in spending the time/energy to visit unless/until we know the option is even on the table).
Quote:
Originally Posted by AtlJan
Two that come to mind are Whitefield Academy and Woodward Academy--both have busses from Buckhead (or maybe Whitefield's is a parent shuttle, not sure).
My understanding about Whitefield is that it's much closer to a Wesleyan or Heritage Prep as opposed to a Lovett or Westminster when it comes to the Christian element. Is that inaccurate? I think I mentioned earlier, but while we're churchgoing folks, our general preference for a school is at most "Christianity lite" in school/the classroom, leaving the more formal Christian education to us and the church we choose.
Woodward we'd in theory be okay with - I just don't know how I feel about an hour and a half to two hours on a bus every day.
Good on you for circling back and asking about AIS. No matter how many times someone says he/she is considering AIS, the person responding always leaves it off. Not sure why.
In our defense, at the time I posted I wasn't sure if we'd missed the window for AIS (their advertised deadline was 1/15); however I've since then been in contact with their admissions folks, and given our situation (applying from out of town, and with a somewhat fluid move date) they're giving us some extra time to complete the application.
Initially it was actually one of the only privates we were considering - without going too in depth, generally my SO and I are on different pages as far as private vs public (I'm open to it, SO is generally not); AIS was the nose under the tent as it were, in that we both are big fans of Garden Hills (it's probably our favorite neighborhood in Atlanta), but are not big fans of Garden Hills ES (it's not an option basically - if we do go public, we'd live somewhere in Brandon/Jackson/maybe Morningside districts, notwithstanding our appreciation of the neighborhood). We've since then agreed to open consideration to a handful of options.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LovelySummer
I provided a fairly detailed recent post about the school that you should be able to find by doing a keyword search.
I'll dig that up - may send you a direct message if that's okay.
I appreciate the broader insight; it sounds like what they're doing is (mostly) in line with our mindset; ideally I'd prefer they do all actual reading from a good old fashioned book. But we're more than okay with computer/ipad use for discrete and appropriate purposes (such as the programming activity you mention).
I think I mentioned this in my first post, but my educational background is actually in Computer Science, so I'm far from a luddite, and certainly see the value in having an in depth (surface level and "under the hood") understanding of the tools we use in today's world; it's probably because of that background that I realize that hours of screen time has no correlation whatsoever to ensuring that type of understanding.
I was going to mention this one. We applied for and got accepted into Atlanta Classical. As our kid has some special needs, so we went to meet the staff and left very turned off by their approach. What it boiled down to was "Kids don't learn from other kids or from playing together. Kids learn from teachers. So, we don't do group activities and don't place much value in recess. Kids are here to sit and listen to their teachers." To me, that's a terrible way to teach anything outside of basic fact memorization. It works fine for learning who the 7th President was or what year the Civil War was fought. Things that are good to know, but provide no practical backbone in actual learning. And for a kid who is hungry to learn based on experiences, we decided it would not work at all for him.
I appreciate the insight; based on your description and perceived mindset of the leadership it sounds like it may be outside our comfort zone too.
Given the circumstances though, I'd expect that if SO or I are on the ground in Atlanta by the end of February (in terms of having housing in place), we'll at least apply for the lottery since there's no skin off our backs to do so.
If somehow one or both kids get in (pretty unlikely as best I can tell - from past results I found the Kindergartner has about a 20% chance at best of getting in, and the 6 year old more like a 5% max, probably less), then we'll plan a visit and make an affirmative decision one way or another.
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