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Old 01-10-2008, 02:35 AM
 
5 posts, read 10,926 times
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Hi there. mid way through this year we are relocating to Durham and I have a pile of questions. The first is about schooling. My daughter will turn 5 on October 16 and in New Zealand that would be the day she started school. How does it work in NC? Do all children start aged 5? What is schooling like- fun and expressive, academic.... what are the levels as i don't understand what pre-kindergarten, kindergarten etc means as in New Zealand we start at Year 1. Can i get some advice or suggestions for internet sites to help? later maybe some tips on places to live (or not) and pre school options for a 2 year old who thinks she is 4 and the energy levels to match! thankyou and kiora!
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Old 01-10-2008, 04:10 AM
 
29 posts, read 97,408 times
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Your 5 year old should start kindergarten if possible. Sometimes their birthday can mean the difference between starting on time or missing a year.

I hate to say it but Durham Co. schools are not the best. I think Wake Co. schools have higher overall performance scores. I would say if you can put your child into a Wake Co. school, you would be better off. IMO..

Websites that may help:
Durham Chamber of Commerce
Durham, NC | Visitors | Maps (http://www.durham-nc.com/visitors/maps/ - broken link)

If your going to be working in the Research Triangle Park (RTP), I would suggest looking in Brier Creek for a home. The area has many attractive conveniences including a new school and daycare/pre-school very close together. Brightleaf at the Park is a very nice community near Brier Creek that features St. Lawrence and Drees homes. It's just minutes from the RTP, Durham, and N. Raleigh.

New Homes by Drees Homes, A Custom Home Builder (broken link)

Regards,
-Del
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Old 01-10-2008, 06:14 AM
 
Location: Durham, NC
2,586 posts, read 9,081,603 times
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Take what Delmustator has said with a grain of salt. The schools systems in Wake and Durham counties are vastly different, and each one has its good and bad points. Personally, I'm looking to move from Raleigh (Wake County) to Durham this year in order to keep my son out of Wake County schools and get him into Durham's. There is a wealth of information on this site (use the search feature) on both school systems.

As for your daughter's age and starting school, most kids start Kindergarten in the fall (late-August) when they are 5. Keep in mind that our school year here in the northern hemisphere runs from late-August to late-May/early-June. There are some "year-round" schools that offer different scheduling with "tracks" and "track outs" that would go on a different schedule.

Personally, I moved from NC to Australia when I was 5. I normally would've started Kindergarten that August in the States, however with the pending move, my mom "homeschooled" me and I went straight into the 1st grade in January after moving Down Under. You might find it best to come up with a "creative" alternative such as this in order to have your daughter in class with kids her age.

Good luck with the big move!
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Old 01-10-2008, 07:44 PM
 
159 posts, read 607,589 times
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My son is in kindergarten in Durham this year and I have friends with kinders in two other Durham schools. In comparing notes, I'd say there is more focused work than free play. There are certain benchmarks that the teachers want students to reach in preparation for first grade next year. So far, my son and his classmates have learned and practiced letters, have begun to read "sight" words and sound out words phonetically, and currently, my son is working a lot on his writing skills. He has homework every night. In comparing notes with friends, this is not the case in every school or classroom, but in the case of my son, it's fine.

His homework usually consists of tracing/free writing letters, worksheets focused on recognizing patterns and/or chronology, counting practice, etc. Tonight's assignment was one of the more complicated so far, and he breezed through it. He had to cut out letters and paste them at the beginning of words. The words were colors. He then had to color the words appropriately.

In class they rotate through learning centers focused on writing, math, reading, etc. They also keep art/writing journals - I can't wait to see my son's journal. I've seen it at a distance once, but I'm hoping it gets sent home eventually. They also have "specials" at my son's school every day. Today was computer class. The other "specials" are art, music, gym, and physical fitness/health.

They get "report cards" or progress reports every six weeks in kindergarten, which amazes me. Generally, the teacher lets you know if the child is doing exceptionally well, is on target, or needs improvement in a multitude of areas of learning and development. Parents have to sign and return the cards. I remember this in the upper grades, but I know I never got them in kindergarten. But then, I didn't attend a public K.

My son has 20 minutes for lunch. At first, it was difficult for him to focus and eat all his food. He would tell me each day what he had left or how he could only drink half his milk because he was talking too much. He learned to eat first, talk later and now he finishes everything. It's probably a blessing for the teachers to have everyone so focused on eating! Lunch costs $1.85 a day.

I know I'm giving you lots of details, but sometimes the details can help you envision the experience better. I'm happy to tell you more. You can also PM me.
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Old 01-10-2008, 07:49 PM
 
159 posts, read 607,589 times
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Oh, in 2009, the birthday date for 5 year olds entering kindergarten will change to August 31 per a new NC law. This should not affect your daughter, although Oct. 16 is just at the cut off date for 2008.

We're bummed because our son turns 5 on Sept. 11 in 2009 so he'll have to spend another year in daycare. My children are 25 months apart, but will be three years apart in school. Not to mention the expense of another year of daycare...
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Old 01-11-2008, 08:23 AM
 
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That is sort of good news for my middle son w/ a July birthday (and an August cutoff here in MA). He won't be one of the youngest in his grade (9th next year).
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Old 01-11-2008, 09:07 AM
 
Location: Austin TX
959 posts, read 4,486,373 times
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First of all please ignore sweeping statements about Durham schools being inferior to those of surrounding counties. Durham has more low income families than the surrounding cities, and income is very highly correlated with standardized school test scores, therefore overall average scores of Durham county look lower. Nevertheless, Four Durham high schools were on Newsweek's list of the top 100 high schools in the US. Durham also has many very interesting magnet schools that your child can get into via a lottery system. There are public Montessori schools (including a public preschool year), one that reads like an international relations college program, year round school options (as opposed to having a long summer break), and many others, and these are elmentary schools

Most people only look at average scores for a county or school. I have seen comparisons of several area counties where scores are broken down by socioeconomic level, parent education, income (reduced price lunches), and race, and Durham county students are scoring the same as Wake County students, with Orange County students (in Chapel Hill) scoring a bit higher than the other two counties. That said however, Chapel Hill schools seem to have a reputation for spending a lot of time teaching to the test and putting a lot of pressure on students to test well.

The schools that are considered the "good" schools in Durham pull from mainly middle to high income areas. Does that make the teachers and curriculum better? In my opinion, your child will get an excellent education in any school with caring motivating teachers combined with your parental support and encouragement.

I went to high school in South Africa and my understanding was that the New Zealand system was similar, British inspired, is that right? You mentioned 'year 1" which I haven't heard of before, but in South Africa there is no Kindergarten. They have Sub A, Sub B and then go into Standard 1 - 10. Sub A correlates with 1st grade, with Standard 10 being 12th grade.

Kindergarten is very academic though nowadays. It blew my mind what my eldest was learning when he was a Kindergartener. The most social aspect of their day was when they would wander from station to station doing "centers" and some of them involved games or pretend play that taught different skills. They also have playground time



Quote:
Originally Posted by nikkif View Post
Hi there. mid way through this year we are relocating to Durham and I have a pile of questions. The first is about schooling. My daughter will turn 5 on October 16 and in New Zealand that would be the day she started school. How does it work in NC? Do all children start aged 5? What is schooling like- fun and expressive, academic.... what are the levels as i don't understand what pre-kindergarten, kindergarten etc means as in New Zealand we start at Year 1. Can i get some advice or suggestions for internet sites to help? later maybe some tips on places to live (or not) and pre school options for a 2 year old who thinks she is 4 and the energy levels to match! thankyou and kiora!
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Old 01-11-2008, 09:22 AM
 
Location: Austin TX
959 posts, read 4,486,373 times
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PS. I'm a big Durham supporter here. We moved to SW Durham in April and am SO GLAD I did not let anyone discourage me from living here. We have a great neighborhood elementary school, amazing shopping, a beautiful upscale mall, and the best value for our money in the area. Our location is amazing - close to RTP, the airport, Duke, and UNC. All that said, I think when you have children that an extremely important thing is maximizing your time with them, and a long commute is not going to facilitate that. You don't say where you are going to work, but I'm assuming it's somewhere where Durham would be convenient. Don't make the mistake many relocaters do of going to live in Cary or North Raleigh only because those are the areas everyone says you need to live, if it means you will be commuting. Driving to work is good, commuting is bad. We looked at houses as far south as Apex with my husband's job being in Chapel Hill and I am so glad we fell in love with Durham and found an amazing house here b/c that would be one heck of an awful commute for my poor husband
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Old 01-13-2008, 06:00 PM
 
38 posts, read 123,660 times
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I agree that there are some lovely Durham neighborhoods, and some great Durham schools, including magnets such as those offering International Baccalaureate programs, Montessori, and the School for the Arts. Some websites you might find useful for more information about the Durham schools are:

NC School Report Cards
GreatSchools.net
DPS District Site - Home (durham public schools)

Best of luck!
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