Poe magnet elementary, Martin and Moore Square Middle
Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, CaryThe Triangle Area
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I’ve got a rising 6th Grader going to Martin. The sheer number of electives are a bit staggering. Not like when I was in Middle School. Orchestra and Band plus Guitar. Three languages. Drama. Dance. Debate. Oodles of Art both 2D and 3D. Multiple athletics. Lots of math and science electives beyond core. Literature and writing electives. So many others. Plenty of opportunities to experience new things, and deep dive into emerging areas of interest. These electives rivaled those at my big highly rated suburban Atlanta high school. My kids don’t realize how spoiled they really are, and I am glad we have Gifted and Talented Magnets offered by WCPSS that pull from all over the county. I believe there are over 70 different Elementary Schools represented at Martin.
Just curious why your daughter wants to go to those two particular schools. Does she have friends that go there? What is her feeder Cary school? I thought Cary had good schools too. Also depending on where in Cary you live, driving to Downtown could be a drag.
Also, I heard it was easier to get into the magnet path when you start earlier, like K or 1st grade. Good luck! Our kid goes to a magnet elementary school in Downtown too.
They're taking electives away (particularly arts electives) at the Cary schools to force people into magnets because of overcrowding. The electives at Green Hope were slim pickin's this year unless you want to be a doctor or an engineer. No dance, no guitar, and they told the woodworking teacher when he retires that's going too. Glad we only have one year left because finding interesting electives has been a real struggle...most of my kid's electives have been science. She likes science (luckily), but it's not what she plans to pursue as a career.
TL;DR - it's a smart move to get your kids into a magnet if they have interests outside STEM and you live in western Wake.
Which magnet school your kids go to? My kids have not been to magnet before (tried a few years but never got in). She wants to take different electives at magnet schools, especially middle school (orchestra, art, drama, etc..). Public schools are good here but I like the diversity and elective options at magnets (not just math). Commute is a big drawback but worth trying it and finding out.
Underwood Elementary, which I believe feeds in Martin Middle. You are right on all points -- more electives but long commute. Good luck hope she gets in.
They're taking electives away (particularly arts electives) at the Cary schools to force people into magnets because of overcrowding. The electives at Green Hope were slim pickin's this year unless you want to be a doctor or an engineer. No dance, no guitar, and they told the woodworking teacher when he retires that's going too. Glad we only have one year left because finding interesting electives has been a real struggle...most of my kid's electives have been science. She likes science (luckily), but it's not what she plans to pursue as a career.
TL;DR - it's a smart move to get your kids into a magnet if they have interests outside STEM and you live in western Wake.
Thanks for sharing! I did not know that. We were looking at Cary schools before due to the high scores, but with the reassignments there was too much uncertainty on where our kid would have landed.
Moore square seems like an amazing school. I had a child at Poe and was so excited to be there in the first year. We ended up having to leave a couple of years in because my child was having an extremely hard hard time emotionally and socially due to conflict, general stress in the environment and mistreatment. Things got harder each year and my child's mental health deteriorated significantly. We went elsewhere and it turned out great, but my child, who is a pretty sensitive kid, is still sad and angry about all of this even years later. I know another magnet kid who stayed through fifth, though, and is absolutely thriving and on track to attend some great schools. A lot depends on the kid.
We ended up having to leave a couple of years in because my child was having an extremely hard hard time emotionally and socially due to conflict, general stress in the environment and mistreatment.
To clarify, conflict and stress in the environment had to do with very kids facing difficult life circumstances and pervasive "roasting" (joking insults, often about appearance), and mistreatment was bullying from a single kid (another magnet kid). Despite this, my child remembers most of the kids as being nice and I do too.
I am pulling this post back up. My DD is 5th grade at Poe elementary and we have applied to Martin and Moore Square middle. Deadline is extended for a few more days. Would you share your experience if you know either middle schools?
We had in-person tour at Martin and Moore Square. Martin was during the school hour and it was after school hour at Moore Square. We were impressed by whole tour experience at Martin. Magnet coordinator was so courteous and knowledgeable. We were not as impressed at Moore. It was empty building and vibe wasn't present at the tour. It was disappointing. One thing that caught our attention was they do not have auditorium at Moore and people were busy setting up the stage in the cafeteria during our tour. My DD wants to take the compacted math on 6th grade and the class size is bigger at Martin and normally a small class at Moore Square.
If your child goes to either Martin or Moore Square, would you please share your experience of programs (academics, orchestra, drama) and overall feel of school? Moore has a new principal and wonder if it has any impact (positive or negative). As far as the commute, we will drive DD to school in the morning (bus arrives at 6am!) and she will take the bus home. Martin provides neighborhood busing and PM route is shorter than AM. I do think she will do fine at either school but it is still hard decision. I love small school but Moore Square is definitely more distance so unless it has other appeal, we may pick Martin as 1st choice.
Thanks for sharing your thought!
Last edited by pianoguys22; 02-02-2022 at 11:15 AM..
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