ANOVA school: how does this place sound?

[DeeplyRooted]

http://www.boston.com/news/local/art...ild/?page=full

http://www.anovaschool.org/

So this new school is opening up in the Boston area. Which is where I live, so this is highly relevant to me and my not-quite-four-year-old.

Does anyone know more about this place? Its website says a lot about its general approach and curriculum, and in some ways, I like it. They claim that 2Es will be welcomed, for instance. They place a large emphasis on math, science, and engineering -- even to the point of using the Museum of Science's curriculum for the school's first year, and using Singapore Math (yay!) as its math curriculum. The classrooms will be mixed age, and kids will be encouraged to do lots of independent project work and pursue their own interests. And this place is being completely driven by parents! They got tired of their kids being underserved in the public schools, and by gum, they went out and did something about it.

Which is all great. BUT.

I've gotta ask -- where are the humanities? What's their reading list for literature, or their multiyear plan for teaching a coherent history curriculum? Instead of steady work with lots of tough-love feedback on writing and composition, are they really using writing workshops? (I would have despised them in elementary school, and the evidence from NYC on the efficacy student writing workshops is not good. Different population of students, though.)

For that matter, where's their coherent multiyear plan for teaching science content? Is the MoS curriculum all they've got? Because it won't suffice for seven years of science instruction, from what I can tell.

All that said, I think back to my two years in a "gifted school" (in high school), and I loved it. Just being around other giftie misfits like me was incredibly supportive and stimulating, and it set my course for life. So maybe it's still better than the alternatives around here.

Thoughts?

[zebra15]

Some parts of the school sound great others not so much.

What I like: IEP's for everyone!, what sounds like self directed learning for everyone, multi age classrooms, open ended projects - things like that

What I don't like: No history lessons per se, Singapore math(wouldn't work for DS),

I don't have issue with the science workshops and you can really hold a kids interest with the LEGO stuff(depending on how much of it they have). My son would thrive in writers workshops and basically free reading.

I can't tell if they are a semi-sudbury school model or not? IMO the school seems to be finding itself and not really sure what direction to go.

Right now, as the school is set up I wouldn't enroll DS. The school needs to improve history, language/english, science at minimum.

[zebra15]

I'm back, after REALLY looking at the school website, the daily schedule, and everything they have posted (plus the 10k tuition listed in the news article) The school does not sound like a place that DS would thrive. The AM session of 'tables' isn't something he would like. I'm not sure I totally understand what the school is going for. Maybe DS has been home schooled for too long but it just wouldn't work for him. DS has taken the SCAT and more than qualified for Johns Hopkins and currently takes classes from JHU-CTY and loves that. So qualifying for *ANOVA* wouldn't be an issue if we lived in Boston.

I just don't understand what the school is trying to teach or how they are trying to teach it.

[eepster]

Just b/c the website doesn't mention history, doesn't necessarily mean that there will be no history taught. My guess is that it will be integrated into the themes they mentioned. That is just a guess though.

The best and only way to really find out what the school is like is to go visit it. Try to find parents whose kids are/were students there. Talk to the staff.

If you post over in finding your tribe, maybe there will be families whose kids went there.

[DeeplyRooted]

Unlikely, given that the school is brand new and just starting classes this month.

I do plan to visit. It seems unfair to visit right now, as they get all the new-school kinks worked out, but once they settle in I'd like to go watch a classroom for a while.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by DeeplyRooted

Unlikely, given that the school is brand new and just starting classes this month.

Well that certainly makes things more complicated. It sounds like you'll need to base a lot of your impression of the school strictly on talking with the staff.

[zebra15]

Another possible flaw... SCAT is only for kids in grades 2-6. SCAT is only available thru JHU-CTY so you need to apply to CTY to get the SCAT test. IDK if ANOVA is going to align their program to entail the CTY classes? Now *that* would be something I would consider. If my 10k tuition at ANOVA also covered CTY classes... hummm (CTY runs about 2500 a year).

However there are still ALOT of kinks

SCAT info: http://cty.jhu.edu/ts/grades26.html

[Aufilia]

Originally Posted by DeeplyRooted

http://www.boston.com/news/local/art...ild/?page=full

http://www.anovaschool.org/

I've gotta ask -- where are the humanities? What's their reading list for literature, or their multiyear plan for teaching a coherent history curriculum? Instead of steady work with lots of tough-love feedback on writing and composition, are they really using writing workshops?
Thoughts?

I think you'd have to contact them and ask. Their website already includes an impressive amount of information on their curriculum. I've been combing through school websites to try to figure out what to do with DD next year, and I haven't found any many that are even as detailed as the ANOVA site. We have 2 private schools for gifted kids nearby, and both are much more vague about actual curriculum. The local Montessori schools sometimes have more information but it's all standard Montessori-ish stuff.

[Linda on the move]

[QUOTE=DeeplyRooted;15857409] They claim that 2Es will be welcomed, for instance. They place a large emphasis on math, science, and engineering -- even to the point of using the Museum of Science's curriculum for the school's first year, and using Singapore Math (yay!) as its math curriculum.

[QUOTE]

singapore was a complete disaster for my 2E dd.

I've gotta ask -- where are the humanities? What's their reading list for literature, or their multiyear plan for teaching a coherent history curriculum?

you are right! You do have to ask! You can only tell a tiny bit about what my kids' school is like from the web site. I didn't know until after school started that they offered sign. And I didn't find out until last week that my DD's sign teacher is profoundly deaf and ONLY signs with the kids. My DD is learning a ton, and it's not on the web site.

ask ask ask

[DeeplyRooted]

Originally Posted by Linda on the move

singapore was a complete disaster for my 2E dd.

Hmm, that's good to know. Thanks. Can you talk about why, and what works better for her? I'm curious.

My "yay!" reaction was due more to the fact that almost all the schools near me teach the non-rigorous spiral curricula, like Everyday Math or TERC Investigations -- with no real options for acceleration through topics kids already know cold. I'd rather not waste my DS's time relearning material when he's ready for much more advanced work, and ANOVA lets kids work through Singapore at their own individual paces. (Singapore is designed to let that happen.)

In general... yes, I will definitely visit ANOVA, and I will ask lots and lots of pesky questions about their curriculum!

I'll be fair to them and wait until their new-year and new-school jitters have calmed down, though.

[Linda on the move]

Originally Posted by DeeplyRooted

Hmm, that's good to know. Thanks. Can you talk about why, and what works better for her? I'm curious.

because it assumes a learning style that she doesn't have.

What works well for her is a good math teacher with a lot of experience working with kids who are a little different.

I was really not impressed with the staff for the anova school. It sounds like its a couple of moms with gifted kids. That's just not much to go on for exceptional child, esp. 2E kids.

It might be OK for my *just* gifted kid (who would do OK in any decent situation) but my 2E child needs teachers with real expertise and training, and I wouldn't dream of leaving her all day in a situation where no one is trained in mental health (her current school has a social worker).

Some one accustomed to *just* gifted kids isn't qualified to work with 2E kids, IMHO.

[anovamom]

So far, a great experience

As a parent with a 5-year-old enrolled at Anova, I think I can speak to many of your comments.

Regarding the Staff: They do have a robust background in education. While Anova was founded by a mother, they have hired a robust teaching community that is passionate about gifted education. Their teachers hold advanced degrees from Harvard School of Education, Cornell and Boston College. There is also a teacher trainer/curriculum developer who has a PhD in Education and is a lecturer at the Harvard School of Education with experience in differentiated instruction, for both gifted students as well as students with special needs.

It's not that history, language arts and social studies are not being taught. They are just taught in an interrelated way, rather than separately. The Museum of Science curriculum serves as the springboard for learning about science, history, social studies. For example, right now the kids are discussing "Water, Water Everywhere," a story about a girl in India trying to solve a water pollution issue in the Ganges. This has sparked a discussion about religion, history of India, colonialism, Ghandi, etc. Then the kids will learn about the water cycle, about technology and will end the unit by building their own water filters and testing pH levels, etc (in the higher grades).

Re: Science. There is a great science room with excellent materials supplied by an MIT professor, and a PhD and National Science Foundation fellow will be leading work with the kids there each week.

It is a new school, but there is a great parent community, and I only see things improving with time. The framework is there, and the philosophy lines up with what is happening in the classrooms so far.

So far, I've been very pleased with the teachers, the staff and by how happy my son is after school every day. Though my child is not 2e, I do know a couple of 2e kids who are attending Anova and seem to be doing really well. Because classrooms are small, teachers are able to really focus on each child.

The website contains a good reflection of the curriculum philosophy, but hasn't been updated in a while, and things have evolved since then.

If you are in the area and interested in learning more, there will be an information session for prospective students on September 30 at 9:30 a.m.

Best of luck!

[DeeplyRooted]

Oh!

Welcome, anovamom! Please tell us all about this school! I'm sure that more people than I are interested in how things work there.

What do the kindergartners do during the day?

Are you happy with the MoS curriculum? Is this something they've decided to go with over the next several years, or just this year? (Their website says only that they're using it for 2010-11, so it's not clear if it's a multiyear thing.)

[Linda on the move]

Originally Posted by anovamom

Regarding the Staff: They do have a robust background in education.

I recently used the internet to find a private school for my kids, so I've looked a lot of web sites from that point of view.

Based on the Our Team section, I wouldn't inquire further about the school. IMHO, you need to separate the Board from the people who are actually at the school working with the kids. I really don't care how impressive the credentials are of the board. really, deeply don't care.

I do care about the training and experience of the adults my kids spend the day with, and that is sadly lacking on your web site. The very first blurb is about corporate experience, not experience with kids.

It looks like the impressive credentials of the boards are mixed with the staff to mask the limited experience of anyone at the school in working with children.

For my 2E DD, I would be looking for credentials and experience relevant to her. There's nothing on the web site that indicates that your school would have a clue what to do with a child like her.

It doesn't really matter what I think because I live on the other side of the country and my kids LOVE their school anyway, but I thought you might want honest feedback (which is sometimes hard to get).

Good luck! Starting a new school is hard work!