SECULAR, private Pre-K, K, Gradeschool Near South Elgin, IL???

[New_Natural_Mom]

Help.  DS just turned 3 and I am really starting to freak out about school.  He is in daycare now and has been since 3 mos old.  He loves daycare and thrives there.  He is very smart (at least I think so) and knows his letters/numbers/colors/shapes,etc.  He is very creative and good at pretending/making up stories and has a pretty good vocabulary.  I don't know if he exhibits signs of giftedness (though I was considered "gifted" as a child so it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility.)

I want to figure out where he is going to school.  I pretty much ruled out the local grade school.  No offense to anyone, but I don't want to put him in public school.  Homeschooling is out just due to finances.  We are a 2 income family, and though we are willing to sell our house and downsize to make it work, the economy and housing market is just not cooperating.  So a 2 income family we shall stay.

I am looking for great non-religious, private schools near South Elgin.  There are Montessori schools in West Dundee and St. Charles.  Those would be inconvenient geographically but ok - yet I am not 100% on board with Montessori as a practice.  There are also the Da Vinci Academy (most convenient geographically) and The Einstein Academy and Elgin Academy.  Does anyone have any experience with these 3?  Positives or negatives?

They all seem to be for "gifted" students.  I don't even know how to determine that.  If he isn't "gifted" would those curriculums harm him ( my guess is probably). 

Sorry this is so rambly, but I am so confused about this.  I don't know how we will afford this either on top of daycare.

[tf0526]

Don't know anything about those particular schools, but will throw my 2 cents in about Montessori: great type of schooling methodology if you stick with it, but can backfire if you switch kids from montessori back to a regular school.  I teach in a public school and always feel bad for kids that switch to us from montessori.  At our school the district curriculum must be followed, and the district mandated schedule is not flexible, so it is a rude awakening for those used to a child centered approach.

If you call the schools, they will most likely be willing to show you around on a school day so you can get a vibe about what the school is like (our principal does this all the time at our public school).  Also check their websites to learn about curriculum, and parent groups and such.

Good luck researching

[LacieD]

A friend of mine is starting her daughter at Einstein Academy for K next year because her daughter's b-day is in November and she misses the cutoff (don't get me started on THAT one) - I did some research on it when she was raving about the school, and I've read a bunch of things from former students who said that Einstein did not prepare them for the real world - if they transferred to public school, they were far behind their grade; if they went on to college, they were not prepared.  The reviews also said that while they say they're a "gifted" school, they don't do any testing and most students aren't truly gifted.