How hard is it to get into the private schools in Nashville

[MayMove]

Agree on the foreign language. Perhaps there is a private tutor or facility that offers foreign language in your area?

We were fortunate enough to have Spanish available from the 2nd grade on in our public system. Most high schools suggest 2 credits of language. My daughter will take 4. :-). She has the opportunity at her stable for daily conversational which is a great plus.

[Shino306]

Ensworth and The Oak Hill School both offer foreign language at the kindergarten level. Ensworth offers Mandarin Chinese and Spanish and Oak Hill offers Spanish.
It's been shown that children exposed to a foreign language at an earlier age, do learn it easier than older children and have an easier time learning other foreign languages later in life.

Septimus...I find your views on the public schools in Williamson County interesting. We always assumed we'd move there for the middle/high schools when the time came, however it seems that you're not finding them up to par, based on where you came from. Personally, I'd rather have my child pushed and challenged academically than go to a place where the academics are touted but there is no ROI (return on investment).
Where did you live prior to moving to Nashville, if you're willing to divulge? My husband and I both did not grow up in Nashville, he went to a public HS in the suburbs of DC that is consistently ranked in the top 10 in the country and my HS is ranked fairly high as well. We both have undergrad and graduate degrees from top programs in the country, so education for our child(ren) is a huge priority.

As far as sending your children to private school, I'd go tour USN, Ensworth, MBA, and Harpeth Hall and "drop hints" that your children are bored in public school and you think they need more of a challenge. It never hurts to massage an ego, whatever the intentions are and the schools want to know the kids are bright. I was told to drop hints by other mothers about what we did for a living on preschool tours as smart parents generally equate to smart kids and the schools wanted bright children...and as I said this was for preschool!
Also, it appears your children would do fine on the entrance exams the private schools require.

Let us know how it goes and what you decide to do. As far as single sex schools, MBA and Harpeth Hall are considered the best.

[septimus]

Shino-My husband and I both have degrees and graduate degrees from top schools. We also went to very good private schools for high school but public for lower grades. We place a high priority on education too.

I'm actually more concerned about Williamson for elementary than high school. I think the fact that FHS has the IB program means it can challenge the best and the brightest. I've also heard good things about its band and I'd rather have my kids be band geeks than football stars.

[BirdieBelle]

[quote=septimus;12633219]

Originally Posted by Wmsn4Life

I even asked if the PTO raised money for it and she said it wasn't allowed.

Yes, there have been equity issues that have come up in the past when PTOs wanted to fund teaching positions.

Hope you can find something that works for you.

[brentwoodgirl]

Where are you zoned? My kids are at Edmondson and they have Spanish starting in 3rd grade. My son had some introduction to it in 2nd grade also.

We lived in Nashville & did the lottery twice for 3 different schools and didn't get into any of them either time. We sent our oldest to a well respected private school in Nashville for Kindergarten. We really liked it, but honestly, the people were so incredibly wealthy that we were worried about our children feeling left out when they got older. The parents tended to talk about things like their private planes (there was a private plane wreck here the year we were in school there), Viking appliances, Range Rover maintenance, etc. Every one was very nice, but we just didn't have a lot in common.
I went to an "elite" private high school in Memphis, but that just meant the kids lived in nicer houses and drove nice cars. The wealth at my private school was probably similar to Brentwood.
The private school wealth here was a whole different world. And we have more than 2 kids, so I knew once we had all of our kids in that school, we would be able to afford less and our kids might begin to really feel out of place.

Getting in wasn't as hard as I expected. My kids were in the Metro Nashville gifted preschool. Most of the parents from that program were applying to all the schools you mentioned, plus Oak Hill. All of us got into one of the schools. I don't know if that's because the kids did well on the test or because the gifted preschool was regarded well, or both.

We moved to Brentwood and have been really happy with Edmondson. You can do gifted at a younger age than 3rd grade if needed. The gifted teacher pulls the kids out & works with them one on one. My daughter's gifted preschool teacher in Metro recommended having her skip a grade to keep her challenged. We weren't willing to do that because she is already young for her grade. Edmondson has done a great job finding resources to keep her challanged.
We were happy in the private school, but Edmondson is better fit for our family.

[Shino306]

Good Point brentwoodgirl, one must always think about the "fitting in" factor at private schools. If that's a concern for parents, who have decided to send their children to private school, I think University School would be the best fit, it's probably the closest to "real life" since a lot of Vandy proffs send their kids there, and they're paid well but don't have the type of money you were describing, and the atmosphere/culture tends to be more laid-back than at other private schools, such as MBA or HH.

[septimus]

Brentwood-that is interesting about edmonson because my school committee rep told me they didn't do foreign language in elementary. I am going to meet with the principal in 2 weeks.

I don't know what the private elementary schools are like, but the private high schools do have a decent number of kids on financial aid across all incomes.

[brentwoodgirl]

Edmondson has a part time Spanish teacher for grades 3-5. They have Spanish once a week as a specials class (like art & music). My son has learned enough to practice with our housekeeper, so he's happy.
They also have an outdoor classroom, a computer lab teacher, a science lab with some live bugs/animals and a science lab teacher. We were impressed with the facilities for a public school.

[septimus]

Originally Posted by brentwoodgirl

Edmondson has a part time Spanish teacher for grades 3-5. They have Spanish once a week as a specials class (like art & music). My son has learned enough to practice with our housekeeper, so he's happy.
They also have an outdoor classroom, a computer lab teacher, a science lab with some live bugs/animals and a science lab teacher. We were impressed with the facilities for a public school.

that is impressive. we have friends at edmondson and like it.

[brentwoodgirl]

I assumed that all the Brentwood schools had Spanish since we did, but I just checked the websites for Scales, Kenrose, Crockett & Lipscomb and none of them have a Spanish teacher listed, or any other foreign language.
You can look at the different EES websites and get an idea of what programs are offered by what teachers are listed on the staff pages.
Our principal is younger than I expected, but we like her. I hope you have a good meeting.
Good luck with your decision. Choosing a school can be really stressful.