Parents of high schoolers, does your child go to a big or small

[minisaremighty]

We are planning a move and have several different districts within a 30 mile radius. We just aren't sure which district we want to be in. The education decision is weighing heavily on WHERE we move to. Right now, my kids are in a magnet school k-8 that is NOT a typical school, no desks, the older kids are matched with younger ones to help with reading and math. They are thriving there. I'm fairly certain we will continue to keep them there no matter where we move to, but it's the high school situation that concerns me.

Our current district has an average of 1400 kids per high school, all over capacity, (with one small magnet school that has 300-400, half of whom are the "bad" kids that got kicked out of the other schools).

There is another district that has 1800 kids and is bursting at the seams.

Another school has an average of 650 kids and is an excellent school, but land prices are almost untouchable.

Another school has 900 or so kids and received the lowest state score in our entire area.

Then there is one more district which only has 196 kids, is also excellent, although growing fast now, but it's about a 45-50 min. commute for my hubby to get to his job from there.

We do have other options. If we stay in our current district, there is an online high school where they can also go to individual classes at one of the high schools for the advanced classes. And there are 3-5 private schools throughout the area, although not sure we can afford to put three kids through private high school.

Just curious to hear about your kids high school and how you like it. Size, quality of education, etc.

 

[Jess P]

Okay I am in high school, and this is mine.

My school is a college size campus. It has 3,500 students and we are not in a city. Our school is for 5 towns, my town being the biggest. The education is great. Awesome teachers. There is a mix of students here. We have the jocks, preps, goths, punks, and "normal", although I hate labels that is what they dress and act like.

 

[Happy Valley]

My boys go to the school where I teach. Our K-12 campus is about 850 students.

Is there a way to visit the schools, talk to the principal and teachers, spend some time there, and get a better idea of what they have to offer? Our school, being so small, is limited on extracurricular activities, but we have great test scores.

Other nearby schools offer MUCH more opportunity for outside interests, but test scores are lower.

Surely they would be willing to spend some time with you before you make a decision.

Stacye

 

[Miniv]

Kathy,

Prineville is OUT unless all you are focussed on is Sports, poor education and discipline problems.

Redmond is OUT for overcrowding and discipline problems.

Bend High and Mountain View High are both horribley overcrowded, although I'm told there is still some good education to be had at one or the other.....

Sisters High School is good, small, but living in its district is EXPENSIVE.

Just learned from a mom who's daughter is at the Prineville High School that she is paying so much extra to the school for sports, band, etc...... She might as well be sending the girl to private school!

Bri is attending Crook County Christian School. Pre-school through 12th grade is a total of 300 students! Cost is amazingly cheap for the "one on one" education she is getting. 1st - 6th grade is $225 per month on a 10 month payment plan. 7th - 12th grade is $240 per month on a 10 month payment plan. There is a one time registration fee at the beginning of the year.

Just a thought.....

MA

MA

 

[minisaremighty]

WOW Miniseasons!! 3500!! That's a ton of kids!!!

Thanks for the advice Stacye. Would be good to visit the schools that we are most interested in.

:

Oh, don't worry MA, I KNOW Prineville it out! LOL!! They scored sooooo low on the state test it's not even funny! Sisters would be nice, there actually are 2 properties that are in the price range we are looking at, but will probably be gone by then.

Culver school district is one we are considering. Excellent school from what I've heard. We'd be in Crooked River Ranch to go there.

I guess I really should check into all the private schools and see what they are charging. If we end up mortgage free and I can get a job after Johanna starts school, we'll have more $$ to work with. I hadn't seriously considered them, but I guess I should!! I'm sure the education is much better with the smaller schools. That is really what we want, the smaller school. Right now, they are in a K-8 school with only 197 kids in it. We LOVE small schools. :aktion033:

 

[Lauralee]

My kids go to a very small rural school.

I am a believer that kids are BORN WITH most of their ability to learn, and that they do the majority of their learning at home. I do not place full responsibility on a school to teach my kids....I reinforce/enhance the school's teaching at home.

That being said, it is true that smaller schools have less opportunity for scholarship and learning. The teachers are not always as good because the budget is smaller. My kids school has anywhere from 15 to 25 in each grade.

However, I LOVE the small school system. EVERYONE KNOWS what your kid is doing. It's nearly impossible to skip class or smoke pot without EVERYONE knowing.

If I have a problem with something that has happened at school, I know every person in the school office and we are on a first name basis.

Our football games are like backyard football....we qualify to play 6 man football but we elected to go with a full team. This means that EACH KID plays offense and defense.

It takes every kid in each grade to make the sports teams. AND WE HAVE A GIRL FOR A KICKER on our Junior High team.

My daughter is a cheerleader and she plays every sport available. She is in Choir AND Band.

The kids learn alot being a necessary part of a team and it keeps them busy and out of trouble.

At half time, our tiny marching band (oh about 15 kids) contains sweaty football players and cheerleaders and even the band director plays his horn just to help out.

It can be quite entertaining, because we are so "small town"......we play other teams whose football field is literally a cow pasture with remnants of cow poop left behind. And teams that have physically or mentally disabled kids on the starting lineup in sports.

I wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

[tifflunn]

I think our local high school that my son attends is at about 450( can't imagine 1000 plus students) provides grade 9-12- we have 3 high school in town and we are the lowest errollment and probbally have the worst rep- but not well deserved. We have about 1/3 of the students are challenged financial and on there own. The school provids class for entry into trade school, colleges and Universities. We have a stong english department that annually wins many provincial awards- They also have a strong trades skills programms that are growing every year. Our sports teams win very little- but they can put together most of the teams most of the time. Most children are identifiable by most if not all teachers by grade 10. I like the smaller school- and if I went by reputaion we would not have walked in the doors - but I am glad we did and liked what we saw and stayed- now we are trying very hard to find a farm in the highschools district so my daughter can countinue to attend it next year :bgrin

Tiffany

 

[whiskeyranch]

ditto here with what Lauralee said, except for the girl kicker and we have a nice football field. We moved here a year ago from a large school system where children sometimes are overlooked.

everyone knows everyone, pretty much all the kids are friends, not as many clicks here. I can pop in school at any time to discuss an issue or whatever and the kids are dealt with on a much more personal basis. parents too. My children are also a year ahead in math classes. So they will be finished with required math by their sophomore year. My son will be taking Trig. as a freshman.

I too think extra curricular activities are more fullfilling for them because they have the opportunity to do everything.

If a child is going to earn a scholarship, it won't matter what school they go to, they matter.

 

[wantminimore]

My daughter goes to a high school that has 310 students and the next town overs high school has 400 something. There has been talk about putting the two schools together. I really hope they don't. They want to put them together because with under 300 kids they don't get the funds that they need.

They say the school needs $8 million worth of work and a new school would be between 11 and 15 million.

I myself like the smaller schools, although my daughter didn't do so hot in classes last year but is doing great this year.

 

[Miniv]

Of COURSE! CULVER!!!! I don't know why I didn't think of that one!

I know of a family who went out their way to find a place close to Culver while the husband was working in Madras -- just so the kids would be able to attend the Culver schools.

The problem with Crooked River Ranch area is that they have a lot of rules and regulations, almost like a gated community does.

MA

 

[wildoak]

If I had it to do over again I'd probably have opted for private school for my girls. Both went to a huge high school (3000 give or take). Our school district has a very good reputation scholastically, but as we discovered that varies widely between schools. Being"rural", we were on the edge of the school district, which put us in a new high school. Nice state of the art campus, huge school and LOTS of discipline problems. It was not a good experience and in hindsight, would have been better to drive the 20 miles or so to a private school. However, much of it does depend on the child and their motivation. My daughter had a difficult time and didn't have many good friends, but there were certainly good kids that went through the same school with no problem. She made some bad choices, which I hope are behind her now, but she did have other options. High school is not an easy time, I think anything we can do to give them better options and less exposure to trouble is a good investment.

Jan

 

[minimama]

I home school our two high school age girls. The high schools here are 3500+ students EACH!! And there are like ten high schools. Pretty sad huh? And the education is just deplorable!! They asked me to please home school them and their grades and attitudes have changed dramatically since I started. All for the better. Teh guidance counselor at the high school actually told me I was doign teh best thign I could for my kids by taking them out of there. Now that is bad!

Miniseasons, tell me more about your house and property if you wouldn't mind. We have been thinking of relocating to Oregon and the house is just about the right size for us.

 

[Jenn]

I don't have a kid in high school, but I was in high school not that long ago myself.

My high school had about 1,200 kids at the time. It was really a fantastic school. There was a lot of school spirit (largely due to our champion football team - GO COBRAS!), but even the football players had to pull off good grades - their football coaches taught their math classes!

I can honestly say that in the four years I spent in high school, I was never exposed to or offered drugs. Cigarettes and alcohol, yes, but nothing harder than that.

I'm with Lauralee in that I believe a school does not hold sole responsibility for a child's education - in my opinion, it's up to the parents to ensure the student is learning what he or she needs to know. I was reading long before my peers (learned at age three) and that ability put me ahead of my classmates for the duration of my school years. My mom also did math flashcards with us in elementary school and to this day, I am pretty good at doing math in my head.

 

[Jess P]

Miniseasons, tell me more about your house and property if you wouldn't mind. We have been thinking of relocating to Oregon and the house is just about the right size for us.

Well we live in New Hampshire. Our property is about 3 acres and we are allowed to have as many horses as we want. No size limits like the town next door. We are on a side road, but it is next to the main road that goes down to the high school. There is a middle school and a elementary school on that road as well. Our house is four levels (Basement, first floor, second floor, attic) and we have our barn in the back yard with five paddocks and a riding ring. There is a park right next door

 

[mininik]

Whatever you do, do NOT send your children to a known dumping ground for bad kids. That's the sort of heck I had to go to for my freshman and sophomore years before I started independant study at home through the American School of Correspondence. I believe there were about 1500 kids at Apollo and a preschool in the middle of campus for THEIR babies. Sex, drugs, alcohol and fights were the "in" thing to do. One of my only friends was a first year algebra teacher who broke down crying in front of my class on several occasions because her students were always out of control. I've never missed it or been upset that I didn't go to prom and forget class reunions... why would I ever want to see those losers again?

:

 

[Leeana]

I go to a small. It has gradles 9-12. About 100 people per grad, so i'd say we have anywhree from 350-450 people. Its pretty small, but then agian we are a very small and rural town (1 stop light, lol). Its combined out our town, Green Springs and the one right next to it, Clyde.

If you want to get a better idea, here is our website. If you click on the door's in the middle, you will get a map of it. Or click on 'THE HALLS' and you get to see some candid pictures ext.

Clyde High School

PROS: I dont have more then 21 people in each of my classes. My biggest class was jym freshman&sophmore year, i had about 28people in each class. They have great teachers. You really get to know people and i can honestly say i know EVERYBODYS name at school.

CONS: *DRAMA*. I cannot even begin to tell you how much drama goes on at school. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that stuff gets around so fast between 400 people ..its not really hard. Stuff also gets blown out of proportion.

I wouldnt change anything about it though, i prefer a smaller school.

Leeana

 

[stormo41]

i'm in high school. it a small one. but don't by pass the school with the "bad kids" thats what every one says about my school, but my school is really good. yes we take kids that no one else will, but nothing bad happens. the "bad kids" are not all that bad. lot of people who went to my school became really succuesful.

 

[minimama]

OOPS! Teach me to speed read! LOL I of course meant Minisaremighty. LOL I am so sorry about that.

 

[Miniv]

I'm with Lauralee in that I believe a school does not hold sole responsibility for a child's education - in my opinion, it's up to the parents to ensure the student is learning what he or she needs to know. I was reading long before my peers (learned at age three) and that ability put me ahead of my classmates for the duration of my school years. My mom also did math flashcards with us in elementary school and to this day, I am pretty good at doing math in my head.

Jenn,

First - you were very fortunate that no "hard" drugs were available to you at your high school. That is unusual.

I totally agree with you and Lauralee, that the parents should be involved in their child's education. I was very blessed to have a grandmother who had been a teacher. She taught all of us to read before we entered school and she taught us multiplcation as well.

By the time our daughter was born, my grandmother and both of my parents had all passed, so it was up to us. I have been told the best thing we did was to start READING to her as an infant.....this developed into showing her the ABC's and how to sound out words by the time she was a toddler. She also knew how to count and do simple math by the time she started Pre-School. And now that she's in 3rd grade we are working with her on multiplication and division.

I don't know if it's because we've had Bri at a private school from day one, but the two schools she has attended are VERY focussed on having the parents extremely involved, both in their education and their social developement. Perhaps we have been very fortunate to have such wonderful schools in our area, but

Bri has been testing TWO GRADES above in Reading and ONE GRADE above in Math! We are very pleased.

MA

 

[Lauralee]

I also wanted to add that larger schools seem to breed racial tension and gangs. Division by race is almost a given in a large school in our part of the country.

Our tiny rural school is probably 40% black, 50% white, and the remaining 10% is hispanic and asian or native american.

There are biracial kids, rich kids, poor kids, disabled kids, you name it.

And they ALL GET ALONG! When our school competes with an all-white school, and racial remarks are made by the other school, they band together as a team and defend one another.

I believe that it is GOOD for children to learn how to interact with other kids of all races and respect each for their cultural beliefs.

After all, that's what they're going to need to do when they get careers and jobs.