My son scored the following in ISEE ML
VR-8 (95)
RC-6(75)
QR-8 (92)
MA-9(99)
Worried about his RC marks. He is currently in grade 6 looking for admission to grade 7. We are moving from Houston to NJ in summer of 22. He is super in mathematics, was a GT student in public Elementary school and is currently doing Algebra 1A at 6th grade through the math accelerate program. But his writing and reading are not up to that mark.
Targeting Princeton Day School, Montclair Kimberly and Gill St Bernard…any thoughts/ suggestions?
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Those 3 schools are all pretty far away (>45 minutes) from each other. Are you sure you’re targeting properly?
I think you’ll be fine with those scores. If you will be relocating to be near school, the geography is fine. But it’s unlikely that if you’ve targeted a place to live that you’d be equally happy with all 3.
I assume you are looking at schools that go through 12th. If you are happy with PDS’ location, you might want to look at Hun and Pennington.
If you are looking to get to 8th and then apply to high school from there, definitely more options.
I agree. My office will be in Manhattan. I am giving priority to the school before deciding on a place to stay. Fine with the commute if the school is good.
Yes PDS is best for school and MKA will be best for commute to Manhattan. Gill will a challenging commute. My office will be in Manhattan. Will apply for Hun also. Based on the SAT scores of the high school students the difference between PDS and HUN is stunning. PDS SAT is like 1400 and HUN is like 1270. What your feedback about Hun?
Hun is also a good school. Definitely smaller middle school. Their high school graduates have good outcomes. They learning support is known to be good. Very sporty. Hun has some boarders in high school.
If you are looking for SAT scores, Pingry is known for having a well-prepped student body and is k-12. Oratory is all boys and 7-12.
With that said, I know that stats are an easy way to compare schools but it’s really not going to tell you much about what kind of experience your kid will have or the student body. It might tell you how much test prep parents are paying for. Or if test prep is part of the curriculum even. But it won’t tell you whether the STEM program is strong, whether the other kids are kind, whether your kid will be happy if he isn’t the “type” who normally attends, whether your kid will have a different experience than the child of a big donor/trustee.
For high school, I think there are far better high school options in the Princeton area (Peddie, Lawrenceville, George) that start at 9th and where you can opt to board if the commuting is taking a toll, but I understand why you are looking for an option where you won’t have to move again for high school.
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Yes I agree SAT scores don’t give the complete picture. I would ideally like to continue the high school with the middle school we will be choosing now. Its just too stressful for the kids to manage daily school work and ISEE/admission prep.
Any views about Pennington and Gill St Bernard?
The kids at Pennington tend to be nice kids and it doesn’t feel super stressful. They are known for excellent learning support, and they have very good soccer programs.
I have only known 3 boys who went to GSB in the last decade. None were super academic and all were excellent athletes. Can’t provide much on that.
The other one to look at is Newtown Friends (across the river in PA). Although it is K-8, many of the kids go on to George, which is quite literally next door. The relationship of the schools is such that it’s an abbreviated (test optional) application process. So while not truly k-8, it serves your needs that way.
Pennington is a good school and very well liked. I know very happy families at all 3 schools but their vibes are very different. People tend to seek each out for different reasons.
If you think Peddie/Lawrenceville/George might be of interest (I agree with @gardenstategal on that front) you might also look into k-8s like Chapin and Princeton Academy. Both have excellent placement at the high schools, including the ones already discussed.
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Thanks. Please share about the vibes of each school of the 3 schools. My son is good in maths he is doing Algebra 1A at 6th grade but not very sporty or extra-curricular type. He is also a bit weak on the writing part especially compared to his math. So a school with a good English/writing program will be good for him. I also want his future school to have a strong math/stem program.