I know you ladies are probably tired of me going on about schools, but I went through another one today and have a question. Do any of your kids attend a *charter* school? If so, have you been pleased?

I decided to look into our charter school. And I ended up putting Blake's name in the lottery for the school of the arts (our charter school) for 1st grade. Just in case we can't afford to continue paying for the private school after Kindergarten.

What do you know about Charter Schools? Any experiences/info you can pass along would be great! This one offers arts and foreign language, it is K-8 grade... (i put brad's name in the lottery too)

I *promise* I am done posting about schools after this post. ;)

By Trina~moderator on Thursday, May 4, 2006 - 04:08 pm:

LOL, Conni! Ask away! What do you think message boards are for, anyway?! LOL! Sorry, I can't help you out concerning charter schools. The one in our area is in Hartford, and that alone scared me away! NO thanks!

By Melanie on Thursday, May 4, 2006 - 04:42 pm:

We have a grade 7-12 charter school in our area that is phenomenal. The problem with it is that it is so hard to get into. This spring there were 500 applicants for 75 spots. Yikes!

Like all schools, they are all very individual, but I definitely have a positive view of what they can offer.

By Tink on Thursday, May 4, 2006 - 04:50 pm:

We have a couple of tremendous charter schools in our area. Very selective, very small classes but I don't have much info beyond that. The charter schools here are highly recommended.

By Hlgmom on Thursday, May 4, 2006 - 05:01 pm:

There are great charter schools here as well- each with a different "focus"...math, arts, english etc.
They are more difficult toget into but all I know who attend love them!

By Conni on Thursday, May 4, 2006 - 07:54 pm:

Thanks!! Glad to hear some positive response.

I have heard good things about this school. It was really cool to walk thru it today. The lady took Blake in every classroom whether they were having class or not. lol She would just open the doors and say 'Hi, we have visitors!!' And they would all say 'Hello'... Totally laid back atmosphere. This is a newer school. I think they started it in 2001? They just moved to a new campus in the last yr that is bigger and they may expand it and add a few more kids in the future. I think she said they have just over 400 students at this point. People are always moving in and out of here so there is a pretty good chance we could get our name drawn for a spot in the next couple of yrs... The class size was awesome! Much like the school he is at now. And it has that small school feeling. We got to see a bunch of long haired boys playing their violins. lol It was pretty cool.

By Mommmie on Thursday, May 4, 2006 - 10:43 pm:

Charter schools are all over the map here as far as quality. I'd say there were more bad ones than good ones. You just have to do your research.