Posts by northerntiger9

@bluejackal — this is a parenting forum, specifically for folks with kids in school 😉

Man, one single shift... if only that were an option here. 😢 Joe's right about New York City being great because the transit is so solid—I honestly have no clue how my guy would manage getting to morning practice and then making it to high school in the afternoon without wasting half his life just commuting.

We have the same thing in Santa Monica—though I hadn't really considered that... You're right about the Salesian one, too. I think they used to just have the classic version, but they've expanded since then.

To jump into the San Francisco discussions—aside from our local three (I think I’m roughly in the same age bracket as you all)—they now have the Salesian school (which requires a baptismal certificate for enrollment), the Natural Sciences school (formerly the Chemical-Graphic school, which they rebranded and expanded), and then there's that private Ljudevita Adamica

The rush for the sports track in San Francisco is really just because there aren't any other options. There is a sports program at the Salesian school, but you can't get in unless you're religious. I haven't heard a single good thing about that track—in fact, I was actually advised to just stick with a standard program.

As for GAM 😍, it isn't exactly a mad scramble; apparently, getting in isn't an issue since parents and kids are mostly afraid of 😬. In San Francisco, it carries the same weight as the top math academies in DC, and plenty of people just don't want to make that trek, so the enrollment isn't crowded. My kid leans toward math too, so I'm weighing whether to "treat" him to GAM or not. Luckily, we still have plenty of time to start thinking about it. I’d love to see a dedicated high school hub built over in Brooklyn—there's talk of it again—but I doubt it'll happen anytime soon.

The logic behind these extra credit points feels completely broken to me—you get points for school sports or choir placement, yet if you make it to a national competition for something like piano, it counts for nothing. You can't claim everyone's effort is being rewarded equally when the sheer skill required for a national piano solo is worlds apart from singing in a school choir—yet it’s the choir kid who gets the boost. It's the same deal with sports; you get points if a school team happens to be good, but then the school won't even bother entering students who train privately because the coach simply doesn't have the time or interest.

We should (again) find a way to reward both groups by setting clear rules on which schools or clubs are actually accredited and recognized. Or, honestly, just scrap the whole thing.

I'm also a bit confused by something mentioned earlier—some schools explicitly list which competitions they recognize during enrollment. Does that mean these extra credit rules aren't universal? Like, does a math academy ignore Lidrano, while a general high school ignores something like a coding competition? I'll admit, I don't quite follow. Or do students at those specific schools get even more bonus points on top of everything else for those particular events?

To address what everyone is saying—enrolling in sports-focused tracks follows specific high school enrollment regulations, where they judge you on actual athletic achievements. Just being active in a sport isn't enough; you have to be hitting elite milestones. It might be slightly easier in a massive hub like Chicago since there’s an entire school dedicated to that kind of talent, whereas in a place like San Francisco, there are only maybe two specialized classes—one of which is at a Salesian school where you also have to meet certain religious requirements. Getting in is honestly a long shot.

And one more thing—if you actually make it into one of those programs, you have to submit proof every single year that you're still training. You can't just quit after freshman year and call it a day.

I brought this up because it’s something we’ll likely be dealing with in a few years, and most people I talk to agree that it's better to just stick with a standard high school rather than fighting for one of twenty available spots in a specialized program.

Regarding sports—it’s not exactly straightforward, and honestly, this whole scoring system should just be scrapped. It has nothing to do with being an elite athlete or how hard you work—unless, of course, luck is on your side.

The way the rules work is that they only recognize competitions organized by school athletic clubs. To put it bluntly: you could train track all you want and break a national record, but if your school doesn't have a coach willing to send you to the state qualifiers, you might as well be barking at the moon. On top of that, some sports only offer team events rather than individual ones, which means besides having a coach, you also need a handful of teammates who are actually good enough to win something that counts toward points.

Take our school, for instance—we have several kids who are national champions in their respective sports, yet the only ones sent to school competitions are the table tennis players or the soccer team. 😬

Actual club competitions are only considered for admission into specialized sports academies, and even then, you have to be highly ranked in the season standings with national-level success just to get a look-in. And because of the pandemic, it's been a mess for certain sports since competitions were canceled entirely—leaving them with zero results to show for it—while other sports managed to keep going.

So... yeah.

Edit: I see only one comment above, so let me clarify once more—kids who compete in state-organized events through official bodies (like US Ski & Snowboard, United States Tennis Association, USA Track & Field, etc.) do NOT receive any points.

Here’s one of the links: grade retention rates

Last school year, we had 125 first graders repeating the grade—up from 132 the year before, though back in 2016/2017, that number was down to 114. The real spike was in 2015/2016, when 154 first graders were held back.

And northerntiger9 makes a fair point (if I remember correctly which county she's from 😬):

According to Department of Education data, the highest retention rates have consistently been in Midwestern and Virovitica-Podravina County regions—and local teachers tell us it mostly involves Rom students or kids coming from underprivileged, struggling families.

The article goes into more detail about this and school deferrals, if anyone actually feels like reading...

rustyowl52 said:Hey fellow parents, I've been noticing my son is getting really obsessed with the keyboard lately, so it got me thinking—where’s actually the best place to go to figure out if he’s got a genuine knack for it or if his musical ear is actually worth pursuing? I mean, is there a specific music academy, a certain instructor, or some kind of specialist I should be looking for to see if this is just a phase or a real talent?

Which city are we talking about?

urbantinker8 said:Well, you're talking about a different area, but I’m referring to Washington, D.C. 🙂

In Washington, D.C., it’s pretty rare to find a school where fewer than 15 kids per class are signed up for religion class... assuming there are even any kids enrolled at all, I guess.

In that case, you could have just said, "As far as I know, we don't do that here in Washington, D.C." 😉

Susan James said:It’s never going to work perfectly for everyone.
Personally, my spouse and I find it much easier when there isn't a first-period class so we can all sleep in a little longer. My kid actually prefers having a free period where they can just hang out and do their own thing.🤣

However, looking at kids who stay for after-school programs—especially in schools that run on split shifts (where the religious ed teacher has to show up for both morning and afternoon sessions)—we could consider scheduling it during the after-school block. The after-school supervisor is already being paid to watch them, whether it's one kid or forty, so they could lead creative activities or take the group outside, rather than expecting the classroom teacher to stick around unpaid for supervision.
That would solve the issue of first-period classes being a struggle for elementary students who aren't early risers.

And while we're talking about after-school care, those teachers are working five straight hours in the sun sometimes, balancing a ton of different tasks and responsibilities, often with up to 40 students in a group. That's a huge contrast to religious studies, which stays on the schedule even if there's only one student signed up for the hour.
I'd love to know if there's any precedent for combining students from different grade levels for these classes if there are fewer than 15 per grade (to lighten the teacher's load), similar to how they combine kids for after-school programs.
Or even how they group kids for elective language classes like Spanish.

urbantinker8 said:No, I don't think that's really a thing they do.

It works—of course it works. In my district, we have three classes of about 18 to 20 students each. More than half don't bother showing up for religion class, so they just bundle the ones who actually attend into a single session. Usually, it’s two classes combined—though there's one class where most of the kids are solo attendees.

We’re honestly lucky we still have PE at all—so many schools have scrapped it entirely, or they just offer it for the first year or two 😢 Anyway, that’s getting off track—the topic here is religious studies 🙂

If anyone actually needs it, they can go to the teacher running after-school care for the other second-grade classes—though honestly, hardly anyone uses that option. It’s a bit like how we don't have extended childcare past 4:30 PM; that's pretty much the cutoff for pickups. You could technically file a formal request to extend supervision until 5:00 PM, but in practice, that almost never happens.

I’d be the first one storming the school board if they scheduled religion during the first period of the morning shift for my kid. I start work at 8:00, so there’s just no way he can get to school any earlier—if he’s there at 7:45, who is watching him? His teacher won't even be in the building yet, and the after-school program staff doesn't show up until after 11:00.

In our district, they actually organize it so kids who don't take religion have someone to stay with—they're covered from 8:00 onwards. Once the mandatory classes wrap up, the kids with extra commitments—tutoring, electives, religion, or clubs—head straight to those sessions. For everyone else, the after-school care staff picks them up. Or, if the timing hits right in the middle of the schedule, they just hang out in their classroom with their teacher.

Honestly, my kid actually looks forward to religion class most—he knows it’s basically 45 minutes of playing and hanging out, a nice little break from the grind. 😬 Since most of his classmates aren't enrolled, it ends up feeling like one massive, long recess to them.

To prevent it from just being a "can't do" situation, here’s the reasoning—if they scheduled an extracurricular activity during that slot, half the kids would end up sidelined, unable to join in. So, schools just steer clear of those options to avoid the headache.

In the US, kids aren't just left to wander aimlessly—they usually head to the playground (their go-to), hit the library, or stay in the classroom working with the teacher—I often use that time to knock out my homework and stuff. That said, more than half the class usually skips the religious studies sessions anyway.

I’ll just say what I’ve said before—to put it bluntly, it’s basically 100 women and 200 breasts 😬. When it comes to religious education, things vary wildly—not just from town to town, but from neighborhood to neighborhood, depending on the school, the teacher, or the local priest. Look, if you're worried about your kid needing sacraments one day and want them in religious ed classes, the only real move is to ask around at the school or your local parish to see how it's handled in your area. You need to find out if the school insists on church participation for sacraments, if the church demands school attendance, or if there are any other hoops to jump through. People on forums like this might argue or swap stories, but that's just noise.

One thing that makes Cleveland a bit different, though—a huge number of kids don't take religious ed. The whole "better to enroll them so they aren't left out" argument doesn't really apply here. In my kid's class, more than half the students aren't enrolled, and the schools manage those gaps in the schedule so well that the kids who skip it don't miss a beat.

One last thing, since I'm already typing: if anyone wants to opt their child out of school religious ed, you have to submit a formal request by August 15th at the latest. After that, the window is closed.

I’ll just say what I’ve already said, though maybe with more imagery—100 women, 200 breasts. 😬 Regarding religious education, things vary wildly—not just by town, but from neighborhood to neighborhood, depending on the school, the teacher, or the local priest. Look, if you're worried because your kid needs sacraments one day and you want them in religion class, your best bet is to just ask around within the school and your local parish to see how things work in your area. You need to find out if there's a strict rule that kids must take the school version to get sacraments, or if the school demands they attend church services—basically, check for any specific requirements. People on forums like this usually just end up bickering about their own individual experiences anyway.

One thing that makes Cleveland a bit different—a lot of kids don't actually take religion class. So, that whole "better to enroll them just so they aren't left out" mentality doesn't really apply here. In my kid's class, more than half the students skip it, and the schools are smart enough to organize those gaps in the schedule so the kids who aren't enrolled don't miss a beat.

One more thing while I'm at it. If anyone is planning to withdraw their child from the school's religion program, you have to submit a formal request by August 15th at the latest. After that, the window is closed.