Potomac West

Our daughter is in 2nd grade and has attended MVCS since Kindergarten. All her teachers have been wonderful -- attentive to her and responsive to any concerns we have. The dual language program was difficult in virtual school but she is accelerating again now that they have been back in person full time this year. We speak English at home, but multiple native Spanish speakers have commented to me that her accent is incredible. The early grades so far have not focused on homework, which we love -- kids receive books to read and are encouraged to do math activities, but no formal homework is assigned. Our daughter tests well, reflecting the great teachers at this school. MVCS has particularly focused on Social Emotional learning since the pandemic started, and the kids have a lot of tools for recognizing and regulation emotions, particularly stress. We hope this focus remains in place for the long run, as we really like it.

My child looks forward to school every day. I am very pleased with learning progress in Kindergarten. My child went from not knowing how to read and write to reading on her own. Communications and processes are straightforward. Overall, it’s great!

Our family’s ILS journey began ten years ago when we moved from a military assignment in Germany to new jobs in the Pentagon. We looked for a school in which our two young sons would be immersed in a Christian and academically challenging environment. Our comprehensive search landed us at ILS. Since then, both of our sons have graduated from ILS and their sister is halfway through her time. The ILS community has truly been a blessing for our family. We have found that ILS is more than just a school—it is a place where parents and faculty come together to build a rich environment for our children. In addition to a solid academic foundation, our children learned to show genuine love and respect to those around them, an outcome that in many ways is more important than academic success. We attribute much of our children’s maturity and academic excellence to their time at ILS. If you are considering a classical Christian education, we recommend ILS. We believe it has been an investment in our children’s future that will pay dividends in their own families and communities. Chris and Jen Mulder

We have been so happy at St. Rita. It's an intimate, involved community, with almost universally shared values. The administration is very focused on healthy childhood development, particularly on protecting the children from the harms of technology. It's a deeply and authentically Catholic community, so families trying to raise their children in the Church will feel supported and their children's faith deepened. The classical curriculum is and academics generally are strong.

This school is ideal for families looking for a community and engaged teaching team for their child. The administrators are highly involved in every aspect of the school and works hard to train and maintain their highly qualified teaching staff.Our family started at the school as part of the Young Children Community for 18 months to 3 year old children. We found DRMS is the only school in the area that offers Montessori education to this age group. The community is adorable and the kids learn so much from the teachers and from the mixed ages within the class. We highly recommend this school and recommend you reach out to the school early to learn about their programs.