3729 Briars Rd
Olney, MD 20832

14 years ago, we moved into the area and I obsessively reviewed the school sites in order to pick the house with the best cluster of schools. Belmont was rated very highly. We visited the school and it felt like the right fit for my kids. We purchased a house in the cluster. Looking back on it, it was not a good choice for my children. My son's 1st-2nd grade teachers were very good but 3rd-5th were terrible. He was struggling and the teachers said it was attitude. We knew it wasn't and after researching his symptoms and finding the best doctors, he was diagnosed with extreme anxiety and ADHD. Even after the diagnosis, the teachers didn't believe us and it took us way too long to get the 504 plan locked down. My husband and I would leave meeting after meeting with the teachers and principal extremely frustrated. Throughout the years, I've heard horrible stories from my daughter about the teachers at Belmont. I wished she would have told me these things at the time so I could have confronted these teachers. The teachers at Rosa Parks and Sherwood High School were completely different. They respected 504 plans and appreciated parent outreach.What's so interesting is that Sherwood High School was rated the lowest in the cluster scale but both of my children had very positive high school experiences with their teachers and excelled academically. Both are in top colleges now.Here's my advice to the moms out there who are trying to pick the right schools for your children - ask questions to see if the school teaches to everyone or just the high performers. If I could go back in time, I would ask how teachers ensure that everyone is learning. The moms who loved Belmont had children who did very well academically and didn't need extra help. If your child may need some extra help, make sure the support and motivation to provide it is there. Despite our unhappiness with Belmont, there were many good teachers in middle and high school who made a big difference for our children.