Lake Forest Elementary School

This is a great school. Two years ago, it was rated a 9, but now it's a 7. I’m not sure what caused the change, though we recently had an influx of students, including some with behavioral challenges, and many new families moving in. Before COVID, the school was very different. With my third child now attending, I’m hopeful it will return to its previous standards and scores.

The Pros: Tremendous parent involvement and support. Strong PTO. Teachers who care and have a lot of classroom experience. High test scores. The Cons: 30:1 ratios in the classroom and there is a bit of a "drill and kill" philosophy in the classroom with a lot of worksheets and desk work (don't expect experiential learning to happen too much). Currently no music curriculum in lower grades, PE two times per week, and art is done by parent volunteers. Classroom ratios are a school district issue. The board is a bit of a mess and does not take into account parent feedback and concerns regarding class size. That said, there are issues with declining revenue due to less students. With large class sizes come some social issues for kids in the younger grades and some bullying behavior that could be prevented if teachers didn't have such big classes, in my opinion. My star rating would be higher if the district could figure out some innovate ways to lower class size and provide a more well rounded education.