Novak Elementary School

Great school and teacher are really helpful.

My kids currently go to Wilkins. We have had a wonderful experience here. The teachers are wonderful and the principal is like a ray of sunshine. She lights up everyone’s day. They have a program called Leader In Me, which helps develop well rounded, thoughtful, and emotionally intelligent minds. This school may perform lower with test scores than other schools but it does not actually reflect the education they are receiving. 41% of students in this school are low income. We all know the role socioeconomic status plays in these test scores. My kids have excelled here. They have learned everything and more than their cousins who attend a different Linn-Mar elementary school.

I was extremely disappointed by the education my kids received. By Tuesday they had completed their work and usually spent most of their time reading. By middle school they had no idea how to do long division and were missing basic math concepts. This was despite excelling at Echo Hill and being in the Leo program. I am very disappointed we put so much faith into the school thinking that the next year would be better. All while paying ridiculously high taxes. It was as though they tried something new every year, realized it didn’t work then tried something different. A big concept at the school is reading 1 million words. That is an odd standard to want to live up to when the fast track in middle school is based on math.

The teachers at this school always look after and support their students! I am having/had a wonderful experience at Saint. Joseph's. I highly recommend this school.