Birches School

Do yourself a favor and try to avoid this school at all costs. The Air Force needs to revaluate how they determine which towns will staff/support the elementary/middle school on Hanscom. Currently, k-8 falls under Lincoln School District. The current contract would be better negotiated with a town like Bedford who can adequately support the diverse needs of this unique population of students. Expect your child to not only be bullied by other children, but by the staff as well. While the building is nice, the school needs a major staff overhaul.

My two daughters have thrived at Lincoln Public Schools. The teachers are extremely caring and supportive, and the schools have done a lot of work to allow parents more opportunities for engagement both during and after school hours post-covid. The schools have recently been renovated and combine PreK-8th grade in one long L-shape, which allows for lots of co-mingling among grades and supports a truly caring environment among students with the older grades often mentoring and looking out for the younger ones. When one of my daughters was falling slightly behind in a subject, the teacher reached out and put a plan in place with the specialist, and now she is on pace if not ahead of her grade level. There are many options for sports, music, theater, and art, and the smaller class sizes allow for greater participation and oversight. Another perk in Lincoln is that the school is walkable to the public library, and there are many after-school options. The more formal after-school extended day program (LEAP) is also highly regarded and students often beg their parents to let them attend! The school is also incredibly diverse with a METCO program, although I wish there were more opportunities for Lincoln students to attend Boston (but usually one Boston gathering is organized each year for families). The school is a wonderful place for students to thrive - and I feel lucky for the chance to experience it.

Our first-grader is in his second year at Birches, and he loves going to school each day. We love knowing that he is getting to experience childhood to its fullest -- scrambling up rocks, peering at salamanders, making forts with friends-- and is getting such a strong academic foundation at the same time. We feel we are giving our son a tremendous gift by giving him this immersion in the outdoors and in such a thoughtful community. The teachers are so easy to talk to -- they see the children for who they are, are curious about them, and eager to help them grow into the best version of themselves. Our son loves the deep dives into areas of content knowledge -- poetry, pollinators. It is a commute for our family and many others, and I understand why families come from all over Greater Boston and beyond to Birches.