Arlington Elementary School

They literally have students assaulting and spitting on each other and repeatedly refuse to document it or notify parents. I understand that the public school system as a whole is broken but the admins here genuinely do not care for the safety and wellbeing of the children in their care.

I'll make this quick. My child was punched by another child and the only reason I found out about it is because I noticed the marks on my child. The school was not going to tell me this happened. When I confronted the school they first tried to blame my child for the reason they got hit. Then when that fell through. They admitted that they knew this other child was a problem, that they thought they had them under control and that they were not going to punish them because their life was already difficult enough. The only help they would offer was to watch the problem child closer and to make sure all teachers were to keep a better eye on them..

There is a reason that Google reviews of this school are disabled. If I had to guess, the principal or administration of the building somehow got them turned off because of the overwhelming negative feedback the school was getting. I was a substitute here in a 3rd grade class for one day. The negative energy radiated the second I stepped into the office. The secretaries looked at me like I had done something wrong. I was treated dismissively at first, and then when I later asked about an issue with the attendance software (my class didn't load up) I was glared at. I was also not given the password to sign in so I came back and asked for it and the distain was palpable. All the secretary had to do was print a new sheet for me but she was so annoyed while doing it. So, before class even began I was already wanting to leave. Also, a teacher in the staff room also asked who I was there for and when I told her, she rolled her eyes and said, "good luck!" Great first impression....Class began and immediately there were major issues. Students cursing (F, S, B, MF, etc.), aggravating each other, fighting, not listening, having to ask students five times to get lined up, and the list goes on. One major issue I have with this school and others like it is that it provides students with an unlimited amount of trips to an alternative room where they can "calm down". Essentially these rooms, in this school's case the "Den", let students come in whenever they want and let them play and eat snacks. Students learn quickly that they do little to no work in there so they return often. The purpose for these rooms is good in theory but in reality they are a place for students to escape responsibilities. The students here wouldn't ask to go there either, they would TELL me that they were leaving, which to me points to a bigger problem of students having too much sway and power in the school. The phone was constantly ringing all day with questions from the rude office staff about things I didn't know. "Do you have masks in you room?" (How would I know?), "After (student name) left the counselor did he go to gym?" (How would I know?!) All day with questions like that. The principal came by a few times and it was obvious to me that she was in way over he head and not a strong disciplinarian which was clearly needed in a place like this. Anyways, this place was a nightmare. Terrible office staff, terrible administration, and terrible student behavior. Don't go here!

The staff, teachers, and principal at this school are fantastic. They have an awesome curriculum for social-emotional development and care about their students deeply. Kids can earn their "self-manager" badge by practicing their ROAR (Respect others, Offer kindness, Always be safe, Responsible Lions!). My kiddo attended K-1st grade here and loved his teachers. It's easy to communicate with whomever you need (teacher, nurse, principal, etc). The diversity of the school is fantastic. The P.E. class is so fun for the kids. Mr. Wood (PE teacher) is awesome (but again, all the teachers are!). The only concern we had for our kid was whether he was being challenged enough. He came home often saying the work was too easy (it wasn't always true) and we heard he was "fidgety" in class. Our gut told us he was bored and needing just a bit more academically. That said, I do generally recommend the school. They work hard to tailor to each student as they're able. For example, my kiddo was placed in a reading group with other kids around his higher reading level. They also support the students who are underperforming very well. They have a lot of lower-income students, which grants them access to more resources than other schools and they use those resources well. Depending on your needs, this could be a great choice for your kiddo!