I have two daughters (current 4th and 6th graders) in top public schools for our southern state (though our state is not known for high quality education - think 25th state out of 50).
We recently applied for and were accepted to two very well regarded Private Schools for 5th and 7th grades.
To the extent that one or both of my girls might want to attend boarding school in 9th grade, would applying for and being prepared for BS be more favorable from a well regarded Private school as opposed to a public school?
Thank you in advance for any perspective!
The schools that better prepares them, whether public or private, will be viewed more favorably.
Regardless, boarding schools admit students, not middle schools.
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If the private school has better writing, I think that’s a big factor. I went to boarding from public school and had to learn to write a paper. My kids have gone from private (25 years later) and are more prepared because they had a writing curriculum in their middle school. Also look for math rigor - do both schools allow your kids to at least complete algebra 1 before high school? It’s very hard to do calculus in high school if they haven’t completed algebra in 8th grade.
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Choose the school that provides the best education at the time. There is zero guarantee that it will lead to a better school later, at any step in the process.
I will say that I think class size is a factor when it comes to writing recommendations. Smaller classes lead to more teacher interaction and if your kids are well liked more teacher interaction is likely to lead to better recommendations.
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We had to make the decision whether to keep kiddo2 at his mediocre private school for 7th/8th or move him to a more academically challenging private school where his grades could possibly suffer. The secondary school counselor we were working with at the time for kiddo1 said exactly what @one1ofeach said. We moved kiddo2 and not only has he learned so much more, his grades have actually improved because he’s more engaged and excited about learning. I do think he will miss out on leadership opportunities (it’s hard to win a seat on the student government as a new student), but he will be so much better prepared for BS academics having switched schools.
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I don’t think there is an absolute truth here. Here, our public schools offer huge classes, poor relationships with adults but the classes may be rigorous. The private schools are personal, intimate, fluffy, with frankly mediocre outcomes. Neither absolutely offer odds. In many other places, private schools are a better bet. I our case, public gifted program plus plus a lot of CTYwaa excellent prep.
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Coming from Texas where the public school system is somewhat embarrassing across the state, it was more beneficial to have our kids in a LDS prior to BS. My son was definitely more primed for small class discussions and more essay/open ended formats for tests and homework that you find in the BS academic culture. I think LPS lends itself to multiple choice testing and being able to hide in a sea of other students without open discussions of topics.
If your child is driven and self-motivated, the transition to different instruction styles can be made regardless of the former type of school, but I feel it would be easier coming from a school with a style similar to BS.
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