I just had to share this with parents who’d understand the whole boarding school thing. I’m so excited that my youngest child (8th grade) is suddenly getting enthusiastic about the prospect of looking into boarding schools. His two older siblings both went/go to a very academically demanding boarding school, and his view has been that they’re the intellectual ones in the family, so it wouldn’t really be for him. He doesn’t see himself as a good student, and only likes school for the social aspects of it (he excels at that part!). I tried to be very low key about it, which seems to have paid off as now he’s interested in going to look at schools that might be a good fit for him (and not trying to compete with his siblings). So I’ve just signed up for the open houses at Brewster, New Hampton, Kimball Academy, and Proctor. He hasn’t committed for sure that he wants to apply, which is fine, we’re not pressuring him, but seems like he’s leaning towards thinking that he may as well go ahead and apply and at least see what options he has in the spring!
Great news! I feel like the process, regardless of outcome, helps kids think about what they like, how they learn, what they want high school to be in a,way that is very helpful. It’s a gift to get to be (even a little bit) intentional about these 4 years and glean a tad of self knowledge.
Looking forward to hearing how it goes!
Great to hear, soxmom, and I wish more parents had your perspective. Hats off to you for celebrating all 3 kids for their attributes and differences. Not every kid belongs in a high-pressure, academically demanding environment… but for many parents, the search is all about prestige schools, regardless of a kid’s strengths, abilities, or personality. I think you’re setting a great example. Keep us posted!
My child purposely chose the less academic of two schools in order to retain well roundedness and keep balance a priority. Of course, a lot of recent suicides in nearby towns due to academic pressure raised awareness of the danger of pushing kids too hard. The issue is, how much does the student want to be pushed and prodded and how is that school a fit for that child. The student also has to consider where they are likely to fall in the class and what the results will be for them. Yes, many kids think they can go to fill in the blank and be top in their class. But this cannot be the case.
My kiddo knew that with work, it could happen but the level of work and the sacrifice of sports, and other things in life wasn’t worth the cost of saying that you graduated from_ fill in the blank.
We looked at all of those schools and loved everything about them. My son really picked up on how all of the kids really seemed to like each other and could carry on a conversation with just about anyone they passed on campus. Even if my son was accepted to one of the “top” academic schools, I’d rather he go to one of the ones you mentioned as they are just more “him”. No sense trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.
We just met with the headmaster at my son’s current school to discuss what his plans for secondary school are. The HM is new (from the midwest) and was not that familiar with some of these schools but was quite impressed with what my son articulated about why he liked them.
For those interested, we had a really great visit to Brewster for their open house. The academic “team” approach the school has seems amazing – your child’s core subject teachers meet 4 mornings a week before classes start to talk about all the students in their group – who might be having a hard time, is it just confined to one subject or more widespread, is it maybe related to a social or athletic challenge, etc. Plus they go over their weekly plans together, so that the kids don’t inadvertently end up with two tests on one day – my son’s ears really perked up at that, and at the fact that classes don’t start until 8:40 am! He said on the way home that he could see himself going there, which is pretty high praise from a 13 year old boy! Looking forward to a visit to Kimball Union this weekend.
Brewster strikes me as a happy place, from what I’ve read and heard.
@soxmom It’s great to hear that your third child is now interested in boarding schools, and I love your list. My son applied to a couple of the ones on your list. Good luck and keep us posted!
My son loved Brewster, too. Before our visit, I thought the “can’t fall through the cracks thing” might just be marketing, but was so impressed when they even showed us how they went through their meetings. It definitely wasn’t just lip service.
I loved Kimball Union as well, but their open house felt very different from Brewster.
@vwlizard - did you also look at Millbrook? Our friend who is an alumni has kids who also attended and they each had very different learning styles, as well as interests (one loved sports, the other theatre). The school has its own zoo!! Great place for well-rounded and focus on happy kids. The Headmaster is wonderful.
Millbrook looks awesome, but is a bit outside out “travel zone”. I figure we have so many places within a couple of hours that it was wise to limit it to those schools.
If I were making a “happy school” list, it would include:
Millbrook
Brester
New Hampton
Kimball Union
Proctor
Pomfret
Tabor
NMH
Holderness
Dublin
Mercersburg
I’m sure there are more I’ll think of later
And the great thing is that most of these schools have varying levels of academic support, so are within reach for the majority of kids.
I was also thrilled to discover that many of these schools do not require submission of SSAT test scores. Instead they will take neuropsych evals, or even just grades from the last couple years and teacher recommendations. God bless them for being flexible!!