School Next Year

I visited New Life Academy of Excellence on Wednesday this week. I have to admit I was impressed with what they have. They had several classes come out and 'show off' before we actually took the tour of the school. The kids are taught Mandarin Chinese 5 days a week. They take karate, art and music one day a week. They have recess every day. Except for the Mandarin and karate, it's very similar to most schools. It LOOKS very much like a private school and in fact they pride themselves on that fact. The kids seemed to be very proud of what they can do. This is a good thing.

In weighing it versus the other options I have for my son (and my daughter) next year, I've come up with very few cons. One is that my husband (or I) will have to drop off and pick up. Not a big deal. My husband actually made the comment that it might mean he'd do both and just come home at a decent time. A second con is that it has uniforms. Not surprising, I put this in the con section for cost of uniforms. The kids must get them from a specified place and are limited in choices. They also do not wear sneakers except on the days they have karate (which also requires a uniform). They wear nice black shoes.

They do have an after school program with options for the kids, including piano classes. They also provide early drop-off for those that have to have it. The school is limited in class sizes which means a lottery system for getting kids in. They are opening their 6th grade next year, so my son would move into a brand new grade level. I may go ahead and apply for the school when applications are accepted, just to see if we stand a chance of getting in. If not, then there are other options available.