Choosing a school for my daughter

Gold Member Joined: Oct 17 2006 Posts: 1006

In my neighborhood there are a wide range of schools. It seems when choosing a school you might have to sacrifice either academics or values. I find it hard to sacrifice academics, but I know that I probably should. If I do sacrifice acidemics, the bigger the sacrifice the better values my child will be exposed to. It's hard to figure out where we should fit in. My daughter is already in 4th grade in a more academic school, but I am unhappy with some of the values that some of the other families that send there have. The values of the school are good for me. I know it's time for me to sacrifice, but I'm just not sure how much to sacrifice. If I sacrifice too little, then I gain very little in terms of values, and it seems as if I should just have stayed with the academics. I have been thinking about this for months, and I am just having trouble taking the plunge. We did speak to daas torah, but things are just not black and white. Any advice?
_________________
If you try to help others, you too will feel better - Wise old goat

In the same sitch, but not finding it hard to choose at all.

The way I see it- values are not something that can be taught- values need to be experienced. If your child is "experiencing" the wrong values by being exposed to them in her school, just telling her they're not your values won't do much.

I grew up in academic schools and am prepared to give that up for my daughter because I see the "hashkafos" girls abide by today and that's not what I want my child looking like in a few years.

And another thing- if your kid is smart and motivated she'll do just fine academically even without getting it in school. My husband grew up in a chassidish yeshiva system, never learned secular subjects, but today reads texts on quantum physics for fun. All my cousins in chassidish schools went on to get degrees in college too.

It's a tough decision to make, but I'm there with you and I'm happy with the path we've chosen.
_________________
�Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes.�