Habs school for Girls

[youlookalotlikeme]

Hi,

Does anyone have a view on this school - positive or negative?

Considering for my DD (yes, yes, PFB before anyone asks). Have tried asking in Education, but not getting any replies.

TIA

Given how selective Habs supposely is. I am surprised that their results aren't better. I have been looking at the results of various schools on the BBC website.
Only 88% of girls at Habs achieved the English Bac. (Ie. GCSE in maths, english, science, french and a humanity)

www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/education/school_tables/secondary/11/html/eng_maths_919.stm?compare=

I am surprised at such a low figure.

I hope the OP is watching Tonight on ITV at the moment - all about extra tuition for tots. Doing Kumon maths at the age of 3. Sounds perfect for the OP.

Don't know or care very much about your choice of school but I do think you are endangering your daughter by allowing her to canter. My DDs did this at ages 6/7 on their own fireproof pony under strict supervision, I certainly would not have allowed them to do it on an unknown animal at a place that cares more for profit than saftey.

Really I suspect that is because many chose music over history or geography.

Habs girls have to sit Eng/Maths/science/MFL...but they are not forced to sit history or geography. Many take another MFL, Latin and music/art.

As for schools having good selection processes...I think they're fairly honsest that it's not perfetc at 3yrs. I mean how can it be?

They look at the DC for an outgoing nature, an ability to concentrate and teachability. They also look to the parents' education/careers.

But the reality is that the pace is fast. In secondary it is blistering. Lessons are very 'chalk and talk'. Homework is heavy. Even girls with a high intellect may not suit that environment.

And though it may be unpalatable to cull, I think it would do a girl no favours to stay if they're not suited. And some parents simply will not take a hint...

I agree, I didn't do history or geography GCSE. If anyone asks for my English Bacc now that I'm a doddering old wreck, I'll count the Latin as a humanity.

I presume the classes are about 20 so in mirry's experience it was 10% out as far as she knows but the numbers are so small I expect it varies enormously each year.
I do feel that if these schools were hospitals they'd be ones that only took the very healthiest. And if one of their patients subsequently got ill, they'd then refuse to treat them further. And then they'd crow about how much lower their mortality rates are than those crappy hospitals down the road who take in all those sick losers.
OP your child potentially gifted academically but possibly struggling with social stuff by your own admission. Why not concentrate your efforts on the latter and put her in your nearest state primary so she can make local friends. My nephew is a proper genius child and the psychologist told my sil, well you need to forget about academics, flashcards etc and make sure you have playdates and he plays football. 20 years after a full state education he's on a whopper scholarship at MIT and is brilliantly social adept given the (discredited) diagnosis of asd he had at 4.

Just checked with my dd who is training to be a riding teacher. Her response- "Move riding schools"

I think Farewelltoarms has just given you the best bit of advice you're likely to receive re what school to choose.

"She could be asked what her name is, how old she is, what she would like for dinner in spanish and answer, fluently, the answers in spanish.

You could show her colours, and she will tell you them in Spanish... same with foods, animals and family members.

IMHO, that's pretty fluent.

I'm not sure you'd expect much more from a 3.3YO in their native language."

I really would! My DD is 3.1 and she can do all of the above, but a huge amount more as well. She can articulate feelings, use a wide variety of adjectives hold conversations, express her opinions, give me a run down on what she's done during the day, tell me about the stories in her favourite books and films (you could probably put her on mastermind about Tangled and she'd win a prize).

She can also say "Ni hao" which is in the lingo show, but I don't describe her as fluent in chinese

If your DD isn't articulating all the above and more in her native language, and you don't expect her to, then you haven't got a hope of getting into Habs, because that is the sort of thing they will be looking for. Not horses and skiing. Most little ones who are given the opportunity to ride and ski learn how to do so. I take my DD swimming every week and have done since she was 6 months old. She's a good swimmer now. It certainly doesn't make her any cleverer than a child whose never been in a pool though. And no more likely to get into a selective school. Equally, I know lots of bilingual children. On average they're no brighter than anyone other child.

Its not that I don't believe that YOU think your daughter is a genius, but honestly, even with all of your qualifications and explanations about how special she is, you're not describing anything that puts her IQ above a normal, lovely, active 3 year old. And (most) people aren't having a go at you for the hell of it, they're trying to give you a little reality check because you might put all your eggs in one basket and then be horribly disappointed.

anyone = any. And a load of other typos. You wouldn't guess I actually did go to a highly selective girls school would you? :)

Why thank you luckyduck. I'm so proud of my nephew he's gorgeous. But I'm equally proud of my sil, on being given the news that his IQ was off the scale, for asking the question 'ok, so what do I do with this information?, instead of rushing into turn him into a human calculator. The Ed psych was right - the academics did look after themselves but with the help of brilliant parenting, he's happy, well adjusted and has lots of (admittedly geeky) friends.

OP, reading your lost really upsets me because it doesn't seem like your dd is a dead cert for habs and you will not accept this. Do you have any idea how many children sit for these places and how many parents think that they have budding geniuses on their hands?

Habs is hardcore, be under no illusions, they want the best and they take no prisoners, it is absolutely survival of the fittest. Personally there are about a million schools I would have sent my children to at 4 before I sent them there. IMO the time to go there is at 11, if your dd is not only extraordinarily bright but thick skinned and mentally strong.

I think you would be better off looking at one of the proprietor managed little prep schools in converted houses which offer little in the way of enrichment but are academically rigorous.

I don't know anything about riding but I would have thought it highly irresponsible to allow a 3 year old to canter.

I agree with wotachoice. The competition is so fierce that no one can possibly sit back confident of a place-especially if you have a shy child. I wouldn't put a small child through it-why not wait until older and see if they are suitable for such a hot house atmosphere? They might be the type of child to thrive in in -but you can't possibly know at such a young age.

Exotic- there is no way that q three year old would be tall or strong enough to be cantering on a pony. Ashe might be sitting on a pony while it cantered, but that is a completely different, and very dangerous, thing.

OP nobody is suggesting that your dd shouldn't ride. But there are some things you have to be a particular physical size to do safely. And cantering a horse is one of the, it doesn't matter how talented, or bright she is, her legs are just not long nough yet for this. PLEASE stop this before she gets hurt. Or gets a fright that puts her off.

As far as I can see it leaves the pony in control-whatever it decides to do- no one can stop it!

this thread has really given me food for thought. I am so proud of my DC. Neither of them spoke/speak Spanish at age 3, neither of the can yet ride a horse or ski never mind play the Entertainer on the piano.

What they are though is lovely normal children. DS1 has just been given his yellow belt in karate and is starting to really enjoy reading. In fact he read in bed for over an hour tonight and protested that he wanted to carry on reading after lights out 'because it's fun Mummy'. He is 6 coming up to 7. He goes to the local state school has loads of friends who live quite near.

When he was 3 I thought he needed to be the best at everything and top of the class at school. In fact he isn't, he is very average but is developing at his own rate and thoroughly enjoying life.

I am very heartened to hear the tales on here of children who were allowed to be children yet still do very well in later life.

OP it is very disingenuous of you to protest that everyone is focusing on what your child can or can't do when all you wanted was to talk about schools. What you really wanted to do was boast about your child to anyone who would listen otherwise you would have left your post in Education and it would have been answered in good time. You got just what you deserved IMO

I expect OP was just a bit naive and hasn't realised people's strong views on education! I am against selection at 11yrs and therefore I am very much against it when they are little more than babies!
A lot of very young DCs appear to be very bright if they spend a lot of time with adults. It is far too early to tell what they will be like at 8yrs, 12yrs, 14yrs etc. Education isn't a race, and if it was slow and steady often win-old Aesop was very wise!

very true Exotic but amazing at a reception mother dinner I attended last year when they almost all said 'but reception is THE most important school year for our children'. I was the lone voice saying 'but it's not, it's just the start. They have years and years ahead of them'

Unfortunately they realise it later! It is important but for learning to mix with others, take turns, listen to instructions, do things for yourself.
They get so caught up on reading bands and whether their DC is on a higher band than their friend! They do it in their own time and at 14yrs no one knows, or cares, if you were fluent at 3yrs or 8yrs.

Parents are at their very worse in reception and infants-they get more laid back as time goes by.

It is definitely a long game this education lark.

OP seems to have buggered orf though ?

Please listen re the riding if nothing else.... I have two horses and have spent my life around them as many others on here have, heed the advice of those who know more than you do about that particular subject at least.

The Spanish thing reminds me of ds who claims he speaks about 5 languages because he can say about three phrases in each one .
And he wants to be a train driver (previously a bin man) when he grows up so obviously struck off for ambition.

Seriously though, OP you've had a lot of grief on here. Whatever will be will be with the assessment. Go with it as you sound like you'd really regret not trying. How your dd reacts to the assessment itself and how you feel after that and seeing how the school handles the day will all help you decide.

You haven't really got much to lose by trying the assessment as long as you keep it all low key and don't start stressing her out about it!

Education, just like parenting is a long game ...though it's easy to be convinced that each and every small issue matters in those early years no?

I do think that some parents with their first get very caught up in achiement. So caught up in it, that they allow/push their DC to do things which alhtough look am..ay..zing in the sort term are actually detrimental in the long term.

From pushing them to become the fist 'free reader' in the class. Why? Anyone with a modicum of intellect and google can discover that meticulous comprehension and enjoyment are the key issues.

To undertaking sports too early. Wow look at the tiny kid go! Yes check out their ankles in five years!

I think I was very lucky to have twins so I never experienced that PFB stage and never made all those silly mistakes.

"The School has limited facilities for the disabled"

That part of a sentence alone, would stop me enrolling my child there. 'The disabled'...who would that be then??