Left to right: Max, Jessica, Chris and Zoe Horn
My husband and I have two children – an eleven-year old daughter and a nine-year old son. When we moved to Atlanta from Cleveland a few years ago, we found a local school that we thought met some of our wants and needs for our children’s education and enrolled them without looking at any other options.
As they progressed through the school, they did well. But, that all changed when our son was halfway through first grade. We could feel that something was going on – something deeper that we needed to understand. He went into second grade already deflated and not happy. We knew we needed to change schools.
We had no idea where to begin so we hired someone to help us find the right school for our son. The schools we looked at seemed great, but there was always something lacking. Then, we toured The Children’s School. From the moment we met (Admissions Director) Nicole, it felt perfect. The administration, the teachers, the kids, the ideals, the diversity, the support – all of it was exactly what we had been searching for! But, most of all, you can feel the love. It is palpable. I remember thinking on the tour: THIS IS IT!
Third grade brought challenges for him. His TCS teachers helped him through with love, patience and guidance. The teachers called my husband and me in for a meeting to figure out how to help him, and we all came up with a plan together. He needs to be raised up and encouraged. He needs to be a kid and be excited about learning. He is now in fourth grade and thriving. He loves his teachers. He LOVES school and is excited for every single day. This is no exaggeration. I tell you this because his older sister started really taking notice of the changes in him, and it made her think.
Our daughter was still in my son’s former school and deeply rooted with a great social circle, and she was academically successful. Something gave her pause about seeing the positive changes in her brother: he likes school? How can that be?
Last spring, we decided on a whim to take her to tour TCS. She was extremely nervous the morning of the tour, and was teary as she walked at a snail’s pace up to the school. When I left her in her classroom, she gave me “the look,” the one that says, “I can’t believe you are leaving me here, and I am very upset with you.” I left thinking “why am I doing this?” She is perfectly fine at her school; has great friends; is getting good grades; and is developing into a wonderful little person.
I went to pick her up in the carpool line at the end of the day, and the teacher walked her to the car and said wonderful things about her. I smiled and was glad that she had a good day. As he shut the door, I felt myself brace for her reaction. She turned to me with the biggest smile and said, “I WANT TO GO TO SCHOOL HERE!!” Then, as we pulled away, she rolled down the window and waved to all the kids in the class she toured. I was floored. FLOORED!! And of course, we applied right away!
The changes we have already seen in her over three months at TCS are really quite astounding. First off, every single day she is excited to go to school. EVERY SINGLE DAY. In fact, one Sunday she woke up and was bummed it was not Monday (Oh don’t we all wish we felt that way!).
If you were walking through school, you would never know my daughter is new and only a few months in. Every teacher and administrator knows her name and greets her on a daily basis. The sixth grade class has made her their own without skipping a beat. She has so much respect and love for her four sixth grade teachers. Twelve is not easy, but she is in the best environment – academically and emotionally – to kick twelve’s butt!
They get it…The Children’s School understands the needs of all different types of children. Other schools talk about meeting the child where they are, but TCS really does that. TCS wants to see each child succeed to the best of their ability. They don’t just put that in their brochure! I have seen it firsthand. This school has truly changed our life.
