In the past couple of weeks, I've been finding out about more (and more and more) school options. Preschools, pre-preschools, private schools, charter schools, public schools, you name it. It's really kind of overwhelming, all the choices we have. And then -- how lucky we are to have so many choices!

The more I hear from other parents, the more I think: isn't that the reason we all moved here, to give our kids access to the best schools Denver has to offer?

Anyhoo, I've started a list just to keep track of them all. I love to hear when parents tell me about their kids experiences, so if you kid loves/hates something, or you have a school to add, let me know! I'm starting with the public/charter schools...

Preschools: Denver Public Schools
Westerly Creek: offers both full-day and half-day ECE for 3 and 4 year olds (making it the choice for working parents)
Bill Roberts: offers half-day ECE for 3 and 4 year olds


Elementary & Middle Schools: Denver Public Schools
Westerly Creek Elementary: For 2008-2009, Westerly Creek will have ECE (beginning with three-year-olds) to 2nd grade this fall. It will add one grade per year until it becomes an ECE - grade 5 school.

Bill Roberts: Is K-8 and has early release every Friday, which working parents must find exasperating, although in the winter you can just use it as an excuse to drive up to the mountains for a ski weekend.

Odyssey Charter School: Is a K-8 “expeditionary learning” school which focuses on teaching through action and direct student experience and participation. It shares facilities with Westerly Creek. It's admission by lottery.

High Schools: Denver Public Schools

George Washington High School: A 20 minute drive to South Monaco and Leetsdale. How does this high school rate in the Denver area? Anyone?


Denver School of the Arts: Grades 6 - 12. Has a horribly uninformative website (come on, creative kids, you can design something, can't you??)


Denver School of Science & Technology: Middle and high school. Founded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2004, DSST provides a liberal arts education with a science and technology focus. Admission is by lottery. DSST is the only "Distinguished" rated high school in Denver and 100% of its graduates have been accepted into four year colleges.

Stapleton High School: Is planned for the neighborhood. Current plans have the school opening between 2010 and 2012.

Then there is the rumored Denver Language Immersion School. The Rocky reported that it was being shopped to DPS last June as a Spanish and Chinese immersion school; I think I remember the Front Porch reporting it was trying for charter school status (come on, Front Porch, get your issues into the digital age and put the articles online!), but I can't find it now. Anyone know more about this?

I also heard a mom talking about a language immersion charter school for kindergarten -- is it in Aurora? Anyone know?