Excelsior Elementary School

we love excelsior elementary. we live in the wayzata school district, but open enrolled our child into the chinese immersion program at excelsior. the teachers and staff have been communicative, responsive and top notch. my child loves going to school and has had a fantastic first year experience. bravo bravo. could not be happier
--Submitted by a parent

I had to put my child to a local private school as I could not believe how big and impersonal the school is.
--Submitted by a parent

I'm not sure what the a previous poster is referring to, but Excelsior is a fantastic school! Regarding the math program, yes, new methods are taught, but my children are taught traditional methods as well. They then have the choice of which methods to use. The principal supports both parents and her teachers, cares about kids, and is definitely dedicated and accountable! Not sure what the comment about immersion students is about. My children are not in the immersion program and do receive gifted services. There are differentiated services for both traditional and immersion students. Excelsior is a wonderful school with a terrific staff and my children are thriving there!
--Submitted by a parent

We love Excelsior! The school is well led by administration and the teaching staff is excellent! The staff has high expectations and student achievement is high because of it. We live outside of Excelsior boundaries, but enroll here because of the school's outstanding reputation!
--Submitted by a parent

Our child is not only keeping up with the other classmates but with special ed over the past few years starting to even advance more, along with outside additional efforts, and our child now is excited to go to school.
--Submitted by a parent

As a very successful professional (engineer), I can tell you that the 'new math' program really falls short of meeting the mark if you're hoping for a good math program. Don't let the test scores fool you! Count on having to teach your kids all the traditional method yourself. On the plus side, I spend more time with my kids. The homework helps teach the kids good study habits outside of the normal school day. The teachers are nice, but the principal isn't accountable for her actions. The school is totally caught up in all the liberal indoctrination rather than teaching the basics. It is assumed that all the 'smart' kids are in the immersion program and thus get advanced placement. There are too many days off during the year!
--Submitted by a parent

Excellent teachers and staff! Fantastic principal! Involved parents! Impressive Chinese Immersion program! These are just some of the reasons why my family moved to Excelsior so that we can attend this school.
--Submitted by a parent

My child went to Excelsior from K-4th, and in general had an average experience. Excelsior does have some nice qualities, such as classroom parties and the annual Halloween parade. However, some of the teaching methods lack the importance of learning the basics of writing properly, forming letters and sentence structure. The math curriculum, Everyday Mathematics, is also a marginal program. Technology is excellent though, lots of new computers, laptops for the kids, etc. On another topic, the high potential program is very questionable in their testing methods. The high potential program cannot explain their testing methods adequately. There are bullying problems on the playground which are ignored or not dealt with in an effective way. Another parent mentioned the 'small town' feel, which yes can be nice because you know everyone, but can also manifest itself into extreme narrowmindedness. My son has since changed schools and is much happier.
--Submitted by a parent

Excellent School! I have had three kids go through Excelsior, each had an awesome experience. The school has a 'small town' feel, everyone is your neighbor. The teachers are young, energetic, and love teaching - it shows!
--Submitted by a parent