Maplewood Heights Elementary School

This is our child's second year at MWH and we are pretty happy. Of course, much of a child's experience depends on the teacher they have, and we were lucky two year's in a row. Both "our" teachers were/are very caring and seem to enjoy teaching and making learning fun for their students whenever it's approriate. The school has a wonderful music teacher, who made the recent Veteran's Day assembly a truly enjoyable event. Thank you!. The office staff is very nice, and the school offers extra-curricular chess and karate classes, for a very reasonable fee. On the downside, the food in the cafeteria is not exactly health food: Chicken fingers, hamburgers, pizza - no whole grains and little fresh fruit. But I suppose that is a (sad!) district issue. - One thing that I am missing is a larger scale "Accelerated Reading" Program. At our old school children would stay in from recess to take AR tests or stay after school to take them, because the best readers (those reading the most books and earn the most points) were able to get rewards at the end of each trimester, plus have their name on a plaque in the office. - Maybe the PTA could fund some more computers to extend AR at MWH?
--Submitted by a parent

Teachers, administrators and parents work together to make Maplewood Heights the best public school in this area. Go check out the happy faces!
--Submitted by a parent

I think Maplewood Heights is a good school with great parent involvement and a strong PTA. The academic aspects seem sufficient. I would like to see a system in place that allows parents to go online and find out about specific assignments and whether they were turned in,etc. Maybe that's only available in upper grade levels. I know that Kent school district has it. I think that would be a great tool for parents to be able to stay on top of what their child should be doing, as getting information from MY son is like pulling teeth sometimes! I also would love to see before and after-school care for kindergartners especially. One more note is that I would like to see a little more warmth from our principal. I think that's important to kids at this age level.
--Submitted by a parent

My oldest child has gone here for two years. I find the quality of academic programs above average. The avail of music is great. They did have a extracurricular Art class last year, and I believe the sports acitivites are league, not school related. The district offers sufficient sports activities. I particularly like that they have a no bullying policy, and teach all grade levels about ways to prevent it. The level of parent involvement is very high. PTA is very active, and has a very good relationship with the Teachers and Staff. They work together, hand in hand, and it shows in everything around the school. The principal is exceptional, and easy to approach. Very sensible when you bring your concerns to her. I would highly recommend this school to anyone.
--Submitted by a parent

Maplewood Elementary is a great school as far as teachers go. They have a wide variety of personalities for children to work with. They have a great system provided that allows teachers to choose children that might work better in a particular teachers class. I have found though that the cirriculum is really diverse in challenging the kids. Parent Invovement is huge. Parents are allowed in at any time and I have never seen the parking lots and streets so packed for a concert!
--Submitted by a parent

I have had 2 children at this school and found it to be alright but not exceptional. A few outstanding teachers but not overwhelming.
--Submitted by a parent

Very active PTA. Strong emphasis on reading at all grade levels. Not many extracurricular activities.
--Submitted by a parent