Pinebrook Elementary School

Posted: November 25, 2023

Posted: November 25, 2023

Posted: November 25, 2023

Posted: November 25, 2023

Posted: November 25, 2023

Posted: November 25, 2023

Posted: November 25, 2023

Posted: November 25, 2023

This school administration leaves something to be desired. From defending poor reading programs to refusing services to special needs students. I am not alone. Parents talk, and this school does not serve the students that attend there.

Posted: May 9, 2022

Posted: May 9, 2022

Posted: May 9, 2022

Posted: May 9, 2022

Posted: May 9, 2022

Posted: May 9, 2022

Posted: May 9, 2022

Posted: May 9, 2022

Our son has been going to Pinebrook ES since 2 years. We are extremely happy with the school, teachers and staff. We were always greeted with love and respect in our interactions with the staff. our son loves to code on found passionate classmates who also like to share and learn Scratch. We are super happy with the school and can’t wait to get our younger one into his Kindergarten in 2022. A BIG shoutout to Ms Manuel. Thank YOU.

Posted: January 22, 2021

Posted: January 22, 2021

Posted: January 22, 2021

Posted: January 22, 2021

Posted: January 22, 2021

Posted: January 22, 2021

This is an updated review. We have had a few ups and downs with office administration but in the end, we were able to come to resolution that was agreeable. The community, students, and teachers have all been wonderful.

Posted: January 22, 2021

Posted: January 22, 2021

Posted: May 20, 2019

They are allowing children to run around threatening to hurt other children and the punishment is to write a letter stating they won’t do it again, however for some it is a pattern of misconduct and the staff seems to think it’s ok and expects parents to not be upset

Posted: May 20, 2019

if they were you wouldn’t have students physically hurting, or threatening other children, and the teachers and principal acting like it’s no big deal, for them it seems like it’s an everyday occurrence and they condone this type of behavior

Posted: May 20, 2019

Posted: May 20, 2019

See statements above. No they do no it seems that they condone and nurture bullying from my experience

Posted: May 20, 2019

Overall, as a parent I am beyond upset at the school system and the staff I have dealt with. I have been asked to calm down and show respect to individuals who treat situations where my child is being mistreated as no big deal, as a parent it is unacceptable and I will react how I want and how I feel because it is my child and how dare they ask or expect otherwise especially in the situations we have dealt with thus far.

Posted: May 20, 2019

No issues with school work or the approach

Posted: May 20, 2019

Yesterday for the 4th time we received a call that our daughter was threatened by another student. 1st was a boy threatening to punch her in the face, twice the same boy pushed our daughter and each time the teachers response was the boys involved in these incidents were defending themselves against my daughter, she simply said something they didn’t agree with but the boys threatened and took physical action. Yesterday the principal called and said another child threatened to kill my child, of course I flipped out and his response was to demean me and demand I calm down and that I respect him. I’m sorry but there is clearly an issue with the school and the way they handle situations like this and I have no confidence in them and had no reason to calm down or give in to his demands. As a parent my concern is my child not the teacher or the principals demanding respect from me when they clearly cannot respect my concern or frustration as parent my child is being physically harmed and threatened!

Posted: February 3, 2018

Posted: February 3, 2018

Posted: February 3, 2018

Posted: February 3, 2018

Posted: February 3, 2018

We have had an amazing 4 years at Pinebrook. We are sad to be transitioning to middle school next year.

Posted: February 3, 2018

Posted: February 3, 2018

Posted: February 2, 2018

Posted: February 2, 2018

Whenever I stopped in the school the front staff is always warm welcoming and if I ever needed to speak to an administrator one was always available.

Posted: February 2, 2018

When I volunteer I see how supportive the staff is in classrooms that have students with disabilities. They include all students which is great since I didn't see much of that at our old school.

Posted: February 2, 2018

My daughter always comes home and tells us about the bullying lessons they learn during their guidance time.

Posted: February 2, 2018

My children love going to school each day. The staff is absolutely wonderful. When I volunteer I'm able to see great learning taking place.

Posted: February 2, 2018

Posted: February 2, 2018

Posted: January 31, 2018

Posted: January 31, 2018

Posted: January 31, 2018

Posted: January 31, 2018

All that the leadership did was to defend it's staff when we raised our concerns.

Posted: January 31, 2018

Great last year but I think all the good staff and leadership has left the school. No wonder the ratings have dropped in the last few years. Specifically NOT recommended for kids with special needs. Their teachers are not "trained" to support kids with disabilities in gen ed classes. So the teachers really are incompetent to support inclusion!

Posted: January 31, 2018

Posted: January 31, 2018

My son has special needs and his teacher last year was wonderful and took extra interest in including him in the class. He did well academically as well. However, she moved out of the school and this year his teacher just does not understand his needs. So I think not all teachers at this school are effective.

Posted: May 30, 2017

Posted: May 30, 2017

Posted: May 30, 2017

Posted: May 30, 2017

Posted: May 30, 2017

Posted: May 30, 2017

I have a special needs student who is in the self contained classroom. He is developmentally delayed, but a strong learner. He has Cerebal Palsy and walks with a walker. He has Mrs. Miller and I have to say - she has been the light in our tunnel. She believes in her students, she sees where they can be and she pushes. We got homework every week. Anytime I wanted to chat she made herself available. Super communicative via email and phone calls. She was made for this job and this IS the school for your child. He is my only child at this school because my typical child is in another school, but if you have a child with needs...yes. They believe in your child's ability and capability and not just in the SPED program, but also in the general which is another huge advantage. <3 Love this school and I'm super sad to leave it.

Posted: May 30, 2017

Posted: September 18, 2016

Our family moved to this area because of the high rating of the schools here. If i could do it all over again I would choose very differently. I'm going to assume that the rating is based off testing scores. If that's the case yes, this school is perfect for making little test takers. Outside of that this school has little to offer.

I won't go into the staff, they are by and large truly wonderful. I would never fault the school staff for not taking a real interest in the children; I truly believe they do care.

So now on to the not so great stuff.

Loudoun County is THE richest county in the country, yet there is no widespread offering of full day kindergarten. As of the 16' - '17SY Pinebrook offered 15 spots as part of a lottery for two full day classrooms. Ask a kindergarten teacher what they must cram into 3 hours and you will quickly realize that while half day programs might be common, it is not in the best interests of the children in regards to what they must know entering first grade.

Outside of kindergarten there is limited free time for the children. 20 minutes for recess, then right back into the classrooms. What do the children get for sacrificing VERY important free/rest time? CRIPPLING amounts of homework. My 4th grader's teacher advised they should be spending 45-60 minutes per day on homework. Note that there exists no research that says ANY homework at that age is beneficial. Class sizes here are WAY too big; 20-25 students. Pinebook teaches to the SOLs. How is that bad? Well take my 4th grader's curriculum. I was advised by my child's teacher that the class will be highly focused on Virginia Studies, and that science is only focused on in 5th grade because that is when the SOLs test on science. So instead of learning about the world around them, children are relegated to exercises in memorization about a topic that truly is irrelevant in adulthood unless if they were to perhaps find work dealing with Virginia Studies.

There are no real music or arts programs. No band, no orchestra. Want your child to have a well rounded education? Look elsewhere. Extracurriculars? Those are dismal offerings (friendship bracelet making... really?) and be prepared to pay for them (about $70 per student per activity).

Before you consider this school be sure to not make the mistake I did and not question more than ratings based off test scores.

Posted: September 26, 2013

We are now in our 3rd year of being a Pinebrook family and each year gets better. Each teacher (Clark/Lieberman, Shelton & now Roth) has been better then the next and the overall experience has been great. The communication not only from the school but individual teachers has exceptional. Parent involvement is welcomed and appreciated. Every time I'm there regardless of the time of day I always see the Administrative folks walking the halls, checking on kids & classes and being an obvious presence. I couldn't be more happy with not only my children's experiences so far but mine as a parent.