Herndon Elementary School

Posted: October 12, 2022

Our three children attended Herndon Elementary more than 30 years ago, and my husband and I, now grandparents, volunteer at the school once a week. The demographics may have changed, but this school is still a wonderful place for students to learn and grow. The teachers are dedicated, the administration encourages everyone to do their best, and there are wonderful resource teachers for any child who needs a little extra help. Statistics do not always tell the whole story. These amazing and talented students are on the way to bright futures!

Posted: October 12, 2022

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Posted: March 10, 2020

So far our experience has been very positive and we've been very pleased with the language immersion program. With the changing of Principal a few years back, the entire school has improved greatly!

Posted: March 10, 2020

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Posted: June 16, 2019

Posted: June 16, 2019

Posted: June 16, 2019

Posted: June 16, 2019

We have had an excellent experience at Herndon ES!

Posted: June 16, 2019

Posted: June 16, 2019

The teachers at HES are amazing! My child was challenged, when he needed to be and received support when he needed it! The teachers use small groups in reading and math to help teach all students!

Posted: June 16, 2019

Posted: May 12, 2019

Teachers assign an appropriate amount of homework based on the developmental age of the students they work with.

Posted: May 12, 2019

The teachers at HES work diligently to differentiate for their students and meet their individual learning needs. Teachers are provided with multiple opportunities for professional development to ensure their students are accessing the curriculum. The staff works collaboratively to meet the ever changing needs of the student population and the students are provided with rigor and opportunities for hands on learning to extend on the grade level curriculum.

Posted: May 12, 2019

The staff works to build character with the students through the implementation of the Positivity Project, where students are taught positive character traits and provided with various opportunities to use them in the school setting. In addition, students are provided with leadership roles and opportunities to mentor younger children. The staff holds all students to a high standard of behavior and supports students in understanding the effects of their choices on themselves and others.

Posted: May 12, 2019

The current leadership has worked intensely to build relationships within the teacher and parent communities. They are innovative in their approaches and the learning opportunities they provide to the staff. They are creating a culture for change and are supportive in building the capacity of the educators and students at HES.

Posted: May 12, 2019

The highly trained staff work effectively together to ensure all students needs are met through differentiation and modifications.

Posted: May 12, 2019

The staff at HES identifies concerns relates to bullying right away and works to support all students in understanding the effects of their behaviors.

Posted: May 12, 2019

Our family has been a part of the HES community for the last 3 years and have been impressed with the administration, staff and overall student population. HES has provided my child with a divers learning environment with opportunities for multiple modes of learning and demonstrating knowledge. Our child has a positive view of the school and expresses how happy they are at school. We feel that they have been challenged and have made great academic and social growth. We are excited to be a part of this school community and grateful for the education our child has received!

Posted: March 14, 2018

Posted: March 14, 2018

Posted: March 14, 2018

I have 2 kids in the school and have had a wonderful experience

Posted: March 14, 2018

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Posted: May 23, 2017

Posted: May 23, 2017

Posted: May 23, 2017

Posted: May 23, 2017

Posted: May 23, 2017

Posted: May 23, 2017

Posted: May 23, 2017

My kids had great experience at this school. One had an IEP. Very caring staff and great sense of community

Posted: March 10, 2017

Yes they manage and report on any out of control behaviors. The parents are informed and should take an action to assist the teachers.

Posted: March 10, 2017

One time when my son was being bullied I reported this to the guidance counselor who immediately took steps to work with the group of kids that was bullying him. The counselor ensured that all future communications between the kids and my son were of a positive nature. It's the responsibility of the parent to work with the guidance counselor to get positive outcomes for their children.

Posted: March 10, 2017

The IEP staff is a very caring and dedicated staff that works on strategies to help kids with disabilities learn. They respond to parents almost immediately and are available to discuss strategies on how to deal with kids disabilities at any time.

Posted: March 10, 2017

Recently a new principal was hired and she seems phenomenal thus far! The vice principal and all the staff are wonderful !!
The principal is hosting coffee hours with the parents on a quarterly basis. Currently the principal is working on many things including teaching the teachers strategies on how to raise test scores.

Posted: March 10, 2017

I am very proud of my daughter who is in the Spanish immersion program learning math and science. She spends two hours of every day in an intensive language environment and now both understands and speaks Spanish. It's a wonderful thing to know a second language. This school really supports an international environment and we are very proud to belong to Herndon Elementary.

Posted: January 15, 2017

My twins are in a variety of programs from Spanish immersion to STEM to music etc. etc. They get a wide variety of different topics and the teachers are all wonderful !! STEM, art, music and library are all once a week. Gym is 3 times a week. The twins' homeroom teachers are fabulous, very responsive and dedicated.

Posted: January 15, 2017

The school has good learning tools with Dreambox, MYON, Pebblego and all the other learning tools available on Blackboard. My twins are very task focused and complete their worksheets at school. If they ever bring a worksheet home we go over it together. Every parent is responsible to to understand what their child is learning and supplement where necessary. The Fairfax county libraries also have programs to help children with homework.

Posted: October 25, 2016

Not sure how to answer this because some teachers don't give homework. During the year homework was assigned it was generic homework that seemed designed for parents to teach our own children at home. The classes are so big that the material isn't fully covered in school. Worksheets came home partially started in class. The homework seemed to indicate teachers weren't paying attention to student skill level. When a topic isn't taught in class and you find yourself explaining it at the kitchen table ... then you start teaching your child at home and the child naturally gets ahead of the class. Once we got too far ahead, the problem got worse. In our first year at the school, even after we explained to one teacher that the homework was to basic, we were regularly scolded with hand written notes for not completing homework on topics that our child already knew by heart. For example, we told one teacher our child could calculate real change at the grocery store, and could count to 1000 so she didn't need to do busy work adding up pennies. Instead, we taught her how to program the variables on a robot instead. The teacher corrected us saying that it was "unlikely" she understood variables. Our child took the robot project to school for show and tell. The teacher was intrigued but continued to send home busy work. The following year - no homework at all! I suspect the teachers are so busy and frustrated with huge classes that they can't keep track. Maybe the ones that give homework just write notes on every unfinished sheet and send them back. If we threw the homework away, we noticed we didn't get scolding notes so that became our default if the homework was too easy. Another parent in that early class told me she was teaching her daughter some advanced skills at home and would just fill in the easy homework for her child because that was the best way to assure her child would be allowed to move forward without getting bored. One of my friends who was previously an elementary school teacher proudly told me that she gave the older child's homework to the younger son because she was teaching them both at home anyway. I joked that we were a homeschool family and the school provides free day care. Then, in later years the homework stopped coming home altogether! What's wrong with this picture? Is the school's approach to homework working? What approach?

Posted: October 25, 2016

Save yourself the pain we experienced. Don't move to this school district! There is no real diversity and the staff is so pre-occupied with feeding the struggling population that other children are ignored. Honestly, they are doing the right thing because it's basically a much needed soup kitchen. The result is that you must educate your own child. Our child's Kindergarten teacher (who was hired for her experience with struggling inner city kids) told us not to worry about our child's boredom in the 2nd month of school because he knew "enough to pass SOL's". She scolded him for raising his hand repeatedly and said he was "showing off" by writing sentences when most children were struggling to write single words or letters. He often came home crying and angry. They ignored our concerns about bullying for months until the bully (also a bright, bored child crying out for help) confessed in tears! We suggested one of our children needed to be challenged in math & science. They tested him and concluded "We aren't seeing the skills". They were teaching single digit addition in class but tested his multiplication skills and he got 1 out of 2 wrong! Really?? That's not an aptitude test. Professional testing later revealed he's "Exceptionally gifted". We switched to a private school in desperation and he progressed from 1st through 5th grade math & science in 6 months. Our other children made similar leaps in other subjects. How is it possible for this school's evaluations and curriculum to be so far off? I think H.E. is so overwhelmed with helping underperforming, hungry children that they don't have resources to handle the needs of other children. So, they advance a few children whose parents teach them at home and ignore the rest. This is bad news for children who speak another language at home. If our children were ALL ignored, those with language barriers have even less of a chance! The STEM lab is great but our children only visited once a month. The principle discourages afternoon clubs because "Most parents can't arrange transportation after school and it wouldn't be fair". When I asked why they weren't using technology or updating the website I was told "Our population doesn't have internet access". They've given up. Don't let your child be a victim! Positive reviews here might be an attempt to prevent declining property values. Check the ffx county scores!

Posted: October 25, 2016

Our issue with bullying was ignored by 2 teachers but addressed in a loving way once we escalated it a second time and talked to the counselor directly to get her involved. I'm giving a "neutral" response because it was poorly handled by teachers but very well handled by the professional.

Posted: October 25, 2016

Posted: October 25, 2016

No way! The leadership should probably be investigated for favoring the kids in the assisted lunch program in order to get more funds.

Posted: October 25, 2016

They do seem to care about social skills. Our boys got in trouble in every gym class for not listening to directions. Of course it's impossible to hear anything in a gym packed with so many kids. The bottom line is that they did care about integrity and respect.

Posted: October 25, 2016

It's hard to say, maybe they'd be effective in different circumstances.

Posted: October 3, 2016

Herndon elementary is a wonderful school. My child is in the 3rd grade and doing fine. Her teachers are caring and the staff in general is very committed to ensuring that all children are being challenged and educated. Test scores are not a good measure of a school. When my child was struggling with reading we (Parents) took the time to read with her and help her bridge the gap. Schools alone are not always the only way to help our children learn.

Posted: September 20, 2016

Posted: September 20, 2016

I understand that it is a county decision regarding homework given in elementary schools, so it is not within the control of the individual school.

Posted: September 20, 2016

Posted: September 20, 2016

Herndon Elementary is our neighborhood school and we were lucky enough to have a neighborhood school that offered language immersion, French at the time. Both of my children have participated in the program and have loved it. Currently French is being phased out and two-way Spanish immersion is in place. The school offers a lot of cultural diversity and has a large number of genuinely caring and competent staff. Community/parent involvement is key to the return of this school's success. Keep in mind: There is more to a school than standardized test scores.

Posted: July 29, 2016

Member of family had kids who were failing in their grades due to the focus on getting ESL students capable of passing the SOL. No attention was given to other kids. They moved to Loudon county, and now they are on the honor roll or doing very well. Sad thing is, this also resulted in fairfax county emergency worker parents out of fairfax county. This is all because of Herndon elementary. Don't send your kids here. They are getting worse as time goes on.

Posted: May 20, 2016

The students that were in my child's class last year are behind ever other student in the school.

Posted: May 20, 2016

It use to be an above average school. I do not know what is wrong. Maybe the principal is to comfortable in her job. I just do not see how it could drop to be such a poor school. Even worse than that is I do not see them doing anything to change it. There needs to be a major shake up at that school. If we do not see changes soon we will be pulling our students out of there. I know several parents that are thinking of doing the same. This is unacceptable.

Posted: September 15, 2015

School has what it takes. You just need to be diligent they don't get lost. The teachers are all dedicated and working hard. The hard work needs to also come from us parents.

Posted: September 14, 2015

Posted: September 14, 2015

There is a no homework policy because "most students would not complete it and do not not have parental support at home".

Posted: September 14, 2015

Posted: September 14, 2015

Taking our children out of this failing school was one of the best decisions that we have ever made...our children were failing at Herndon Elementary and I was told on more than one occasion by administrators and teachers that "they are doing better then most of the children here" so therefore they would not help them...my children never passed an SOL while at Herndon Elementary...there is absolutely no communication between the school and parents, no homework, no tests, no projects...avoid this school, it is one of the worst schools in the state of VA (statistics prove that) and the administrators and the teachers are the ones to blame.

Posted: September 8, 2015

Teachers are so so - some are good - some are mediocre - some have been so horrendous you have to wonder why they ever got hired in the first place. Unfortunately there is a bit of a revolving door with teachers. My child has had three different brand new teachers each of the three years he has been there. Not sure what the problem is - oh wait - I do know what the problem is - a horrible principal!

Posted: September 8, 2015

School is so disorganized and the blackboard system at the school is such a mess (took 15 days for the blackboard administrator to even respond to a query - and then it was only after both myself and the teacher email twice and then cc'd the school board did we get a response.) Who knows about homework - school is too disorganized.

Posted: June 30, 2015

Posted: June 30, 2015

A teacher should not be there to yell and scream at the children. Applying punishment to all because of the undirected behavior of other kids, no reward system, no correction of bad language use in class, or bullying. No approachability. Really, really sad.

Posted: June 30, 2015

Posted: June 30, 2015

No deep learning, no good friends. My child had a very sad frustrating experience in this school, despite the fact that he loves studying, it was truly a sad experience. I can count with my hand the days when he responded he had had a good day at school. He was even keeping a journal of all what had happened that day. So, so sad to see no one cares. :(

Posted: June 11, 2015

I love this school. I have been on the PTA board for the last 2 years, my daughters are in French immersion, my son just started Spanish immersion. What an opportunity for them to learn! The teachers are all dedicated, caring and working overtime to get our test scores up....although test scores do not make a school, especially if it is Title 1 (50% or above of students are on free lunch) and have about 40% Spanish as a first language students. HES has a lot of challenges, but my kids love it, I love it - and everyone is working as hard as they can to make the school great. I would not move my kids anywhere else.....

Posted: June 11, 2015

My kids teachers could not be more dedicated. They have a tough job - and they are doing amazing work!

Posted: June 11, 2015

Lots of homework does not make a school great. HES has decided to get most of the work done in school so that the students can be supported instead of struggling at home with lots of work they don't understand. As a very involved parent, I supplement the homework - but agree with this standard.

Posted: June 11, 2015

The counselors are an amazing group of individuals who spend time with the kids encouraging teamwork, support of others and creative behavior. Teachers also support this effort.

Posted: May 15, 2015

I'm saddened to see poor reviews of this school. My daughter loves school so much that she wishes she could live there. The school description is out of date as there are now even more kids and a different principal. I volunteer there often both for PTA events and in the classroom. The faculty and staff are loving and know my daughters name. It's a warm atmosphere. My daughter is in the French immersion and my son will begin in Spanish immersion. What an opportunity! The teachers have been excellent! Although our experience has been amazing, I know that some other classes have had "permanent subs" and I'm grateful my kid hasn't. Overall, our experience at Herndon Elementary has been exceptional.

Posted: November 4, 2014

This is such a sad school. Everything about it is sad and depressing. The teachers have pretty much given up and the kids are basically in day care. No real learning or education is happening at HES anymore and it shows. The test scores continue to drop ( it's one of the WORST schools in the whole state) and the teachers are either unable to effect change or are cowed by administration. Each year it's like watching rats flee a ship as parents pull their kids or move to get out of HES. Even the PTA has given up and aren't doing fund raisers or events anymore. The Spanish immersion has been a disaster. Native speaking parents have pulled their kids out and English speaking parents have dropped out after realizing the curriculum is 2 grades behind. They really messed up this school. Too bad. It's a great town with great people. It used to be a GREAT school but the current administration can't overcome the problems.

Posted: July 27, 2014

First, let me say that I've been told that this school is one of Fairfax County's failing schools in math and science. While I've heard numerous "excuses" (mostly blaming the large number of non-native English speaking students at the school) in my opinion the school is making these kids scapegoats. Our child's regular teacher during the 2013/2014 year was outstanding, but the "new" French teacher was abysmal. The principal and school district hired a 22-year old with NO TEACHING DEGREE OR TEACHING EXPERIENCE AND A DEGREE IN DRAMA to teach math and science in French to children. Apparently, the ONLY skills that qualified this teacher to teach was that she herself had gone through the French program at Herndon Elementary and she had taken a few French classes in college. Let me repeat, the principal and school district hired a 22-year old with no math degree, no science degree, no French degree, no teaching degree, and no experience with children whatsoever, as a full-time teacher to teach math and science in French to the kids. I've rapidly lost respect for this school and am seriously thinking about pulling my child from it.

Posted: May 4, 2014

Herndon Elementary School is a great. Teachers work with students to ensure they are learning and involve parents to ensure kids are not falling behind in their studies.

Posted: February 9, 2014

Herndon Elementary has been an exciting and well rounded school for our children! In our experience the school staff has been caring, supportive, and responsive to our children's needs. The school offers a fantastic language program as well as an accelerated math opportunity for students. The extra curricular academic and arts programs are second to none! Above all, we have always felt secure that our children were happy and safe and receiving a great education!

Posted: January 17, 2014

We loved our child's First Grade teacher, but that was three years ago, and the past two years were a nightmare for us at this school. We finally moved our son, and he's doing much better. If you don't know what an "Open Classroom" is, LEARN before you enroll your child. The breaking point, for me, was the day I came to deliver cupcakes for my son's birthday. Coats were piled on the floor (though there were hooks), kids were milling about the room, and a student was sitting at the teacher's desk, on her computer, and she was admonishing him to please leave it alone, but ultimately, he sat there and kept at it. I was so angry, I jerked both my kids from this school. People who have "nothing but praise" for Herndon, have apparently never shown up to the school during working hours.

Posted: January 16, 2014

Our daughter is in 1st grade at HES and loves waking up and going to school every morning. Her kindergarten and 1st grade teachers have been nothing short of amazing! Obviously the teachers make all the difference in the experience, and we have been lucky thus far! For those that think that the school could be improved, I urge you to get involved and be a voice and advocate for your child!

Posted: October 23, 2013

Love Herndon Elementary!! As you can see from the posts below, some parents were upset last year because the school system (not the principal) switched HES from French Immersion to Two-Way Spanish Immersion. I for one think that the current principal is highly qualified and handled a difficult transition with class and grace and has made tremendous improvements to the school. The school itself parallels the Town of Herndon - a hometown feel in a big city. Herndon is the kind of place where everyone knows your name and looks out for one another. The neighborhood bond is strong, as is the school community. When you walk through the halls of HES you are smiled at and greeted. Even though HES is a large school, due to a dedicated and caring staff, it feels small and cozy.

Posted: July 6, 2013

The school has great diversity and some great teachers but we are experiencing a downhill slide to the overall performance. Students are not challenged, teachers are dissatisfied, and communication between school administration/teachers and parents is atrocious. This has been attributed by many to the current principal, who simply lacks the capacity, ingenuity, and communication skills to make things work better. It's her first job as principal and she may not have what it takes. The general feeling is that she is trying to serve to the lowest common denominator - an SOL focused approach. This school needs change NOW!! A majority of parents I speak with are very concerned about the school's performance.Hopefully the PTA can perform its function of facilitating that change before the problems become too big for quick fixes.

Posted: June 24, 2013

The school's problems can't be blamed on demographics. As others have said, few efforts are made to challenge kids at any grade level, and that was the case long before the rapid shift in demographics a few years ago. The unspoken message seems to be that kids sitting at their desks being quiet and doing rote tasks is what's valued. In six years at the school, I believe our child was assigned one project which required any level of creativity or independent initiative. The ongoing transition of the language immersion program from French to Spanish -- which is absolutely the right thing to do given the shifting demographics -- has been poorly handled by the administration, as was a serious personnel issue. There are a number of excellent teachers at the school, but the level of expectations and overall climate leave a lot of room for improvement.

Posted: May 13, 2013

Communication from School to the parents is very poor. Leadership at this school is very poor. A few teachers are great but most of the teachers my children had were mediocre. The school administration is only focussed on bringing up test scores. They tend to not teach a subject unless there is a Virginia Standard of Learning Test on the topic. Overall, the School only teachesthe minimum for the students to pass tests. The administration does not advocate challenging students and driving for higher standards. There is a good core group of parents that volunteers at everything, but the majority of parents are uninvolved with the school.

Posted: April 25, 2013

4/26/13: Herndon ES is now a Title 1 school for 2012-13 school year. This is due to the number and percentage (over 50%) of Low Income students who attend this school. FCPS has decided to now phase out the French imm. program at Herndon and replace with Spanish imm. program. That decision is to cater to the LI students, most who speak fluent Spanish in their homes; and also to try to pull up those LI student SOL test scores. The French program students are the kids who pull up the SOL scores for this school. Many non-LI families are not happy with the decision to phase out the French program, and those French program families are now looking to place their student's in other FCPS schools. FCPS tried to keep this info. under the radar and out of the news, but the info. is public, and now spreading in the local community. Too bad, this used to be a really nice - and diverse - school. Our kids all went there (last in 2009), but it looks like Herndon ES may be on the way down.

Posted: May 30, 2012

My Son attended here only one year. We have to move and are trying to find a home in the school area, but no luck so far. My son loves his teachers and peers. I have nothing but praise for Herndon Elementary. I was a little wary at first because I had not heard anything (good or bad). I decided to give him one year there and see what happened. Oh so glad I did! I wish there were more parents involved in the school, but thats not the schools fault!

Posted: June 19, 2011

From a parent prospective this is a very good school with very good teachers. It does draw from a very diverse community, but the teachers have effectively provided GT learning and the French and accelerated math program have been great.

Posted: September 20, 2010

I like that the school has a French program. I love the fact that the teacher is French and promotes that the kids only speak French while they are in the classroom. The teachers have empathy for kids that need a little extra time. They are teaching the kids the school material and what they will need to leave in sociaty, to get along with others. Problem solving, peer relations. The social workers care and follow up with the kids. Teachers invite the parents to volunteer help out and be part of the school experiance the kids go through. I volunteered last year and a parent sent me a note that the day I was there her daughter came home very excited, because I spent time with them and we read and did little projects. I invite the parents to volunteer. I plan on doing it this year aswell. Also, go and join your kids for lunch once in a while. I was privilage to have the time to go every Friday and since right now I have a 2nd grader he loved it and is asking me when I will join him again this year. Enjoy the time you are able to spend with them, and they can see that school is fun and you are able to join them in that part of their day as well.

Posted: April 11, 2010

The administration is officious and bureaucratic. They are more likely to provide political responses to questions and problems than helpful support.. the French immersion program is excellent and this type of language program should be a staple of US education. Quality of teachers varies widely from OK to outstanding as I am sure it does in every school. Computer labs are good but computer education is not geared toward learning how to research and research tools. It is geared toward the least common denominator with all but the most basic needs studies left board and uninspired. In comparison to other schools in other states and rural areas the academics are very good and resources and opportunities are excellent.