Nottingham Elementary School

5900 Little Falls Road

School District

Arlington County Public Schools
Grade

PK, K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:13
Type

public

School Map for Arlington County Public Schools

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by parent on March 11, 2024

Nottingham is an exceptional neighborhood school that has created a nurturing environment for our children. The sense of community is truly special, and our kids are thriving. The dedicated staff and welcoming atmosphere make it a fantastic place for learning and growth. Highly recommend!
Submitted by other on June 07, 2023

Amazing school with outstanding leadership and wonderful teachers. We had a great experience for both of my kids studying for several years, starting from pre-k grade at Nottingham school. I highly recommend it.
Submitted by parent on May 29, 2023

We had a wonderful experience with Nottingham elementary (NES) from pre-K and up! We didn’t think much about schools when we bought home, as APS is generally good in north Arlington, but we are so glad and feel lucky that we bought our house in NES neighborhood!I can speak of my own children’s teachers, the teachers are so dedicated and attentive to children’s individual needs. The principal Dr. Gardner and Assistant Principal Dr. Lynch seem to know everyone and their strengths and needs, going out of their ways to help doing what is best for children and address parents’ concerns. Children with disabilities or delays get fantastic services, detailed evaluations, allocated extra resources, and feel welcome. It is amazing how kids learn how to help each other and accommodate those with disabilities instead of bullying, I see that as a culture that the school has built. We only had our children at NES so it is hard to compare, but we could not ask for a better school. Hearing what other public and private schools are form other parents on weekend sport bleacher, Nottingham elementary is a gem!
Submitted by parent on March 19, 2023

The Nottingham community is wonderful. You get to know the teachers and parents and it is a really close and supportive community. My daughter loves going to school every day and has a wonderful and caring teacher.
Submitted by parent on December 27, 2019

Nottingham needs new leadership fast before it becomes the worst elementary school in APS.
Submitted by parent on December 07, 2019

I’m currently looking into private schools for my son.
Submitted by parent on October 22, 2019

The school needs to figure out how to help my child become a better reader. It makes no sense that her teacher does not know her reading level and allows her to independently read texts that are three grades above her reading level.
Submitted by parent on September 02, 2019

I had an issue with bullying in the classroom, I found out through a third party that it was happening at all. The teacher never notified me. I brought it to the attention of the school counselor and we dealt with the issue, However I would have liked the teacher to communicate better, especially when my 2nd grader had 3 separate incidents at school that brought him to tears that she was aware of.
Submitted by parent on July 31, 2019

So far, Nottingham lives up to its reputation of not being a fun learning environment.
Submitted by parent on July 29, 2019

To be frank and honest, NES needs a lot of work. We recently moved to Arlington and when we enrolled, learned that NES recently hired a new administration. I was shocked to see the unfriendliness of the administration. For example, they hardly acknowledge you when you enter the office, and they'll finish their conversation among themselves before even looking at you. Also, the state tests in Virginia are not rigorous compared to other states. Furthermore, a majority of NES students receive gifted services which is why the school performs so well on a yearly basis. Another issues I have with NES is that my son did not complete one project. No social studies posters, dioramas, presentations or science fair, nothing. I do not feel this school is challenging enough based on benchmark results released by central office. In sum, a majority of students do not show much growth throughout the school year. This result is mostly because of teachers not requiring their students to complete challenging tasks/assignments.
Submitted by parent on July 29, 2019

My daughter has severe tests anxiety because of the amount of tests she had to take last year. Her teacher uses up instructional time by requiring her students to take a many assessments (quizzes, check ups, and tests).
Submitted by parent on July 21, 2019

completely horrible. you are better homeschooling your child. your child would learn more watching a television 24 hours a day.
Submitted by parent on July 17, 2019

My taxes are too high for a school like Nottingham. There are too many families who wished their child went to Discovery during the boundary changes.
Submitted by parent on July 17, 2019

My child will be going to Discovery next school year.
Submitted by parent on July 15, 2019

I’m hoping this school year is better for my child. However, I just heard she will have a brand new teacher due to teacher turn over.
Submitted by parent on June 20, 2019

I’m moving so my child can attend a better school.
Submitted by parent on June 13, 2019

Nottingham should be one of the best schools in Arlington. Unfortunately, due to poor leadership many teachers leave every year. I recommend applying to Arlington Traditional School or paying for private school.
Submitted by parent on July 17, 2018

Overall, quite negative. The upside is the parent community and some teachers were good. But overall negative due to adversarial and unresponsive, principal and vice principal, a school that denies kids learning needs and refuses to help them, and incredibly high teacher turnover.
Submitted by other on August 23, 2016

Principle micromanages and operates as if constantly afraid of parent backlash. Teachers belittle students, which has become a culture in the school amongst the students as well. School testing success is due to high economic status of parents and the affordability to pay for private tutors.
Submitted by other on June 03, 2014

Part 2/2 Tag because it was too violent. Than shadow tag because it was too high paced so it became walking shadow tag. Then people were tagging too hard so they were given pool noodles to tag with. You can guess what happend. This has happend with almost every fun thing they had at this school.March madness was a staff basketball game between another elementry school that the kids would attend. It too became too competitive so they stopped keeping score. This turned into the staff scoring in their own baskets and because that was too competitive it was banned. How is this preparing us for the future when we are trying to get a job thinking that you will get the highest paying job just because someone else has it. All of this is because of the principal. And one last thing. Every Wednesday the kids would get let out of school 1.5 hours early. Now this is to be replaced with Spanish lessons. So in conclusion great school had great teachers (until they all quit because of the principal) and horrible admistration. (Pelosky)