Foster City Elementary School

Reviews

• Submitted by parent on May 20, 2022
  Best school ever my son loves it he became a much happier person.
• Submitted by parent on August 31, 2020
  My son really loved his time at FCES (kindergarten-beginning of 2nd). He made loads of friends and loved his teachers. Our issue with the school is they are not prepared to handle LDs. They don't have enough resources, the teachers and staff are not trained to flag potential dyslexic students, and they, like most public schools, resist leaning into kids with learning differences, the kids and parents suffer and valuable time is lost. My son has dyslexia and I felt we really had no choice but to leave FCES and enroll him in a VERY expensive private school catering to children with dyslexia.
• Submitted by parent on November 06, 2019
  My kid started from the last two months of her TK here and now in K. Both teachers so far are great teachers. TK teacher is nice and warm, which made my kid be welcomed and adapted to the new environment quickly given our international move. Her teacher now is K, room 3, Mrs. Chang is very experienced and passionate in teaching kids. I can’t imagine how much time she volunteered to spend on making everything organized and communicated with parents timely and clearly. Reading, writing, creativeness and mental wellness were greatly addressed in different ways. Class activities were organized super well to have kids build sharing and caring spirits. My kid enjoys her school everyday.
• Submitted by parent on March 24, 2018
  overall Foster City elementary has better facilities than the other two elementary schools in Foster city. Other than that, it is hard to tell the difference among schools.
• Submitted by parent on December 22, 2017
  We're so happy with this school. Our son is very happy here, his teacher is fantastic. Very patient with him. This school is also very diverse, the PTA organizes a lot of activities, the kids go on several great field trips. It is a great school.
• Submitted by parent on June 12, 2016
  This is not a good school. The women in the admin office are bitter and rude. The current principal is ineffective and weak. This has been a negative experience all around since my child started going here. The parking in front for parents is a joke! You have to get there at least 30 min before the bell to even stand a chance of parking anywhere near where your child exits. They spent all that time and money renovating, only to create a bs school. Terrible place.
• Submitted by parent on March 09, 2015
  My son's kindergarted experience was fantastic. No problems there. But since the start of 1st grade..nothing but issues. Classes are over filled, teachers seem tired and not very enthusiastic about teaching. Books are ridiculously old. Homework is tedious work sheets. I don't really blame the teachers so much. I know they come with loads of experience, and maybe the change to common core is straining on them. I really don't think they have support from above. My main concern right now is bullying and I am getting NO WHERE with the assistant principle unless I stay on her with constant emails. Three months now and no resolve and I get all of my information from the interventions from my son. No one from the school calls me. My son also states that when he is in the office he hears the office staff talking about other students and their parents, and not in a good way. My son is extremly observant and reads people very well. He even stated "they really don't care mom...". Some of the staff does not seem to be very culturally competant or sensitive in how their actions or words may affect students of color.
• Submitted by other on March 05, 2014
  I'm a student of foster city school . My first teacher was the best . My second and tird teacher is the best too . I wish I would stay in foster city school longer. (:I love foster city school!:)
• Submitted by parent on November 21, 2013
  I have only been in Foster City for a year and this was the home school for our children. As many of the older post suggest, this school lacks in diversity and education. Yes, the school looks newer than most schools in the area, and all of the improvements to beautify the school are great, but what's a pretty school with a mediocore education? Like the early posts, Many of the teachers are cold and act as though it is a chore to teach. The homework is not homework at all, but just worksheets. The older students, are accepting or friendly of new students at all! My children did not receive a warm welcome at all, unlike when they entered other schools in the past. I can't Wait to leave ths city and this school. And I feel sorry for any "new" students that have to attend this school.
• Submitted by parent on June 14, 2013
  I am posting this to help prospective parents decide if this school is a good match for them. I researched many schools before choosing Foster City. I wish I had known more then. This school does not offer a "10" education. There are almost 900 students and only one principal. He has more than he can handle. The kindergarten has awesome teachers but after that there may be 1 excellent teacher per grade and 5-6 mediocre. There is no differentiated learning. All 150 students per grade are given the same work. The reading level is tested only in a "does this child meet the grade level standard" way and the child's actual reading level is never tested. There are tons of worksheets. Several of the lower grade level teachers have cold personalities. Why are they teaching if they don't like kids? There are many involved parents but the different ethnic subgroups makes the school feel less unified. The statistics listed for this school are incorrect. There is no way this school is 30% Caucasian. More like 20% and over half of those are from non-English speaking homes. If I had it to do over I would choose a smaller elementary school or go private.
• Submitted by parent on January 24, 2013
  Reading through these posts, it's clear they are very dated. Some of the comments are true and some no longer apply. For the API scores, I really assumed it would be awesome, which is why I can't give it 5 stars. First off, our kinder teacher was just amazing. If you are lucky to have her you should consider yourself blessed. But after that, it has been hard to find the same level of teachering - it is hit or miss. Class sizes are too big and no extras - homework is too easy, way too many worksheets, no project based learning. But I think that is a general problem with CA schools. Large class sizes, no budget, "no kids left behind" and over worked/underpaid teachers. You shouldn't avoid this school for those things, you will find this at all public schools. Our PTA is strong and we raise a lot of money - paying for things that get cut at other schools. Our construction is complete and looks great. There are now two drive through lanes so parking is not as big of an issue. The campus is on complete lockdown throughout the day. The kids go to bathrooms in pairs. Nice community of parents, they are involved and they care. Overall good kids too.
• Submitted by parent on June 01, 2011
  I think it's important to realize that the slow progress in refurbishing this school isn't the teacher's fault, or anyone' s for that matter. Education funds are scare everywhere, and the current physical condition of this school by no means reflects the teacher's abilities to provide superior stimulation and education for our children. I think the teachers are doing an outstanding job with the tools they have to work with.
• Submitted by parent on May 16, 2011
  For such a top rated school, I expected a lot more from the teachers, but all I have experienced so far is just mediocre teaching standards. For the Kindergarten class that splits time with two teachers, neither teacher is 100% committed. Both teachers are unorganized. For example, there was a PJ day but neither teachers informed the class so while everyone else wore PJs, this particular class was excluded. Both teachers would get dates mixed up and it causes confusion to the students and parents. When time is split between 2 teachers, how does either teacher keep an accurate progress on each student? Also, when the wrong report cards are sent out, it makes me wonder if the homework and tests were recorded correctly for the right student to begin with. What a mess! As for the school itself, it is old and needs a lot of work. All the buildings that are currently unoccupied have a faint smell of mold. On the plus side, I see great parent involvement. Perhaps that is the reason the school gets such high API scores is because of what the parents do behind the scenes rather than what the students are getting from the school and the teachers.
• Submitted by parent on May 04, 2011
  This school has a lot of caring teachers but budget cuts and being in temporary classrooms seem to be taking its toll. Work on the refurbishment has been slow over the past 2 years with more to come. The students have crowded play areas and class sizes are mostly 30. The hardworking PTA fund many programs that have been cut by other schools.
• Submitted by parent on February 24, 2011
  this school has great teachers and has a great playground for the kids.my kid enjoys it here.
• Submitted by parent on February 01, 2011
  My daughter is not getting the basics. Spelling is assigned as homework but not covered in class. There is NO small group instruction and the teacher cannot tell me what reading level my child is at. In addition, reading and math strategies are not being taught. Memorize, memorize. Mad Minutes are fine for practice but they are not meant to be a teaching tool. I get back my daughters homework for the week along with several "busy" papers or art work- word searches, color by number, etc. This is not quality learning material!! My biggest concern is SAFETY. Anyone can walk on campus and walk into a classroom. Kids have to leave the classroom and walk outside to use the bathroom and I have seen many students doing this alone. When I brought up my concerns to the office, I was assured they have never had problems. Really!? I could not believe that was the response. I have never had my car broken into but I still lock the doors when I get out!! I am sure there are good teachers at this school but she does not have one and I am not willing to wait until something bad happens to a child before the administration decides that safety is important.
• Submitted by parent on December 03, 2010
  We're paying more for less since the new owners have purchased the school. Although the teachers do a great job, after school care leaves something to be desired and is well over priced for teen aged baby sitters. As for their summer program, stay away, you'll get much more for less almost anywhere else, we did!

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