Waterford Elementary School

12950 Lake Underhill Road

School District

Orange County Public Schools
Grade

PK, K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:15
Type

public

School Map for Orange 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 August 14, 2024

Not sure how this school is not highly rated as it should be. It is an A rated school and students have great academic results and teachers are amazing snf great communication system. PTA very good as well.
Submitted by parent on May 09, 2019

I'm very pleased with this school. I have found the teachers dedicated and readily available when needed. My daughter has ADD and both admin and teachers were very supportive in coming up with a plan for her continued growth. When she started at this school, she was below her reading grade level. With their and her hard work, less than a school year later, she is reading well above grade level. When my son experienced continuous bullying by another child, the teacher and school admin acted promptly and effectively to nip the problem in the bud. My son is in gifted class and he has received wonderful instruction from Mrs. Jackson, dealing with critical thinking and how to deal with emotions. I feel that her curriculum is essential and should be taught to all 5th graders. The PTA is also well-established in the school, and hosts fun events throughout the year. Thank you, Waterford Elementary educators! I am forever grateful.
Submitted by parent on February 18, 2019

Good teachers,administrator, all personal care with the kids.
Submitted by parent on October 25, 2017

Some teachers were great some not so much. My child went there and was on the autism spectrum. half the teachers tried to work with the IEP the other half could have cared less. My child was bullied but he was told that he/she was tattling, or somehow all the blame got put on him/her, while the other one got away with everything. ALL TEACHERS NEED TO BE MORE EDUCATED ABOUT INVISIBLE DISABILITIES AS WELL AS VISIBLE. My child has a certain way of learning but instead of using it as a strength I was constantly called saying he/she keeps drawing (look up autism....he/she was listening the entire time), it is how kids on the spectrum focus sometimes. When my child gets overwhelmed, you CANNOT PUT AN AUTISTIC CHILD IN THE CORNER OF THE ROOM! 1-you have just singled them out 2- they are embarrassed, 3-their anxiety is not any better than it was before you stuck them in the corner. Academics.......my child does not know anything outside of a FCAT. Doesn't know how to answer questions unless they are multiple choice because EVERYTHING that came home was multiple choice. The list goes on, and I am happy to saw my child no longer goes there or Discovery middle school which I hear is not any better with bullying. I hear Avalon has good schools, and Sunrise had good reviews and they are in the same zoning as Waterford. Do your homework before sending your kids to this school. And if they have any kind of disability, please go somewhere else if you want was is best for your kid to succeed
Submitted by parent on July 31, 2017

Excellent work from teachers And staff in general.
Submitted by parent on July 19, 2017

My son is performing above grade level at his school. He teachers and resources are efficient and outstanding.
Submitted by parent on July 10, 2017

I transferred my child from a charter school to a public school and my child did wonderful making the principal honor roll. I'm very pleased
Submitted by parent on June 06, 2017

Our son was enrolled in third grade at Waterford Elementary and seemed to never have a "good" day. There was always an issue from a teacher, extra homework assignments, tests suddenly scheduled, bullying by others, and an office staff that was rude and dismissive at best. We ended up withdrawing and opting for another school choice.
Submitted by parent on June 09, 2014

I had so many issues with this school this past school year. The teacher my son had shouldn't be a teacher. He came home crying on a weekly basics. When ask to test my son for a learning disable I was always told that "it wasn't needed" and that "he's a boy, and he'll grow out of it". When I finally did have my son tested, (by his doctor, paid out of my own pocket) everything I was telling them I thought he had he did indeed have. This isn't a school for "special need children". If you can advoid sending your child there do!!
Submitted by parent on August 13, 2013

I have 2 kids at Waterford: one in the Gifted program, one in a 504 Plan (and retained in 3rd Grade). So far I am very happy with the teachers, my child is NOT medicated and has been doing great with a lot of support and encouragement. Good and bad teachers, like anything else, can be found anywhere, anytime regrettably...
Submitted by parent on July 28, 2013

Absolutely horrendous! I was told by the asst. principal they would not work with me until I put my 5 year old on medication. The PTA is a joke. My son's teacher was more concerned with getting him out of her class than teaching him. I had to fight to get him tested for gifted after a year of telling her he was bored. The was no differentiated curriculum, in fact, she taught the whole class to the lowest, slowest student. She made a point of telling a number of parents they needed to medicate their children so she could 'handle them'. When I did get a 504 plan, she refused to enact it because 'it was too much work for her to have him sit up front'. The principal was never there and passed problems off to the asst principal who was over her head. We have pulled him from that school. in hopes of repairing the damage down to my sons education. Stay far away!! They get good FCAT scores by pushing lower preforming students into homeschooling.
Submitted by parent on June 17, 2013

Waterford Elementary is pretty terrible. Part of their failures are not their fault. Rapidly changing demographics of the east Orlando area have led to a more 'diverse' population and cultures that do not value education nor discipline. The growth of the area apartments nearby full of transients and single-parent households have greatly contributed to the downfall of this once highly regarded school. The other part of their failures lie solely with the school. 'Teachers' fresh out of UCF that don't understand children nor how to teach. On the flipside, teachers with long tenure and union protection that know they can't be fired no matter what they do. Administrators that play favorites and do nothing when bullying and classroom incidents are reported. The lunchroom at this school is like an urban jungle (its every kid for themselves with no supervision). So glad that I moved my child out of this negative environment. Do your child a favor and consider another school (outside of Orlando if you can).
Submitted by parent on June 16, 2013

Worst public school. If you can get your child into a different school you should really consider. Spelling gets tossed out after second grade and they believe that it is ok b/c they can use spell checks.
Submitted by parent on October 11, 2012

Mr. Lindlau is the best thing that has happened to this school in 15 years.
Submitted by parent on October 10, 2012

My son received speech services from 2009 to 2011 at Waterford Elementary. His speech pathologist was wonderful! Loved her. However, the front office staff were unfriendly and didn't even greet you. They acted as if they were doing you a favor. Also while waiting for my sons sessions to be completed I overheard on at least three occasions two different teachers ridculing and belittling other kids...Needless to say I sent my child to private school.
Submitted by parent on March 25, 2012

This school is great. The principal is awesome. He is very open and I have seen his interaction with the students. It is great. His fith grade teacher is super. My son enjoys going to school and is challenged and the meet his educational requirements.
Submitted by parent on March 24, 2012

My children have been at Waterford for the past 5 years and I could not be happier. We have had amazing teachers and administration. The principal knows all 800 children by name. He is very involved and responds immediately to any questions I have. The school has created classes for children that are excelling to challenge them in new ways. My oldest child was well prepared for middle school. I and my children have been very happy.
Submitted by parent on December 28, 2011

I Have my son in third grade at Waterford lakes elementary, and I have to say, my disappointment goes above and beyond. His teacher not only does the bare minimum but also has not interest in listening or working with the parents. Also the so call Principal of the school has no intention of helping the kids, when I approach him with concerns about my son education like the lack of spelling, his answer was, that kids don't need to learn spelling anymore since there are computer programs that fix spelling errors. My question is now, are they going to stop teaching math, because there is a magic little box called calculator that does math for you. Answer like that coming from a principal I've never expect. This School lacks of a good principal that does not play favoritism and is in for the children. I am highly disappointed with this school and the rating that has to me is not real. I am not saying all teachers there are bad, but the principal and the 3rd grade teacher that my son has are awful, and I know every other mother from that school had told me she is consider to be the worst teacher in the school. Not worth taking your kids here with that kind of principal.
Submitted by parent on September 23, 2011

My daughter is in first grade at Waterford. My experience with Waterford thus far has been great. They do faulter a bit in communication but nothing to write home about. For example, it would be nice to know about Friday's meet the teacher event sonner that 3-4 days prior. One thing all parents must understand is that this is Florida and we are not known for our fantastic public education system. In any system, YOUR PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT IS KEY TO YOUR CHILD'S SUCCESS. You will come across "bad" teachers in every school, it is your job as a parent to work with your children after school each day. Waterford has been an "A" rated school for several consecutive years and I am getting exactly what I expected from them which is a solid elementary school base. Before kindergarten, I searched and researched private schools in the area. Based on my assessment of these schools and conversations I had with several other Waterford parents, the quality of education provided at Waterford makes it futile to spend thousands of dollars to send your kids to school elsewhere, unless of course a faith-based education is your preference.
Submitted by parent on March 22, 2011

I am fairly torn on this school, but then again, I might just be rating something they cannot help. Let's face it, Florida is the worst state in the country for education. Everyone is going to have a bad teacher from time to time, I get that, and that person will be forgotten about in time. There are some teachers who are absolutely called to teach, and some who are just "instructors" and the extracirricular portions of being a "teacher" aren't there. This school lacks a sincere communication ability. It is very "Stepford Wives" in their approach. You are dealing with a team of people that will refuse to accept that an outsider may have a better idea than they do, but its expected when you're dealing with a substantial population of suburbanite yuppies. The schooling is great, but I don't know how we can grade that, when teachers are practically reading standard booklets and learning platforms like robots. I feel sorry for the teachers in FL. Unfortunately, their stepford wives/brainwashed approach doesn't allow for much "discussion". When they say the want to "work with the parent" They mean "we want you to do what we say not offer suggestions" Problem solving is a weak spot here.