FAQs
Must our child be Catholic in order to attend Annunciation School?
While we are first and foremost a parish school with children of participating parishioners given the highest priority for admission, we do accept children of other faiths often thereafter. The inclusion of children from Greek Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish and other Christian faiths enriches all our children spiritually and globally.
How do your testing scores compare with the local public school scores?
Private schools are not allowed by law to use the same testing materials (Smarter Balance) as our public counterparts, so comparing apples to apples is not possible. All diocesan schools will be using the STAR Math and Reading tests this year. Our student scores are consistently above Diocesan averages, and our students test in the upper percentiles in the nation.
How does your tuition and obligatory service compare with local diocesan schools?
Our tuition is inclusive of all fees so any “asks” during the school year are strictly optional. Local Catholic schools structure their tuition differently so again comparing apples to apples can only be done by combining all other costs with their published tuition cost then aligning with ours. As far as mandatory parent service hours, we can definitively say that ours are less.
Service hours are (as determined by the youngest child enrolled):
- All parents: 8 service hours for the Festival
- All parents: $150 sales of Big Raffle tickets (may be sold from November till March 17)
- Kindergarten through 3rd grade parents: 2 service hours for the Crab Feed in January.
Additional volunteering with fundraisers and in the classroom is welcome, but not mandated.
Does your curriculum align with the California and Common Core State Standards?
Our curriculum is founded on the Diocesan Religion Standards, California and Common Core State Standards and our School-wide Learning Expectations (see the handbook, page 5). In addition, we offer art, technology, Spanish, Music, and Physical Education instruction.
Our students enjoy:
- the use of a Science Lab, Computer Lab, and 1-to-1 Chromebooks in grades 4-8 and iPads in grades K-3
- many opportunities for cooperative learning, hands-on activities, public speaking, dramatization and music
What is your class size limit?
Classes in grades K-2 have from 28-32 children enrolled as a general rule, with aides to lower student-teacher ratio, and grades 3-5 as well as junior high classes typically have a maximum of 35 students.