McGaugh Elementary School

Looking for recent reviews? The class size for 2014 – 15 school year is predicted to be 35 – 1 no longer 20 – 1 as stated in previous post. Any advice would be appreciated.

This is my son’s third school. And so far I don’t like it. Some teachers are nice other ones are ok. The kids don’t have a cafeteria, they sit down outside in benches and tables. I dont think it’s enough for the amount of kids that the school has. A couple weeks ago I went during lunch and I saw kids eating lunch right outside their classroom, they were sitting down and the other kids were running between their food and the teacher was there and she didn’t say anything. Last week I went to pick up my son and I don’t know if I go in a bad time or what but I walked by the bathroom and the bathroom had a horrible smell (I expect this smell from a public bathroom not from a kids school). Some lower classes have kids from kindergarten and first grade together. (I don’t see what child are they trying to help). Also you can walk in and out from school and no one will say anything to you. This is my opinion about this school. Before you decide to put your child in this school come and see it for yourself.

my husband got transferred, and had to move away from this school broke my and my sons’ hearts!!!
this was not our «home school» in the district. did tours (before kindergarten) and decided McGaugh was the best fit for us.
AND BOY, WERE WE RIGHT!!!
amazing sense of community, no matter how short or long you have been there.
all the parents are very involved with helping in the classroom, PTA, fund raising, room parenting… all kinds of areas!
even though there have been a couple principals in a couple years, the continuous parental involvement has kept the ship running right.
seal beach is great. McGaugh is great.
we are so sad that we had to let it go. say, «hi» for us!

Way beyond satisfied with this school! As a parent we always want the best for our kids and this is definitely the best for both of my kids who are currently attending the school. The teachers are great, the school programs are phenomenal. Only issue could be the parking lot which is not really big but I live across the school so the walk doesn’t really bother me. I am a military spouse which means we will move really soon, but definitely wishing I could have both of my kids finish 5^th grade in this school! I took the kids to the pool during the summer brake and they definitely had a really good time every time, pool was always clean and the staff was always there watching the kids.

This review is for the auditorium /​parking only and not for the actual school facilities:
My daughter has been doing her dance recitals here for a couple of years. The auditorium is big, but the parking lot is very small :(However, there is a lot of street parking and it hasn’t been too difficult for us to find a spot and get out when we are done. Easy to find and easy to get to.

A private school masquerading as a public school!
Can it be possible that a public elementary school in Orange County, CA can be this great? I often ask myself this question each day after I drop my 3 little children off to school and walk to my car.
McGaugh Elementary School, set just 1 mile from the scenic Seal Beach Pier, is a private school that is masquerading as a public school.
It all starts with the unique layout of the school that has more to offer then some high schools out there: a 500 seat auditorium, Olympic size swimming pool, indoor basketball court, multiple baseball fields, multiple outdoor play areas, hundreds of yards of grass, tennis courts, and basketball courts.
All of the teachers my children have had have been amazing and long-​term teachers at the school. The teacher to student ratio has been 20 to 1 and the average tenure of each teacher has been 15 years. I have found all their teachers to be very academically focused, caring, and make great effort to mantain communication and promote participation with the parents.
The principal is a real leader. In the face of the Seal Beach shooting tragedy of 2011, an unthinkable tragedy that would challenge any leader in business or in the academics, he managed to maintain calmness and was able to bring the school even closer together. He encourages a real family atmosphere amongst the teachers and the parents.
Beyond the great academics, the school has somehow managed to maintain arts programs that most schools have had to elimate due to budget cuts. Programs include multiple day’s per week of PE, taught by a volunteer PE instructor, an art lab led by an instructor that has 3 masters degrees and helps the children create amazing art, a music program that has many of the children taking to musical instruments (my children play the violin and piano), a media lab with a fully stocked library, and a computer lab where each child gets his/​her own computer time each week and has on line access to play the math games at home.
Speaking of the parents, the parent involvement is outstanding. Whether it is reading to the kids in the media lab, helping out at PE, or decorating gingerbread houses for the holidays, the volunteer parent turnout is very high.
As if this was not enough, the after school program is extensive, offering up options such as music lessons, Mandarin and Spanish, Seal Beach swim Club, and a Chess Club.
All in all, not a bad deal from this jewel of a public elementary school…

Excellent school. Excellent pool.