Schools are rarely chosen with a completely cool head. Yes, parents open websites, study rankings, ask friends where their children study and what grades they receive. Some even put everything into an Excel spreadsheet, comparing programmes, results and fees. But at some point the numbers stop mattering. The real decision is made differently, when you realise it aligns with your values. It is that quiet inner “yes” that cannot be entered into any spreadsheet.

For Elena, that is exactly how it happened.

Several years ago, the family was returning from abroad. Masha was moving into her senior years and would continue her studies in Moscow. The younger children were only just beginning their school journey. The family needed to choose a private school, not simply one with a strong academic programme, but one where the children would genuinely feel comfortable and secure.

Today Masha is a graduate. The younger children continue to study at the Gorki campus, the family later transferred here from CIS Skolkovo. But at that time, everything was only just beginning.

First impression

Elena remembers her first visit to the school very clearly.

“It was evening, the end of the working day. We were greeted by Ms Elena, an Admissions Manager. I thought she must be tired - we were the last visitors. I assumed everything would be rather formal and quick.

But it turned out completely differently. She calmly showed us around the school and spoke with us not from a script, but genuinely trying to understand what our children were like and what mattered to them. When I spoke about our move and the schools we had already visited, the conversation stayed simple and sincere. There was no feeling that she was trying to convince us of anything. And that was the moment I realised, this was the place. We were truly welcome here.”

When the first days simply fall into place

Not the presentation. Not the numbers. Not polished phrases.

But something more human - attention, openness and a willingness to listen.

Before that, there had been several options. But none gave the feeling of calm. Here, it appeared.

The family’s biggest concern was adaptation. The youngest daughter started school at the age of five, with no experience of nursery. With the older child, there had once been tears and requests to go home.

“I kept expecting a call, something like ‘They’re finding it difficult,’” Elena recalls. “But it never came. The first day, the second - and that was it. They slipped into the rhythm as if they had always been here. Singing, drawing, having lunch and coming home happy.”

She smiles.

“And you could see it even in small things. My child suddenly began eating broccoli and calmly trying foods she had always been suspicious of before. For me, that was a sign: she felt good here.”

Masha remembers her first year warmly.

“The classes were small. Sometimes it felt almost like individual lessons. I could go up to any teacher and ask them to go through a topic again. And they would actually sit with me for as long as I needed.”

“Mum never had to write emails or call the school. I would simply go and speak to the teacher myself. That was completely normal.”

When a student simply walks up to a teacher

“And for me that was very telling,” her mother adds. “At some point you realise that your child builds a dialogue with adults independently. They are not afraid to ask questions. They can calmly approach a teacher and discuss a difficult topic. That is incredibly valuable.”

There was also something that initially raised questions, the relatively frequent change of teachers.

“We were used to the formula: one form teacher until graduation. Here, teachers change more often. But over time I realised it is actually a strength. Each new teacher brings a new style, a different perspective, different expectations. Children learn to adapt quickly, understand different approaches and communicate with different people. It makes them more flexible and confident.”

Her younger son Grisha explains it more simply.

“It’s good. They have different personalities. And they give different advice.”

Elena smiles and continues. For her, the structure of the programme is also important.

“In primary school children are exposed to a wide range of subjects: mathematics, science, even elements of physics and biology earlier than in traditional programmes. Later the focus gradually narrows towards the direction the child chooses. It feels very logical.”

The skill that stays for life

“There was also a subject called Global Perspectives,” Masha adds. “We were taught to express our opinions and support them with facts. If you disagree with the teacher, it is not considered wrong. The important thing is to be able to justify your position.”

According to Elena, this skill later becomes valuable both when choosing a field of study and at university.

“Beyond academic subjects, children here learn something even more important: independence,” she continues.

“No one chases after students. If you do not submit your work, then you simply have not submitted it. If you want to improve your result, you approach the teacher, discuss it and resit. No one persuades you. It teaches responsibility.”

And she immediately adds:

“At the same time, it never feels rigid. If a child misses a test, they can take it later. The goal is not punishment, the goal is to complete the learning.”

Masha recalls gathering classmates to play instruments together, rehearsing even in the library. She remembers being part of the Student Council, discussing school events, decorations and helping to organise concerts.

“It was a real school life, not only lessons, but concerts, initiatives and the feeling that you are part of something shared.”

Today Masha has already chosen her future direction. Her interests developed gradually through subjects that genuinely inspired her, through conversations with teachers and through projects where she could try things for herself and understand what truly interested her.

And perhaps this is the real answer to the question of how you know you have chosen the right school.