I need advice on middle schools in the Chicago area

In the summer of 2009 my family will be locating to Chicago from Dayton Ohio.
My son will be entering the 7th grade then. We are looking for an area to live that has good schools and activities. His current school is rated 10 by this website--we'd like to find a school 8--10 rating. We are looking in Lincoln Park, Oak Park, Hinsdale, not real familiar with the suburbs-would like to know more. HELP! Thanks for any advice.

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Yes, they are indeed different areas. I do know that one magnet school in the LP area is highly rated--it is called Skinner. Oak Park's middle schools have a 8 o/o 10 rating on Greatschools.com. Our present school system is rated 10 o/o for all schools--so I am going to be rather picky. We used to live in the DC metro area so an urban setting for us is ideal. We will have one child off to college in 2009 and the other will enter 7th grade in the Chicago area. He is a very good student so we do not want to "mess up" an already great start for him. We are just getting our feet wet with the moving process--so far Oak Park looks like a decent fit for us. I know HInsdale's schools are 10 o/o 10---I am going to look at that area next week. Thanks for you advice-it is much appreciated.

Well those are certainly very different areas! Lincoln Park is very urban. It's a long walk or short bus ride to the magnificent mile, but parking is very scarce unless you pay for a garage spot. It's a very exciting area to live, especially for young & wealthy. That means Chicago Public Schools or private. Chicago public schools are very hit or miss, plus there are magnet schools to complicate the picture. If you want to live there, I would ask the realtor in the area which school is the attendance area school, then check it out at this site:

research.cps.k12.il.us/cps/accountweb/

You would also want to talk to someone in the the same area and tour the school. One tactic might be to strike up conversations with parents in local playgrounds.

The two most prestigious private schools in the area are Francis Parker and the Latin School. But there are certainly other private schools as well.

Oak Park is an older suburb with a very diverse population, ethnically and economically. The population tends to be liberal, and the neighborhoods have front porches and sidewalks. I don't know much about the middle schools, but based on the type of people who live there, I assume that they are good if your kids are typical learners. I've heard that the district is not the very best if your kids have learning disabilities but I really don't know first hand.

Hinsdale is also an older suburb, but it's a bit pricier. I know nothing about their schools, but I assume that they're excellent just because the area is expensive.

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