Specialized HS Testing

8th Grade Parents - are you feeling that nagging sense of impending doom?

Ready to run the gauntlet of high school choice? What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I am holding High School Search Workshops in Park Slope and Carroll Gardens this fall. They are three fall evenings each to help guide you through the process. Or you can put together your own group of friends and set your own days and I would be happy to meet with you. If you are interested in reserving a spot e-mail me at joyce@nycschoolhelp.com

Whether you really want to send your child to a Specialized HS or not, the test is free. If your child gets a placement to any of the 8 schools including La Guardia she will hear about it a month before the other 85,000 students in the city, and not only that, but she will also hear which of her "1-12" schools have offered her a seat. It is worth the hassle and cost of some test prep and the test, to possibly hear early and have two or three (if she is offered a seat to La Guardia) options. Believe me, when you actually have a Stuyvesant acceptance letter in hand you think twice about all the times you said, "it is not for us".

I have heard many parents feel that the fall only prep is effective. And the best preparation, aside from really understanding the specific test taking strategies of this odd-ball exam is taking practice tests. There are many good private tutors in the neighborhood and Kaplan is everywhere. I just thought I'd let you know about some SHSAT (Specialized High School Aptitude Test) classes through Princeton Review that I just heard of. They are holding the fall sessions on weekend mornings at Berkeley Carroll from Aug. 8 through Oct. 19, and in at their Brooklyn Center in Midwood on weekend afternoons. They also do small group tutoring. (which was a route that we took and found very effective)

I am mentioning Princeton Review in particular because I recently attended a free college information class they held that was extremely helpful and turned our whole college search strategy around for the better. I like their approach very much. Check them out.

Guest Blogging on Hip Slope Mama

I am enjoying the weekend updates on the blogazine Hip Slope Mama, and it isn't just because I am a guest blogger there. Check out my latest post, "Can You Predict What Type of Learner Your Toddler Will Be?"

Teen Treks #5

She's back from Montreal. It was great. She wants to do it again. The rain coat was shredded but other than that everything came home, including the large unread book. She talked a mile a minute about every detail until she hit the couch and instantly fell asleep. She woke up long enough to whisper "pizza" and "pedicure" and then back into dreamland.

We are happy to have our darling girl home again. She can't wait to see her sister. It always amazes us that they have so much to talk to each other about even when they are with each other every minute. So up to Rhode Island this weekend to retrieve the mildewy sleeping bag and soggy twin A.

Teen Treks #4

Twin B was sighted in Burlington Vt. (by a pre-approved, non-stalkerish friend of the family). She is tan, happy and ready to kick our lazy, non bike riding butts when she returns home in 5 days.

No word from Twin B (known as the "good phone contact twin") unlike her sister, "the good house key remembering twin". Together they make one perfect child. The first year at camp all we received were envelops full of stationary that all said, "Sendmunchies.com" Needless to say, we were more than a little put off by the lack of substantive news and declined to order the $40. brownies online. So far there is no word from Rhode Island. Silence is golden and so are the candid photos from bunk1.com

Teen Treks #3

Got the call. Got the rain. But it wasn't as bad as I had imagined. It was a scheduled call, and even though hearing our voices made my daughter emotional, she did squeak out that it was fun before we lost the connection. The postcards are a different story. Because of the snail mail time lag, they were written in the first couple exhausting days, when their tent was flooded out. "...low blood sugar sucks..." I have been on google maps looking at terrain and I am quite jealous of the beautiful scenery they will be traveling through. We are quite proud of her. She said that after the first day she was going to call us to pick her up, but she pushed through it.

We just dropped off "twin A" at sleep away camp and all we had to contend with were memories of "Shark Week" and how to smuggle the rice crispy treats past the counselors.

Teen Treks #2

Day 2, no rain, no call.

After checking the itinerary and studying my online maps I realize that while we visit my uncle on July 4th, we will be 10 miles from my daughter's campground. I cook up several schemes including leaving mystery cookies at the Ranger's Station. My husband suggests that we just drive by and wave, but don't stop. My other daughter wisely convinces us that this is all too "stalkerish".

Disaster averted, dignity maintained, just barely managing to be a good parent.

Teen Treks

Yesterday we loaded up my daughter's panniers and bungeed up her bike until it looked like the Beverly Hillbillies' truck and sent her on a 400 mile bike trek with 9 other high school students and two adorably peppy adults to Montreal. In March, when I booked this trip, it seemed like an exciting adventure. Right now it seems like my first baby steps toward letting go. This whole parenting thing is not for the faint of heart.

This trip was the product of my internet search, but my daughters have always craved an outward bound type challenge. They love the pure idea of "Survivor". The problem with the show is that it is too much jumping over tiki torches and eating spiders in return for Mountain Dew and not enough foraging for roots and berries. So right this minute my baby has ridden 27 miles on a bike that weighs more than she does and is foraging for berries in Nyack. No rain today. No support van. I imagine over-sized bottles of shampoo and conditioner being thrown out along 9W. I imagine her returning bronzed and hairy, with legs like that cyclist in the "Triplets of Bellville", mouthing off in youth hostel Canadian French and preferring foreign bagels. That's if we don't get a call. What have I done!?

My husband said, "Can't you stop worrying and enjoy her trip?". I said, "Are you nuts! This trip is not for MY enjoyment! It is my penance for hovering and meddling and too many organized activities. This trip is so she can develop her executive function and get a Canadian boyfriend" (not really, she has a wonderful boyfriend to whom she will remain ever true) That is when I successfully transfered my parental dread and he woke up sweating at 4am. Mission accomplished.

Her sister is continuing on at their old faithful sleep away camp. The inmates running the asylum, I call it. She will be just as happily filthy and foul mouthed and full of contraband junk food when she returns home. So far, the beginning to a successful summer. They did a week of hard duty babysitting and found some some giant yellowed paperbacks that are sure to make them weep on the couch for a week. Those were the days.

Keep me in your thoughts and pray for no rain.

Where have all of the "4"s gone?

Check out the interesting post by Eduwokette "Are New York City Schools Shortchanging High Achieving Students? The View from 2003-2008

Savvy New York City parents have long suspected that high achieving kids are losing out in the push to boost the achievement of the lowest performing students. But those suspicions are often cast aside by public officials as helicopter parent whining or muted class warfare."

So the big question is "why?". Is it that teaching to the test is blunting the high achievers initiative? Is so much emphasis being placed on teaching the at risk kids that the high achievers are left on their own? Have the families of high achievers just voted with their feet? Or is it just the general philosophy that smart kids will do whatever it takes to achieve, so their budgets can be slashed by 6%? ( Remember to call your City Council Person and say "NO!" to the budget cuts)

What do you think?

Why Do I Grind My Teeth When I Read What Joel Klein Says?

Read Brownstoner's interview with School's Chancellor Joel Klein with a #2 pencil in your teeth to prevent dental abrasion.

Joel says, "The current Five-Year Capital Plan, which allocates funding for school construction projects, does not currently include new building construction in district 13 because district 13 overall is enrolled below the total district-wide capacity, even taking into account additional planned residential units. That said, there are some individual district 13 schools whose enrollment is over capacity. In the next Five-Year Plan, which we will put out in November and which begins in July 2009, we plan to look at the potential need for school construction based on demographic patterns within districts and the accessibility of existing schools. This will be a first: we haven’t previously drilled down below the district level."

More teeth references! Drill Joel, DRILL. The whole story is in the demographic patterns not within the weirdly shaped District numbers as a whole. Being in a school where the DOE determined "capacity" was like watching an exercise in Alice in Wonderland logic. They go by the "Blue Book" instead of by the reality. From the Comptrollers Report, "In addition, the current Blue Book target capacity for middle schools assumes that standard classrooms (i.e., not art rooms, computer rooms, and the like) are in use for seven periods a day. However, teachers are required to teach for only five periods a day. Using each room for all seven periods thus would require an extremely complex scheduling process. It also means that teachers would have to use the teachers’ lounge for preparation, if one exists. In reality, therefore, it seems likely that many middle school classrooms are actually in use for only five periods a day, which means that the utilization figures reported in the Blue Book for middle schools are understated as a result of this factor as well. "

Joel says, "It takes about 18-24 months to build a new school, depending on the scope of work; this doesn’t include identifying a site and designing the building. The timing for construction is established by criteria in the Capital Plan. We don’t “wait” to build until schools are overcrowded, at any rate." Hello, "321"! When are the families that bought into high rises on 4th Ave. in the 321 zone going to find out whether there is room for them? I suspect it will be on the first day of kindergarten. Yes, there are seats in District 15, but not in the schools that people paid dearly to be in.

From the Comptroller, "Much of the new residential construction is on the up-zoned Fourth Avenue. Among the Fourth Avenue projects that will impact PS 39, PS 321, and PS 124:

PS 39 will serve students from the 54-unit Argyle Park Slope, now under construction between 6th and 7th Streets. Inside Schools observers wrote: “Another space challenge: there is no gym or auditorium. PS 39 was using facilities at a community center across the street, but that was in the process of being sold at the time of our visit. Gym teachers teach lessons in the classrooms. The building was constructed without a cafeteria.” PS 321 will serve children from the 68-unit Crest condominiums at 2nd Street; the 41-unit building at Carroll Street; the 151-unit Novo Park Slope at 5th Street, and the 113-unit residential building at 343 Fourth Avenue. Observers from Inside Schools called PS 321 a “large, overcrowded school.” Yet,

applying the housing unit-to-public school student ratios in the CEQR Manual for high-income

Brooklyn units, these developments can be expected to generate an additional 100 students for PS 321. PS 124 will be impacted by the completion of 500 Fourth Avenue, a 133-unit building under construction between 12th and 13th Streets, and The Vue, a 45-unit condominium at East 16th Street. Inside Schools observers noted, regarding PS 124: “While the school is pleasant and well-maintained, it has a cramped cafeteria and a small room that barely makes do as the gym and auditorium.” Given the excellent academic reputations of most Park Slope schools, these new buildings could attract a significant number of families with at least one elementary school-age child. The proposed 630-seat elementary school, which a SCA official told Comptroller staff will be sited in the “northwestern Park Slope area,” should provide some much-needed new capacity. However, design work for the new school is not

expected to start until June 2008 and the school is not expected to be completed until November 2010, according to the February 2008 proposed Capital Plan Amendment."

Joel says, "families enroll their children in charter schools entirely by choice — in other words, students are never “zoned” to attend a charter school. This means that charter schools must compete with other schools for students and must educate students well in order to continue operating." This is true, but the families that go out of their way to seek out and apply for the lottery in a Charter School are also self selecting. They have to be informed and actively invested in their children's education. If they had the option of a quality zoned school I wonder if the Charter Schools would be so popular.

Check out Brownstoners report on new Charter schools opening in Brooklyn.

NYC Comptroller, William Thompson's Policy Report "Growing Pains" is fascinating reading (No, REALLY, and not just in a Dentist's Office - to stay with the metaphor) It was actually so thrilling for me to read the truth coming from a government agency that I wanted to get it printed and hand it out on street corners. Please, please take a look at it.

"A number of rapidly expanding communities now—or in the next few years—will suffer from

overcrowded elementary and middle schools, notwithstanding the school capacity expansion projects in the 2005-09 Capital Plan. Among these communities are:

Downtown Brooklyn, DUMBO. The 2005-09 Capital Plan provides for no new capacity in Brooklyn’s CSD 13, even though over 3,000 housing units are under construction or were recently completed in the PS 287 school zone alone; PS 287 had space for only 89 additional students in October 2006. PS 8 serves DUMBO and Brooklyn Heights, where hundreds of residential units were recently completed or are under construction. According to the DOE Blue Book, PS 8 was at 118 percent of capacity in October 2006.

There are neighborhoods where, although population is growing more slowly, elementary and

middle schools are overcrowded, DOE projects that the CSD’s enrollment will increase, and the

2005-09 Capital Plan provides too few seats or none at all. Among these are:

Sunset Park. Although four Sunset Park elementary schools exceeded capacity and the fifth was at 95 percent, no new elementary school seats have been proposed for this community. Sunset Park is in CSD 15, which is one of only four CSDs that the Grier Partnership projects will gain enrollment by 2015.

I could keep quoting from it all day long. This report was issued in May and yet the Chancellor has the audacity to tell Brownstoner's readers that there are enough seats because the DOE is counting by Districts. This is fraud. Read it and then call your City Council person and Betsy Gotbaum's office and demand answers.

While you are at fight the budget cuts.

There is More Than One Path to Brilliance

Whoa! Wait until you see what Eduwonkette has to say about elite colleges and what happens to kids on the high end of the scale with "No Child Left Befind". She references Yale English Professor, William Deresiewicz and his essay in The American Scholar It makes sense in light of the current administration. And for everyone who is wondering if the Gifted Class is the right class. Put this NY Magazine article into the mix "How Not to Talk to Your Kids".

From Eduwonkette:

Elite Colleges, "1) Teach students to believe that people who didn’t go to an Ivy League or equivalent school weren’t worth talking to, regardless of their class."

"2) Inculcate a false sense of self-worth ('Getting to an elite college, being at an elite college, and going on from an elite college—all involve numerical rankings: SAT, GPA, GRE. You learn to think of yourself in terms of those numbers. They come to signify not only your fate, but your identity; not only your identity, but your value.')"

"3) Initiate the winners into a club that's almost impossible to get booted out of once you're in ('Here, too, college reflects the way things work in the adult world (unless it’s the other way around). For the elite, there’s always another extension—a bailout, a pardon, a stint in rehab—always plenty of contacts and special stipends—the country club, the conference, the year-end bonus, the dividend.')."

"But if you’re afraid to fail, you’re afraid to take risks, which begins to explain the final and most damning disadvantage of an elite education: that it is profoundly anti-intellectual. This will seem counterintuitive. Aren’t kids at elite schools the smartest ones around, at least in the narrow academic sense? Don’t they work harder than anyone else—indeed, harder than any previous generation? They are. They do. But being an intellectual is not the same as being smart. Being an intellectual means more than doing your homework."

Babes in Tweedland

On Friday afternoon with the golden angel atop the Municipal Building shining down on 30 or so of the City's best and brightest from Stuyvesant and Edward R. Murrow High Schools, Chambers St. was an avenue of solidarity against the school budget cuts. Students read from their 100 letters in protest of the cuts. City buses, SUVs, school buses and motorcyles honked their encouragement. Bicycles bells tinkled and FDNY ambulances played their sirens as the students let out a cheer and did the wave. It was a tremendously positive experience for the protesters and the supporters who were encouraged by the optimism and energy of the crowd. If your school would like to participate in this very worthy protest contact the Kids Protest Project. The students only worry was that their letters wouldn't be read. So I have included a few more excerpts here.

Celia from Murrow ..." I am a part of the first screened theater program at Murrow and am very dedicated to the arts. Not only do I spend a period everyday in school but I also take part in our school productions. For three months, every single afternoon, from 3pm to about 6:30, I spent working on a show. We all put so much effort in to it and it came out wonderful. I made more than half my friends there and also gained a love of my school that I never thought I would.

I feel at home at Murrow and exceptional in the theater department. To lose this would be horrible for not only me but also the 200 other kids who help put our shows on."

Melissa from Murrow..."Perhaps the Department of Education can consider using money to fund classes that actually educate students, rather than giving it to them in form of cellular phones in order to entice them to pass tests. Frankly, throwing money at our city’s youth does not seem like the best way to instill within them work ethic and integrity. I can see no better use of money than to create programs and classes that might interest students (such as photography and astronomy, just to name a few that my school will no longer be able to provide), so that they have a desire to learn. Instead, this money is being used for standardized testing. It seems counterintuitive that we are losing the option to be taught subjects, so that we can be evaluated on how much we have learned."

Tamara from Murrow..."I am writing to beg you to re-think the school budget cuts. I am an 11th grade resource room student at Edward R. Murrow High School. I have held an 84 average with the help of my resource room teacher. If there are budget cuts another student may not get the same opportunity that I have gotten. Also I am in an after school program “The Jewish Heritage Club.” I am very interested in my club and therefore my friends and I are not with peer groups that hang around the streets and get into trouble."

Andrew from Stuy..."I go to Stuyvesant High School and I am an aspiring musician and journalist. I play piano for the jazz band, write for the school newspaper and am planning to take an extra writing class next year to help me become a better and more confident writer. With the proposed budget cuts looming, it is possible that all three of these things will be cut."

Elizabeth from Stuy..."I am a member of the JV Volleyball team (captain next year) and on the Varsity Fencing Team. I know that doesn't seem like a lot but that's just a start. Both of those teams were undefeated this year. Undefeated Volleyball team because we had nets and balls available to practice. Undefeated Fencing because body chords, foils, and strips were all available. Not to say that all of this was just given to us. I can easily list numerous days that I got home at 9 or 9:30 because of a late practice or a game in Bronx. I can also show anyone who asks 10 or 20 scars on my ankles, scars that I received from sliding across the gymnasium floor.

Those stories come with hundreds of others. Thousands of public school kids with a hundred stories each. The only reason that we have those stories are because our coaches were able to teach us new skills.

I don't know if you attended public school, or when you did. In all honesty, I didn't even know your name until 10 minutes ago when my friend instant messaged me and asked me to write a letter. Maybe, I shouldn't be doing this, but if I don't can I guarantee that someone else will? One thing that I can assure you I learned from the teachers at Stuy is to take action. Hopefully, you will realize how much is being taken away."

Diana from Stuy..." Getting down to a personal level, such intense budget cuts would affect my education greatly. One evening my parents and I sat down and looked over every course that is currently being offered at Stuyvesant. I am a freshman, so we literally planned out all the classes I want to take in my next three years. I have high aspirations for my future in education, and I am definitely ready and able to fulfill them. Imagine the disappointment I felt upon the realization that my hopes and ambitions are wavering in the face of a petty issue called money. I am probably not the only one who is suffering from this danger. The students who will be juniors next year would not be able to take those AP and elective classes if the budget cuts are severe enough to reduce us to an eight-period day. In addition, it is not only classes, but also extracurriculars, that are at risk.

Donna from Stuy..."Here at Stuyvesant, we take advantage of all the classes offered to us. Most students use their two free periods to take electives and AP classes to further their knowledge in an area of interest. I, for example, have taken three science electives during my two years at Stuyvesant: Genetics Research, Human Genetics, and Human Disease. Through my experiences in these electives, I have found out the subject I am best at and have discovered new career options available to me. If it weren't for these electives, I would still be confused about the direction I want my life to take. To me, taking electives in high school gives me a chance to try out everything I'm interested in, so I won't have to switch majors in college and waste both my money and my life.

High school is all about trying out new experiences and experimenting to figure out your interests. If we are not given the opportunity to try out new things, we will never be able to realize our full potential."

Kathy from Stuy..."Although taking 5% from Stuyvesant's school budget may not seem like a big deal to many people, it will truly affect our school and its community. How? you may ask. At Stuy our budget isn't used for random classes such as underwater basketweaving. It is used to sponsor over 32 varsity teams; providing funding for our own Student Union (run by a group of appointed students) that manages our clubs and publications, several literary publications to inspire our students and share unknown talent such as The Caliper (the oldest high school publications in the nation). But most importantly, our budget is used to provide a well developed curriculum and supply of teachers to educate this generation.

It is possible that with these budget cuts, students will no longer be able to many electives-those that could possibly spark interests in fields such as biology when it comes to human disease, anthropology, or history- existentialism, debate etc. Also, many teachers that are retiring or leaving Stuyvesant for whatever reason, may not be replaced due to the shortage in funding for our school."

Kenny from Stuy..."The students that have been involved in school activities will suffer the most. As a dedicated member of the Stuyvesant Math Team, I may have to face the possibility that my school may no longer be able to fund this class. The Stuyvesant Math Team has a strong and very successful legacy not only in New York City but also in the nation. To cancel such a rich and academic-promoting activity because of these budget cuts is an absolute shame and a complete atrocity on the Department of Education’s behalf."

Libby from Stuy..."Speaking with others students about the budget cuts proved that this means something different to everyone. I for instance, am interested in biology, and many of the biology elective courses are being cut next year. When we were sent to sign up for electives, all but three were in jeopardy of being cut if we loose money. This included many of the intro language courses that many sophomores wanted to take. It’s important that in the melting pot that is New York, we learn about each other’s cultures and language."

Don't let these efforts end! Go to the Hands Across NYC protest to end the school budget cuts this afternoon, Monday June 16 at City Hall Park. 4:30-6pm

Out of the Mouths of Babes

I am delivering letters from High School students to the Tweed Courthouse today for the Kid’s Protest Project. They speak eloquently about the harm the $428 million budget cuts will have on their schools and their lives. Over 100 Stuyvesant and Edward R. Murrow High School students participated. We received this flood of letters in only one week, during which the students also had exams, Regents, APs and SATs as well as final projects and performances. New York City should be proud of its children. The students organized the protest themselves and communicated the need to write letters over Facebook.

Here is a sample of a couple of letters (remember these are 14 – 17 year olds):

From Julia at Stuy:

"…In reading up on these Public School Budget Cuts through a variety of sources I have heard many explanations, excuses, and possible reasons. The one thing that strikes me, again and again, is that, regardless of who needs or who deserves or who we didn't help enough in the past, the LAST thing this city needs right now is to lessen the emphasis on quality education. It should be the frontrunner, the all important, the vital key to the very continuation of our city. Children are the future - do you want an intelligent future, or the one you are creating?..."

from Jack at Stuy:

"…. I personally believe that while the first impression a school makes upon someone will always be its academic integrity, the true soul of the school is lies within what else it has available for its students; the clubs, the teams, the government, etc. By taking away a school’s funds, you are also taking away from its soul, which, no matter what their level of involvement, is felt by each and every student to pass through the halls each day…"

from Matthew at Stuy:

"… the city is planning on cutting an additional $955,000 (from Stuyvesant’s budget). Mayor Bloomberg said that this was beneficial, as schools would have to consider what to keep and what to cut. That’s actually a smart plan in a big company or business that wants to maximize profits. However, the education system is not a business. If courses and extracurricular activities are cut, then we will have a huge loss, as would be put in business terms…"

Tasfia from Stuy:

"…Please don't take away the things that make people like me want to go to school. The things that make us want to learn, to enrich our minds, and content our thirst for knowledge. The people at Stuyvesant are exceptional. We take advantage of all we possibly can. From full period days and afterschool classes, almost everyone I know will do anything to fulfill their want of more. Almost every student in our high school is in numerous clubs or teams which they manage to stay dedicated to even with their immense workload. It can be fairly easy to slack off, to not apply yourself, but everyone at our school, and probably many people in schools all around, just want to be the most intelligent us we can possibly be. Please don't take our drive to learn away from us…"

Amal at Stuy:

"… If the education level goes down, people will be leaving New York City like crazy. No one wants to live in a city where their kids cannot get the best education possible, especially in a city like New York. Budget cuts will affect not only schools but the entire state and possibly even the whole country…"

and at Murrow, Matthew writes:

"… Programs like Murrow’s drama program, as well as its great art and music programs, gives students the chance to do something besides sitting on their couch after school watching MTV. They’re able to use their free time to not only do something productive yet they are able to do things they love, things that might not even be available for them to do if their school weren’t able to offer it.

Yet with the large budget cuts that NYC schools are receiving, programs, clubs, afterschool activities, and electives will be negatively affected if not altogether cut. While one could easily shrug this off and say there are other places where students can further pursue acting, dance, art, etc, there are many students who are unable to afford the high tuition fees of an acting studio or a dancing school. That is why free classes and programs offered by schools are such a great thing. They give every student the chance to do things they love…"

Ashley at Murrow:

... I am also a member of one of the about one hundred clubs that Murrow offers. If the budget cuts occur, clubs will not be able to have funding so we could do good things, such as the environmental corps. Who had started a school-wide recycling plan in January, which has been working successfully, if the budget cuts occur, we won't be able to do good things for the world and ourselves…"

Hannah at Murrow:

"… I love Italian. I am going to Italian III next year. When I heard that you were going to cut AP Italian, my heart broke…"

and read the full letter from Vicky, a freshman at Murrow who is 14,

“I am currently a freshman at Edward R. Murrow High School, and I am one of the many students concerned about the budget cuts that will be taking a real toll on our schools next fall.

Not only are we given fewer opportunities, but also the money that is being taken away from our education is going towards giving us standardized tests and grades for our school. Growing up in this generation, “scantron” is unfortunately part of my vocabulary. I have more boxes of number two pencils in my drawer than I do art projects. During the course of my school career I have learned one thing. My amazing teachers have taught me more than any 60-question test ever could. These people work for almost no money, but take on the largest responsibility for the future of the world. If budget cuts take away teachers in order to have enough money to give us tests I feel that is the biggest mistake that can ever be made. One of the students in our country now will be the President one day. I would feel more comfortable knowing I had a president who once ran a fundraiser in their school for an after school club or one that was in a business class and in Advanced Placement History, than a president that knows “which of the following sentences is an example of personification.” A, B, C and D is not a large enough vocabulary for a UN ambassador or scientist that will find a new eco-friendly energy source. If it’s a choice between our classes and teachers or a test? I think the answer that will benefit the students and our future is most definitely answer A –give us back our classes, clubs and sports.”

Tween Town, Not Just for Girls

I got a flood of questions about where to take boys. The boys probably won’t want to do a lot of the same kind of shopping, going to tea or doing their makeup before the show, but most of the suggestions were great for all tweens.

Here are a few more ideas. Madame Toussaud’s is a lot of fun and even with a pricey entry it is freaky and fun. (there are tourist pass tickets that give you discounts at lots of places, like the Empire State Building and if you are doing a lot of the regular touristic things they may be worth it) The Top of the Rock, at Rockefeller Center is supposed to be great for a view of the city if you don’t want to go all the way to 34th St. If your guests are coming from a smaller city, run them inside a couple of Buildings that are amazing spaces that you won’t see anywhere else. In Grand Central (there are good building tours, although you need to know your kid if they would enjoy it or not) there is a spot in front of the Oyster Bar where you can stand in one corner facing the corner and whisper and if someone stands facing the opposite corner they can hear you. Also the food court downstairs is pretty good if you need a snack), and the Reading Room at the Public Library makes a good stop to have a quiet moment if you have sensory overload in Times Square.

I love roaming around the tip of Manhattan. I would wait in line for Ellis Island, and that is saying something. The museum is great and if you have any information on the year that your family member entered the country, it is the biggest thrill to find their signature on the ship’s Leger. You can spend the whole day below Chambers St. I don’t spend much time at South Street Seaport unless it is to pick up tickets at TKTS (shorter lines than uptown) The National Museum of the American Indian (because it is part of the Smithsonian, it is free, your federal tax dollars at work) in the Customs House is great. They opened a beautiful museum on the Mall in DC, but 95% of the collection remains in NY. Spend a lot of time enjoying Hudson River Park, your guests will want to move to NYC. Don’t miss the Museum of Jewish Heritage and the Irish Famine Memorial (this is a particularly lovely and unusual little park north of the World Financial Center, really, it is worth looking for) Walk the whole length of Hudson River Park, it is beautifully and unusually landscaped with wonderful playgrounds for young kids and games and sports equipment at the ranger’s station for older children. When you get to the north end you can walk over the Stuyvesant pedestrian bridge and find a nice bistro in Tribeca for a bite or if you haven’t had enough walking you can completely wear out the soles of their shoes and head due east to City Hall and over The Bridge.

Once you are in Brooklyn, the Transit Museum is small and good (really great for young kids, especially on rainy days) I think that the Carousel in Prospect Park beats all others. The adorable Prospect Park Zoo (check out the Pigeon exhibit) and the southern entrance to the Botanical Garden are right across the street (Flatbush, that is). Bring your stale bagels! Maybe it sounds too low impact when there is so much to see in NY, but sitting in the Japanese Garden and feeding the giant Koi fish and turtles can be a big high-light when the kids are otherwise on overload. It is also very, very beautiful. If you are visiting the Brooklyn Museum (great kids programs and First Saturdays) have brunch at Tom’s Restaurant a couple blocks north on Washington Ave. (not open on Sundays) This neighborhood institution is very kid friendly and if you are waiting they pass out cookies. It helps your guests understand that New York is a city of neighborhoods that are really like the best small towns.

Finally the NY Times had a good article about backstage tours last weekend. I can guarantee that the backstage tour at the Met Opera is impressive, but I am interested in the Yankee Stadium tour which sounds awesome, whether you are a fan or not.

Stoop Sale Diaries #1

So my husband and I are stoop sale freaks. We know all the regulars, buyers and sellers. (A shout out here to Leslie, we still have your picture frame) We have seen the demise of the taped flier, to be followed by sidewalk chalk and Craig’s listings. We can read a sale. Recent breakup – lots of the ex’s belongings going cheap and “how to buy a puppy” books. World traveler – Frommer’s, Rick Steves, Time Out wherever and lots of small wooden carvings. Out grown the quirky collection – Pez, rusty lunch boxes, ice cream scoops. Long time neighborhood resident – clothes for under a dollar, paperbacks 50 cents, haggling is a sport not an insult.

Here is the #1 rule of selling – every sale you will make is an impulse buy for your customer. It doesn’t matter that you paid too much for your item new, and then never used it. On the street it is worth $2. If you are in it for the money, you will do better on eBay. The tradition of stoop sales in my humble opinion (as a seller as well as a buyer) is to get the stuff out of your house and recycle to someone who will love it. The more you buy, the cheaper the price should be.

This is what we found on Sunday:

3 Christmas Cd's (including Paul Revere and the Raiders Christmas)

a free bottle opener/10 second digital recorder

Ultimate Outburst (in the plastic, for use at the family reunion this summer)

Glitter batons for the two little girls downstairs

A small fan for my hot head husband

A wireless router (ours just broke!)

A wooden massage roller

The Illustrated History of the British Invasion

Various necklaces

A bright pink velvet evening jacket with lots of details (great with skinny jeans and the pink ballet flats we got last spring)

Every week you will inexplicably see the same book title over and over at all of the sales. The title changes from week to week. Some randomness expert needs to write their PHD dissertation on this phenomenon. This week every sale had Time and Again by Jack Finney, a book we enjoyed and bought several copies of to give to friends. More than the usual Harry Potters were also present.

We had some great conversations too; where to camp, hitchhiking in the Pacific Northwest, the best places to eat in Sullivan County, what it is like to own an Airstream, neighborhood choirs. Whether you buy or not, it is the easiest way to make small talk with your neighbors. Stoop sales give me a reason to stroll in the beautiful weather with my sweetheart and love all my funky neighbors (except the costume jewelry guy that is at every sale 5 minutes ahead of me)

Happy shopping!

Kids Take Action Against the Budget Cuts

This announcement was sent to brklynschoolsearch@yahoogroups.com

Kid Letter-Writing Campaign to Protest NYC School Budget Cuts
To protest the $450 million Department of Education budget cuts for 2008-2009,
two members of the PA at PS 87 in Manhattan are trying to implement a citywide protest project.

Modeled upon the 3rd grade letter project at PS 87 (which resulted in a very positive news piece on WABC on May 14th), the plan is to have students (accompanied by their parents) from different public schools around the city arrive at Tweed Courthouse (DOE headquarters) each afternoon in June to deliver giant envelopes filled with letters written by their classmates protesting the budget cuts.

Find Your Favorite HS On This List

If you think that you are mad about the Pre-K situation, wait until you see a 5 or 6% cut in your Middle or High School budget. Check out this list of exceptional schools that will be taking exceptional hits, loosing teachers and classes. Sure, it is just the AP classes and electives that may be cut. Tell that to your child who is studying all weekend to take the SAT II to try and have some hope of competing with students from the suburbs for a spot in college. Come to the Rally to Speak Out Against the $450 Million in NYC Education Cuts

Stuyvesant HS

345 Chambers St.

Monday, June 2, 4pm

This list comes from the most excellent Betty Zohar, UFT Parent and Community Liaison.

Largest Cuts in School Budgets

Manhattan Professional Performing Arts High School -6.09%

Queens Queens High School For the Sciences -5.96%

Manhattan 47 The American Sign Language School -5.92%

Brooklyn Urban Assembly Academy of Arts -5.89%

Queens York Early College Academy -5.88%

Brooklyn Lyons Community School -5.75%

Bronx Bronx Community High School -5.65%

Bronx English Language Learners and International Support Preparatory Academy -5.60%

Brooklyn The Brooklyn Latin School -5.58%

Queens Academy for Excellence Through the Arts -5.57%

Manhattan Academy for Social Action -5.56%

Bronx High School of American Studies -5.56%

Bronx Pan American International High School at Monroe -5.52%

Bronx Academy for Language And Technology -5.51%

Brooklyn Arts and Media Preparatory Academy -5.50%

Manhattan Eleanor Roosevelt High School -5.49%

Queens Pan American International High School I -5.48%

Manhattan N.Y.C. Lab School for Collaborative Studies -5.47%

Queens Baccalaureate School for Global Education -5.46%

Queens Queens Collegiate: A College Board School -5.44%

Manhattan NYCiSchool -5.42%

Staten Island P.S. 005 Huguenot -5.39%

Queens Academy for Careers in Television and Film -5.39%

Brooklyn Frederick Douglass Academy VII -5.38%

Brooklyn Life Academy High School for Film and Music -5.37%

Brooklyn Multicultural High School -5.35%

Manhattan Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts -5.35%

Bronx Bronx High School of Science -5.34%

Manhattan Stuyvesant High School -5.32%

Staten Island Staten Island Technical High School -5.31%

Brooklyn Brighter Choice Community School -5.30%

Staten Island Gaynor McCown Expeditionary Learning School -5.30%

Staten Island Academy of Innovative Learning -5.29%

Queens The Active Learning Elementary School -5.27%

Queens Learners and Leaders -5.27%

Queens Knowledge and Power Preparatory -5.26%

Manhattan M.S. 255 Salk School of Science -5.25%

Brooklyn Urban Assembly Institute of Math and Science for Young Women -5.24%

Queens The Queens School of Inquiry -5.24%

Queens Civic Leadership Academy -5.23%

Queens Queens High School for Information, Research and Technology -5.23%

Queens Robert H. Goddard High School of Communication Arts and Technology -5.23%

Brooklyn Academy of Innovative Technology -5.23%

Brooklyn Frances Perkins Academy -5.23%

Manhattan Mott Hall II -5.23%

Manhattan N.Y.C. Museum School -5.22%

Brooklyn Brooklyn High School for Leadership and Community Service -5.22%

Brooklyn Olympus Academy -5.22%

Brooklyn Victory Collegiate High School -5.20%

Manhattan Gramercy Arts High School -5.20%

Bronx Knowledge and Power Preparatory -5.20%

Staten Island College of Staten Island High School for International Studies -5.14%

Queens J.H.S. 067 Louis Pasteur -5.14%

Queens North Queens Community High School -5.14%

Brooklyn Brooklyn Theatre Arts High School -5.13%

Brooklyn Brooklyn Bridge Academy -5.12%

Brooklyn High School for Innovation in Advertising And Media -5.12%

Bronx Bronx Haven High School -5.10%

Queens New York City Academy for Discovery -5.10%

Manhattan M.S. 260 Clinton School Writers and Artists -5.09%

Brooklyn It Takes a Village Academy -5.09%

Brooklyn Expeditionary Learning School -5.08%

Brooklyn Brooklyn Brownstone School -5.08%

Brooklyn Cultural Academy for the Arts and Sciences -5.07%

Brooklyn High School for Medical Professions -5.07%

Brooklyn Academy for Conservation and the Environment -5.07%

Brooklyn Brooklyn Lab School -5.07%

Brooklyn Urban Action Academy -5.07%

Queens Queens Preparatory Academy -5.06%

Brooklyn Brooklyn Generation School -5.05%

Bronx School for Environmental Citizenship -5.05%

Queens Bard High School Early College II -5.05%

Brooklyn Gotham Professional Arts Academy -5.02%

Brooklyn Brooklyn Community High School -5.00%

The Latest on Pre-K Registration

Jenny Medina’s article in the NY Times today spelled out the basics of the Pre-K registration situation. Insideschools.blogspot.com had details about the registration discrepancies from Andy Jacob at the DOE. “What happened, Jacob told me, was that the DOE's computers compared data for the older sibling claimed on the application with the data parents entered on the application. If the address in the attendance system for the older child didn't match the address as it was entered from the application, the system treated the applicant as a non-sibling. But in some cases, Jacob said, the address-matching excluded children erroneously, sometimes because of a minor difference in the way the addresses were formulated (with a typo in the DOE's attendance system, for example) and sometimes because families have moved since entering the school system.”

Another thing that was mentioned was that the sibling preference only applied to a first choice school.

Since acceptance letters are starting to come out, it appears that occasional discrepancies are still showing up on the neighborhood groups. Zoned children without a sib in the school that receives a rejection letter from a school that you believe has an acceptance for an unzoned child without a sib should contact the people below.

The June 23 application is for families that have not received any placement, but don't be surprised if this process goes through changes as the DOE deals with the problem at hand.

Pre-K

Yikes, the Pre-K letters are coming in and from the anecdotal evidence on the yahoo neighborhood groups there are some in-zone families with siblings that are not getting their placements. This may be an indication of errors in the system. Just in case this isn't a limited problem, I have listed a couple of contacts here to try and get answers. It would also be helpful to know when families start receiving acceptance letters.

If you need questions answered about an acceptance or rejection letter, call the DOE Central Enrollment Office.

How I Learned to Love Camping; Stop Packing.

I used to dread camping because it took forever to pack. The trick is to have a prepacked kitchen box and some equipment ready to just get in the car and go. Years ago I got an LLBean credit card with benefits. After you have collected enough points you get a $10 credit on LLBean stuff as well as free shipping (and monogramming if you are into that) That is how I got all our camping stuff (that I didn’t get at stoop sales). I just read a post that someone sent back their 8 year old tent for repair, for free. We had the experience that if they couldn’t repair something they gave us a new one. I like them.

This is what we always take:

Tent, a plastic sheet for under (tuck the edges under the tent so the water doesn’t wick under) a couple of big tarps with grommets for a rain cover over the tents (the tent waterproofing and rain flaps will probably work well, but the thought of keeping all rain off the top of the tent makes the rain sound cozy instead of ominous)

Sleeping Bags and roll up foam pads

A shelter for the picnic table with zippered net sides

The big ball of twine

A Swiss army knife

A little shovel

A whisk broom

A large flat round grill for the fire ring

A hammock

A couple of battery operated lanterns and flashlights for everyone

A net bag or toy bucket to carry your shampoo etc. to the showers

The kitchen box:

I got the shmancy one from Bean with my coupons, but really you could just have a big plastic box from Target with a lid that you keep packed with:

A set of plastic dishes (one set for each of you)

A big plastic bowl

A couple of mugs and utensils

A couple of stoop sale pots and a pan

Paper towels with the tube taken out (better for squashing)

Some folded tin foil, and a bunch of different sized zip lock bags (they come in handy for everything including storing food that is floating around in the melted ice of the cooler)

Salt, pepper, sugar, tea, ground coffee

Plastic french press coffee maker

Some stoop sale column candles and something pretty to put wildflowers in

A pretty vinyl table cloth (these things sound excessive, but when I am smelly and dirty and sleeping on the ground, nothing makes me feel better than having a good cup of coffee at my pretty table in the woods)

A bag of fire starters (those lighter soaked sawdust sticks that can start fires with the wettest wood)

Bic Barbecue lighter (some matches too)

Some long handled barbecue tools and skewers for shishkabab (the most delicious and easiest meal)

A large cooler with a tap to drain melted ice

A couple of collapsible camping buckets for water and dish washing

A small container of dishsoap

Batteries of all types

My most treasured item: The pie iron…

Butter two pieces of bread, put them in the cast iron sides, pour in some raw scrambled eggs and cheese, or some banana slices and peanut butter, or apple slices and cinnamon sugar, you are only limited by your own imagination. Close it, clamp it and put it in the fire for a couple of minutes. Repeat while a huge line of children forms behind you. On second thought take two pie irons. Being cast iron, they stay very hot for a long time, only experienced older children should be allowed to use them.

A word on food. I marinate meat for a couple of meals (cubes for shishkabab, etc.) and freeze them rock hard in a couple of quart Chinese soup containers. They thaw slowly in an icy cooler and keep everything else cold as well. I don't take those frozen plastic blue cold packs they are just dead weight after they thaw.

I am sure that I have forgotten something, but when you have a prepacked kitchen box it is less likely that you need to buy it at the horribly over priced camp store.

Where We Camp

We do at least one camping trip a year. We have had a lot of different experiences with campgrounds. Private campgrounds can be in beautiful locations, but some are pretty loose about alcohol and noise restrictions and that can make a beautiful spot horrible. We have gone the 5 star private campground route with relatives who like electric and water hook ups and all of the amenities. These are very well run and manicured with pools and lots of activities for kids, but you pay through the nose for a controlled experience. So far, for us the National and State campgrounds are the best combination of amenities, scenery and relative quiet.

We have been to Dingman’s and we have heard great things about North South Lake. Both of them are within an easy weekend drive of the city. We gravitate to the Delaware Water Gap for an easy weekend camp. If you are north of the Gap by Port Jervis eat at the Eagle’s Nest Restaurant (reasonable, American, family dining) for the most spectacular views of the river. 58 Eagle’s Nest Road Bloomington, NY 845 733-4561 April-Dec. W, TH, SUN 5:30-9

www.dingmanscampground.com

Lake George

www.lakegeorgeescape.com

This campsite had a pool, river campsites, a DJ and bonfires in the evening, tubing on the river, arts and crafts, go carts, and you pay for it, but the experienced RV campers that work at the store knew all of the most beautiful hidden hikes around Lake George. Even with all of the “designed for family fun” activities, the day that we spent at the secluded waterfall and picnicking on the rocks by the lake was the day the kids remember. We spent a day in town at the scary wax museum, water park and para sailing, and one day in Saratoga Springs walking around all of the different springs and checking out the race track. It was a fantastic trip, but there may be a more economical option close by. You just need to find a local that will fill you in on the secluded hikes around the east side of the lake.

Bar Harbor

https://barharborcampingresorts.com/

This was another fancy campground for the in-laws but it was in a good location, had a heated pool. It was located on a bay where we were able to collect pounds of mussels for our dinner at night. These private campgrounds have lots and lots of RVs so you are not exactly out in the wilderness. I am sure that you could find a more secluded spot, but it is nice to be on Mount Desert Island if you are making the park your destination. If you can plan ahead and make a reservation at the National Park, that is always the way to go.

http://www.nps.gov/acad/

Lancaster County

I won’t list the expensive campground we found here. It was a lovely week, but we found that with all of the activities and beautiful Amish farmland we couldn't get the nature fix we needed. It is all private farmland and though beautiful, we didn’t feel welcome to wander at will.

My next post will be about planning and packing.