The New York State education budget is on the chopping blocks yet again. The Governor's worst-case scenario includes cutting ALL early childhood and pre-k programs. Read the Daily News article here.
This is serious folks.
Category: Public School
Public School K and Pre-K Admissions 2010
Another great quick guide that was sent out from my sons Parent Coordinator this week gave a quick list of deadlines for Public Pre-K and Kindergarten applicants for the 2010 school year. Last year I pulled my son out of private school at the last minute and the process was such a complete headache trying to enroll him in the fall when I discovered that most of the parents had enrolled in all of the best schools in the spring.
Anyway, hoping to save you some headache. Here you go!
"Please see below for the admissions timeline for general education kindergarten and preK. It seems that we will have the same procedure as last year meaning that you must fill out an application for a kindergarten seat in your school zone between February 1st and March 12th. I am not sure how non-zoned siblings will apply. They have not made any announcement regarding a Lottery. I will distribute that information when it becomes available."
Kindergarten Admissions Timeline For Children Born in 2005:
Kindergarten Registration Intake Period Begins February 1, 2010
Kindergarten Intake Period Ends March 12, 2010
Schools Notify Families of Kindergarten Offers March 22, 2010
Families Pre-register at Schools April 12 - April 23, 2010
As they have in the past, zoned schools will give priority to Kindergarten students who live in their zone.
Pre-Kindergarten Admissions Timeline For Children Born 2006:
Directories and Applications Available March 1, 2010
Pre-Kindergarten Information Sessions March 2010
Pre-Kindergarten Application Period Ends April 9, 2010
Pre-Kindergarten Offer Letters Distributed to Families May 31, 2010
Families Pre-Register at Schools June 7 - June 18, 2010
To receive e-mails regarding the Pre-kindergarten registration and enrollment process go to:
http://app.bronto.com/public/actionpage/execute_page/?fn=Mail_ActionPage_FormResponse&pid=gs7wz340yhnhdp8ducgcddkzwd0cc&page_type=addcontact&ssid=4776 <http://app.bronto.com/public/actionpage/execute_page/?fn=Mail_ActionPage_FormResponse&pid=gs7wz340yhnhdp8ducgcddkzwd0cc&page_type=addcontact&ssid=4776>
decision
I will only move Brayden from 180 if he gets into Hunter or perhaps the Special Music School. I could not be happier with the educational environment, the parents and children and the goals of the school. I love that he gets homework and they are teaching him to have a critical voice of the book he reads. Too cute. In addition the monthly assignment he has is really well-rounded.
It's adorable to walk into the classroom and see the children rapt with attention- eyes completely focused on the teacher. Brayden said last weekend he missed his teacher :).
A big decision, bcs it's soooo easy to get caught up in the "designer handbag" trap, but 180 will prepare Brayden for a top school. I know as a parent my voice will be heard and I can make a difference.
Will work with a few parents to get an after school program next yr teaching a second language.
getting in the groove
We’re getting in the groove, even though we still have to run to school to avoid being late! Did I mention we live ACROSS the street from the school?
One big glitch which enraged, ENRAGED me. I know communication in schools is a problem. But you need to get it together when it’s a big problem. This was a big problem. It’s no secret that NYC has a bedbug problem and that the bugs are notoriously difficult and expensive to get rid of.
My manny was told midweek to wash the sheets and sweater of Brayden’s. Not really thinking he didn’t ask any questions. Well it turns out that one of the students has bedbugs. If the staff is aware of a potential problem they should let the parents know- I’d rather throw out the articles instead of bringing them into the class.
Worse, some parents were still unaware the following day of the potential problem. One mom didn’t think twice and just had the items still lying around in her house. It wasn’t until I told her that she ran home panicked.
Guess it’s time for me to make some enemies at the PTA meeting, because I’m about to get evil.
Testing, Testing
If you've been reading (and I know you have been), you'll see that the Board of Ed has announced launched the gifted and talented testing program for the 2010/2011 school year for students entering kindergarden and the primary grades. This testing is not mandatory, it's only for parents who want their children to qualify for one of the gifted and talented program. Starting this year, for the first time, the city is choosing to enforce an old law on the books that says all students in publicly funded pre-k programs must be tested for developmental disabilities. That's right, if your child is in a universal pre-k program in public school, he/she WILL be tested.
I am not crazy about all of this testing of the youngest ones in school and there are some in education who feel the same way. As this NY1 article states, some teachers and program directors are concerned about false positive results. "You are going to have kids who are just refusing to do these tasks and won't be able to do them as their supposed to according to this assessment, simply because they are fearful. They may be uncomfortable, they may be hungry.", says Martha Foote of Time Out From Testing.
In the same article, DOE Spokesman William Havemann says about the test, "It will be used for early detection of developmental delays, and for no other purpose. It will not go in a student's permanent record, and will be used only in pre-kindergarten."
Tell us what you think. Leave a comment and tell us if your child has been or will be tested and how you feel about the issue.
G&T handbooks now available online
Handbooks for the NYC Board of Education 2009/2010 Gifted and Talented program are current available online. Here are important program dates:
Applicants who were born in 2005, 2004, 2003 & 2002
(Please note: For K, 1st, 2nd, & 3rd grade placement in the 2010 - 2011 school year)
October 7, 2009: Gifted & Talented Test Information handbooks available online
October 7 – November 6, 2009: Window for submitting the Request For Testing (RFT) forms open
October 13, 2009: Gifted & Talented Test Information handbooks available at schools (with Request For Testing forms and OLSAT practice test included)
October 13 – October 23, 2009: Community Information Sessions
January 4 – February 26, 2010: OLSAT/BSRA testing at school sites for public school students
January 9, 10, 23, 24, 30 & 31 and February 6 & 7, 2010: OLSAT/BSRA testing at selected sites for non-public school children
Early April, 2010: Score reports and applications with available G&T sites communicated to eligible students
Late April, 2010: Applications due
June 2010: Placement offers communicated to parents
June 2010: Parents accept/decline placement offer
NYC Gifted and Talented for 2009/2010
The NYC Department of Education has posted gifted and talented information and test dates for the 2009/2010 school year on their website. This test if for applicants who were BORN in 2005, 2004, 2003 & 2002, i.e. for K, 1st, 2nd, & 3rd grade placement in the 2010 - 2011 school year.
update PTA
great meeting- went on for 2 hrs tho...exciting to hear that our school received 105.1 points out of a possible 100 plus 15 for extra credit. Also the school had placed 9th out of over 1100!
The school seems to be a good fit - some of the parents who are interested in a more "progressive" approach are not that pleased with the no-nonsense stricter approach of the school.
Yet the PTA has become very active within the school and now has a very vocal board and definitely a strong effect within the school. Why weren't these parents at the meeting?
People love to complain and yet hate to get involved.....
sept beginnings
Pretty non-descript beginnings...DS has seen the school for years inside and out (because of my volunteering there). He's been in some sort of school environment since 2, so was comfortable with this school. I made sure that he had a mellow summer, no camp- so by the time the school year rolled around he was excited to be in a classroom! I was the same as a kid....
Beautiful day yesterday. I met one of the moms walking to school, her son gave DS the biggest hug, then the boys met up with a third boy- again a huge bear hug. Was so beautiful, they hadn't known each other two weeks ago. One of the moms commented when do we lose that ability to just see each other as friends?
Some of the kids seem to have a hard time adjusting, a few parents have had their children at home full-time until now. Aside from that we're an excited group!
First PTA meeting this Sat- should be packed!!
New Family Get Together
A lot of our families have already known each other since our kids were newborns. I am a co-founder of Harlem4kids- a non-profit that encourages early childhood education through storytime , special events aimed at our community and parental support in NYC. Still, while we tried to reach out to all families in Harlem, there were a large group that we hadn't gotten to know.
I knew a lot of parents and kids were excited and a bit nervous and thought a couple of get togethers before school would help us start to bond and create a strong group of committed parents. I know that top schools only become that way because of parents. relinquishing that responsibility AND relying on just the school staff is a baaaaaad idea.
PS 180 is a great school- have been involved in various volunteer aspects for the last three years- love the grounds, love the staff, a few things I'm not crazy about, but that's where parents come in right?
So I organized a picnic for all 50 families- thank god it was August and a lot of people were out of town! We had a third show up- about half of us knew each other really well- the other third from seeing each other in the neighborhood, the rest not at all. The PTA president came ( a real dynamo)and so did the parent coordinator (with whom I've become good friends).
The picnic was great- our kids made new friends. The parents were all brimming with excitement, ready to make a difference. This will wane of course, it will be interesting to see who is as involved at the end of the year.
