Parents of NY Teens

I follow the neighborhood yahoo groups of parents of young children to answer questions about nursery and elementary school, but I occasionally yearn for a group of older parents. I need friends who will talk to me about tutors and teen break ups and how to handle the coed sleepover. I have been an avid member of the yahoo group, parentsofnyteens. It is smallish and chocked full of great parents that I actually know, who are funny and generous and very, very supportive.

Just two days ago, Rachel, the moderator, did us all a wonderful service and started the Parents of NY Teens blog where she is compiling information and resources that the yahoo group members have been supplying.

Now a place for us to go! - to find about the emotions and college tours and ...(a couple of months ago there was a lively discussion on the yahoo group about how to inform your son that it was time to take a shower). I recommend that you sign up for the group, and use the information on the blog early and often!

Sunset Park HS campus

I just got back from touring the Sunset Park HS building.
It is everything that you would hope it would be, spacious, light, and beautiful. Three schools are housed there right now, Sunset Park HS which will grow at capacity to 1600 students (currently with a 9th grade), Brooklyn Prospect Charter (currently with a 6th grade) which will be housed there for two years before they find their permanent home and The Lillian Rashkis School, a district 75 program. I would recommend that all parents of 5th and 8th graders make time to tour the appropriate program housed in this building. They are worth a look.

There is a community barbecue celebrating the opening of Sunset Park HS tonight, Wed. between 5-8pm
The school is located at 35th St. between 3rd and 4th Ave.
Meet the administrators, teachers and students and tour the building.

Middle School: Part 3

So it is the first day of middle school, congratulations! This is what every sixth grade parent wants to hear as their darling comes in the door, "thanks mom and dad, that school is great! It is everything that I dreamed it would be over those long months last year, when we were waiting to hear where I would be placed." This is what you undoubtedly will hear, "It smells funny." That is if they are being kind.

This is what parents need to remember for the next two weeks. Your darling has not been in a new school since they were 5 years old. They have been the kings and queens of their elementaries. They knew everyone. They knew exactly what to expect. They knew all the teachers and it smelled familiar. But now they have to change classes in a building that they are afraid to get lost in. Even the sweetest teacher is putting on her mean face to keep the upper hand on the first day of middle school. The kids, whether they are giant and menacing 8th graders or not, are strange. Even kids they have known all their lives are coming back from the summer with breasts and different voices. How weird is that? It can't possibly be a good day.

So here is what you need to do:
First give them a protein filled snack. They probably had lunch at 10:30. Let them zone out for a while at the mindless activity of their choice.

Don't ask them how they liked school. You won't get the answer you want.
Just ask about facts. What color was your math teacher's hair? Do you have to climb stairs? How many minutes in between class? What do you want for lunch tomorrow?
In a couple of weeks they will start to say things like, "I met a nice kid today." "The science teacher is pretty funny." and you will finally get your rewards for dragging them on a million tours the year before.

And children...
have pity on your poor parents. They only want what is best for you. When they look at you pleadingly, hungry for any detail and praying that they made the right choice, say, "Mom, Dad, I love you anyway."

Registering for Public School Sept. 2009

This information is from the DOE's website.
Elementary or middle school: Register at your zoned school starting on Wednesday, Sept. 9 (the first day of school). Call 311 or try the search at the DOE website to determine your zoned school. If you don't have one, visit a Student Registration Center in your borough of residence beginning Monday August, 31.

High School: Register at a Student Registration Center in your borough of residence beginning Monday, August 31.
The Centers will be open Monday - Friday 8am - 3pm from August 31 to Sept. 18. Closed Sept. 7 for Labor Day. Translated materials and interpretation services will be available at all Centers. Check out the DOE's new student page for documents that you will be required to bring.

Brooklyn High School for the Arts
345 Dean St. between 3rd and 4th Ave.
Clara Barton High School
901 Classon Ave. east side of the Brooklyn Museum between Union and President
The Montauk
4200 16th Ave. at 42nd St. Brooklyn
Brooklyn Technical High School
29 Fort Greene Place (enter on South Elliott) between Dekalb and Fulton

PS 46 just called with a registration update for their school.
They are holding early registration Sept. 1-4, 9am to 1pm. The parent or guardian should come to school with the child's Birth Certificate, immunization records, proofs of address and their ID.
They will also be holding an evening meeting for parents of enrolled students to meet teachers on the evening of Sept. 10.

Preparing for Middle School: 2

Are you worried that your sweet darling is going to turn on you without warning the minute puberty kicks in? I can't help you with that, but I may be able to warn you about a couple of things that may give you a slight edge in the situation.

Your 6th grader doesn't have to have instant computer communication with all of their friends. This communication does seem to be necessary when they are a bit older, but in 6th grade they need to figure out how to deal with their new life and time management. Too much unregulated access (and do you want to be the policeman?) is a giant sink hole of problems. If it is difficult for you to self regulate your time on Facebook (you know who you are), it is impossible for your child. You have the power to choose what comes into your home. I just advise that you make conscious choices at each step along the way. Consider whether it is wise to have a computer in their room. This is not necessarily a trust issue. How many times have you looked up from the computer and it was three hours later and you had no idea that time was passing (I am doing it right now!). The time will come when they will go to bed after you are long asleep, but right now they are the ones that really need the shut eye. They are so much nicer when they get it.

That brings up the fact that they look old, but in many ways they still have the same needs that they did when they were toddlers. Sleep, eat and read aloud should be your mantra. They grow when they sleep and they are growing inches every day. Studies show that US teenagers are chronically sleep deprived. I am mean when I am tired (really, don't cross me!) and they will be too. Why go there?

Feed them right away when they get home from school, something healthy with complex carbs or protein. They probably had lunch at 10:30. They are HUNGRY. Feed them before you ask about their day or they will bite your head off.

6th graders have a lot to deal with (more on that in the next "preparing..."). A funny thing happens to many of them. They occasionally take up a little baby language, they climb their giant 5' frames onto your lap, they form a sudden nostalgia for their "childhood". While they are desperately trying to be older, they are also uncomfortable with letting go of the familiar. This is why it is nice to stay friends with kids that are not going to your middle school. They have to be cool with their school friends, but they can be their old selves with their old friends. Don't get rid of all of the Legos or stuffed animals just yet.

They may not want to talk about their day when they get home. A parent can look pretty lame in the cold light of day, but at night, when they are cozy in bed and the lights are low, you look like their beloved moms and dads again. Everybody likes to be read aloud to. If you keep doing the bedtime reading (or start back up) you will be amazed at what happens. First the books just get better and better. But you may find that you don't spend much time on the books. You may end up just talking, and the longer you can keep that tradition going the better.

Happy reading!

Preparing for Middle School: 1

I always waited for the first day of school to get the teacher's list of supplies. Then I would go to Target or Staples and wait in an endless line for the last of the stray, wrinkled, stepped on notebooks that nobody else wanted. I wanted to go in mid summer when the pretty notebooks were out, but NYC starts school so much later than any other district that when I was on vacation in other states, the shelves were clear by mid July. I just went to Staples yesterday and got my gross of $.19 pocket folders and you can too, before they are all gone.

Here is a shopping strategy for the parents of rising 6th graders ready for their first year of Middle School. It is a tough call because your tween will want to wait to see what everyone else has. They may also want the giant binder with pockets and subject dividers for the first time. These will not go to waste even if their teachers don't require them. They will use them all sometime unless they become plastered with Jonas Brothers stickers which will render them "gross" and outdated in 6 months.
This is what you should get:

• the tried and true marble composition books one for each subject (and lots of extras)
  
• pocket folders for each subject
• spiral notebooks with perforations so that the pages can be torn out without the fringe

If you go shopping now you can find colorful (actually attractive) composition notebooks. Get them in different colors for each subject, red for ELA, blue for math, green for science etc. Then get the corresponding colored pocket folders and spiral notebooks for those subjects too. That way when the books are strewn all over the living room at 7am and your child only needs science and ELA that day, he can easily see what needs to go into the backpack. If they are all the same color or random designs imagine the horror (and notes home that he doesn't have his work in class).

• pads of graph paper for math (some have 4 sq. per in. on one side and 5 on the other so that you have all bases covered)
• lots of #2 pencils, a sharpener, and some mechanical lead pencils for math
• colored construction paper, glue sticks, markers of all kinds (you thought the projects would stop?!)
• extra poster board (white and in color) and a spare tri-fold card board display (thanks Felicity)
  
• lots of extra printer paper and many extra ink cartridges
  

Middle school is when the computer becomes a part of your child's body. I have a couple things to say about this. ALWAYS HAVE AN EXTRA INK CARTRIDGE IN THE HOUSE. Oh yes, you will use the last one and think, I will reorder that in a couple of weeks like I normally do, but a week later at midnight when the giant social studies project is due, suddenly there will be no ink, because your child spent the last week printing out multiple copies of different size pictures of civil war uniforms that they didn't use. Hear me now or suffer the consequences. Always have at least one extra cartridge and ream of paper in the house. Always.

Happy shopping!

Middle School Talk tonight

I am speaking tonight about navigating middle school choice at the Carroll Gardens local branch of the Public Library (Union/Clinton). I am starting at 6:30 sharp.

This talk is designed for the parents of incoming 4th and 5th graders, but all are welcome and it would be interesting for parents who are taking a long view and interested in understanding what may be coming up in the years ahead. It is about procedure rather than specific schools, and parents have told me that it calmed some anxiety and helped them get a handle on their options. I have also been told that it was even occasionally amusing.
There will be lots of time for Q&A. Parents from all districts are welcome. There is no need to RSVP for this evening's talk.

I will be giving this talk again on June 9th at 6:30 at the Prospect Park local library branch (6th Ave./9th St.) RSVP to joyce@nycschoolhelp.com for that talk so I can have an idea of numbers.

Navigating MS and HS Choice

Joyce Szuflita, NYC School Help, is giving four free talks. Anyone who is mystified by this process will benefit from this clear and calm approach to a complex system. I have given these talks at several schools to packed houses and the parents were very happy to get the information and be able to ask me unlimited questions, so I decided to take the show on the road.

I will also be holding "High School Choice: Short List Workshops" in July and September. We take the HS Directory and a pair of scissors and create a short list folder so that you can plan your tours and keep it all straight. There will be lots of discussion of specific programs, what to look for, strategies and how to be prepared for the search season. These workshops will be about 1.5 hours, $40. parent/ $10. student. I am still setting the dates and venues, but if you are interested email me and I will send you a class notice. joyce@nycschoolhelp.com

Middle School Choice
Wednesday, May 27
Carroll Gardens Public Library (Union St. and Clinton St. Brooklyn)
near the Carroll St. F stop

Tuesday, June 9
Park Slope Public Library (6th Ave. and 9th St. Brooklyn)
near the 7th Ave. F stop

High School Choice
Wednesday, June 3
Carroll Gardens Public Library (Union St. and Clinton St. Brooklyn)
near the Carroll St. F stop

Tuesday, June 16
Park Slope Public Library (6th Ave. and 9th St. Brooklyn)
near the 7th Ave. F stop


All talks are held in the downstairs meeting room at 6:30 sharp.
RSVP to joyce@nycschoolhelp.com with the date you will be attending.
For information: 718 781-1928

Brooklyn Prospect Charter has its location!

Brooklyn Prospect Charter has announced that they will be located within the Sunset Park High School building in the fall of '09. Sunset Park HS will be in a brand new building on 35th St. and 4th Ave. in Sunset Park. The high school will be accepting 400 students next fall in their first year growing to 1600. So for the first couple of years there will be room in the building. Brooklyn Prospect was planning on accepting about 88 6th graders in their first year.

The Brooklyn Prospect Charter says, "We are grateful to Principal Corinne Vinal, Council Member Sara Gonzalez, the Center for Family Life Co-director, Julie Stein-Brockway, Community Board 7 and the Sunset Park High School Task Force who have worked tremendously hard in the creation of Sunset Park High School. We look forward to working closely with them to ensure a seamless collaboration and strong foundation for both schools."

You still have a couple of days to sign up for the Brooklyn Prospect Charter School's lottery. They are extending the deadline to April 5. If you can't do the registration on line call (718) 289-3174. This is an extension of the deadline. Go to their website to register. www.brooklynprospect.org This does not effect the regular middle school application. It is an extra option. You have nothing to loose, and another option to gain.

"What's up with School Choice?"

Hey Brooklyn District 13, 14, 15 PTAs!
I am offering a free talk to Elementary Schools this spring called "What's up with Middle School Choice?" I just finished the first one at PS 154 to a very positive response - "funny graphics", "can you do it again?... every year?... twice a year?" In just 20 short minutes a painless intro to the process your guidance counselor will go into detail about next fall.

Hi Middle Schools, do you want one too? I am happy to come to your PTA meeting and describe the High School Choice Process. It is a little longer, about 30 minutes, but it is in color! No power point - I go old school with real hand made visual aids. (I painted Broadway scenery for two decades, who needs new tricks?)

These talks are designed to calm and enlighten. Knowledge is power and understanding is the best way to chill. Then you can spend your summer at the beach reading the DOE HS Directory and not freaking out, because you "get it". write joyce@nycschoolhelp.com to book a date.

Mark Twain Open House

Mark Twain Intermediate School 239, the shining star of Gifted and Talented middle school education in Brooklyn, held their second of four open houses last night. On display were the kind of intensely talented, focused, well spoken children who drive nervous 5th grade parents into death spirals of stress and covetousness. What flaming ring of fire do you have to jump through to send your little darling to this paragon of education on Neptune Ave? Well, as it turns out we don't really know yet. Thanks DOE!

What the charming and helpful staff and parents said last night was that the process has been centralized; we think that it has possibly been simplified for out of District families and that things have changed a bit but we don't know the repercussions.
This is what we do know: call the Admissions phone number 718 449-6697 after Dec. 8 for more detailed instructions, and keep checking the website http://is239.schoolwires.com
The process has been centralized.
There is no pre application for out of District parents.
There will be an application to pick up and deliver (get this info Dec. 8)
There will be tests given in Feb. and/or March.
Your child may test in two talents. The tests will be 1 1/2 hours long each and both be given on the same day.
The tests will contain a writing portion. It will designed and graded by Twain, but the children will be ranked and placed by the DOE.
The whole thing with the pre-application in previous years had to do with accessing your child's standardized test scores out of District. It appears that the children will be placed only on the strength of their talent test, but maybe since the DOE has access to all students scores that will be a factor. We just don't know.

The last two open houses will be held on Thursday Dec. 11, at 1-3pm and at 6:30 to 8:30pm.
Good luck, one and all.

More Middle School Information

Bay Academy has closed admissions to students outside of District 21 for 2009.
Mark Twain is still open to students from all over Brooklyn.

There were rumors about MS 447, The Math and Science Exploratory School in District 15. Everything is the same there. If you live in District 15 you may apply. If you attend a District 15 elementary and live outside of the District, you are entitled to an application (in District 15 or your home District, but not both) If you attend private school and live in District 15 you may apply.
They are having their first open house on Sat. Nov. 8 at 9am. Daytime tour schedules will be announced later.

There is also the new 6-12 Brooklyn Prospect Charter School that is open to 88 students who reside in District 15 only.

Middle School in Brooklyn

I have received worried emails from parents that the public middle school process may be changing. I am investigating, but so far there is no sign that anything is changing in the middle school process. There is a new Charter School in District 15 for new 6th graders, but there is no sign at this point that Bay Academy and Mark Twain are changing their admissions policies. The general process was horribly late last year in part because OSEPO was overloaded by the change in G&T and PreK admissions earlier in the year.

Here is the current public school Middle School Calendar:
Nov. 24, Dec. 11 - Mark Twain open houses 1-3pm or 6:30-8:30pm, check their website.
Early Dec. - MS Directories and applications distributed to families.
Dec. 2-11 - MS Fairs.
Jan. 9 - MS applications due to elementary schools.
Early May - Decision letters distributed to families.
May 15 - Appeals due to elementary schools.
Mid June - Appeal decisions distributed to families.

The Bay Academy information is not on line yet. More information about Twain will be available shortly at the Admissions page of their website.

Independent middle school application and admissions do not correspond with the public middle school admissions. You will need to make your decisions about Independent School placements long before the public placements come in.
Bay Ridge Prep MS open houses - Oct. 23, Nov. 13, Nov. 15, RSVP online

Berkeley Carroll open houses:
Tues. Oct. 21 and Nov. 5, reserve your spot

Brooklyn Friends MS open house is full.
6th grade application deadline is Dec. 12, 4pm.

Packer Collegiate accepts middle schoolers at Grade 5

Poly Prep accepts middle schoolers at Grades 5 and 6.
Applications received after Dec. 1 may not be considered in the first round of admissions.

St. Ann's
Middle School is not a regular point of entry.

Brooklyn Prospect Charter School

Okay 5th graders, check this out. It is another public middle school option for students who live in District 15.
Brooklyn Prospect Charter School will be choosing students from District 15 in a true lottery (no special provisions made for gender balance or diversity, although they are hoping for it-it should happen organically) They will pick students who live in District 15 (it seems that those of you who live outside the district and go to elementary within the district will probably be out of luck because of priorities set by state regulations for Charter schools) They will start with a 6th grade of 88 students (4 classes of 22) and add a grade each year through 12th grade. There will be a waiting list and that list will probably have some movement. The lottery will take place on April 7 and you will hear about placements in mid April. Signing up for the lottery doesn't impact your choice list for the rest of the district middle schools. This is a separate process. You can sign up for the lottery right now online under the student section.

What this means is that there is another option, outside of the regular middle school process. You can essentially get two local placements in the spring and be able to choose between them, as well as any placements outside the district that you are pursuing.

They will follow the International Baccalaureate program and hope to be certified within 5 years. There is a big emphasis placed on a holistic approach to learning and integrating disiplines. A 30 minute a day Advisory with a faculty mentor will be an important component to help students work on their literacy and study skills. They aspire to provide PE daily. Visual Art will be part of the core curriculum with other artistic disiplines introduced through a partnership with BAM. The Board is recruiting experienced teachers with at least three years experience and Masters Degrees. There is an Executive Director (who lives in the neighborhood) who comes to the job with an impressive track record of teaching as well as working in school administration. He will act as a general manager. The Principal of the Middle School has longtime experience teaching and leading programs as well as being trained in the IB program. The Board of the school is made up of educators and business leaders and will have a parent member.

There will be no uniforms. The calendar will follow the regular DOE schedule with additional afterschool tutoring and a Summer Academy. The language taught will be Spanish. The jury is still out on whether they will have captive lunch or not. Because the program will be academically rigorous, homework will be a factor, but because teachers will work closely together, it shouldn' t be overwhelming. The location is not finalized yet. The location will be made public before students chosen in the lottery will have to accept their seats. The Board is hoping for a location close to BAM to make it easy to participate in their arts programs.