Your independent guide to NYC public schools

Dear Judy,

My teenagers want to work this summer – if they can find jobs. Any ideas about how they can find work when there is so much unemployment?

Mother of Teens

Dear Mother of Teens.

Teens are a vulnerable group when it comes to summer jobs. They have to plan and be very aggressive in the search. Here are some tried and true suggestions.

Gifted and talented results letters were sent to families last week, and since then our inbox has been full of G&T queries from parents of prospective kindergartners who must apply by April 20. Here are four questions that we answered.

• My 4-year-old is a smart guy. His teacher says he is ahead of the other kids in his pre-kindergarten class, but he got a really low score on the G&T test. He took it on a very cold day and he is rather shy. Can he retake the test? .

The short answer: not this year. There are no re-dos. If your child was ill on the test date, or if there was a problem with the administration of the exam, you had 48 hours to report the problem. He can test again next year when he is in kindergarten. Note, next year it will be it will be a different test mix. The OLSAT will be kept but the Bracken will be replaced by the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test [NNAT].

Dear Judy,

Our son used to be an A student but now he is getting Ds and Cs. He is a freshman in high school. The teachers tell me he does not do his homework. Sometimes he does it but forgets to hand it in. We can't figure out why he is no longer interested in school and we are getting worried!

High school parent.

Dear High School Parent,

High school is a big change for kids and sometimes they can be thrown off course. There may be any number of reasons your son is doing poorly. He could be affected by the extra work load, by having to deal with many teachers and students (depending on the size of his school), by a teacher who made an offhand comment about his academic skills, or a fellow student who disparaged him.

Indeed, there may be a deeper problem. When kids change their habits so drastically, it can be a mask for behind the scenes worries – most likely trouble with other kids at school. He may be finding it hard to make friends, he may be the target of bullies. He may be hanging around with other discouraged kids. There is lots of talk about bullying these days and his school should have instituted programs and discussions that offer kids a confidential way to report their problems. If not, take steps to see that they do. I recently wrote about this.

Dear Judy

My 16 year old 10^th grade daughter received a safety transfer from her very dangerous high school. How do I go about finding a new high school for her?

Confused and anxious

Dear Confused and Anxious.

Transfers are hard to get so your daughter’s experience in an unsafe school must have been harsh. Take the time to find a school that is known for a warm and nurturing atmosphere and which puts emphasis on respectful interactions among student and faculty.

Parents applying to kindergarten for fall 2012 still have questions as the pre-registration period draws to a close on March 2. Here are a few more questions that parents asked at our kindergarten workshop this month.

No, sorry, the school is required to serve its own zoned kids before anyone else whenever they show up unless the Education Department has agreed that the school has no room left and caps enrollment. In that case, out of zone kids would not have been accepted in the first place. When you register does not count – priorities do.

Applications for public school pre-kindergarten will be available March 5 online and at elementary schools and Education Department enrollment offices. Families must submit applications by April 5. Applications for programs located in community based organizations are separate and are now available online or at each agency that offers pre-kindergarten.

Any child who turns four years old in 2012 may apply, but seats are not guaranteed. While admissions to public school pre-k is not as competitive -- or as expensive -- as private school --in many areas of the city, such as the Upper East Side and Park Slope, there are not enough seats to meet the demand. Programs are housed in public schools or at local daycares and pre-schools, and are either half day (2.5 hours), or full day, (six hours and 20 minutes.)

How do you find out which schools and community centers offer programs? Early in March directories will be posted online, or you can get paper copies at schools, daycare and Head Start centers and borough enrollment offices.

Dear Judy,

My son has been physically attacked several times in elementary school – I call it bullying—but the classroom teacher is no help when it happens and the rest of the staff has not been helpful either. What can I do to help my son?

Frantic mother in Queens

Dear Frantic Mother in Queens,

Considering all the attention to combating bullying these days, it is really disheartening to hear that your school still has no clue about how to handle it. The week before schools closed for the winter break was Respect for All week  – to highlight activities associated with the Department of Education program to combat bullying.

The goal is to make the schools safe and supportive for all students. Under the Respect for All (RFA) program, schools are to create a school wide atmosphere of respect for all kids regardless of their race, gender, sexual preference, ethnicity, religion, weight or disability. The program calls for training at least one staff member to be the RFA – the one person in school that kids can tell about bullying without fear of reprisals, and who knows how to help. That person's name and where to reach him or her should be posted all over the school. Under city regulations both victims and bystanders are encouraged to bring their story to the designated RFA but they, and their parents, can also report online at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Ed Note: Parents of prospective pre-K and kindergarten students had lots of questions at the Feb. 8 Insideschools forum at the New School. There wasn’t time to answer each one individually, so we grouped together similar questions and Judy will answer them. Here, she tackles questions about schools that may not have enough room for all zoned students.

Q: My child falls into the second priority for admission to kindergarten. Within this second priority how is admissions decided? Is it first-come first-served, random, or based on our actual address? Of course, we would be crushed if our child had to be waitlisted as a zoned child so I am wondering what we can do to increase our chances.

The Department of Education has established priority guidelines for all children applying to kindergarten. These are outlined on the DOE’s website and in the new Elementary School Directory. First priority goes to zoned students whose siblings will be enrolled in grades K-5 in September 2012. Second priority goes to zoned students who don't have siblings enrolled in the school – your situation.

Dear Judy,

I have a son in a private school and I would like him to apply to public middle schools. I have been told that he will need to take the public school New York state exam in the spring of 4th grade year in order to apply to public middle schools. Is this the correct procedure? Is it possible for him to take this exam? Can he take gifted and talented testing?

Private school mom

Dear Private School Mom,

No need for your son to take the New York State standardized tests. It is true that middle schools (particularly the selective ones) use 4th grade state test scores as a criteria for acceptance. But schools are savvy – they are aware that most private schools don't administer those tests. Instead, they will use your child's grades and attendance record as benchmarks for placement. There are other criteria that schools use for both public school and private school kids. Many ask kids to submit portfolios of school work. Some give their own exams or auditions, and many hold interviews -- a good chance for your child to show his best strengths. In these cases, standardized tests are just part of the mix.

Dear Judy,

My child scored in the 90^th percentile on the G&T test last year, but didn't get offered a seat anywhere. What's the deal?

Gifted Mom

Dear Gifted Mom,

When dealing with the Department of Education, guarantees can be murky. Read the fine print and adhere to the rules:

Score in the 90^th percentile or higher? Yes, you are guaranteed a district seat IF your child is going into kindergarten or 1st grade and IF on your application, you list every G&T option in your district. Ahead of you at the door are siblings of kids already enrolled. They have priority, based on the score they obtain. Then it is strictly by score. If there are more kids at the same score than there are places available, a lottery is held. If your child is one of those who does not get a place after that exercise is completed in all the district G&T programs, then there are two possibilities :

If there are enough kids who did not get placed, then the DOE might (and should) open an additional program. If there are not enough kids for a new program, then the DOE should offer a place in a neighboring district, where there are extra seats.

Some other factors:

If your top priority is for your child to be placed in the G&T program in his/her sibling’s school, make sure that school is your first choice on the application.

Twins, and presumably triplets, etc, are placed together if all are eligible. The twin or triplet with the highest score is the one who stands on the line. When placed, she brings her siblings in with her.

A placement exception request (PER) can be used to keep general ed and G&T students in the same school. In fact, you’d be wise to read the Gifted & Talented Handbook very carefully before submitting the application. There are many ins and outs that could apply to your situation.  

As for Citywide programs, there is no guarantee at all. Highest scorers are placed first, and if your child did not get placed in a citywide program and you did not list all the district options, s/he could miss out altogether.

Don’t get too anxious about placement right now. Keep calm, cool and collected while you help your child prepare for the OLSAT/BSRA tests -- make it a fun exercise and bring a relaxed child to the test.

Good luck!

Judy