P.S. 38 The Pacific School

Located just off Atlantic Avenue, near the new Barclay Center Arena, PS 38 has a clean, spacious building with large, airy classrooms, and entire rooms for blocks, LEGO play, and a sophisticated STEM lab. It also has a renovated playground. The school serves a diverse community and is one of the few schools in District 15 that usually has room for children outside the zone and even the district.

PS 38 aims to welcome everyone. It hosts an annual PRIDE parade in the neighborhood and free community celebrations for each heritage month. The school also makes the most of its location close to many subway lines, working with numerous arts organizations including nearby Mark Morris Dance Center. Children may learn violin, steel pan drumming, piano, and several types of dance with professional teachers. Every student in kindergarten through 5th Grade takes chess during the school day. 

Children learn through exploration and hands-on projects in the youngest grades. On our last visit we saw 4-year-olds illustrate simple addition problems with cut-outs of different colored fish and practice measuring as they made applesauce. Lessons are frequently based around seasons and childrens' interests. In January, a lesson was based on the polar bear. Pre-k parents come in to read on "mystery reader Fridays," a surprise to their own children. 

Students take frequent field trips that tie into their learning. The youngest start local with neighborhood walks. The older ones visit museums, Broadway shows, and walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to map the NYC skyline.  

The 2023 NYC School Survey shows some friction between the teachers and the principal. Less than half said the leader is an effective manager who makes this school run smoothly. 

A district G&T (gifted and talented) program is housed at the school. 

The school offers both free and fee-based after-school activities onsite.

Special Education: PS 38 has a mixed grade "self-contained" classroom in the upper grades. It also has team-teaching classes on every grade level. These classes mix students with disabilities and their general ed peers in one room with two teachers. One is trained to teach special education.

Admissions: Neighborhood school. (Pamela Wheaton, 2017; updated via Web reports & email, February 2024)