Q: My stepson is a high school junior and lives in Puerto Rico. He really wants to go to college in New York City. Can you recommend a good website or resource for us to help him prepare for the...

A host of parental postings on this blog in recent weeks have included the following concern: “My child has so much homework and gets so little sleep that I feel really sorry for him/her.” Often,...

The  Department of Education's proposed closing of some 20 schools—including several large high schools which will be phased out and replaced by small schools—prompted an outcry by students and...

It was hard not to feel empathy for the aspiring dancer depicted on the front page of the New York Times last week, in an excellent piece by Jennifer Medinathat looked at the grueling schedule of...

At a press conference yesterday outside the busy 72nd Street subway stop, Manhattan borough president Scott Stringer called on the MTA to restore funding for student MetroCards.  As has been widely...

A dozen New York City high schools were awarded gold medals by US News and World Report, in its annual ranking of the 100 best high schools in the nation. Schools are ranked according to the degree...

Q: My daughter applied Early Decision to an Ivy League school and just found out she was "deferred." Her college counselor told her the school was a "reach," but my daughter chose to apply anyway...

I overheard a conversation this fall between a group of high school freshmen, comparing the weight of their backpacks, their teachers, and their overall adjustment. Many spoke of going back to...

While New York City's scores on the National Appraisal of Educational Progress math exams rose steadily between 2003-2006, the NAEP's 2009 report reveals they have since stalled. Fourth-grade...

In our November poll, we asked how you felt about your parent/teacher conferences. Of the nearly  550 responses, 41% said, "Great! I really had the sense that the teacher 'gets' my child." That's...

Yesterday the Department of Education announced its  intention to close four schools it considers failing:  Maxwell High School for Career and Technical Education in Brooklyn,  the Academy of...

Eighth-graders and their families are in the final frenzy of filling out high school applications before tomorrow's Dec. 4 due date after a fall of attending fairs, visiting schools, taking exams,...

<!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 0 1 385 2195 18 4 2695 11.1282 <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> 0 0 0 <![endif]-->Imagine your kindergartner arrived at school...

Kids who grow up in New York City don't expect suburban amenities like backyards, basement recreation rooms, and their own bedrooms, and they're used to thinking of shared parks and playgrounds as...

Lower East Side parents are up-in-arms about the proposed expansion of the Girls Preparatory Charter School. The school is requesting more space to house a growing middle school population -- 50...

The Child Nutrition Act is up for reauthorization. All of the Untied States Department of Agriculture nutrition programs that fall under this legislation, including School Breakfast and School...

Dec. 4 is the date when high school applications are due to school guidance counselors. If you're like the average New York City public middle school parent, you have spent the fall accompanying...

Q: How can I possibly make my application special when colleges are getting thousands of them? How can mine be different and get their attention? A: How can you make your application stand out?...

Nearly half -- 45% -- of all New York City public high schools are "A" schools, according to their grades on progress reports released today by the Department of Education. An additional 30% of the...

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the middle school fairs. Several open houses and tours later, my family is taking on the seemingly impossible task of ranking schools. Schools that I thought would be...

When someone asked me what high schools I might be thinking about for my 7th-grader recently, my answer came swiftly and might have sounded a bit snippy. "I’m not thinking about it at all," I...

Urban Word NYC is a spoken word, poetry, and hip-hop group aimed at serving New York City youth. They were “founded on the belief that teenagers can and must speak for themselves” and “provide...

Tomorrow, Night Owl's kindergarten will finally receive the H1N1 vaccine, but for us, it's too little, too late. My daughters were both ill two weeks ago with what their doctor described as...

Q:  My son is a junior at a high school in Queens.  He is an excellent student and would like to go to a prestigious college.  But his high school is huge and the college counselors don't have much...

Every time I arrive at an overcrowded school corridor to sign up for a three-minute parent teacher conference, I have the same thought: There must be a better way. There are too many names on the...