After the events of Jan. 12, I plan to submit the following rough outline to the Metropolitan Opera. The proposed production is titled “Snow Day: A Tragedy.” Scene 1 opens in a New York home on a...

To New York’s Department of Education, the kindergarten sign-up period that begins today is “intake,” a time to discover which public schools will be filled beyond capacity come September, and...

Not too long ago, the very phrase Gifted & Talented made me cringe, with its aura of specialness and superiority. When my older daughter, Night Owl (now 6) was in pre-K, the option wasn’t even...

School Chancellor Cathie Black says reaching out to parents is at the top of her "to do" list. She told a student atDemocracy Prep that her first task will be meeting parents.  And in her first...

I vividly recall sitting in a waiting room, thinking my daughter’s future was being determined 15 feet away. There, behind closed doors, a child psychologist was administering the Stanford-BinetIQ...

Q:  I'm a high school sophomore from the Bronx.  It has always been my dream to attend Columbia University.  However, I doubt I will ever have a chance for admission.  My cumulative average from...

Do you feel stressed by the demands of your child's school?  Has volunteering come to feel like a fulltime job? This dilemma was the subject of a top-emailed New York Times article a few weeks...

The interviews, tryouts, and discussions about which high schools to rank in what order are all over in our household, so I’ve been wondering lately why my 13-year-old continues to nervously tug on...

In December, Arts & Letters won approval to expand our middle school downward to include elementary grades, eventually becoming a K-8 school.  And now, happily, we are engaged in the important...

“Are we Jewish or are we Christian?” my kindergartner asked the other day. The question was sparked by classroom discussion about the various holidays celebrated in our Upper West Side...

The new chancellor-designate, Cathie Black has emerged from seclusion to offer clues of what the priorities of her administration might be: taking aim at teacher tenure, and getting teachers off...

With middle school applications due on Friday, Dec. 17,  and the kindergarten admissions season beginning in January, the Department of Education is proposing changes in location or grade level at...

Middle school applications are due Dec. 17, and we’ve posted some new school reviews to help you rank your choices. Most of these schools are new and noteworthy (and may have empty seats to fill),...

Dear Judy, I am a District 2 parent. I keep reading about the need to rank the schools on the application.  The problem is that many schools won't consider you unless you rank them first.  How...

“Are we late?’ my 13-year-old asked again and again, as we headed first to an interview and then an audition, all within a three hour time span at an ungodly hour on Sunday. We were not, but plenty...

One extra click is all it takes this holiday season to support your favorite charity (and if that's Insideschools.org, so much the better!). Here's how easy it is:  go to ShopForCharityNow.com...

Although Brooks is an only child, I sometimes feel as if I'm raising two separate boys: the happy-go-lucky one on the right who exudes charm and intelligence, and the anxious, uncertain one on the...

When my daughter Night Owl was two weeks into pre-kindergarten, we received an e-mail from the teacher: “Due to a nut allergy, our classroom will be strictly nut-free” Since pre-K children eat...

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn released a report called FoodWorks, featuring 59 proposals for improving health and sustainability throughout the food chain and throughout the city. The...

Lori Podvesker is the Public Advocate's representative on the Citywide Council on Special Education and the parent of an eight-year-old son with special needs. Below is her summary of the...

The Scholastic Book Fair held this month at my daughter’s elementary created a fun bookstore environment that promoted reading and learning — all while raising thousands of dollars for the school....

During a much anticipated tour of a highly selective and extremely appealing high school last week, I fell sound asleep.  It happened in a hot and crowded auditorium, somewhere between the guidance...

If you have a child who is turning five years old in 2011, now's the time to start thinking about kindergarten. Requests for testing for gifted and talented programs are due Nov. 17, while...

College bound high school seniors through out the U.S. are struggling to put the finishing touches on college essays, those pesky assignments aimed at giving admissions officers a bit more personal...

My son is in 6th grade this fall. Is it too early to be thinking about high school admissions? What can I do to get prepared? Anxious dad. Dear Anxious Dad: It's never too soon for a middle...