Abacus Mom

Private School Authority Relocating Clients Accepted Into Top New York City Private Schools

ERB / ISEE tutor Anthony-James Green and I are delighted that a number of our Private School Authority clients whom we assisted with ISEE test prep, interviewing, applications, and essays have just been accepted into elite Manhattan private schools off the regular admissions cycle.  One client just emailed me this afternoon:

<Child's name> has been accepted to the school starting in September so it is fantastic news for us. Let me take this opportunity to thank you for your assistance which has been great for us. It has been a pleasure to work this through with you and please add me on your reference list of happy clients. Again thank you very much.

More on When Should My Child Start Kindergarten

Thanks to Jessica Kelmon of GreatSchools for her excellent article, When should kids start kindergarten?  Kelmon writes:

Yet another part of the equation with today’s high-stakes testing is that we expect more of kindergartners. Unfortunately, they’re less prepared for success. "Kindergarten is much more academic than ever," says Emily Glickman, a Manhattan-based educational consultant. "Many people feel that kindergarten is the new first grade."

Kelmon has also written a worthwhile new story about When Should Kids Repeat a Grade.

Private School Authority Snags Renowned ISEE and SSAT Tutor Nick Ordway

Abacus Guide's ERB / ISEE and SSAT tutoring division, Private School Authority, is expanding rapidly.  Families throughout Manhattan (and also interestingly Westchester, Boston, LA, Germany, and Singapore) are signing up for our uniquely personalized and efficient program, geared exclusively toward ERB /ISEE and SSAT test success. 

Our specialty is motivating our students - progress can only be made once a student wants to make progress.  We internalize students’ desire for success, and then from there we develop strategies and tactics to improve ERB / ISEE and SSAT test scores.

We're delighted that Nick Ordway is joining our team as Master Tutor.  Since 2003, Nick Ordway has been a tutor specializing in standardized test prep, quickly gaining gratitude from his students and respect from his peers.  Nick received a BA in English literature, with a minor in theater, from Princeton University and an MFA in film production from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. When he’s not tutoring, Nick teaches film at the Lee Strasberg Institute.

Nick started his teaching career with an established tutoring company, working in their offices in Connecticut and Thailand. Later he began tutoring independently, with families hearing about him from satisfied friends.  Besides the SSAT and ISEE, Nick has tutored the SAT, ACT, GRE, TOEFL, various SAT II subject tests, physics, chemistry, writing, and mathematics from pre-algebra all the way through to calculus.  

Nick combines exceptional warmth, listening skills and flexibility, teaching to students' individual levels and helping them reach them their greatest potential.  He is a favorite of both students and parents.

If your child will be taking the ERB / ISEE or SSAT now is the time to call for our Jump Start or Blaster Program.  212-712-2228 or email info(at)privateschoolauthority.com

NYC ERB / ISEE and SSAT Test Prep and Tutoring: Now is the Time to Book for Fall 2011

If you live in NYC and you're still dithering about ERB/ ISEE or SSATtest prep for Manhattan or Riverdale private high school or middle school admission, now is the time to get cracking. 

We know your child is about to leave for camp.  Unfortunately the ERB / ISEE is still right around the corner.  Tutoring definitely helps improve scores, and you want to hire a compassionate, savvy, efficient tutor who can get the job done right, minimizing your family's stress.

Luckily, in many cases, tutoring can start in the fall, but you want to book now because the best ERB / ISEE tutors can service only a limited number of students.  Private School Authority's Anthony-James Green is already nearly at full ERB capacity, and our second-in-command, Nick, is right behind him.

Right now, you can get a free ERB ISEE Guide for a limited time.  The guide demystifies the testing process.

If you sign up in the next few weeks for ERB ISEE tutoring, we will work our hardest to ensure that Anthony or Nick come to you at the day and time that work best for your family's fall schedule.  We give scheduling priority on a first-come, first-served basis, recognizing that your fall may not be finalized yet.

We look forward to hearing from you about your ISEE needs:  212-712-2228 or info@privateschoolauthority.com

 

 

Asians and New York City Private Schools

As someone who works with Asians and non-Asians helping them cultivate the social skills and messaging necessary to succeed in NYC private school admissions, I was fascinated by Wesley Yang's exceptional article, Paper Tigers / Asian Like Me.  New York Magazine describes the essay:

Amy Chua’s triumphalist screed about intense Asian-style parenting triggered hysteria among other parents scared that their children were falling behind. But the Tiger Child generation has the opposite fear: that their upbringing has bled them of the assertiveness and social skills necessary to succeed as American adults.

In the article, Yang describes what he believes are the social skills usually necessary to succeed in the American workplace and in romantic life.  As a student of social skills as well as a coach who teaches them within the private school admissions context, I am fascinated by the parallels between my work and Yang's findings. 

Yang's essay references Hunter College High School and Stuyvesant, two elite selective NYC public schools that are majority Asian.  As a Hunter graduate and a frequent visitor to Stuy, I believe Yang accurately captures the white/Asian dynamic.  After reading Yang's essay, you may find yourself reexamining how you perceive other people and how other people perceive you.

Is Junior Kumon the Fast Track to Private School Kindergarten?

Some parents think so.  According to Kate Zernike's article, Fast-Tracking to Kindergarten?

Ms. Goldman, who works at an agency representing artists, took her son, Huxton, to Kumon last September, shortly after he turned 5, in an effort to make sure, she said, “that he wouldn’t be behind the curve” when he started kindergarten the next year.

If she was hesitant, her children’s preschool was “disgusted,” she said. But she saw immediate results — Huxton began reading, adding and subtracting — and Eze, newly 3, started soon after.

What do I think?  I discuss my position on Kumon with my NYC private school admissions clients.

Oddly enough, you can find the Kumon article in the New York Times' "Fashion and Style" section. 

Least Expensive NYC Private Schools?

Thanks are due to a Good Samaritan on UrbanBaby, who posted what looks to be solid information about less expensive NYC private and parochial schools.  A list of New York City area independent schools with tuition equal to or less than 25K/year

Urbanbaby is a fascinating place.  Some of the anonymous NYC schools chat is gossip and fiction, but some of it is useful, exclusive and true. 

How Do You Choose an Excellent ISEE or SSAT Tutor?

I've been helping students get into top Manhattan, Brooklyn, Riverdale, and Westchester private high schools and middle schools for over twelve years.  Before that, for five years I worked at a well-known national test prep tutoring company.

Through these experiences, I've had the opportunity to meet many tutors.  Some were academics who knew subject matter but very little about test tactics, strategy, and timing. Others were young folks who connected to kids but who were unreliable and unprofessional, showing up to tutoring sessions late or unprepared. Finally, I met uninspiring, dull professionals who took kids off on tangents, talking vaguely about material that had nothing to do with the test.

Test prep tutoring is an art and a science, and while many practice it, few do it well.

In starting Private School Authority, I was determined to partner with a test prep tutor and curriculum developer par excellence, which is why I reached out to Anthony-James Green, who had been recommended to me by numerous clients and education professionals. 

Whether you hope your child can work with Anthony, one of our other expert Private School Authority ERB (ISEE) and SSAT Tutors, or a tutor from elsewhere, I would vet the tutor carefully to make sure you make the right choice.  Tutors are expensive, and your child only has one chance to take the ISEE.  You want to choose the best tutor right off the bat.

• Check your ISEE / SSAT tutor's credentials.  Is she a moonlighting teacher out to make a few extra bucks, or someone who really knows the ISEE and SSAT and best test-taking strategy and timing techniques?

• See how the ISEE / SSAT tutor interacts with your child.  Is he warm, positive, enthusiastic, and engaging?

• See how the ISEE / SSAT tutor interacts with you.  Does she show up on time, stay the full hour, and communicate easily with you about what she has accomplished in that tutoring session?

• Does the ISEE / SSAT tutor have a gameplan?  Does he start the program with a diagnostic eval, so he can share with you where your student is starting on the ISEE or SSAT and how far he can go?

• Does the ISEE / SSAT tutor assign homework?  In test prep, homework matters and good ISEE and SSAT tutors take the time to assign it and correct it.

If you want to work with us at Private School Authority, call 212-712-2228 or info(at)privateschoolauthority.com.  Good luck!

Manhattan Overflowing with Gifted Preschoolers, Naturally

Barbara Martinez of The Wall Street Journal today addresses the growth in the number of children testing as gifted:  Parents Fret as Kids Seek 'Gifted' Status 

Martinez writes that the number of incoming kindergarteners taking the OLSAT and Bracken to get into NYC G & T programs increased by 13%, as did the number of children who scored in the 90th percentile or above. (28% of kids scored in the top 10%--that's Manhattan math.)

I said:

"The amount of work and uncertainty to get into kindergarten has escalated dramatically in the last two years," said Emily Glickman, president of Abacus Guide Educational Consulting, which guides parents through private-school admissions.

Students who don't get into a private school, charter school or a gifted program can't necessarily rely on a spot in the top neighborhood schools, either. Population growth has led to waiting lists at some of the most popular schools—even for children who live in the immediate area.

"I used to say if private school doesn't work out, you can go to your neighborhood school," Ms. Glickman said. "Not any more."

The increase in children scoring in the gifted category in public schools matches a similar increase in kids taking private school tests, according to Ms. Glickman.

She said it's a clear sign of the "test-prep effect."

New York Magazine's Daily Intel also covered Martinez's story:  Even Raising a Child Genius Might Not Get Your Kindergartner Into a Good School

More on ERB (ISEE) Scoring Mistake

Thank you to Abacus Mom reader Al Binetti, who wrote in today with an interesting ISEE question:

Glad to see that your students got in. Funny, if the test is so unimportant why do they give it, and why do they give ERB President Dr. David Clune close to $400,000 per year in total compensation (salary and deferred compensation) to run a testing company which makes these errors?

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