PS 282 or PS 9?

Same here, I don't have any experience with PS282, but my daughter is in pre-k right now and will go to K next year. We've had a great year so far. The school has a community feel to it, and as Stacey just mentioned, the principle MS. D'Avilar has an open door policy. You can come to her with any ideas and generally she goes for it. There is good parental involvement which in my mind is key to success. The parent coordinator is wonderful and very active in the community. There are great after school programs and classes. My daughter does drama and french after school. There is also a piano and guitar program and much more.

If you want to speak with me don't hesitate to pm me.

pnlop wrote: There are great after school programs and classes. My daughter does drama and french after school. There is also a piano and guitar program and much more.

This is great for pre-k. Do they offer this to non G&T students?

pnlop wrote: This is offered to the entire school. It has nothing to do with G&T. It is an after school program. There are endless possibilities in this regard.

Hmmm...I think I should encourage a few more people to become active parents. They complain about a lack of fine arts exposure in their school. I think the path to getting those things was outlined pretty clearly above: active parent = enriched environment

xlizellx wrote: OFF QUESTION:: SORRY
[quote=Ishtar][quote=pnlop]This is offered to the entire school. It has nothing to do with G&T. It is an after school program. There are endless possibilities in this regard.

Hmmm...I think I should encourage a few more people to become active parents. They complain about a lack of fine arts exposure in their school. I think the path to getting those things was outlined pretty clearly above: active parent = enriched environment

My school offers 1 after-school activity: track. for kids in grades 3-5. and only 20 out of the 550 of them. Yes, parents play a HUGE part in this, but money, space, resources, teacher attitudes (the "this isn't in my contract so I refuse to do it" thing doesn't help run after school activities) and the principal's attitude. If you administration thinks everything outside of test-prep is a waste of time, there won't be arts and music regardless of parents.


Yes, exactly. That is what's so wonderful at PS9. There is a great community, but all and all it also has to do with the principle and her philosophy, which in this case is strongly geared towards enrichment. Unfortunately there have been such crazy buget cuts this year, and more are coming. A lot of programs have to be paid by fundraisers, which all schools have to do in order to get anything at their school.

The after school program I wa refering to, is actually a paid program that you enroll your child in. It is cheaper in general though, than if you took the same classes outside of school.

This sounds like a great school, G&T or not, to try and enroll your kid in.

solamami wrote: @Stacey, shhhh! Not so loud! ;-) I know I'm lucky to have gotten offers from both schools, which is why I'm so torn about the decision.

Parental involvement IS key. There is barely any at PS3, where my kid currently goes, and it's a damn shame. These are the only 3 schools in our district that offer G&T programs, and as well-meaning as the principal & staff are (LOVE her preK teacher. LOVE!), nothing real can happen unless the parents get involved--ESPECIALLY with these crazy budget cuts.

After-school programs are a bonus too. I am a working parent (or at least, hope to be soon. Damn economy!), so this is an awesome endorsement! I was leaning toward 282, but now the scales have tipped again. Oh well, there's another whole week to decide :?

I think you should tour both schools before you make up your mind. If you can you should take your child and see how they react to both schools. Good luck and I am sure your child will do well wherever they go.

By the way, there will be an open house for the G&T at PS9 on April 23rd at 9am. They will cover grades K-5. This might be a good time to visit the school, and ask the questions that might still be on your mind.

I do agree about visiting both shools if you're on the fence. Each school is different and it's best to find one that is best suited to you and your child. PS9 has an open door policy. You can make an appointement any day to have a private tour. Just contact our Parent Coordinator Charmaine Jacobs (718) 638-3260X1121. She would be more than happy to answer all your questions, and possibly give you a tour.

Is there a difference in G&T between PS9 and PS282? And how would one know?

Well I'm sure every schools G&T program has different way of teaching it's kids, so I think there would be a difference. If I were you I'd go to the website (greatschools.org) and view the state's standardized test results. Good Luck,

Old Time Brooklyn wrote: Why doesn't the famous PS321 have a G&T program?

My opinion, which may rile some parents, is that 321 and similar schools don't really need a G&T program because once the vast majority of the kids in your school are from relatively high earning households with college + educated parents - the difference betw the General Education kids and G&T kid becomes close to negligible.

So you could have one classroom w/ "normal" kids and gifted kids because the "normal" kids are enough on the ball that they're not holding back the gifted kids too terribly. The gifted kids still get read a few chapters ahead or the next level of difficulty book, but their classmates aren't too far behind.

In a school like PS9, which is awesome and I would've been pleased as punch to send my kid but she got wait-listed, a good number of the kids come from less privileged homes (less money, less education, immigrants, etc) - and the gap between the "normal" kids and the gifted kids is much more pronounced.

....but there are some pretty good schools in areas like that of 321 that do have G&T.

BoogieKnight wrote: [quote=Old Time Brooklyn]Why doesn't the famous PS321 have a G&T program?

My opinion, which may rile some parents, is that 321 and similar schools don't really need a G&T program because once the vast majority of the kids in your school are from relatively high earning households with college + educated parents - the difference betw the General Education kids and G&T kid becomes close to negligible.

So you could have one classroom w/ "normal" kids and gifted kids because the "normal" kids are enough on the ball that they're not holding back the gifted kids too terribly. The gifted kids still get read a few chapters ahead or the next level of difficulty book, but their classmates aren't too far behind.

In a school like PS9, which is awesome and I would've been pleased as punch to send my kid but she got wait-listed, a good number of the kids come from less privileged homes (less money, less education, immigrants, etc) - and the gap between the "normal" kids and the gifted kids is much more pronounced.

Having a child who went to PS 9 and has done extremely well for himself (now entering high school), I have to disagree with this. The parents of many of my son's classmates are not college educated and don't make a lot money (including myself and my husband) and these kids are thriving and making it into great high schools. Quite a few have been accepted in the prep-for-prep program and are now in prestigious private schools.

But I will agree that this situation you speak about comes into play when talking about the little "extras'" that enhance the child's learning. What I mean is that you have the parents who can either use their "connections" or volunteer their own time (i.e., computer programmers, etc.), or donate large amounts of money to their school's programs or PTA. For example, PS 9 would like to have a speaker/mike system installed in the auditorium. If this was say PS 321 they could probably raise this money amongst themselves in no time whereas PS 9 would need to have numerous fundraisers. Out of state and educational trips that parents in PS 321 would not blink an eye at paying also eat into a chunk of PS9's fundraising money.

All G&T programs (with the exception of the NEST program) have children at all levels, and as you say, one student can be further than the other in the same G&T class.

I think it all boils down to parent involvement. I always inform my son's teacher that during the day he/she is the boss and if there is something that the teacher needs me to carry over at home then that is what I do. I expect my son's teachers to lay the foundation and they should expect for me to build on it at home. That is one of the reasons I think PS 9 has come so far. Principal D'Avilar has made it so much easier for parents to be involved in their child's education and that proof is in the children's scores and the extracurricular programs that are now available to the children there.

Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.

Question for the dumb: If you were a parent with a kid in PS321 and your child got into a G&T program could you apply to G&T schools and if you didn't like the placement, could you just stay at 321 in "regular" program?

If you are zoned for 321, they would take you no matter what. Every school is different though. PS9 for instance only has a certain amount of slots, so you could be put on a waiting list. This is for K. 1st grade is mandatory, so they would have to take your kid if you are zoned.

As far as G&T goes, it is first a district wide lottery, so you apply to the school you like as your first choice. All district children have the same chance of getting in. It's not a zoned program. If you are out of district, you wouldn't have the same priority. Then, if you had a really good score, 97-99, you can also apply to the city wide programs.