EDUCATION MATTERS—SANFORD SCHOOL'S PRIVATE SCHOOL BLOG

Learn more about current school issues and trends from Sanford School’s educational experts.  Sanford’s blog is sure to help you navigate your child’s educational journey.

3 Ways to Savor the Summer with Your Grad

Posted by Heather Carlisle on June 10, 2022 at 12:02 PM

When the echoes of the final name emanating from the speaker finish their reverberation and the crowd erupts in cheers for the class of 2022, parents of graduates may find themselves at the center of a cyclone of emotions. Countless feelings which likely include pride, excitement, fear, worry, joy, and sadness rush over them at this pivotal moment in not only their child’s life but also their own. This moment signifies the official beginning of the next chapter for your family. 

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Topics: Summer, Parenting Tips, High School Experience

Celebrating Women's History Month In School Benefits All Learners

Posted by Brianna McCoy on March 18, 2022 at 12:01 PM

Every March, we celebrate Women’s History Month. We honor women, their role in history, their accomplishments, and their futures. When Women’s History Month is celebrated in school, educators can emphasize the value of women’s voices and encourage all students to respect and support equality. Women’s History Month is about honoring the past, but it’s also about how we move into the future. How will we raise our girls to understand the value of our own voices? How will we help provide healing and give hope?

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Topics: Community, Diversity, Elementary Education, High School Experience, Middle School

Ways to Sharpen 7th-12th Grade Student Math Skills in the Summer

Posted by Heather Taylor on July 30, 2021 at 12:00 PM
It's time to start thinking about the next school year. To avoid the summer slide and begin with a solid mathematical foundation for the school year, your child can spend time each week on mathematical thinking and reasoning skills to strengthen their previous skills and fill in any gaps of knowledge. By practicing, students can build their number sense, algebraic reasoning, and problem-solving abilities. Below are three activities and three online resources to sharpen your middle and high school students' math skills. To help your child, you can have them complete the activities below and go to the online resources to practice math skills this summer:
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Topics: Education, Summer, Parenting Tips, High School Experience, Middle School

Teacher Tips For Motivating Students During Hybrid Learning

When the pandemic impacts nearly every aspect of student learning, how can we help our children survive and thrive? Finding ways to motivate students and providing the best teaching strategies during hybrid learning is not easy. Whether children are attending class in person or online, participating in “school” is a great way to provide a sense of normalcy in their lives.

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Topics: Education, Academics, Elementary Education, High School Experience, Distance Learning

Letting Go of Your High School Senior

Posted by Jan Ross on April 23, 2021 at 12:30 PM

After eighteen or so years, you may be ready to see your senior plan their departure to college and move away, or like many parents, you may be dreading it. Giving yourself time to contemplate this huge life change and to offer some useful tips to your student will make a difference. Here are a few suggestions to help you get ready:

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Topics: Parenting Tips, Community, High School Experience

New Home, New School

When you decide to move to a new area, one of the first things to do is to explore schools for your children. Below are a few tips for how to tackle each stage of the school research and selection process so that your move to a new city will be complemented by a smooth transition to a new school!

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Topics: Education, Parenting Tips, Community, Elementary Education, High School Experience, Middle School

What to Look for When Choosing a High School

Posted by Olivia Civiletti on January 12, 2018 at 12:30 PM

sanford_school_high_school.jpgHigh School is one of the most important influences on the lives of adolescents. It becomes a student’s world at an age when they are still developing their identities, growing into adults, and learning about life. The teachers, students, and learning material serve to influence how teenagers think and view society as they adopt more responsible roles in their own lives. Something that has such a large impact on students' lives should be chosen with careful consideration. A student’s school should be welcoming and tailored to their needs with many exciting opportunities to take risks, make connections and be creative. There are many factors in this monumental decision to consider in order to get the most out of the experience, including:

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Topics: Admission, High School Experience

Advice for Students Beginning their Freshman Year in High School

Posted by Olivia Civiletti on September 8, 2017 at 11:30 AM

While exciting and hopeful, beginnings can also be frightening and uncertain. A student’s freshman year of high school is one of those hopeful, yet undetermined beginnings. You can be anything and do anything which is as much daunting as it is exhilarating. The next four years will help prepare a student for whatever the future holds, so it is very important that it go as smoothly as possible. With awareness and foresight, all of the stress of beginning school can be replaced by the excitement and joy it deserves. To ease the transition from middle to upper school, incoming freshmen should try:

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Topics: Health & Wellness, High School Experience

Benefits of an Advanced Placement (AP) curriculum

Posted by Lynn Casto on November 11, 2016 at 5:01 PM

When selecting high schools, multiple factors weigh into a family’s decision: size, location, the strength of the program, and programmatic choice, to name a few. The presence of an Advanced Placement (AP) curriculum within a high school signals a respected level of educational excellence. AP courses offer rigorous college-level content within a secondary school setting.

A school with an AP program may provide many benefits to students and families: 

  • Students develop the habits of mind and skills required to be successful in college courses while still in high school.
  • In-depth study of a particular field often leads to students discovering a passion and pursuing that field as a major in college.
  • College admissions officers often view students who score well on AP exams as being more prepared than those who have not experienced AP to handle college-level academics thus predicting a higher rate of success in college.
  • Students within the AP program are viewed by college admissions officers as hard-working, and self-motivated.
  • AP provides a standard measure by which students applying to college can be compared. Students can distinguish themselves within an elite group of students.
  • Students who score well on AP exams may receive college credit for their high school coursework.
  • With enough credits accumulated through AP, some students are able to graduate a semester or a year early, decreasing college expenses for families.
  • Earning introductory college credit through AP credits may open room in a student’s schedule that would allow the pursuit of elective courses in an area of interest or room for a minor study.

The AP designation offers a benchmark for academic excellence and teacher professional development. For a school to offer the AP designation, the teachers of the course must complete the audit process and be approved by the College Board. Schools must provide adequate resources to AP students and professional development to AP teachers. In addition, the teacher’s content must be approved by the College Board in order to be authorized to use the AP designation.

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Topics: College Guidance, Academics, High School Experience

What Makes a High School Writing Program Successful?

Posted by Brianna McCoy on October 25, 2016 at 5:30 PM

 

Writing is the foundation of much of what students will do in school and in their post-academic lives. As such, it is important to find a school that has a good writing program. A strong writing curriculum allows for flexibility so students can learn in multiple ways and encourages them to stretch and reach. We see the following as the key components of a successful writing program.

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Topics: College Guidance, Academics, High School Experience