During the fall, it seems every week we encounter a new ISEE, SAT or ACT registration deadline or administration date.  Most of the major standardized tests fall into certain periods of concentration.  This is true for state and independent school exams, like the ISEE, SSAT, and the SHSAT, to college admissions exams like the SAT and ACT, as well as graduate school entrance exams like the GRE, GMAT and LSAT.  We are about to enter a period of such clustering from mid-October through mid-December.  There is also a concentration in the spring from mid-April through mid-June.

It is important to realize that test preparation cannot merely begin at the registration deadline, which is usually less than a month prior to the test date.  To ensure a confident, level-headed approach on test day, the material must be examined and taken seriously well in advance.  Standardized tests are not measures of any innate intelligence or ability; in a sense, performance on these exams is just an indicator of how well you perform on these exams. (more…)

How to Know When it’s Time to Go Pro

“Does my child need help?”  It’s one of the most challenging questions we face in supporting our kids’ development.  We watch rising and falling grades, the roller coaster of emotion, peer relationships, shifting interests and activities, and so on, all in hopes of truly knowing our children and providing them with what they need.  Still, our doubts nag us: Is he really doing okay?  Is she truly happy? If we suspect all is not well, the question becomes: What can I do about it?  It can be difficult to tell if a child needs more help than is being provided.  Rare is the pre-adolescent who says to his dad over the breakfast cereal box “I’d like to retain a learning specialist to guide me through the murky waters of my teenage years.”   This leaves parents to sift through the sometimes subtle, sometimes overt, clues in their children’s behavior. (more…)