Finding Schools

Learn more about how to find and evaluate private schools. Find out why price should not be your only consideration. Get valuable advice on how to save time and money when choosing a school. Learn more about ranking schools and why it may not work.

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All About JROTC

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All About JROTC
Explore the multifaceted advantages of Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) programs in private schools. Delve into how JROTC cultivates leadership, discipline, and citizenship skills among students, contributing to their holistic development and future success.

The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) program has its roots in the National Defense Act of 1916, which authorized military training in secondary schools. Initially known as the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC), the program aimed to prepare young Americans for military service while still in high school. Following World War I, the ROTC underwent significant expansion. In 1919, the first high school unit was established at Manual High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. Over time, the program evolved to include junior-level training, leading to the establishment of the JROTC in 1964.

JROTC's primary purpose is to instill in students the values of citizenship, service to the community, personal responsibility, and a sense of accomplishment. While military training remains a core component, the program also emphasizes leadership development, character education, and physical fitness.

Today, JROTC has units in over 1,700 high schools across the United States and territories. These units are sponsored by the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps and operate under the guidance of active-duty or retired military instructors. Participation in JROTC is voluntary, and students who complete the program are not obligated to join the military. However, they may benefit if they enlist or pursue a commission.

Overall, the JROTC program plays a vital role in shaping the lives of young Americans, providing them with valuable skills, leadership training, and a sense of duty to their country and community.

Here is a look at JROTC and what the

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Exploring Reasons for Choosing Religious Schools for Children

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Exploring Reasons for Choosing Religious Schools for Children
This article delves into the reasons why parents choose religious schools for their children. It provides insights into the educational philosophies of Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Seventh Day Adventist, Muslim, Jewish, Quaker, and Christian schools. By exploring the unique offerings of each religious affiliation, parents can gain a better understanding of how these schools align with their values and aspirations for their children's education.

Choosing the right educational environment for a child is crucial for parents. For some, the decision involves considering religious schools as an option. Religion cannot be taught in public schools per se. The concept of the separation of church and state is a fundamental principle in American jurisprudence that emphasizes the independence and autonomy of religious and governmental institutions. It refers to the constitutional principle rooted in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, which states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."Public schools.

Sending your child to a religious school offers the unique advantage of an education that integrates faith, values, and academics, providing a solid foundation for spiritual, moral, and intellectual growth.

In this article, we will explore why parents might choose to send their children to religious schools, focusing on specific religious affiliations.

Roman Catholic

Strong Moral Foundation

Roman Catholic schools emphasize the importance of moral values and character development. Parents may choose these schools to provide their children with a solid ethical framework.

Faith Integration

Catholic schools incorporate religious teachings into various aspects of education. Parents who prioritize religious instruction may opt for Catholic schools to ensure their children receive a comprehensive faith-based education.

Community and Sacraments

Catholic schools often provide a close-knit community where children can form lasting relationships. Additionally, these schools offer opportunities for students to actively participate in sacraments, fostering a deeper connection to their faith.

This video

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Children With Learning Differences: How To Proceed

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Children With Learning Differences: How To Proceed
Facing the reality that your child has learning differences is never easy. But with a diagnosis from a qualified professional, and skilled experienced teachers who know how to remediate those differences, your child can learn to handle her differences. More here.

At the first sign that their child has a learning difference, many parents panic and withdraw into a state of denial. That may help you. But it will not help your child. Your child's teachers know what to look for. As a rule, the signs of a child with learning issues are pretty obvious. While teachers may not know how to treat the disorder professionally, they have the training to alert parents and the school administration when they suspect your child has a learning issue.

In this TEDx Talk, Dean Bragonier discusses the true gifts of a dyslexic mind.

Before we dig deeper into the subject of learning differences, here's a definition of the term:

Learning differences, or learning disabilities, affect a person's ability to learn and process information. The signs of learning differences can vary depending on the specific type of disability, but some common symptoms include:

Difficulty with reading, writing, and spelling: People with learning differences may struggle with decoding words, recognizing everyday words, understanding sentence structure, and spelling correctly.

Problems with math: People with learning differences may struggle with basic math concepts such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, and they may also have difficulty with more advanced concepts such as geometry and algebra.

Poor memory: People with learning differences may have difficulty remembering information, especially regarding rote memorization of facts or details.

Difficulty with organization and time management: People with

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How To Find The School You Want

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How To Find The School You Want
Finding the right school for your child is a major project. However, if you tackle it methodically, you will get good results. Here's a roadmap to finding the school you want.

I've been writing about private schools for twenty-five years. I always come back to how little we knew about private schools when we started looking for schools for our girls. My late wife had attended several private schools when she was growing up in New York City. So, she was at least familiar with them. She spoke favorably of the small classes and individual attention she received. I attended the Westmount Public Schools growing up in Montreal. Those schools were run along English public, i.e., private, school lines and might as well have been private schools. They had small classes and lots of individual attention. They also had strict codes of discipline.

However, when it came to identifying private schools for our children, our choices seemed limited. Back in those days before the Internet and smartphones, we had to research schools by phone and snail mail. We asked around and found out about schools from friends and associates. Fortunately, we lived in the suburbs, which always seemed to have a school or two for us to consider.

In any case, in the 2020s, you have some truly amazing tools to help you identify the right school for your children. So, let me save you time and lay out a road map for your research. Your decision process will include consideration of cost, suitability of schools in your area, the reputation of schools and their teachers, curriculum, athletic and extracurricular activities programs, among other items.

The first thing

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5 Distinctive Features Of A Waldorf Education

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5 Distinctive Features Of A Waldorf Education
Waldorf schools offer a distinctive approach to K-12 education. We look at some of the features of this 100 year old movement.
Rudolf Steiner c. 1905 Public Domain on Wikipedia.org

Editor's Note: I will disclaim upfront that my eldest daughter went to a Waldorf School in the primary grades. Being creative people, we were impressed with the creative side of the curriculum. Our daughter's two years at a Waldorf school were overall a good experience. ~Rob Kennedy

On the fringes of traditional K-12 education are movements like Montessori, Waldorf, and Reggio Emilia. They offer parents different approaches to early childhood education, and in the case of Waldorf schools, they continue on through high school. Searches on Google and YouTube will yield a lot of information to help you explore the subject of this article, a Waldorf education.

The founder

Austrian philosopher and scientist Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) established what we now know as the Waldorf or Steiner schools. He opened his first Waldorf school in Stuttgart, Germany Emilia 1919. A hundred years later, there are over 1,200 Waldorf schools worldwide.

According to the Biodynamic Association, "Long before many of his contemporaries, Steiner came to the conclusion that western civilization would gradually bring destruction to itself and the earth if it did not begin to develop an objective understanding of the spiritual world and its interrelationship with the physical world. Steiner's spiritual-scientific methods and insights have given birth to practical holistic innovations in many fields, including education, banking, medicine, psychology, the arts and, not least, agriculture."

This video describes the Waldorf education.

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All About JROTC
All About JROTC
Explore the multifaceted advantages of Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) programs in private schools. Delve into how JROTC cultivates leadership, discipline, and citizenship skills among students, contributing to their holistic development and future success.

Choosing a Private School