North Shore Children & Families May 2012 by Michael Mascolo

North Shore

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&Families FREE!

The online and print forum promoting the development of children, families and the parents who care for them.

IN THIS ISSUE Higher Education: What's A College Education For? How Are We Doing? What to Look For Is College A Good Financial Investment? What Parents Can Do Now Summer Camps & Programs Showcase! Community Calendar Education Feature: Austin Preparatory School Reader Contest! See page 2!

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MAY 2012

2 North Shore Children & Families

Family & Friends

Celebrating All North Shore Moms! by Suzanne Provencher, Publisher

Shore a very Happy Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s Day to all North Shore Moms! Whether you are Mom, Mommy, Mother, Mama, Ma, Mere, Maman, Madre, Mamma – Mom or Nanna, Nan, Nana, Grammy, Grandma, Grandmother, Granny, Nonna, Nonni,Ya-ya, Memere, Abuela, Babushka – or Auntie, Guardian, Mentor, Teacher or Friend – here’s wishing all Moms and caretakers throughout the North

50: I’d also like to wish some of my oldest and dearest friends a very happy 50th birthday in May! This is the year of the BIG ONE for many of my friends…and me – so Happy Birthday to Marybeth & Donna on May 14 – and Happy Birthday to Tyla on May 17! Thanks, girls, for leading the way and

going there before me! I’ll catch up with you soon… too soon…how did we get here so fast?

please – and good luck to all who enter!

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Last chance for summer camps & programs! If you are a parent looking for a camp or summer program – see pages 12-16 in this issue – and register soon as enrollments are filling up fast! Or if you have a summer camp or program and if you still have enrollments to fill – our final camp showcase for this season will appear in our 2-month Summer issue! To appear in our Summer issue camp showcase, please see below for the deadlines for our next issue.

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All prizes are awarded courtesy of North Shore Children & Families, and in partnership with select sponsors.

DEADLINE TO ENTER IS MAY 25! Please enter online at www.northshorefamilies.com. Please – only one entry per person. Several winners will be selected.

Note to All Advertisers: Our next issue is our Summer issue – which covers 2 months – June AND July. Our Summer issue has a bonus printing so that we may restock our highest traffic distribution locations in early July (for our regular rates!). Our Summer issue also features our final Summer Camps & Programs Showcase for this season (see our May Showcase in this issue!) – so if you need to advertise in June and/or July – you’ll want to plan ahead to advertise in our Summer issue, as we do not have a separate July issue. To advertise in our 2-month Summer issue, please contact Suzanne by Wednesday, May 16, if you require our ad production assistance – or by noon, Friday, May 18, if you will be submitting a completed ad by May 22. Thanks for spending some time with us again – and Happy Mother’s Day! Until next month – Suzanne

North Shore Children & Families

Letter from the Publisher

Higher Education

and your child should be looking at and for in the educational experience, with some insider insight that will really give you some things to think about as you begin your search.

by Suzanne Provencher, Publisher

Finally, he asks the question: Is college a good financial investment? Considering the high costs associated with a college education, along with the worst employment outlook in years, how much you invest should be approached like any sound financial decision – with consideration to the ROI, the rate of return on your investment. A college education is one of the most expensive “purchases” that you will make, beyond your home. What is the earning potential in the field your child may pursue? Is the job outlook good in that field now and in the coming years? To spend $160K on a 4-year college education – only to be facing a job market that will pay you $30K per year to start, if you can even find a job – may make you think more about where and how much you should spend.

“Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X This month I am sitting in on this page for our editor, Michael F. Mascolo, PhD. As a college psychology professor at a local college on the North Shore, he is very busy with his own students as another school year winds down. The articles he shares in this issue are filled with lots of good information and tips for parents who are starting to think about college educations for their children. And since he is a college professor and parent himself, who better to share some inside scoop with all of you? First up, he addresses what a college education is really for – which may surprise some of you and add new insight that will help you navigate this important and intricate process before you even know where your child might want to go – or where they should go. Next, he shares some facts and statistics that rate how institutions of higher learning are actually doing – with tips to improve your child’s college experience wherever they decide to go. He also suggests the things that you

The bottom line: research, visit campuses early, explore your financial aid options and meet the application deadlines. Explore scholarship opportunities with your child’s high school guidance department, as there are hundreds of local scholarships that many don’t even know exist. So ask. Inquire with your employer and any organizations you or your children belong to, as many have scholarships available for children of employees and members. And apply for as many as you qualify for. Consider student loans. Touring a campus is not enough. Meet the professors in your child’s desired area of study. Sit in on a few classes. Is it a boring lecture – or are the students invigorated and Continued on page 19

North Shore Children & Families

www.northshorefamilies.com P.O. Box 150 Nahant, MA 01908-0150 781.584.4569 A publication of North Shore Ink, LLC © 2012. All rights reserved. Reproduction in full or in part without written permission of the publisher is prohibited.

Suzanne M. Provencher Publisher/Co-Founder/Managing Partner suzanne@northshorefamilies.com Michael F. Mascolo, PhD Editor/Co-Founder/Partner michael@northshorefamilies.com Designed by Group One Graphics Printed by Seacoast Media Group Please see our Calendar in this issue for our upcoming deadlines.

Where to Find Us North Shore Children & Families is available at over 425 locations throughout the North Shore! Our free, monthly parenting publication is available at North Shore libraries, schools, pediatric doctor & dentist offices, hospitals, pre-schools, children & family support services, retailers that cater to parents, children & thriving families,YMCAs, children’s activity & instruction centers (dance, gymnastics, music, children’s gyms) and more! You can find us from route 93 in Woburn – north to the Andovers & NH border – east to Newburyport & Salisbury – south to Gloucester & Cape Ann – west to Malden & Medford and everywhere in between.

We’ve got the North Shore covered! If you would like to be considered to host & distribute our free publication each month from your family-friendly, North Shore business location – or if you’re a reader who needs to find a location near you – please contact Suzanne: suzanne@northshorefamilies.com or 781.584.4569.

Published and distributed monthly throughout the North Shore, 10x per year, and always online. All articles are written by Michael F. Mascolo, PhD unless otherwise credited. Information contained in NSC&F is provided for educational and entertainment purposes only. Individual readers are responsible for their use of any information provided. NSC&F is not liable or responsible for the effects of use of information contained in NSC&F. Established 2007.

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North Shore Children & Families

Higher Education

What’s A College Education For? by Michael F. Mascolo, PhD Why go to college? The answer seems so obvious. We go to college in order to prepare for a career. We go to college so that we can get a job, to make money, to raise a family and so forth. That’s certainly what many (if not most) of my students say. To be sure, college has practical value. Going to college to prepare for a career is an important reason for going to college. But it is not the only reason. Paradoxically, students who attend college for the express purpose of preparing for a career tend to perform more poorly than students who attend college for other reasons. They may also be even less likely to gain meaningful employment after college. Why is this? Because career preparation alone does not prepare people for the workplace! Ask employers about what they are looking for in college graduates. Ask them what they think of current college graduates. Many will tell you that they feel that many college graduates lack basic skills that are necessary in the workplace. These include higher-order literacy skills; skills in oral and written communication; mathematical and quantitative literacy; creativity; adaptive problem solving; the capacity for critical analysis; and even basic background knowledge. These are not career-specific skills. The skills that employers want are those that are associated with a rigorous general education.

So, what’s a college education for? A good college education prepares a person to lead a good life. A good life is one that is informed, reflective and responsive. These are not simply a series of nice sounding words. A good college education strives for nothing less. Let’s unpack these ideas a bit. A good life. What does it mean to prepare a person for a good life? Our lives are processes that extend into the future. By

definition, a life is something that we cannot predict; we do not know what is to come. Nonetheless, each day we continuously confront questions about our immediate and long-range futures: Where should I go from here? How should I live? What will make my life a good one? How should I relate to others? Ultimately, these are questions about values. A good college education is one that prompts students to confront themselves – to articulate and clarify the values and beliefs that they will live their lives by. This means helping students to find out what is important and why. It means helping students act upon their articulated conceptions of what is important in life. Now how can a good college education help students build the resources that they need to live good lives? By informing; by prompting reflection; by teaching students how to be responsive to that which extends beyond their local concerns. Let’s explore each of these important functions of a good college education. A good college education informs the making of a good life. A good life is an informed life. I cannot make decisions about matters of importance without knowledge and the skills and resources to acquire knowledge. Life is big; it contains multitudes. We learn about what is important when master teachers guide us through great literature, moral philosophy and history. We learn about who we are by studying how we came to be. To do this, we study our national narratives and the histories of how our civilization evolved to become what it is now. However, while essential, it is not enough to study our own histories and cultures. We cannot learn about ourselves unless we also learn about who we are not. To do this, we must confront others – other cultures, other histories, other religions and other peoples. When we do this, we learn to imagine what it is like to walk around in someone else’s shoes. As a result, we learn to empathize with others and respect different traditions. We also learn about the limits of tolerance – about what it is in ourselves and in others that we cannot bear. This helps to make us better persons.

North Shore Children & Families

And the list goes on. We cannot make decisions about how to live without knowing about the vulnerabilities and resilience of the earth and the ways our bodies work. We cannot be responsible citizens unless we understand the political and economic systems in which we live, and about how they differ from other such systems around the globe. We cannot cast an intelligent vote unless we understand how our local lives fit into the global world. And we cannot begin to appreciate what is good unless we begin to develop our aesthetic sense – our sense of what is beautiful and how to fill our lives with beauty. A good college education teaches students how to reflect on their lives. Although a good education informs, information without reflection is blind. A good college education teaches students to reflect upon what they have learned. Reflection is essential not only to understand what one has learned, but also to question and critically evaluate what one has learned throughout life. One cannot teach students how to reflect merely by providing them with information. A student can learn a great deal through lectures and independent reading. However, the traditional lecture format to teaching is not sufficient for deep learning to occur. Learning how to reflect on what one has learned requires active engagement in the learning process by both the student and the teacher. This is where our old friend Socrates comes in. Socratic teaching honors the open-ended process of questioning. A teacher who engages a student in Socratic dialogue is teaching a student how to reflect not only on what he or she has learned, but also on the student’s own beliefs, assumptions and values. Here is an example of a Socratic dialogue conducted in an actual high school class*: Facilitator: You’re offered a $500 bike for $100.You know it’s hot. What do you do? (One boy in the group takes the bait.) Continued on page 6

6 North Shore Children & Families What’s a College Education For? Continued from page 5

Boy: I would buy it. Facilitator: What would you do if you got caught? Boy: I bought it. I would just refer them [the police] to the person who sold it to me. Facilitator: All right, you’re in court, and you say, “Well, it really wasn’t me. I didn’t know it was stolen.” Boy: I didn’t. Facilitator: But wouldn’t that be a lie? Boy: I did buy it. I paid for it. I paid $100 for it. Facilitator: All right, but didn’t you know that it was stolen? You’re on the witness stand right now. Boy: I’d have no choice but to say I knew it was stolen. Facilitator: What if you weren’t on the witness stand and you were just talking to the cops, and they came over to the house and they said, “Hey, what about this bike you’ve got here. Did you know that it was stolen?” Boy: Spur of the moment, I may just say, “No, I didn’t know.” Facilitator: Okay, what would make you say that? Boy: Initial fear of being locked up (laughter from the group). Facilitator: What would you think of yourself now that you’ve said that you would lie to the cops out of fear, that you would probably be the kind of person who would say, “l’ll go for this. $500, $100 –

that’s not a bad deal at all. I need a bike.” What vision would you have of yourself at this point? Boy: Well, nowadays, from what I’ve been learning, I personally would feel low. In a yesterday sense, I wouldn’t have cared. I was younger. I was more immature. I didn’t care. Facilitator: Do you have a different image of yourself now? Boy: Yes. Prideful. I think more of myself today than I would have yesterday. Because I know that there’s better for me out there instead of just running around stealing. You know, that’s no good, that won’t get me to where I want to go. Okay, I’ve got big dreams and hopes. I feel like this: I can make it. (One of the participants in the group discussion can’t contain herself. She speaks directly to the boy.) Girl: But you still bought the bike! (All the kids laugh. The boy gets the point.) In this example, the facilitator leads an open-ended discussion with a boy about the morality of purchasing a stolen bicycle. Instead of simply providing a lecture or explaining why it would be wrong to purchase a stolen bicycle, the facilitator questions the boy in an attempt to prompt the child to explore the logical implications of his own thinking. When students engage in this sort of dialogue, they are not only prompted to articulate their understanding of an issue, but also to consider changing their understandings as they come to see the inherent limitations and contradictions of their existing knowledge. Through this process, students learn to reflect on what they have heard, read or experienced both in and out of the classroom. This is the stuff of genuine and deep learning. A good college education teaches responsivity. A good college education informs and fosters reflection. Through these means and others, students learn to be responsive. To be responsive is to be willing and able to respond to the

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practical and moral demands of a situation. A good college education teaches individuals to look beyond their individual selves – or at least to see that their own well-being is tied up with the well-being of others. A good college education teaches many forms of responsiveness, including: • How to solve novel intellectual, practical and socio-moral problems • How to interact and work with other people • How to respond to conflicts between and among people • How to respond to the social needs of one’s community • How to act as responsible citizens of one’s nation and one’s world Responsivity is about forging relationships. To be responsive to another person, one must be able to identify the other’s needs, problems and perspectives and act in accordance with one’s sense of the other. However, responsivity is not simply a form of selflessness or altruism. When I am responsive to you, I give of myself, but I do not give myself away. Perhaps paradoxically, it is during our responsiveness to others that we come to feel our own vitality and sense of inner power. Today’s students are preparing to operate in a rapidly changing world. The technologies of today will be obsolete by tomorrow! It follows that our schools and colleges are preparing students for a world that does not yet exist (including careers that do not yet exist). How can we prepare students for a world that we cannot yet imagine? We must prepare students for the unpreparable. This requires not only learning basic skills and knowledge to draw upon, but also learning how to learn. It requires learning to adapt and adjust current knowledge and skills to an ever-changing world. * Elkind, D., & Freddy Sweet, F. (1997). The Socratic approach to character education. Educational Leadership, 54, 56-59.

North Shore Children & Families

Higher Education

Higher Education: How Are We Doing? How are colleges and universities doing in educating our young adults? A growing body of evidence suggests that the answer is, “Not so good.” There are good reasons to believe that many, if not most, of our colleges and universities are having difficulty providing students with college-level academic skills – let alone preparing students to lead informed, reflective and responsive lives. It is often said that American higher education provides the gold standard around the world. Students from all over the globe come to American universities for study. But this assertion is misleading. To be sure, post-graduate education in the United States continues to be exemplary. American research universities are more productive than ever in producing knowledge and in training young scientists and scholars. However, the same cannot be said for education at the undergraduate level. In the last several decades, a large number of books have sounded the alarm that not all is well in undergraduate education, and something must be done about it. Although it is easy to make assertions about the mediocre quality of undergraduate education, until recently, solid evidence to support such claims has been hard to come by. In their recent book, Academically Adrift: Limited Continued on page 8

HARBORLIGHT MONTESSORI SCHOOL

8 North Shore Children & Families Higher Education: How Are We Doing? Continued from page 7

Learning on College Campuses, sociologists Richard Arum and Josipa Roska have put forth some convincing evidence that the amount of learning that occurs in contemporary colleges and universities has declined to alarming levels.

showed that 45% of the students in their sample showed no evidence of significant improvement in learning over the first two years of the study; 36% of students failed to demonstrate significant improvement over the four-year period of the study.

Arum and Roska reported findings of a long term study assessing the amount of learning that occurs over the college years. The researchers studied over 2300 students from 24 four-year US colleges between 2005 and 2009. Students completed the Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA) – a series of essay tasks that provide measures of critical thinking, analytical reasoning and written communication. They also completed a questionnaire about the types of activities in which students participated over the course of their college years. The authors suggest that the amount of learning that occurred by students over the course of the college years was “disturbingly low”. Their findings

Arum and Roksa also reported evidence that suggests academic rigor has decreased in recent decades. Their study showed that in a typical semester, 32% of students did not take any courses that required more than 40 pages of reading per week. In addition, 50% did not take a course that required more than 20 pages of writing over the course of the semester. 25% of students took courses that required neither 40 pages of reading per week nor 20 pages of writing over the course of the semester. Over the course of their four-year college career, half of the students surveyed indicated that they had taken five or fewer classes requiring 20 pages of writing in a

semester; 20% reported taking five or fewer courses requiring 40 pages of weekly reading. These findings, if representative of most institutions of higher learning, suggest that many students can pass through a four-year college education without engaging in the types of rigorous learning activities that are essential for higher level thinking and reasoning. But the limited learning on college campuses is not a simple function of the academic rigor of college courses. It also has a lot to do with student culture on college campuses. Research suggests that students spend far less time on their academic work outside of class than they did 50 years ago. A time-honored rule of thumb is that college students should spend at least two hours in outside-of-class work (e.g., studying, completing projects, etc.) for every single hour spent in the classroom. So for a typical three-credit college course, students would be expected to spend at least six hours per week in study time. For a full 15-credit academic load, students would be expected to devote 30 hours of time to outside of

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class studying. However, between 1961 and 2003, the amount of time students spend in academic study fell from 24 hours per week in 1961 to just 14 hours per week. What are students doing during the time that they are not studying? Studies show that on average students spend between 11 and 41 hours per week in leisure time or socializing with peers, 12 hours per week in paid work outside of college and 6 hours in cocurricular activities (e.g., internships, community service, etc.). One study showed that students spend on average 14 hours per week texting; 6.5 hours talking with friends on the telephone; 5 hours per week on social networking sites; and 11 hours per week watching videos (e.g., television, movies, internet videos, etc.). In Academically Adrift, Arum and Roska observed that the amount of time students spent studying was related to their academic performance. However, this was only true for students who studied alone. Increased study time did not result in higher academic performance for students who studied in groups. Arum and Roska believe that there is more socializing than studying going on in student-led study groups. Seeking “the college experience”. It seems that many students tend to seek “the college experience” rather than “a college education”. “The college experience” seems to be one in which college is as much (if not more) about social life than academic pursuits. Sadly, much of our everyday culture supports this type of thinking. Many colleges compete for students not by marketing their academic offerings, but by extolling the virtues of their extra-curricular activities and facilities. It is not unusual to hear people say that much of what is important about college life occurs outside of the classroom. While it is true that the social development that occurs outside of the classroom is an important part of college life, we should not regard social and academic life as equivalent in importance. Social life should be a distant second (or third, given the increasing necessity to work to support college tuition) to academics as an aspect of college life.

North Shore Children & Families

Education Feature

Austin Preparatory School private schools. The Austin Prep experience cultivates all facets of a student’s burgeoning self – moral, spiritual, social, physical and intellectual. Who We Are:

The Two Most Lasting Gifts: Roots and Wings, it is the cornerstone of how Austin Prep educates its students in grades 6 through 12. Founded in the traditions of the Augustinian Friars, a religious order founded in the 13th Century, Austin Prep still uses some of the earliest philosophical ideas brought forward from Augustine of Hippo, the Order’s Patron, who lived in the 4th century AD. One of the basic tenets of St. Augustine of Hippo, was “to lay first a solid foundation,” in order for a student to rise up and be educated, he or she must have a solid educational foundation. Austin begins working with students as they become adolescents, and as they begin to develop a more developed and full understanding of the importance of education. Augustine continued his thoughts on the education of young people by offering that young people needed to be fed, and nurtured to help them grow and become individuals able to think critically and act justly in their grown up lives; “If you have already taken on wings, let us nourish them. May these wings take to the heights to which you can fly.” With these two basic ideas, roots and wings, Austin Prep has set the course for the education of young people since its founding 50 years ago in 1961. Bringing Out the Best: Our educational programs are geared toward bringing about the best in college bound young men and young women starting in grade 6 and moving all the way through senior year and graduation day. We accomplish the task of nurturing our students through generous academic offerings made available in small classes, the average size class being 16 students. A student teacher ratio of 10:1 is unequalled by its Catholic school peers, and places Austin Prep solidly in the highly competitive pack of this region’s well known

Austin is a Catholic independent school in the Augustinian tradition. Our families have found that in partnering with Austin that the same values taught at home are reinforced and enhanced in our classes, daily activities, on the playing fields, in Chapel time and in our science labs. Austin reinforces the belief that it is not only a good thing to be smart, but it’s cool to be smart in school, to be a good kid, to try new things and to explore opportunities as they present themselves. Our 6th through 12th grade continuum allows us to stay connected to our students throughout the entirety of their adolescent development. Whether students enter Austin in the Middle School or join us in their High School years, Austin friendships are life lasting ones.

very own “black box” theatre, write an article for the Legend, our School newspaper, publish a poem in our literary magazine, volunteer at a soup kitchen or Headstart program in Lawrence or Lynn, match wits with peers in Academic Decathlon competition, learn how to make a delicious crème ^ brulée, take a hike up Mt. Monadnock, or send a rocket soaring above the football field. Students can bring a life-long love of a sport to one of our 17 inter-scholastic teams, or perhaps learn a new sport along the way. All of our programs, be they Middle or High School level, engage our students and meet them where they are and encourage and develop skills and enhance abilities. We especially understand the importance of athletics in the lives of young people, and at Austin, every student, whether an accomplished athlete or interested beginner, is invited and welcomed to participate in our inclusive and championship athletic program. What’s Next: Equipped with a solid high school experience, college is all that simpler! Our graduates continually tell us that their Austin studies thoroughly prepared them for college work, while the moral code and educational system grounded in value based learning prepared them to be able to make good decisions for themselves. Austin imparts a maturity of thought and demeanor that ushers our students into responsible adulthood.

Understanding Ourselves and the Great Commandment: Headmaster Paul J. Moran summed it up best at a recent Open House Program: “We try to help all of our students understand and appreciate their gifts and those of their classmates and teachers. Using the academic and extra-curricular programs, we try to inculcate self-confidence, respect, inter-dependence and a sense of moral purpose. Our ultimate goal is to help young people learn how to carry themselves as talented, purposeful, morally grounded people in a complex world. Really, it’s all about the relations among God, self and neighbor.” 3-90’s Each Day: Austin uses a simplified Block schedule, offering a core curriculum of 6 courses in a 6 day rotation. We offer 3 - 90 minute classes daily, adding in time for a 40 minute Activity Period, and a 25 minute lunch. Students can focus on 3 major classes and have optimal face to face time with their teachers. Small classes encourage students to engage with each other, to ask and answer questions, to offer ideas. With 90 minutes of teacher time, students know they will be challenged, and they come to class better prepared to face these daily challenges. They are more involved in their own education! Rounding Out the Experience: At Austin Prep our students can lift their voices in our Chorus, perform on stage in the Meelia Theatre, our

For More Information: To learn more about this amazing experience and to become a part of our vibrant and growing community of learners, contact the Admission Office, 781-944-4900, ext. 834, or email Katie LeBlanc, assistant director of admission, kleblanc@austinprepschool.org. Austin invites candidates for Middle School and High School to contact us now through the early summer as we operate on a rolling admission basis. If you are intending to apply during the traditional admission season in the Fall of 2012, look for Austin Prep representatives at various School Fairs in the region in September and October, and plan to visit our Open House in October. The information contained in this education feature was submitted by Austin Preparatory School, and published in partnership with North Shore Children & Families; www.northshorefamilies.com.

10 North Shore Children & Families

Higher Education

Going to College? What to Look for in An Educational Experience Don’t let your education get in the way of your learning. ~ Mark Twain Are you looking for a college for your son or daughter? What should you look for in a college education? How can you make a decision about what college or university is best for your child? The answer to this question, of course, has much to do with what you are looking for in a college education. Of course for many if not most of us, the choice of what college or university our children will attend will have a lot to do with money. A college education costs money – lots of it. Families who are fortunate enough to have the means to support a child through college will have a great deal of choices at their disposal. Families with fewer resources often find that their choices are limited to what they can afford. If you are looking for bang for your buck, in general, the more competitive the college, the more likely your investment in college will yield financial results (see Is College A Good Financial Investment?, in this issue). Colleges are often rated in terms of their “competiveness”. Competitiveness is generally defined in terms of admission rates – the percentage of applicants who gain admission into a college. So a college with a low admission rate is

regarded as “more competitive” than one with a high admission rate. Indeed, more competitive private colleges tend to have certain advantages: • They tend to attract talented, higher-achieving students. The presence of such students tends to raise the level of instruction and interaction between and among students and professors; this tends to result in a higher caliber of education; • More competitive private colleges tend to have smaller classrooms and higher quality learning facilities; • Most important, such colleges tend to have high quality faculty – instructors who care about teaching and learning, and who are active and productive scholars in their fields. However, competitive colleges have certain disadvantages as well. They are, of course, more difficult to gain admission to. They are also quite expensive. One solution to the problem of expense is to consider public universities. Each state has a flagship public university. Such universities (such as the

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North Shore Children & Families

Interactive and caring teachers. The faculty and the students are the lifeblood of a quality college education. Seek colleges where your child is likely to encounter interactive teachers who are willing to guide students actively through their learning. Such teachers will avoid the errors of being either too “teacher-centered” (e.g., the traditional lecture and multiple-choice test model of learning) or too “student-centered” (e.g., allowing students more freedom of choice than they are able to handle). Attend the open-house offered by your school. Interact with the teachers. Are they dynamic? Are they interesting? Or are they boring? Ask them how they teach. Do they simply lecture? Do they have students write papers and do projects? Do they provide guiding feedback to their students?

University of Massachusetts at Amherst) tend have nationally and internationally known faculty members. Because they are public universities, they tend to be much less expensive than private colleges. However, such universities tend to place a higher value on faculty research over undergraduate teaching. As a result, even though the faculty might be wonderful scholars, they may not be wonderful teachers. Graduate students frequently teach classes in large lecture halls. There is less one-on-one student-teacher interaction and a greater reliance on multiple-choice tests. This is not necessarily the best way to learn.

A serious teaching and learning community. So much of learning takes place outside of the classroom. As a result, it is important to get a sense of the culture that exists both in and outside of the classroom. Is this an institution where professors and students alike value learning? Are there academic talks that take place outside of class? Does faculty work with students on scholarly projects and research? What do students do when they are not in class? Is this a “party school”? Are there students and groups available that take learning and community service seriously? To answer these questions, it is essential to go beyond the marketing materials that schools will send you. Remember, a college is trying to sell you something – something with an extraordinarily high price tag. To make intelligent decisions about something as important as college, it is essential to look beyond the flashy exterior. Seek out professors and students in the programs to which your child is applying. Talk to them. Ask hard questions. Then decide.

Regardless of whether one attends a private or public institution, it does not follow that a student will receive a good education merely because a college or university is regarded as competitive. What else should one look for when seeking a good college education? A real core curriculum. A curriculum simply refers to the courses that students take at a college or university. Most colleges will market what they call their “core curriculum”. A core curriculum is designed to teach students foundational knowledge and skills that they will need throughout college and life. The problem is that the vast majority of “core curricula” are “cores in name only”. Most colleges adopt a system of “distribution requirements”. Students choose which courses they want to take from large lists of courses from various academic areas (for example sciences, humanities, social sciences, etc.). On the one hand, this sounds like a good thing. Students are allowed to make choices on the basis of what interests them. On the other hand, the distribution requirement system virtually destroys the idea of a “core” curriculum. The lists of courses from which students choose is generally quite large; the actual courses offered do not follow any particular pattern. No clear themes or organizing principles structure a student’s selection of courses. As a result, the education that students end up receiving is “catch as catch can”. Whenever possible, seek colleges that offer a core curriculum that is as organized and coherent as possible.

For young men & women grades 6 - 12, who seek a challenging,yet supportive learning environment, in a Catholic, faith based setting.

North Shore Children & Families

Summer Camps & Programs Showcase Series Part 3 of 4

Series continues in our Summer issue.

JUNIOR GOLF CAMP

One Willow Road, Nahant 781.581.0840

PGA Golf Pro David Nyman is offering a 3 day instructional golf clinic for boys & girls ages 7-15 this summer! The camp runs for 6 weeks, June - August, on Monday Wednesday mornings from 9 - 11:30a.m. The $165 fee includes: • 3 days of individualized instruction • A professional playing lesson • Kelley Greens T-Shirt • Coupon for a free pizza from the Kelley Greens Clubhouse Call 781.581.0840 or visit www.kelleygreens.com for more info. & to register!

SWING & SWIM®

Salem

S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

HIGH SCHOOL TENNIS WEEK

Ask about our Lexington camps, too!

North Shore Children & Families

Summer Camps & Programs Showcase Series Part 3 of 4

Series continues in our Summer issue.

North Shore Children & Families

Summer Camps & Programs Showcase Series Part 3 of 4

Series continues in our Summer issue.

Camp Birch Hill your home away from home

Located In The Beautiful Lakes Region Of New Hampshire

Campers choose from 50 activities to create their own personalized schedule! TWO, FOUR and SIX WEEK SESSIONS AVAILABLE

Boys And Girls Ages 6-15

Many Activities to choose: • Land Sports • Tennis • Paintball • Dance

• Water Sports • Horseback Riding • Go Karts

• Zip Line • Adventure • Canoeing • Golf

• Fine Arts • Climbing • Waterski • and more!

Celebrating 20 years of friendship and memories of a lifetime summer@campbirchhill.com • (603) 859-4525 www.CampBirchHill.com

DON’T MISS OUR SUMMER SHOWCASE!

Ad Space Closes 5/18!* Final ase Showc n our rs i appea mer Sum issue!

North Shore Children & Families presents the 5th Annual

Summer Camps & Programs Showcase Series – 2012! CAMPS & SUMMER PROGRAMS!

Secure your summer! ✔ Boost your summer enrollments & reach parents throughout the North Shore! ✔ Over 50,000 local readers - moms & dads with children of all ages & interests! ✔ Showcases run on bannered pages! ✔ Participation includes complimentary online text listing & link!

LA CHANSCT E!

The largest camp showcases in print on the North Shore! *DEADLINE FOR SUMMER (June/July) SHOWCASE ADS: If you require ad production assistance, secure your ad space & submit your ad materials by Wed., May 16. If you do not require ad production assistance, secure your ad space by noon, Fri., May 18 – then share your completed ad by Tues., May 22.

Special Showcase ad sizes and pricing are offered for this series. To learn more or to secure your space, please contact Suzanne: suzanne@northshorefamilies.com or 781.584.4569.

North Shore Children & Families

Summer Camps & Programs Showcase Series Part 3 of 4

Series continues in our Summer issue.

Tara Montessori School

Regular and Summer Sessions Enrolling Now!

We are math specialists who have helped thousands of children worldwide not only learn math, but love math.

SUMMER CAMP – Infants (3 mos.) through Age 6

Whether your child is struggling to stay at grade level, has already fallen behind, or needs to be challenged, we will develop an individualized learning plan to ensure success.

Join Us This Summer! Tara Montessori Summer Camp provides a comforting place that focuses on love and trust. Founded in 1988 by Toni Dunleavy, Director.

For Infants (3 mos.+) & Toddlers: features singing, reading, giggling, cuddling & tummy time For Preschool & Kindergarten (through age 6): features mini-sports, soccer, t-ball, bike riding & sprinkler fun

2012 Summer Camp Dates: June 12 – August 16, Mon. – Thurs., 8:30a.m. – 12:15p.m., with extended day options available.

WARN

YOUR CING: HILD COULD BE C

CRAZOYME ABOUT MATH

Summer is a great time to catch up, get ahead and keep skills fresh. Flexible hours and programs available for all ability levels. Call or visit to learn about our convenient and affordable options. Your neighborhood center is

Mathnasium Dodge Street Crossing 4 Enon St. N. Beverly, MA 01915 northbeverly@mathnasium.com 978.922.2200

62 School Street, Manchester, MA • www.taramontessori.com

Call today to register! 978.526.8487

1ST - 12TH GRADES • SAT & ACT PREP • HOMEWORK HELP • SUMMER PROGRAMS

North Shore Children & Families

Summer Camps & Programs Showcase Series Part 3 of 4

Series continues in our Summer issue.

Limited Supply of Flex Passes Available to Pay for Your Camp Days – Buy One Today!

BROOKS SCHOOL

Anytime, Summertime Camps at The Little Gym. Our unique camps provide three hours of fun and activities in a non-competitive, nurturing environment. Each day, different creative themes keep your child on their toes as they take part in exciting imaginative journeys. Choose one day, a few days, or a few weeks. Now Enrolling for Summer Classes and Camps.

Call Today!

NORTH ANDOVER, MA

Ages 4-12 – Four Two-Week Sessions Red Cross Swim Lessons, Outdoor Adventures, Crafts

• The Little Gym is the home of Serious Fun! Kids have a blast playing with their friends (that’s the FUN part), while at the same time getting all of the benefits of 3-dimensional learning: Brain Boost, Citizen Kid and Get Moving! • Parent/child classes for infants and toddlers up to 3 years of age • Classes in Gymnastics, Sports Skills, Dance and more for children 3-12 • AWESOME birthdays and fun theme-based day camps too! • Open all summer long…air conditioned, clean, safe and FUN!

www.tlgdanversma.com Danvers, MA • 978.777.7977

www.tlgwoburnma.com Woburn, MA • 781.933.3388

Grades 7-10 – Eight One-Week Sessions Adventure, Performing and Creative Arts, Field Trips

CALL FOR MORE INFORMATION Grades 3-8 – Six One-Week Sessions Movie Making, Game Design, Robotics, Swimming

Tel: 978-725-6253 – daycamp@brooksschool.org http://summer.brooksschool.org

LAST CHANCE for CAMPS & SUMMER PROGRAMS! Fun & innovative keyboard instruction.

NOW ENROLLING for Summer Camp! 6 week programs offered in July & August.

Call for your FREE introductory lesson! June 23 – Open House Please call to register & for location. Private & group lessons are available year-round.

Serving the Amesbury & Newburyport Areas: Alia Mavroforos, 978.834.3104 aliamusic@mail.com www.keys-for-kids.com

If you still have slots to fill – we have one FINAL camp showcase coming up in our 2-month Summer issue, which covers June AND July! Ad space must be reserved by 5/16 if you require ad production assistance – or by noon, 5/18 if you will be submitting a completed ad.

Contact Suzanne to BOOST your enrollments today!

781.584.4569 suzanne@northshorefamilies.com

North Shore Children & Families

Higher Education

Is College A Good Financial Investment? The cost of college is skyrocketing. In the northeast, the average cost of tuition, room and board at a private, four-year college is in excess of $40,000.00. That is a lot of money. Does college pay off financially for students? Are the financial benefits of college worth the investment? This question is especially significant in today’s troubled economy. Graduates of the class of 2011 have entered into one of the worst job markets in recent history. In 2011, only 21% of college graduates entered the workforce, as compared with 51% of college graduates in the pre-recession days of 2007. Now, before moving on, it is essential to understand that what we are talking about here is the financial return associated with investing in a college education. There are many reasons to attend college. One of the reasons for attending college is to prepare for a career. Another reason to go to college is to increase one’s earning potential in one’s career. While these are legitimate reasons for attending college, despite what many people might think, they are not the only reasons for attending college or even the best reasons for attending college. A good college education brings about benefits that extend far beyond career preparation and income maximization. As a result, in the case of a college education, the bottom line simply is not the bottom line. Having made this important point, we return to the narrow question of whether a college education produces financial returns? Despite the skyrocketing costs of college, the answer to this question remains “yes”. It’s an increasingly troubling “yes”, but a “yes” nonetheless. One way to think about the financial benefits of going to college is to think of college as an investment. People make investments because they believe that they will make money above and beyond the amount of their investment. The money that people make beyond that spent on their initial investment is called the rate of return on investment (ROI). When we look at the rate of return of a college education, we find that not all colleges are created equal. In general, the more selective a college, the greater the rate of return on investment. That is, students who graduate from more highly selective colleges tend to earn higher rates of return (make more money beyond their investments) than those who graduate from less selective colleges.

of return. The rate of return for public schools is somewhat higher than that for private schools, especially for noncompetitive schools. This may be because public schools are generally less expensive than private schools. How high should a rate of return on investment be to justify the cost of an education? After all, a family may spend $150,000 on a four-year education, but it costs money to borrow that money! A typical interest rate for an unsubsidized college loan is about 6.8%. If the rate of return for attending a given college is less than the interest rate of a college loan, it would be more desirable to attend a different college. This can become a problem for students who attend less competitive private colleges, whose rate of return on investment is comparable to the interest rate of a college loan. The simple fact of the matter is that we are living in a rapidly changing informational age. The jobs of today and tomorrow require a suite of skills that require students to go beyond a high school education. Lifetime income is highly related to level of education. The more education a person has, the higher a person’s lifetime income. That relationship is not likely to go away any time soon. However, there is some reason to be concerned about the capacity for students who attend relatively non-competitive institutions to reap meaningful financial rewards from their family’s investment in a college education.

Wish you could give the person who has everything something they don't have?

Personalized Poems & Prose by Suzanne The perfect gift to enhance any special occasion. Clever verses for your invitations and thank you notes. Speeches, toasts and roasts. Birthdays • Graduations • Showers Weddings • Anniversaries • Births • Retirements • Holidays All Special Occasions

Life Celebrations

specializing in poignant, personalized eulogies – available in prose and in verse. Celebrate your loved one's life and share their story. Your guests will leave with smiles, fond memories and lots to talk about. This is shown in the graph that appears above. For non-profit private colleges, the rate of return is about 6% for noncompetitive colleges and 11% for highly selective colleges. So even the least competitive college yields a non-zero rate

781.584.4569

or suzanne@northshorefamilies.com Samples available.

18 North Shore Children & Families

Childhood Education – Guest Contributor

Partnering with Your Child’s School: What Parents Can Do by Mari Matt, Branch Executive Director of Salem YMCA While this issue focuses on higher education, a recent issue of North Shore Children & Families was devoted to the issue of how to improve the education of our young people both locally and nationally. Mari Matt, Branch Executive Director of the Salem YMCA, shares some additional suggestions about what parents can do now to support their children’s learning and to improve the quality of education on the North Shore. A good, early foundation helps achieve lifelong learning success. Read to your young children (books, menus, appropriate magazine articles, street signs, food and product packaging, etc.). Let your child hear the tone of your voice as it

each other and laugh together. My kids tell me about their days and I tell them about mine.

changes depending on what you are reading. Let them see the letters with the sounds, and have them repeat the words back to you. All of these are important pre- and early reading skills. Read to your older children. You need not stop reading to your children once they learn to read by themselves. In fact, learning to read alone is only the first step to learning to read! Even though children may know how to read words and sentences, learning to read for comprehension is something that continues to develop throughout childhood and even through adulthood. Reading aloud together not only teaches the value of reading and sharing ideas together, it also helps children to fine-tune their reading comprehension skills.

Share some quiet time with your children. Try to have some quiet time with your children every day, or as often as you can. Many of us miss the importance of simply being together in fostering children’s development. If spending calm time during dinner is difficult, how about at breakfast or right before bed – or even a few extra minutes together before heading to the bus or to the car. Check in with

Remind your child that education is important and a priority to you. Make sure that your children get a good night’s sleep and they get to school on time. Make sure that they complete their homework – and check their homework. If your child is struggling with homework, help them or find help. If your child completes homework at an after school program, check it quickly. Congratulate your child on its completion and re-affirm its importance. It is no shame to seek help if you need it. If you don’t have the time or the ability to help your children with

North Shore People Are Talking About Us!

North Shore Children & Families is available for free each month at over 425 familyfrequented locations throughout the North Shore!

Attention Advertisers: Ask us about our …

2012 PUBLISHING SCHEDULE Issue

Ad Space Deadline

Ads Due

Summer (June/July) August September

Fri., May 18 Fri., July 20 Fri., Aug. 17

Tues., May 22 Tues., July 24 Tues., Aug. 21

To explore your advertising options or to secure your space, please contact Suzanne at 781.584.4569 or suzanne@northshorefamilies.com. To learn more, please visit www.northshorefamilies.com.

“

We’ve been advertising for several years now – and our ads consistently get a great response. We know, because we track our marketing effectiveness with the different advertising/marketing mediums we use! We measure the amount of inquiries from each advertising source, and use that data to identify our cost per inquiry as well as our cost per new member. (When it comes to inquiries, both the quantity and quality matter!)

We are very pleased with our partnership with this local parenting publication. North Shore Children & Families is a professional and classy publication, and Suzanne is passionate about making sure advertisements are accurate, attractive and effective. We believe this publication is a great marketing source to present our message to our target customers, and we’re optimistic that with its excellent content it will continue to be an excellent resource for area parents and local businesses.

“

… “Try Us!” program for new advertisers … Annual advertising frequency programs … The Annual Planner for Schools program … The North Shore Party Planner program … Annual Summer Camps & Programs Showcase series … Service Directory Target your message to North Shore parents. We’ve got the North Shore covered!

We periodically fine tune our marketing plan, reducing investment in those publications that yield less value per dollar invested in them. Regarding North Shore Children & Families, we have increased our marketing there, because of its impact with our target demographic…that is…it gets results for our businesses! Alan Ruthazer, Owner The Little Gym, Danvers & Woburn

their homework, don’t feel guilty. This is a common challenge. Find someone else who can help. It is better to admit that you are too busy or don’t quite grasp their homework and that you need someone else to help your child rather than to let your child struggle. If someone is not available to help, or if you cannot afford a tutor or homework helper, contact your child’s teacher or the principal of your child’s school. You will find people who are more than happy to try to find ways to help your child learn. Be involved in your child’s education. Even if you cannot join the PTO or volunteer in the classroom, your child’s teacher wants to hear from you and wants to work together to help your child be successful and happy. Schools can also connect you to additional services your family may need – so don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. Don’t give up. There are amazing, talented, hard-working teachers and great things happening in our schools. Public and independent schools are a great resource and a wise investment.

North Shore Children & Families

Higher Education Continued from page 3

engaged? Meet with current students and ask lots of questions. There is so much more to explore than the large marketing package that you receive in the mail. You probably wouldn’t buy a house after seeing a photo and fancy flyer – so approach your child’s higher education search with as much (or more!) research and consideration as you would when buying a house. A higher education is a huge investment, but you can do many things to help that investment pay off for your children and to lessen the financial burden now and in years to come. We also have a guest contributor this month, who shares what parents can be doing now to help your younger children reach lifelong learning success. Parents must play an active role from the very beginning, or they must find others who can help support their child when they can’t. It’s about more than just getting the

kids to school on time each day and glancing to see that their homework is done. It’s about getting involved in your child’s education, classroom, school and school work and instilling the importance of education in your children. Learning takes place inside and outside of the classroom. In our Calendar, you will find many familyfriendly events and things to see and do that are not only fun – many offer

a learning experience, too. Attend a recycling event and use this opportunity to teach your children about our environment. Visit the local zoo or museums – and check out their websites first as many have free days with no admission fees. Join a local parenting group with your young child or get involved in a local race or fundraiser that benefits local people in our own community. Teach your children well. Turn everyday moments into learning experiences. Encourage your children to engage in family and community responsibilities. It’s never too early to start. Today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders and visionaries. “Children must be taught how to think, not what to think.” – Margaret Mead

Summer Advertising Specials For New Display Advertisers:

Buy One - Get One 15% Off! Buy a display ad in our Summer issue at open rate –

$ave 15% off your August ad! Or - "Try Us!" in 3 consecutive issues –

and $ave 10% off all 3 display ads! Summer issue ad space deadline is Fri., May 18 (or by May 16 if you require our ad production assistance!); completed ads are due by Tues., May 22. Our Summer issue covers 2 months – June AND July. See page 2 to learn more! To secure your space and $ave – contact Suzanne by May 18: 781.584.4569 or suzanne@northshorefamilies.com.

To see our current issue, advertising rates, sizes & more, please visit us online at www.northshorefamilies.com.

"Try Us!" – You'll LOVE Us!

UNIQUE GIFT IDEA/WORDS FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS:

20 North Shore Children & Families

Community Calendar To Submit to our Community Calendar: Please visit us at www.northshorefamilies.com and submit your listings directly through our website. From our Home Page – click on Calendar – then click on Submit in the upper right corner and our form will open for you to complete and submit your listings. While we will make every attempt to post all appropriate listings in our Community Calendar, space is limited – and priority will be given to those events that are free and family-friendly – and those submitted by our advertising partners & sponsors. Calendar listings are generally due by the 15th of each month prior and must be submitted through our website. If you need to guarantee that your listing will be posted – please contact Suzanne to advertise. See our current Calendar for our upcoming issue deadlines. To advertise, please contact Suzanne at suzanne@northshorefamilies.com or 781.584.4569.

For complete listing accuracy, we recommend that you call ahead or check the websites listed. Featured listings do not constitute an endorsement from this publisher and we encourage our readers to always do their own research. MAY IS THE MONTH FOR: Dating Your Mate, Foster Care, Barbeques, Bikes, Blood Pressure Awareness, Hamburgers, Photographs, Recommitments, Salads, Older Americans, Asian Pacific American Heritage, Asparagus, Asthma & Allergy Awareness, Better Hearing & Speech, Flowers, Eggs, Ducklings, Mental Health, Physical Fitness & Sports, Strawberries,Transportation

Week 1: Nurses’ Week, Postcard Week,Teacher Appreciation Week; Week 2: Pet Week, Police Week, Stuttering Awareness Week, Wildflower Week;Week 3: National Bike Week, National Police Week; Week 4: Emergency Medical Services Week, Backyard Games Week APARTMENT for RENT: 2 bedrooms, 1.5 baths apartment available June 1st in Nahant – just in time for summer fun and island living! See ad on page 2!

If you do not need ad production assistance Ad Space Closes Fri., May 18

The

Bayside of Nahant

Please submit your listings directly through our website.

North Shore's best kept secret & the perfect location for:

781.584.4569

SEEKING HOST FAMILIES FOR SUMMER: Host an international student (ages 14-17) and earn up to $2,400 this summer! See ad on page 8 to learn more about Educational Homestay Programs from Education First! BIRTHDAY PARTIES & SPECIAL OCCASIONS:

New Advertiser Summer Specials! If you’d like to try advertising with us – see page 19 for 2 special introductory programs (with great discounts!) for new advertisers! Indoor Playspace Available for Parent Groups at the Recreational Education Center, Pine St., Peabody. Available Tues.-Fri. 11am-6pm; for groups with kids ages 0-16. Book a day, your group will enjoy our ball pit, climbing structures, crafts, games, puzzles & more; see ad on page 8. JLC Advocacy is offering a free phone consultation for parents who need help with special education and IEPs. See ad on page 8. FREE CLASSES: Call today to schedule a FREE introductory class at The Little Gym! Danvers: 978.777.7977; Woburn: 781.933.3388. GET TICKETS NOW: North Shore Music Theatre, Beverly, presents musicals, concerts and kids’ shows! See ad on back cover – get tickets at www.nsmt.org today!

To advertise, please contact suzanne@northshorefamilies.com.

June AND July Calendar Listings Due By May 22

suzanne@ northshorefamilies.com

It’s really time to start registering for summer camps & programs! See pages 12-16 in this issue for lots of great summer camps & programs! Take advantage of early registration discounts now! Pick up our Summer issue to see more options! To advertise in our 2-month Summer issue [June/July] Showcase (final showcase for this season!), contact suzanne@northshorefamilies.com by May 16!

The North Shore Party Planner

Oceanfront Splendor... Magnificent Views... Elegant & Affordable

To secure your ad space:

If you have or are looking for a party business – locations, entertainment,

SUMMER (June/July) ISSUE DEADLINES! If you need ad production assistance Ad Space Closes Wed., May 16

Personalized Poems & Prose by Suzanne – the perfect words to enhance any special occasion. Personalized poems as gifts, clever verses for invitations, speeches, toasts, roasts and poignant eulogies. See ad on page 17.

invitations, decorations, cakes, favors & more – please see our North Shore Party Planner on page 20! To appear in our 2-month Summer [June/July] issue NSPP, please contact Suzanne by May 16: suzanne@northshorefamilies.com or 781.584.4569.

• Weddings,

Personalized Poems & Prose by Suzanne For Gifts A Personalized Poem Makes a Perfect Gift for Any Special Occasion

For Invitations

Showers • Birthdays, Sweet 16s • Bar/Bat Mitzvahs • Anniversaries • All Special Occasions • Wedding & Function Packages • Many Menus to Choose From

Speeches, Toasts & Roasts

781.592.3080

781.584.4569

One Range Road, Nahant

www.baysidefunctions.com

Clever, Custom Verses for Your Invitations & Thank You Notes

For Events

suzanne @northshorefamilies.com

Have an Awesome Birthday Bash at The Little Gym! · Private party – clean, safe, beautiful facility all to yourselves. · Instructor led – great age-appropriate games and activities. · Stress-free for The Little Gym of Danvers parents…we take 978.777.7977 care of EVERYTHING! www.tlgdanversma.com Call for details.

The Little Gym of Woburn 781.933.3388 • www.tlgwoburnma.com

Birthday Party on Roller Skates! Roller World, Saugus 781.233.3255 Party Line

BOOST Your PARTY Business HERE! Secure your ad space by May 16 to appear here in our 2-month Summer issue!

Big Apple Circus – Dream Big! All new show – Grandma’s Farewell Tour! Tix start at $20, shows run through May 13 at Boston City Hall. www.bigapplecircus.org WEDNESDAYS: Cape Ann Waldorf School presents Morning Glory Parent & Child Classes, meets every Wed., 12:30-2pm; $280/10 wk. session. For parents/caregivers with children ages 20 months – 3.5 years. Call to register: 978.927.1936. www.capeannwaldorf.org Select Wednesdays at PEM, Salem: PEM Pals, for caregivers w/children 5+; free with museum adm., 10:30am. Fun, interactive program with books, movement, music, art & hands-on activities.Visit www.pem.org/calendar for specific dates. THURSDAYS: Cape Ann Waldorf School presents Morning Glory for the Youngest Child Parent & Child Classes, meets every Thurs., 12:30-2pm; $180/10 wk. session. For parents/caregivers with infants ages 3-19 months. Call to register: 978.927.1936. www.capeannwaldorf.org FRIDAYS: Cape Ann Waldorf School presents Morning Glory for the Youngest Child Parent & Child Classes, meets every Fri., 9-10:30am: $180/10 wk. session. For parents/caregivers with infants ages 3-19 months. Call to register: 978.927.1936. www.capeannwaldorf.org Stargazing at the Gilliland Observatory, free, every Friday 8:3010pm, weather permitting; at Museum of Science, Boston. Call 617.589.0267, updated every Fri. at 5:30pm, with info. about that night’s observing session. www.mos.org SATURDAYS: Parent & Preschooler Playgroup, ages 2.5-5 years, meets most Saturdays, 910:30am, at Harborlight-Stoneridge Montessori School, Beverly. Free, but RSVP at 978.922.1008. See ad on page 7. New Parent & Child (20 mos.-3.5 yrs.) Morning Glory Classes at Cape Ann Waldorf School, Beverly. Features play, bread making, circle games, snack & conversation. Space is limited. Registration open; see ad on page 6. Call 978.927.1936 to register. www.capeannwaldorf.org Bring your bottles & cans to Stone Zoo, Stoneham! 10am-2:30pm, parking lot. Help the environment and a worthy cause – held the 2nd Saturday of each month through October. All proceeds benefit conservation efforts supported by Zoo New England. www.stonezoo.org SUNDAYS: Global Gods: Multigenerational Religious Education – Sunday School for the Whole Family. Free, ages 6-100; May 20 & 27 at Northshore Unitarian Universalist Church, Danvers. www.nsuu.org

SATURDAYS & SUNDAYS at PEM: Family Tours & Gallery Explorations at PEM, Salem, 11:30am-noon. Free w/museum adm.; www.pem.org. Drop-in Art Activities, 1-3pm, free w/mus. adm. at PEM, Salem. www.pem.org MAY 1: May Day, Loyalty Day, Mother Goose Day, Worthy Wage Day MAY 2: Baby Day, Brothers’ & Sisters’ Day MAY 3: World Press Freedom Day Spring Antiques & Collectibles Auction at Lynn Museum & Historical Society, 6pm preview; 7pm. Free for adults; 590 Washington St., Lynn. Fabulous selection of vintage antique & collectible items; cash bar. 100% of auction proceeds benefit the Lynn Museum & Historical Society’s educational & outreach programs. www.lynnmuseum.org MAY 4: Bird Day, Renewal Day, Space Day, Weather Observers’ Day MAY 5: Cinco de Mayo, Scrapbook Day New Parent & Child (20 mos.-3.5 yrs.) Morning Glory Classes at Cape Ann Waldorf School, Beverly. Features play, bread making, circle games, snack & conversation. Space is limited. Registration open; see ad on page 6. Call 978.927.1936 to register. www.capeannwaldorf.org 2nd Annual Strays in Need Fundraiser; $20/person. Tix on sale now at Danvers Animal Hospital, 367 Maple St., Danvers. To donate a silent auction item, raffle item or gift certificates or to be a sponsor, contact Amy Cyr, Hospital Manager, at dahcyr@aol.com. www.danversanimalhospital.com SalemRecycles & the Beautification Committee invite all to their annual, earth-friendly spring event on Salem Common! Morning neighborhood cleanup w/pizza for volunteers, recycling opportunities, environmental displays, live music & more. To volunteer for a neighborhood clean-up (8:30am-11:30am), meet team leaders on the Essex St. Pedestrian Mall. For a list of other locations or to organize a group to clean another location, call Ellen at 978.619.5676 for neighborhood clean-ups. From 10am-1pm, Green Programs on Salem Common features clothing & household Swap & Drop (10am-noon), recycle plastics, bags, Goodwill textile & small household items recycling. For info. on recycling, contact Julie at 978.619.5679. CourtYard Sale at Lynn Museum, 9am-1pm; free, all ages. 590 Washington St., Lynn. Search out treasures, raffles, refreshments; bring your own table & sell

North Shore Children & Families your items for $20/rental. Call Abby at 781.581.6200 to reserve your spot. www.lynnmuseum.org Local Georgetown Mom & Author, Maggie van Galen, Book Reading & Signing – The Adventures of Keeno and Ernest – The Banana Tree, 12 noon, free for parents w/pre-K through early elementary school age kids. At Book Rack, 52 State St., Newburyport. Masters of Flight: Birds of Prey returns to Stone Zoo, Stoneham! Through Sept. 3; daily show times at 11am, 1pm, 3pm; free w/zoo admission. www.stonezoo.org MAY 5 & 6: The North Shore Rock & Mineral Club invites all to the 49th Annual New England Gem & Mineral Show at Topsfield Fairgrounds. Fun for the whole family. Hours: May 5, 9am-5pm; May 6, 10am4pm. www.nahant.com/nsrmc MAY 6:

MAY 12: Birth Mothers’ Day, International Nurses’ Day, Limerick Day, Kite Day New Parent & Child (20 mos.-3.5 yrs.) Morning Glory Classes at Cape Ann Waldorf School, Beverly. Features play, bread making, circle games, snack & conversation. Space is limited. Registration open; see ad on page 6. Call 978.927.1936 to register. www.capeannwaldorf.org Hit the Streets for Little Feet 5K Road Race & 1 Mile Fun Run, 8-11am, all ages; $20/person or $50/family. 36 Lincoln St., Manchester by the Sea. Proceeds support Manchester Memorial Elementary School Enrichment Programs. Community celebration follows the race; raffle drawings. For info. & to register, visit www.mmpto.org. MAY 13: Happy Mothers’ Day to All North Shore MOMS! Tulip Day

MAY 7:

Mother’s Day Festival at Peabody Essex Museum, Salem. Features film, animal presentation, presentations, art activity, story, art, brunch & more. For full schedule & pricing, visit www.pem.org.

Astronomy Day,Tourism Day

MAY 14:

MAY 8:

Dance Like A Chicken Day

Teachers’ Day, Iris Day, No Socks Day, World Red Cross Day

MAY 16:

National Nurses’ Day, International No Diet Day,Tourist Appreciation Day

MAY 9: School Nurses’ Day, Receptionists’ Day, Train Day MAY 10: Clean Up Your Room Day Nutrition & Wellness Speaker, Ranan Cohen, 6:30-8pm, at Sparhawk Theatre & Center for the Arts, 196 Main St., Amesbury. Tickets are $10; major credit cards accepted. For parents who want to learn how to successfully incorporate wellness & good nutrition into everyday life; Q&A follows. For tickets, email Norah at ntinti@sparhawkschool.com or call her at 978.388.5354. MAY 11: Family Child Care Providers’ Day,Twilight Zone Day MAY 11 & 12: Hunt’s 11th Annual Digital Demonstration & Sale at Hunt’s Photo & Video, 100 Main St., Melrose; 10am-8pm. Admission & seminars are free for teens & adults. Learn how to use & care for your camera, polish your picture-taking skills, see new models & save! Register online or by phone: www.wbhunt.com/seminars or 781.662.8822.

If you need to advertise in our 2month Summer [June/July] issue, with bonus distribution for our regular rates, and if you need our ad production assistance, please confirm your ad size and submit your ad materials TODAY! You can see our regular display ad rates, sizes, available discounts & more at www.northshorefamilies.com. Do you have a summer camp or program? Do you need to BOOST your enrollments? See page 14 for more info. on our 5th Annual Summer Camps & Programs Showcase Series – the largest in print on the North Shore! Showcase appears in this issue and continues in our 2-month Summer [June/July] issue – see above & next page for advertising deadlines. Contact suzanne@northshorefamilies.com for camp showcase ad rates & sizes. Boston Ballet presents the third annual Next Generation performance, 7pm, at The Boston Opera House. Featuring students from the PreProfessional Program and Boston Ballet II, with musical accompaniment from over 50 musicians with New England Conservatory Youth Philharmonic Orchestra. For tickets: www.bostonballet.org. Join us on the Ballet Bus from the North Shore studio to The Boston Opera House – call 617.456.6380 for more info.

Continued on page 22

22 North Shore Children & Families Community Calendar Continued from page 21

AND JULY events directly through our website (see beg. of this Calendar for details).

MAY 16:

Buy A Musical Instrument Day

Wear Purple for Peace Day

MAY 23:

MAY 17:

Lucky Penny Day

Happy 50th Birthday,Tyla! MAY 18: Advertising Space Reservation DEADLINE at NOON for ADS in our 2month SUMMER [June/July, with bonus distribution] issue! To advertise, contact suzanne@northshorefamilies.com! If you need our ad production assistance, please confirm your ad size and submit your ad materials by May 16! You can see our regular display ad rates, sizes, available discounts & more at www.northshorefamilies.com. Contact Suzanne for camp showcase ad rates & sizes. Museum Day, Bike to Work Day, No Dirty Dishes Day, Visit Your Relatives Day MAY 19: Armed Forces’ Day, Boys & Girls Clubs’ Day, Circus Day New Parent & Child (20 mos.-3.5 yrs.) Morning Glory Classes at Cape Ann Waldorf School, Beverly. Features play, bread making, circle games, snack & conversation. Space is limited. Registration open; see ad on page 6. Call 978.927.1936 to register. www.capeannwaldorf.org Step by Step performance by Boston Ballet School students at their North Shore Studio (Lynch/van Otterloo YMCA, Marblehead); free/all ages. www.bostonballet.org Mommie’s Night Out, 6-10pm. Recreational Education Center in Peabody is hosting a Mommie’s Night Out in conjunction with the Peabody PTO for Moms to get together for laughs & relaxation; appetizers, beverages, reps. from Pampered Chef, Lia Sophia, Avon; $10/mom, proceeds benefit the Peabody PTO.

Children’s Garden Opening Day, The Trustees of Reservations, Long Hill, 572 Essex St., Beverly; 3:30-5pm. Members free; non-members $5/family. Help plant colorful annual flowers & organic vegetables in our magical Children’s Garden. Space is limited, please pre-register online at www.thetrustees.org. MAY 25: National Missing Children’s Day,Tap Dance Day

Deadline to enter to win tickets to see a musical at North Shore Music Theatre! See page 2! MAY 27:

MAY 28: Memorial Day, Amnesty International Day MAY 29: Learn About Composting Day, Paper Clip Day Spring Concert at Cape Ann Waldorf School, Beverly; featuring CAW strings program. Free; 7pm, at new campus at Moraine Farm, 701 Cabot St., Rte. 97, Beverly. www.capeannwaldorf.org MAY 30: Water A Flower Day MAY 31: Save Your Hearing Day JUNE 8, 9 & 10:

Ukulele Jam, 3-4:30pm at Hamilton/Wenham Community House. $5/person, all ages, all levels & drop-ins welcome. Participants need the book The Daily Ukulele: 365 Songs for Better Living by Jim Beloff. MAY 21:

JUNE 9:

Memo Day, Waitservers’ Day

Tales of Mother Goose, student performances at 5:30 & 7pm, free at Boston Ballet School’s Marblehead Studio at the Lynch/van Otterloo YMCA, 40 Leggs Hill Rd., Marblehead. www.bostonballetschool.org/school.html

Peace Day, Be A Millionaire Day, Pick Strawberries Day

MAY 22: Community Calendar listings’ DEADLINE at NOON for 2-month SUMMER issue! Please submit your listings for JUNE

APARTMENT FOR RENT

GEM & MINERAL SHOW

Just in Time for Summer! 2 bdrm. apartment available in Nahant – across from ocean! See ad on page 2!

North Shore Rock & Mineral Club’s 49th Annual N.E. Gem & Mineral Show Topsfield Fairgrounds – May 5 & 6

COACHING

GIFTS/SPECIAL OCCASIONS

Coaching for Couples, Parents Life Coaching See ad on page 19! DANCE INSTRUCTION Boston Ballet School/NS Studio Marblehead 781.456.6333 www.bostonballet.org/school

Happy Birthday, David!

Anything Goes, musical production by Sparhawk Spotlights, at The Sparhawk Theatre & Centre for the Arts, 196 Main St., Amesbury. Performances at 7:30pm on 6/8 & 9 and at 2pm on 6/10. Tickets are $10/advance, $15 at door; group discounts available, credit cards accepted. www.sparhawkschool.com/theatre.htm For groups & to purchase tickets, email Norah at ntinti@sparhawkschool.com or call her at 978.388.5354.

MAY 20:

Service Directory

EARLY EDUCATION Next Generation Children’s Centers Locations include Andover & Beverly 866.711.NGCC www.ngccenters.com ENTERTAINMENT North Shore Music Theatre Beverly 978.232.7200 www.nsmt.org See ad on back cover! FAMILY FUN! Big Apple Circus presents Dream Big – through May 13 at Boston City Hall

Personalized Poems & Prose by Suzanne Speeches, eulogies, gifts, verses for invitations, etc. See ad on page 17! IN THIS ISSUE New advertiser specials – page 19 Reader contest – page 2 SCHOOLS Austin Preparatory School Reading 781.944.4900 www.austinprepschool.org Brookwood School Manchester 978.526.4500 www.brookwood.edu Cape Ann Waldorf School Beverly 978.927.1936 www.capeannwaldorf.org

FUN & FITNESS

Clark School Danvers 978.777.4699 www.clarkschool.com

The Little Gym Danvers and Woburn www.tlgdanversma.com www.tlgwoburnma.com

Cohen Hillel Academy Marblehead 781.639.2880 www.cohenhillel.org

Recreational Education Center Peabody 978.717.5062 www.recreationaleducationcenter.com

Covenant Christian Academy West Peabody 978.535.7100 www.covenantchristianacademy.org

North Shore Children & Families

SCHOOLS

SPEECH-LANGUAGE THERAPY

Glen Urquhart School Beverly Farms 978.927.1064 www.gus.org

Karen J. Cronin, MS CCC-SLP Middleton 978.239.5520

SUMMER CAMPS & PROGRAMS

Mathnasium North Beverly 978.922.2200 www.mathnasium.com

Summer Quest at Crane Ipswich 978.380.8360 www.thetrustees.org/summerquest

North Shore Children’s Theatre Salem • 781.248.9458 www.northshorechildrenstheatre.org

Tara Montessori School Summer Camp Manchester • 978.526.8487 www.taramontessori.com

Phoenix Summer Adventures Salem • 978.741.0870 www.phoenixschool.org

Waring School Summer Programs Beverly • 978.927.8793 www.waringschool.org

Harborlight-Stoneridge Montessori School Beverly 978.922.1008 www.harborlightmontessori.org The Phoenix School Salem 978.741.0870 www.phoenixschool.org Plumfield Academy Danvers 978.304.0273 www.plumfieldacademy.org Shore Country Day School Beverly 978.927.1700 www.shoreschool.org Sparhawk School Amesbury 978.388.5354 www.sparhawkschool.com Tower School Marblehead 781.631.5800 www.towerschool.org Waring School Beverly 978.927.8793 www.waringschool.org SEEKING HOSTS Host an Int’l. Student & earn up to $2,400 this summer! www.ef.com/ehp See ad on page 8! SPECIAL EDUCATION JLC Advocacy Lynnfield 781.334.4363 See ad on page 8!

Boston Ballet School/NS Studio Marblehead 617.456.6333 www.bostonballet.org/school Brooks School - Summer North Andover 978.725.6253 http://summer.brooksschool.org Brookwood - Summer Manchester 978.526.4500 www.brookwood.edu Camp Birch Hill Lakes Region, NH 603.859.4525 www.campbirchhill.com Camp Quinebarge White Mountains, NH 603.253.6029 www.campquinebarge.com Cape Ann Waldorf Camp Beverly 978.927.8811 www.capeannwaldorf.org Glen Urquhart School Beverly Farms 978.927.1064 ext. 131 www.gus.org

Shore Sports & Enrichment Camps Beverly • 978.927.1700 www.shoreschool.org/summershore Summer’s Edge Tennis School at Salem State University & in Lexington 781.391.EDGE Summer at Tower Marblehead 781.631.5800 www.towerschool.org/summer Summer Programs at North Shore Comm. College community.northshore.edu/sod

TUTORING A+ Reading Center Reading Tutor/Individual Lessons

Serving the North Shore 781.799.2598 mperkins@aplusreadingcenter.com Mathnasium The Math Learning Center North Beverly • 978.922.2200 See ad on page 15!

Please Support Our Advertisers, Who Sponsor this Publication for You & Your Family!

ATTN: SUMMER CAMPS!

Kelley Greens Jr. Golf Camp Nahant 781.581.0840 www.kelleygreens.com

Boost your summer enrollments in our 5th Annual Summer Camps & Programs Showcase series!

Keys for Kids Serving the Amesbury & Newburyport Areas www.keys-for-kids.com

Series continues in our 2-month Summer issue – space closes May 16!

The Little Gym Danvers & Woburn www.tlgdanversma.com www.tlgwoburnma.com

GET YOUR SUMMER CAMP OR PROGRAM LISTED HERE! See page 14!