About Public Schools

Another school year, another adventure! Just as the first day of school is the cause of much excitement, so is all the required shopping that goes with starting off a new school year. With all the unknowns that a new school year can bring, it's nice to start planning early on what you will need to bring with you to school.What you will need for your new school year depends on where you go and what grade you are in. For example, some schools require kids to donate communal pencils or boxes of tissues at the beginning of the year. Other schools require students to only bring in personal supplies that they will use themselves. Sometimes this includes art supplies. The best thing to do is to check with your school.In the meantime, we have put together a sample list of school supplies that children attending public school will probably need to purchase. Often, local office supply stores will have on hand the supply lists for local public schools.

Elementary Public School Supplies

• Art supplies: glue stick, scissors, crayons, colored pencils, markers, watercolor paints, play-doh (for the lower levels), sketch pads.
• Pencil, Pencil Sharpener, Eraser.
• Notebooks (spiral and/or composition). Teachers often ask that students bring in composition notebooks so that they cannot rip pages out without them being noticeable.
• Loose Leaf Paper.
• Graph Paper may be required for math subjects.
• Folders to contain classroom handouts.
• 3 Ring Binders to contain loose-leaf paper.
• Personal Dictionary may be required for the higher levels.
• Plastic school box to hold

Charter schools fit in a niche between private and public schools. They are funded with public money (except for their facilities) and they are an alternative to regular public schools systems. A private group of people can submit an application for and get approval for a charter to run their own school. Charter schools receive waivers from public school districts in exchange for promising better academic results. Charters are usually given three to five years to demonstrate academic achievement, during which time officials monitor students’ academic performance. If academic performance lags behind comparable public schools, then the charter is pulled and the school is closed.

This video explains what charter schools are, through testimonials from charter school parents, students and leaders.

Since the Minnesota legislature passed a law creating the first charter school in 1991, charter schools have seen an enormous increase in number to over 5,300 by 2011. By the 2010-2011 school year, charter school legislation had passed in 41 states and Washington, D.C. This phenomenal increase in the number of charter schools proves that it is an educational innovation that is not confined to reforming existing schools but is also an avenue by which new schools can be created. Chartering gives schools the freedom to tailor programs that are reflective of the community needs. Chartering also allows the school to run autonomously of the existing public school system. Parents and educators

This article will help you better understand what magnet schools are and their role in your family’s education. We’ll first introduce the concept of a magnet school. Then we’ll go over the function of magnet schools in detail and how those functions have changed over the years. After that, we’ll share some basic facts about magnet schools as well as go over the pros and cons of magnet schools. Finally, we’ll end the article by discussing whether a magnet school is right for your family and how to increase your chances of getting your child into a magnet school.

What is a Magnet School?

Unlike charter or private schools, a magnet school is part of the local public school system. At regular public schools, students are generally zoned into their schools based on their home location - students go to the nearest school where they live. However, this may not always be true since boundaries can seem arbitrary, and in some smaller towns, schools are not zoned at all. But, magnet schools exist outside of zoned school boundaries. Whereas private schools are separate from local public school districts, and charter schools are public schools with private oversight, magnet schools remain part of the public school system and operate under the same administration and school board.

This video explains how magnet schools differ from charter schools.

According to the Magnet Schools of America, the