Getting the best out of public school

Learn about: Getting the best out of public school from Denene Millner,...
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Getting the best out of public school

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People look at not so great public schools as just the scorge of the earth. Like if your kid is a student there, just all bets are off. They're going to leave dumb as all, get out and they're never going to get what they need. I disagree with that. My child, my youngest daughter goes to an At-Risk school and it couldn't be a better situation for us. She's a brilliant little girl. There's a whole lot of programming that's there, that's available to her and it's available to her not just because it's there but because we took the time to make sure that we understood the system and understood what resources are there to specifically work for my child in her intellect, in her abilities. So what we did as parents was we made sure we had several walk-throughs of the school; we sat in classrooms to make sure we were comfortable with the teachers; we met with the counselors a few times; and most importantly, we met with the principal. So the principal knew that they were getting a star. And even if your school is not up-to-snuff statistically, I want you to use the things that are in your school in place for this star. And when she went to that school she got into the gifted program. We made sure that in the gifted program we helped her in any way that we could, that the instructors get help from us. We made sure that she was tracked in a way where, you know, the teachers know specifically how to reach our daughter in a very specific way that she needs to be reached and it's just made the experience, in this public school system that if you Google it or look at the statistic, really sucks. You know, on paper it sucks. But with my daughter there and us working in concert with her teachers, the counselor and the principal, works like a dream for us. So that's about making sure that you understand the resources that are available to you there. And at some of these At-Risk schools, they are there. You just have to take time to look for them.

Learn about: Getting the best out of public school from Denene Millner,...

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Denene Millner

Author & Founder of MyBrownBaby.com

New York Times best-selling author Denene Millner is a hotly sought after award-winning journalist whose insightful and captivating pieces have secured her foothold in the entertainment, parenting and book publishing industries. Millner spent the last decade working as a columnist, contributing editor and blogger for Parenting, a national magazine for which she provided witty, engaging, mom-to-mom advice on ethics and etiquette in everything from childrearing and marriage to work and friendship. Currently, she also is the founder and editor of MyBrownBaby.com, a critically acclaimed, award-winning blog that examines parenting and motherhood through the multi-cultural experience. Millner frequently contributes as an entertainment writer for Essence, the most well-read and respected magazine for African American women, and has written for a plethora of national publications and prestigious websites, including Parenting, HealthEbony, JetHeart & SoulReal Health, Money, iVillage, Parenting.com, TodayMoms, and The Root, among others. Her extensive television experience includes regular appearances on the The Today Show, CBS Early ShowThe Nate Berkus Show, HLN, CNN, MSNBC, VH1, and the Rachel Ray show. Millner also is the author of 21 books. The former political reporter and entertainment journalist lives in the Atlanta area with her husband and their two daughters.

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