Big Apple Academy Information

We offer three hot meals. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served daily in our cafeteria. The meals are cooked on premises by our New York certified staff. The food meets the standards set forth by the State of New York. How old is your school? The school was founded in 1992. We have been growing with our students. In 2004, our first 8th grade graduates were accepted into the best high schools of New York City and they are top students there till this day, and so are our graduates of the following years. Is there a large staff turnover in this school? All candidates for teaching positions go through a vigorous screening and interview process prior to employment. All the teachers in the school strive to do their absolute best in their classrooms. The criteria for choosing teachers include education, teaching experience, the level of English and personality. A teacher's personality is a corner stone of our pedagogical system. What is the grading system in your school? The school has adopted a unified system of academic standards and grading. Students get report cards with percentage grades on a quarterly basis. In addition, we rate students according to the level of their academic ability. This system allows our school to stimulate interest in learning and influences students' emerging self-assessment in a positive way. Do children leave school? What are the reasons for this? Unfortunately, some kids do leave. There are two typical reasons. One is parents' financial problems, and the other is moving to a different city or state. If a child leaves your school to go to a regular public school, would he/she be comfortable in a new environment? Surely, they will be comfortable since our school utilizes the same basic methods of education and covers public school curriculum in accordance with the latest academic standards adopted by the State of New York. Our school only differs from public school because we offer extra subjects and our curriculum covers a wider scope of topics that are taught on a deeper level. This gives our students an opportunity to excel in public school environment after they graduate from our school. How is your school year structured? Our school year starts on September 1 and ends on June 26. Compared to 174 school days a year in public schools, our school year is 188 days. During fall, winter and summer vacations children may come to school. They have a wonderful time under the supervision of our highly professional teachers at school participating in games and contests, and they also go on exciting trips to the theater, circus, museums, and zoos. In summer the school is turned into a great summer day camp with its own traditions and life-long friends.