Arizona often ranks very high in the country for school choice. I wrote a piece for the Tribune last week about this fact – and asked different groups to talk about whether or not that translates into a better education system in the state.
Now I ask you. What choice do you make for your child’s education? Do you haveel you have a choice? In some cases, families choose their neighborhood school. Some choose private education. Some pick a program in a district on the way to work.
The reasons for the …

With each passing school year, expectations are raised, the work gets tougher and the amount presented to students grows.
More students — or their parents — are seeking outside help from tutors to keep up with it all.
At the end of last school year, my son’s teacher expressed concern about how he’ll do with third-grade math. That’s when division and multiplication come into play.
With the school year right around the corner for my son, and most East Valley students, now may be the time to line up help.
Jennifer Wilkins, co-owner of …

Three shopping trips, luckily with a sleeping baby, a few frazzled moments as we wandered from aisle to aisle, and five (or was it six?) bags later — and I think we’re done.
Welcome to back-to-school shopping season (who doesn’t have that commercial with “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” running through their brain?).
My kids received school supply lists on the last day of class in May. Knowing we only have a few weeks left (and I needed to write this post), we trekked out in the 100-plus temperatures …

Twenty-six days.
That’s how long before school starts again for my kiddos.
That’s how long I have to get them ready for the reality that first grade and third grade will be a lot tougher than kindergarten and second grade.
In that time, I have school supplies to organize, after-school activities to schedule, music lessons to plan and a work calendar to finalize.
Last year, we welcomed a new baby just weeks before classes started. And with that, I was home after school. I really enjoyed it. Once I returned to work full-time, having …

Earlier this month, I wrote a story about Gov. Jan Brewer’s new budget proposal that includes eliminating state support of full-day kindergarten. Under legislation passed last year, school districts could still provide full-day kindergarten, either by charging tuition or by funding it locally through the money they do receive.
A little history lesson: Full-day kindergarten funded by state funds has been in play in Arizona just a few years. I believe my son, now 7, was in the first class to receive that benefit.
Since my story has run, and in discussions …