This is the second in a five-part series highlighting stories of parents’ experiences in the Hoboken Public Schools Kindergarten program at the four elementary schools in the district.
As working parents living in Southwest Hoboken, my husband Matt and I were so pleased when our daughter, Grace (5) was placed at Thomas G. Connors for Kindergarten. We had a fabulous experience with Mile Square Early Education at the Demarest site for Pre-K 3 and Pre-K 4, but transporting our daughter across town in the morning and home in the evening became very daunting once we had a second child.
Walkability from our home is just the start of the benefits Connors provides for Grace and our family. We are amazed at how much Grace is learning each day and how she has developed as a person. Her teacher is wonderful and she provides frequent updates on Grace’s progress and appropriate academic support. Grace has always had an interest in math and science, and to watch that love be cultivated by committed educators is a real pleasure. The Trout in the Classroom project gives children as young as kindergarten a unique opportunity to see science in action while gaining an understanding of our local ecosystem. We watch the videos of the trout that Mr. Monaco posts on Class Dojo and Grace updates us on the progress the fish are making. The benefits don’t stop at math and science as the art and music programs at Connors are also top notch — Grace keeps asking when she can start to play in the school band!
The Passport to Learning after school program has given Grace the chance to interact with friends in 1st and 2nd grade (grades K through 2 have Passport together) and to get to know so many of the other teachers. She looks forward to her passport classes and had learned so much from Environmental Explorers and Mixed Media Art. For the second half of the year Grace will take Coding and Zoology, two classes she was begging to try.
My favorite thing about Grace being in kindergarten at Connors is how proud she is of her school. There is a strong sense of community and warmth provided by the teachers and staff — and that is something special. The transition to kindergarten is a challenging one, and at the end of Grace’s second week I could see her shift from slight apprehension to feeling safe and secure at her new school. To me that was everything. The Connors Cares motto isn’t just something that just hangs on a banner, it is reflected in everything that Dr. Pollins, Mr. Sorafine, teachers, and staff do each day.
Now that we are almost halfway through the year I can say with confidence that Grace’s experience at Connors has far exceeded our expectations. It is wonderful to see our daughter receive a top-notch education within a five minute walk from our home, and to have the benefit of attending school in our neighborhood. I encourage parents all over Hoboken, but specifically from the neighborhoods that surround Connors to come and see what an excellent choice the school is. Each night as we take the short walk from Connors to daycare to pick up Grace’s younger sister I can’t help but think about how lucky we are to have such wonderful resources in our little neighborhood.
~Ailene McGuirk, A Proud Connors Mom
