“Is my child ready for kindergarten?” is one of the top questions I receive from parents as an elementary school teacher. And while there are many factors that go into determining whether a child is academically, physically, socially and emotionally prepared to start school, we at Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child have maintained that there are really five main pillars used to prepare a child for the next step: social skills, reading, language, motor skills and number concepts.

Eating healthy doesn't need to be hard or, worse, taste bad. It also doesn't need to be part of some self-imposed stressful attempt to force New Year's Resolutions that we ultimately never achieve. It should be part of a positive, overall healthy lifestyle for #livingyourbestlife.

As part of health and wellness education at Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child, seventh- and eighth-grade students learned about healthy eating and the health of the planet. Throughout the fall, students were tasked with creating healthy recipes that they would then share with the school community. Below is just a sampling of some of the recipes created. Have your own healthy recipe to share? Leave it for us below in the comments!

Interested in more healthy recipes from Oak Knoll? Follow #healthyrecipesOKS on Twitter.

The year 2019 brought us so many blog topics — from the disturbing Momo Challenge that ended up being a hoax to the College Admissions Scandal and so much more. The blog team at Oak Knoll looked back at the top posts that resonated with our loyal readers to bring you this roundup of the top 10 blog posts of 2019.

In today’s world, children are inundated and, often, overwhelmed with smart devices such as iPads, smartphones and even 'Alexa.' By encouraging students to learn how to program code on these devices, we are really teaching children how to be in control, rather than letting the devices control them.

Entering pre-kindergarten for one child may be a completely different experience for another. Some children begin preschool as a 4-year old, while other children may enter at the pre-kindergarten 3 level. With these different levels of maturity and age, the ‘readiness’ factor comes into play. Follow our guide below to understand what you should know before your child enters pre-K.

Gina and I are fortunate to have three children in Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child's coed pre-K to grade 6 Lower School. We were drawn to the school originally because of its focus on the whole child; we think it is very important, particularly in these times, that children are given the opportunity to be children – have fun, make friends, live a stress-free life, and become educated in mind and spirit in the Catholic tradition.

Another memo to Santa was left on the Helpdesk printer this year. It seems Toy Town Industries is vying for Santa's business ahead of Black Friday again. We don't know why Santa's memos keep getting redirected to Oak Knoll, but we would be remiss if we did not share the scoop on this year's hottest educational toys as our very own 2019 Tech Gift Guide for Kids in time for Black Friday! 

Developing empathy in children is imperative to ensure we are promoting good, responsible citizenry. Studies show that children start to show genuine empathy - understanding how other people feel - around 2 years of age. To help foster values of charitable giving, families must find ways to teach kids about giving back and make it FUN.

We recently caught up with Megan Murphy, the Executive Director of the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools after she visited the Oak Knoll School campus earlier this fall. Here, she talks about issues facing girls’ schools, her hope for empowering girls’ voices and girls' school misconceptions.

Admissions season is upon us for eighth-grade students looking to choose your future high school home. It is natural to be excited (and maybe a little nervous!!) when venturing off to meet new people, explore new spaces and learn new concepts. Here at Oak Knoll, we’ve gathered a few tips and tricks to prepare for your upcoming visit day!