February 28, 2010-tomorrow is March 1st already!-Did you know Daylight Savings Time always begins on the 2nd Sunday of March so soon on March 14, 2010, at 2:00 a.m. – you set the clocks ahead one hour. (Spring forward) and ends on the first Sunday in November so Sunday, November 7, 2010, at 2:00 a.m. – you set the clocks back an hour. (Fall back)

What a tough decision and very important one to say the least that parents have to make if they just had children or if they are moving to a new location with children.  Let’s face it, kids are in school some days longer than at home with their parents.  Teachers see children more hours in a day than some fathers or mothers that have to work 9-5 or longer in some cases.  I am a working mother of 3 children all under the age of 7, so I know first hand how important our children’s education is in today’s world.  There is an amazing website which has every school in Miami by typing in any zip code and state and breaks the schools down even by preschool, elementary, middle and high school and allows you to sort by private or public.  Not only is it uber user friendly but it also has for each school first hand reviews which you may find extremely helpful.  The link to this great website is http://www.greatschools.org/.  You can search on any city in any state which is so useful! So if wanted to search all the schools within 10 miles of your home in Coral Gables, zip code 33146 they list will autopopulate within seconds. 

Since I sell and live in Miami here are some local pertinent links for schools in my area. 

Here is a helpful link http://www.aisfl.com/counties/dadeC.html which lists ACCREDITED SCHOOLS IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY. 

To learn and get information about Miami-Dade public schools please refer to http://www.dadeschools.net/

The Division of Special Education provides services and programs for students with diverse needs. Since there are so many resources for special needs and eduction in Miami-Dade another helpful website is http://ese.dadeschools.net/

Great way to find out different opinions of schools is to ask neighborhood realtors who have children your kids’ age.  What better way to pick another mother’s brain.  Also, neighborhood parks and libraries and any youth center have tons of parents with opinions and thoughts about all the different private and public schools. 

If you are moving to the Miami area you may find me to assist you with your real estate needs at jill@jillpenman.com or 305.807.9199.  Have a good Sunday night!