The Fessy Den Blog

How to Prepare Your Son for His Junior Boarding School Interview

Leave a Comment | January 29, 2016

For middle school boys, the prospect of being interviewed for admission to a junior boarding school can be nerve-wracking. If your son is in this position, he might be thinking about how much is riding on the interview—your expectations, his future—or how intimidating it will be to impress an adult or several adults with his untested conversation skills. As a parent, you might be nervous,...
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4 Questions to Ask When Evaluating a Private Kindergarten Program

6 Comments | January 27, 2016
Parents visiting Pre-K program

Choosing a kindergarten program for your son can be stressful. You have so many goals for your child, long-term and short-term. You want to find a school where he will find a great group of friends with whom to connect and where he will feel well supported, but you also want to put him on the right track to academic and, eventually, lifelong success. You...
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Avoiding the ‘Silver Spoon’ Effect at a Private School for Boys

3 Comments | January 15, 2016

Many parents who visit our independent private school for boys have a common concern: that their son will be too coddled at a private school. He’ll be treated too preciously; he’ll be sheltered from the realities of the outside world; he’ll emerge from school lacking in real-world experiences. Movies and TV shows often portray a sheltered, “silver spoon” image of private school life, but this...
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Learning Outside the ‘Box’: The Advantages of an All-Boys Pre-K

2 Comments | January 13, 2016
Boys in Willy Wonka play

Is pre-kindergarten too soon to start your son at an all-boys private school? Parents throughout the Boston area ask us this all the time. These parents usually have two common questions: How will my son learn to socialize normally if there are no girls in the classroom? Would a smaller, standalone pre-K be better for my son? To a certain extent, the questions are difficult...
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Private School ‘Fit’: How to Tell When It’s Right

2 Comments | January 08, 2016

Families often make a decision about a private or independent school based on two things: intuition and logic (the heart and the head). As with most important decisions in life, we rely on reason and emotion to guide us. Your perception of school “fit” likely is affected by both of these elements, so it’s important to know how to help yourself evaluate it. 1. Know...
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3 Mistakes Parents Make When Applying to Junior Boarding Schools

1 Comment | January 06, 2016

There is no “right” or “wrong” way to search for and apply to a junior boarding school for your son; every boy is unique and every family’s goals are different. But here at The Fessenden School, our goal is to make sure your son and our school are a perfect fit. We process hundreds of applications every year and there are some common things parents...
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Festival of Lights

Leave a Comment | December 21, 2015

As we approach a much anticipated two week break for the holidays, the excitement in the halls is palpable. The boys can’t wait for the freedom from classes and homework that the vacation promises, but much of their exhilaration is also due to the joyous feelings that come with the myriad celebrations and traditions that fill the calendar at this time of year. Fessenden’s unique...
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