New York Family’s November 2013 Issue

nyf nov 13 Amanda Peet — Photo by Mark Abrahams / Trunk Archive

Amanda’s Second Act
After years on both the big and small screens, actress Amanda Peet has added a few more plum roles to her resume: mother of two, childhood vaccination advocate, and playwright

Lights! Camera! Celebration!
Our annual birthday party guide—inspired by some of our favorite kids’ movies—is your roadmap to the city’s best party venues—plus, plenty of fun themes, décor and game ideas, and tasty treats

Work It Out
Our career blogger Barri Waltcher helps at-home parents navigate their return to the workplace

Family Fun Guide

Ten Great Events For November
Power of Poison exhibit, Intrepid Museum’s Scout Day, “Ballerina Swan,” and more

Home & Away

Moms Of Real Estate: Part 2
In the second installment of our “Parents & Real Estate” series, four moms—and real estate power players—dish on neighborhood gems and making smart choices for family living

Travel
A wanderlustful winter destination guide to suit every family’s interests (and climate preferences)

Quality Time
Set your Thanksgiving table in style with our picks for seasonal décor, crafting, and baking

Columns

Editor’s Note
Giving thanks

Events & Offers
An Art Farm in the City semester class and membership giveaway, upcoming camp fairs, and the scoop on our weekly newsletters

Scoop
Julianne Moore’s new children’s book, a kids’ clothing store on the LES, the latest tech toy, and more

A Special Place
For 20 years, Eastside Westside Music Together has been helping parents and kids bond over the joys of singing and movement

Starting Out
Renowned parenting expert Priscilla Dunstan shares her insights on managing a crying baby and the importance of early infant-parent bonding

Special Needs
In Raising Henry, her book about parenting a child with Down syndrome, Columbia professor Rachel Adams examines the broader issues faced by families raising children with disabilities.

A Good Idea
No one has done more to help adoptive families and orphaned children around the world than local mom and “orphan doctor” Jane Aronson

Activity Of The Month: Music
A parent’s guide to helping their budding musician select a first instrument—with tips from local instructors and experts

Hot Trends
Get set for the winter sports season with our roundup of awesome city basketball programs

The Last Word
A local mom has visions of raising another baby as her teen nears the end of high school

USC Gymnastics & Baseball Training Facility

<p><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;" data-sheets-value="{" data-sheets-userformat="{">We offer sports activities, after school programs, birthday parties &amp; private lessons for kids ages 3&ndash;13 years! Our gymnastics classes are a great way to keep your child active and healthy. We strive to empower and challenge children through the sport of gymnastics.</span></p>

KTBYTE

<div><strong>Computer Science Coding Classes for Children&nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <p>Ages 8 - 18</p> <p>Enroll today for a FREE Trial and our Summer and School Year Course Offerings!</p> <p>Differentiated and Individualized Learning with our Caring and Knowledgeable Staff!</p> <p>Offer YOUR child the competitive advantage of learning a new language and also using STEM to learn and have fun!&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div> <div id="m_3428097911001171987ktbyte-vision"> <p><strong>The&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;vision</strong></p> <p>At&nbsp;KTBYTE, our vision is to make a high-quality Computer Science (CS) education accessible to students globally while also making CS exciting and engaging for them!</p> </div> <div id="m_3428097911001171987diffsimilar"> <p><strong>The&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;Difference</strong></p> <p>KTBYTE&nbsp;offers a progressive Computer Science curriculum for students ages 8-18 years old. Classes range from introductory JavaBlocks&trade; programming to college-level courses.&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;offers classes that stand out from the standard Core Curriculum for high-school students, with unique programs such as USACO prep courses, Generative Art and Design courses, and even Machine Learning courses. Our instructors are dedicated, nurturing and passionate about what they do and committed to ensuring that&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;students are exposed to an unparalleled, dynamic, educational and engaging CS learning experience! Register today for a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ktbyte.com/freetrial" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ktbyte.com/freetrial&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1622725037124000&amp;usg=AFQjCNED2R673ZzKakJOtaGSycFpwW73uw">Free Trial</a>&nbsp;and experience the&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;Difference!</p> </div> <div id="m_3428097911001171987aluminiaccomp"> <p><strong>KTBYTE&nbsp;Alumni Accomplishments</strong></p> <p>KTBYTE&nbsp;alums consistently outperform their peers in terms of their academic accomplishments.&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;students ace their AP CS courses and exams and are also incredibly successful through the competitive college admissions process.&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;students have been accepted to numerous Ivy League and competitive colleges and universities including but not limited to Brown, Carnegie Mellon, UChicago, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Duke, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, MIT, UPenn, Princeton, Tufts, Yale, and many more!</p> </div> <div id="m_3428097911001171987shorttermbenef"> <p><strong>What Makes the&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;Course Experience Unique?</strong></p> <p>At&nbsp;KTBYTE, all of our instructors are highly qualified and experienced, educational professionals who differentiate learning and offer&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;students a multitude of opportunities for individualized instruction by spending hours each week preparing for each specialty class that they teach in order to offer a dynamic, engaging and fun educational course interaction for every&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;student. Through our Virtual Machines, our instructors are able to see exactly what is on your child&rsquo;s screen throughout every class, and as such are easily able to assist your child through any obstacle that may arise. At&nbsp;KTBYTE, our nurturing, knowledgeable and caring teaching staff anticipate and identify when a student may be struggling with a problem even before the student decides to ask a question about it.</p> </div> <div id="m_3428097911001171987whoareinstructors"> <p><strong>What Sets the&nbsp;KTBYTE&nbsp;Teaching Team Apart?</strong></p> <p>KTBYTE&nbsp;instructors are college and post-college working professionals with extensive backgrounds in computer science. At the highest level, our artificial intelligence classes are taught by a graduate sutdent in AI. Each of our teaching professionals is passionate about igniting a love for learning in your child by presenting Computer Science concepts in practical ways which offer the student the opportunity to see Computer Science at work in recognizable applications from daily life. Every class, regardless of level will be individualized and differentiated to ensure your child&rsquo;s success!</p> </div> </div>

Adventuring Portal

<p><a name="m_-1473885667065203258__Hlk72147528"></a>Adventuring Portal runs Dungeons and Dragons (D&amp;D) games for kids.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;We have created a safe online space for tweens and teens to learn and play D&amp;D.</p> <p>Our D&amp;D Summer Camp session are a one-week experience.&nbsp;&nbsp;Monday &ndash; Friday.&nbsp;&nbsp;Each day will be 3 hours of gaming (with 2 breaks build in).&nbsp;&nbsp;15 total gaming hours for $180.&nbsp;&nbsp;If you have played with us before, you are entitled to 10% off.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Need your kids, nieces or nephews, grand kids or neighbor&rsquo;s kids to be occupied for a bit so you can get work done &amp; take care of your to-do list? Maybe your tween or teen is still a bit isolated and craves connection with their peers? Whether your teen/tween has played D&amp;D before or is brand-new to the experience, this safe space brings players together to have fun and solve problems as a team in ways few other online opportunities do.</p> <p>All our games focus on experiential learning.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Our players leave knowing all the basic game play as well as experiencing: teamwork, bravery, compassion, generosity, negotiation, improvisation, gamer etiquette, strategy, critical thinking, problem solving, cartography and probability - all through online D&amp;D adventuring!</p> <p>We are an inclusive organization and welcome gamers who are LGBTQIA+ and those on any spectrum.&nbsp;</p> <p>All girls&rsquo; groups available.&nbsp;</p> <p>I am a parent, a certified elementary school and middle school math teacher and last summer in the midst of the mess started&nbsp;Adventuring Portal, an&nbsp;online Dungeons &amp; Dragons&nbsp;business&nbsp;for kids. There are so many benefits to playing D&amp;D and I hope you will consider us as a great way for your child to safely socialize, grow as people and have a great time.</p>