GOOD PRIVATE ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOLS are tough to get into. Admission is terribly competitive. There are primarily two tests used to determine admission, the ISEE and the SSAT. Having simply a good score on these is rarely enough. Your child needs to excel. We can help. But unlike, say, the SAT, there’s a huge wrinkle here: kids this age are generally not emotionally equipped to deal with the stress of a high-stakes test. So it’s important well-meaning parents and teachers resist applying too much pressure to these young students. Otherwise, they can freeze up during the test and all of our preparation is for naught, since most kids have a rough time performing after bursting into tears. We find we can have much greater success by carefully keeping the preparation a fun experience; get children really comfortable with the test content and the test-taking process, so that the actual day of the test feels very familiar and like no big deal. We work hard at motivating our students without pressure. You’ll help us greatly if we can convince you to do the same.