Jeff's blog

While some baby swans are making their NYC debut, a handful of local family businesses are singing their swan songs, including Scribble Press' Upper West Side location, which closes this month. Of course we've got good news, too, including new ways to get to Randall's Island this summer, a cleaned-up Chinatown Fair Arcade and a star-studded Story Pirates comedy benefit—and if none of those put a smile on your face, well, just look at those cute baby swans!

In addition to our usual selection of school scoop—some encouraging, some not—we've rounded up links about a bunch of cool new New York City places and programs. We've got details on Cooper-Hewitt's new Harlem Design Center, the star-studded launch of a new kids' cruise, geeky fun at a new comic book shop in Midtown, a new healthy restaurant at Chelsea Piers and newly minted chess champs at a Brooklyn middle school.

It's back to school this week and ironically, we have no school news this time around. Instead, we've got the scoop on new zoo animals, including one seriously coo-worthy giraffe, free comic books, toy recycling and more. Plus one scary article that struck fear into my heart about 10-year-olds and puberty, two things that definitely should not go together.

Spring has sprung and we've got several great reasons to get outside with your kids, including the arrival of carousel season, the rebirth of outdoor New York Philharmonic concerts, a clever new public art installation, the chance to see hidden wonders in the harbor, and a handful of free family events as part of the Tribeca Film Fest.

There's also exciting news in the air as The High Line's stage 3 plans have been unveiled and a year-round ice skating rink has been proposed uptown.

If you've got a kid in elementary school, happy parent-teacher conference week! Of course the students aren't the only ones being evaluated. In this edition of our biweekly links roundup, we highlight one teacher's reaction to his rating and a really cool op-ed that makes the case against testing by quoting a beloved E.B. White book.

We've also got the scoop on a cool new public art exhibition, a new baby movie matinee, the first day of school in September and what's blooming at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.