At a Glance
A zoned Far Rockaway elementary whose test-score climb puts it ahead of the local charters, not just the district.
Best suited for
Families zoned for the school who want strong academics and a calm, high-trust culture in a beachside pocket of Queens — and who are willing to actively partner on attendance.
Overall Rating
Rating = average of NY State ELA + math proficiency, grades 3–8
Bands are Motley's thresholds on a 0–100 scale, not New York State performance levels.
How this is scored→What stands out
- ELA proficiency has climbed roughly 50 percentage points over the past decade — one of the steepest sustained gains in the district.
- Math proficiency of 90% puts Wave Prep in the top tier of Queens elementary schools, zoned or charter.
- Zero suspensions in 2023-24 (and zero or near-zero in the prior two years) — a rare, full-school discipline floor.
- 99% parent-principal trust and 94% parent satisfaction suggest families feel genuinely heard by the school.
- As a zoned public school, Wave Prep posts scores that compete with — and beat — several local charters that often steer families out of the zoned pool.
Things to consider
- Chronic absenteeism at 61% is high and worth asking the school about directly.
- Female students (67.8%) miss more school than male students (55%) — a meaningful gender gap in attendance.
- Family survey response rate was only 22%, so the strong parent views reflect a self-selected slice of the school community.
- Fifth-grade ELA proficiency (73%) trails the rest of the school and the district-leading overall average.
- An economic need index of 82.7% means most students come from low-income households, which shapes both the resources and the resilience of the school.
Based on 2024-25 data
School SummaryDistrict 27
District 27 elementary schools average 2.27/4 overall and 56-57% proficiency in ELA and math; Wave Prep sits at 3.47/4 with 84% ELA and 90% math, placing it well above district norms and ahead of several local charter competitors.
Academics
Test scores here tell one of the steepest improvement stories in the district. ELA proficiency rose from 34.1% in 2016 to 83.6% in 2025; math climbed from 32.9% to 89.8% — gains of roughly 50 and 57 percentage points respectively, well above the district averages of 56% ELA and 57% math. There was a COVID-era dip in 2022 (57%/57%) and a softer 2024 (55%/60%), but the 2025 rebound is sharp. Both third and fourth graders are hitting roughly 89-92% proficiency; fifth-grade math stays strong at 85% but fifth-grade ELA drops to 73%, which is the one grade-level soft spot.
Culture
Day-to-day at Wave Prep feels calm and high-trust. The school recorded zero suspensions in 2023-24, and survey scores are uniformly strong: 100% of teachers report strong relationships and quality instruction, parent-principal trust sits at 99%, and parent satisfaction is 94% — slightly above the 92.6% district average. The clear concern is chronic absenteeism at 61.3%, with female students (67.8%) missing school at meaningfully higher rates than male students (55%); the overall 90% attendance rate matches the district, but the underlying absenteeism figure is high.
Community
The student body is 62% Hispanic and 35% Black, with an economic need index of 82.7% — most students come from low-income households. Class size is 23.4, right at the district average, and 19% of students have IEPs. The Far Rockaway-Bayswater neighborhood around the school has a median income of around $67,700 and only 22% of households include children, meaning the school draws from a fairly focused subset of local families rather than the broader residential base.
Neighborhood
Far Rockaway-Bayswater is a beachside pocket of the Rockaway peninsula with a working-class, family-oriented character — median household income around $67,700, just over a quarter of adults holding a bachelor's degree, and homeownership below 30%, meaning most residents rent. The A train is the spine of the commute, with three stops within easy reach of the school, and Beach 25 St and Far Rockaway-Mott Av are short walks.
The A train serves the school directly: Beach 25 St is about a four-minute walk, Far Rockaway-Mott Av about eight minutes, and Beach 36 St about 12 minutes.
Academic Performance
ELA Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State ELA exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Math Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State Math exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Historical Trends
The dashed line marks 2023, when New York changed its grades 3–8 state tests. Scores before and after it aren’t directly comparable.
2020–2021 data unavailable due to COVID-19
Source: NYC DOE School Quality Reports
Survey Results
NYC School Survey (2025) · 102 families responded (22% rate)
Racial & Ethnic Diversity
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Discipline
NYSED Student & Educator Database (2023-24)
Economic Need & Special Populations
How to get in, step by step
Pre-K
Wave Preparatory Elementary School also has Pre-K classes. They're a separate application from kindergarten, made on MySchools.
Pre-K application
Applications typically open in the winter and close in the spring, with offers in late spring; the city announces exact dates each year.
Kindergarten
Wave Preparatory Elementary School has an attendance zone. At elementary level, in-zone students get a guaranteed seat. Every family still applies on MySchools: the application confirms the zoned seat, and ranking other schools doesn't cost you it.
Kindergarten application
- Opens
- Wed, Dec 9
- Closes
- Fri, Jan 22
- Offers
- Tue, Mar 30
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Check that your address is inside the zone — zones change, so confirm it before you sign a lease.
- 2Apply during the kindergarten application, even with a zoned seat.
- 3Rank this school along with any others you'd take, in true preference order.
Open houses and tours
We haven’t seen open-house dates for this school yet.
From the MySchools admissions calendar, checked weekly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Wave Preparatory Elementary School a good school?
- On Motley, Wave Preparatory Elementary School earns an overall rating of 87/100 — the average of the school's New York State ELA and math proficiency, grades 3–8, shown out of 100. Its state test results run above the District 27 average.
- What grades does Wave Preparatory Elementary School serve?
- Wave Preparatory Elementary School serves grades Pre-K to 5.
- How do students get into Wave Preparatory Elementary School?
- Wave Preparatory Elementary School admits by zone — children who live in its attendance zone get a guaranteed seat.
- Is Wave Preparatory Elementary School public, charter, or private?
- Wave Preparatory Elementary School is a public school in NYC Community School District 27.
- What neighborhood is Wave Preparatory Elementary School in?
- Wave Preparatory Elementary School is in Far Rockaway-Bayswater, Queens.