There’s a brand new rung on the ever-expanding ladder spanning birth-to-the-Ivy-Leagues. A social worker from Bayside, Queens, has started a school aimed at children as young as two months. Lori Barrett runs a pair of Thinkertots locations under the assumption that if you provide children an early focus on creative education, it will “help you lay the foundation for their later success.” Classes like MusicSmart, ArtSmart and the ambiguous SuperSmart, use basic instruction that promises to do everything from improve attention span to eliminate shyness. Whether this is true or not, it’s a perfect opportunity for parents of three-year-olds to pawn their kids off on someone else in the name of education. And, if Barrett’s claims turn out to be valid, parents will reward their children with the ability to attend that well-regarded private elementary school, thus giving them a much needed leg up when applying to a top-notch middle school. Or, they could let them watch Sesame Street and play with blocks like the rest of us did.

