Can you help me think this through.....new goals needed for dd

[8filltheheart]

Yesterday we got answers that put a lot of seemingly unrelated illnesses into a clearer picture. Our 10th grader had what I thought was a rough yr of lots of illnesses and extreme fatigue. Bc she has been so tired, she also hasn't been coping with stress well. Where last yr she enjoyed everything she was doing, by the middle of this yr, she was having a hard time getting everything done, got way far behind in some subjects, and started talking about dropping Latin. (For my language loving dd, that is huge.)

 

Unfortunately, the answer that puts all of her health issues in perspective is Lupus. Her older brother has Lupus, so I feel incredibly stupid for not putting the pieces together earlier. When she was so sick these last few weeks, he called every day to check on her and he kept saying, "mom, I really don't think she has the flu. I think it is Lupus. It sounds just like I felt." Even then, it didn't really sink in bc his manifestations of the illness are just so different from hers. But the blood work yesterday is definitely pointing int that direction and I spent last night reading a lot of different sites and all of her seemingly disconnected health issues over the past yr all form a single pile right under that heading. It wasn't just an ulcer. She isn't just fatigued. She doesn't just have Hoshimoto's......and so goes the list including all the numerous fevers (I thought viruses) throughout the yr.

 

So, now we are rethinking everything going forward. We have decided that going to school 28 hrs away is probably not the best idea. We want to reduce her school load next yr down to the core she loves and minimize everything else. And that is where I am not sure what we should do. If I give her credit for some of the classes from 8th grade (which were definitely on par with high school work) we could have even more latitude.

 

By the end of this summer finishing 10th) she will have completed

 

math through pre-cal

 

History-- 1 semester of Western Civ, 2 semesters of Russian culture and history, 2 semesters worth of communism in the 20th century

 

Science--(in 8th ecology), chemistry, physics

 

Lit---she was reading Dante and Milton in 8th grade, so this is way beyond what we need to worry about

 

Latin 4

 

Russian and French--- these are the only 2 subjects I know for sure she wants to continue at full steam, so these we won't be changing.

 

We are now looking seriously at her living at home and attending the local university. She already exceeds their admission requirements in every category except they require 3 yrs of social science, so she is lacking 1 semester.

 

Our plans for next yr had included

DE in cal,

linguistics,

American history,

American gov't, Econ,

Lit

Russian,

French,

and at the beginning of this yr she had planned on Latin through high school, but by the end of this yr she was so tired, she said she would drop Latin for next yr.

 

Then for 12th she was going to swap out history for biology.

 

Now I don't think DE is a good option. If she is anywhere near as sick in the fall as we have been coping with this spring, DE will just be a huge unnecessary stressor. I don't want her panicking over due dates on top of how sick she has been. (She was so sick these past 3 weeks that for 2 weeks she couldn't even sit up by herself.)

 

The local university will give credit for cal via CLEP (she stresses too much and refuses to take any APs).

 

So given that she will now most likely major in Russian (the local university has a Russian major, but no linguistics), I'm completely at a loss for moving forward. Without even the possibility of any linguistics courses, I'm not sure she should put energy into that. She could drop math and science completely and meet their admission requirements and keep Latin. Math is her easiest subject, so we could try to figure out some way for her to do it at home and Clep out of cal, but she could Clep out of math for a Russian major with pre-cal. For Russian she will have to have 1 math and 3 sciences or 2 maths (and 2 pre-cal semesters count) and 2 sciences. The rest of the gen Ed courses are histories and lit (both subjects she really enjoys).

 

Any objective opinions on what to keep and what to cut. If we cut back on science, history, and math, she could keep Latin which is another subject she enjoys but was going to get cut due to lack of energy.

[Hoggirl]

I am sorry about your dd's diagnosis.

 

As a point of clarification, is the goal to definitely keep her at home for the next two years? Or would you consider having next year be her last year before F/T enrollment at the local university? I would kind of think that you might want a plan A, plan B, and perhaps even a plan C depending on her health moving forward.

 

I think I would have her cut back on the actual homeschool science and math courses but have her work toward Clepping courses in those two areas where the local U will give her credit. Maybe history, too, but I might be inclined to hold off on that since you say that is an area she enjoys. If she knows for certain that Russian is going to be the major, I am not sure I would carry on with more math/science if she does not really need it and can CLEP out of it. I would get a degree plan and determine what courses she can Clep. Then I would work backwards based on whether you want her to stay home completely for both 11th and 12th grade and determine how many you could knock out per year while she continues her French, Russian, Lit, and potentially Latin at home. I'm not certain what to do about the remaing semester of social science that she needs for admission to the uni, however. Could she potentially do some sort of hybrid between schoolwork culminating in a Clep exam- perhaps for American history? Is there a Government Clep?

 

I'm not sure these rambling thoughts are very helpful. I haven't consumed much coffee yet. Overall, I would say to continue working on those subjects she truly loves at home but strive to knock out as many gen eds as she can via Clep.

[8filltheheart]

Academically, she could definitely manage to graduate early and attend there full-time.  She and I did briefly talk about that yesterday as a possible option.  The school accepts a lot of CLEP tests and she can also take placement exams for foreign language.  If we graduated her at the end of next yr, she would probably place into 300 level Russian.  I know the physics dept was wide open to ds independent studying physics, so I am hoping the Russian dept is similar.  

 

I guess one of the first things we need to do is actually make an appt to meet with someone in the Russian dept.  

[TechWife]

 

 

I guess one of the first things we need to do is actually make an appt to meet with someone in the Russian dept.  

 

If you want to do this to find out more about the department and how flexible they are with courses required for the major and what opportunities there are for independent study, this is a good idea.

 

However, do not go in there and disclose her health problems. Illness and disability is a different ballgame at the university level. She will need to work with the university disability services department if she needs accommodations due to her illness. Universities are under no obligation to offer any particular set of accommodations - they are required to offer "reasonable" accommodations and each university gets to decide what is reasonable. They are most certainly never required to alter degree requirements. 

 

Additionally, keep in mind that if she studies another language, she will most likely need to study abroad for at least one semester, so ask about that as well. 

 

Finally, try not to get carried away with planning too far into the future. She is still young and as she embarks on her university education her interests and goals may change. Lupus is so unpredictable, as you know, so be sure not to pressure her (or allow the school to pressure her) into carrying more classes than she can handle. Pay attention to balancing the harder classes with the easier classes, too. There's nothing special about graduating in four years, six years or even ten years. Slow & steady often does win the race when it comes to education. 

[Carol in Cal.]

Are you sure it's not mono?  Because although that is extremely debilitating, it IS curable, not like lupus.  And, deep, continuous rest for much longer than you think you need it is the key to that cure.  In which case I would not even consider university enrollment, but figure out a way to report her coursework without specific timing on it and give her almost nothing to do for one semester at least.

[BlsdMama]

When you say no linguistics - you mean linguistics as a major, correct?  I assume they have the Russian language?

 

If so, couldn't you operate on a first things first basis?

 

For example: Make solid plans to get through 11th and 12th grade - Maybe next year she just does everything at home and if lupus is under control then DE next year with the Russian department and taking the language?

 

Then she could always go to the local U until she has 60 credits.  Then, depending on how her body is handling life and stress, she could look at transferring?  Would it be better to look at this in chunks rather than the whole picture maybe?

[elegantlion]

((((8)))) Many hugs to you both. 

 

Could you do a linguistics class at home? 

 

I'm doing one this summer, the two books we are using are Language: Introductory Readings and The English Language: An Owner's Manual. 

[8filltheheart]

Thanks for the responses. To answer a few questions, no it is definitely not mono. As a matter of fact, I am now questioning a mono diagnosis she received a couple of yrs ago. She was diagnosed with mono, Hoshimoto's, and acid reflux all within weeks of each other. Looking back over time, all of these have been brewing together for a couple of yrs.

 

The local university does not offer a single undergrad linguistics course. It has a medical school and the medical school offers clinical linguistics, but that is it. I purchased 4 TC linguistics courses during the recent Audible sale, but I am not sure whether or not to put any time into them or not. There is not a linguistics program at any university in state.

 

Her goal in meeting with the Russian dept would be to understand how they would work with her entering at her level. She does not want to give up working with her tutor until she graduates bc she enjoys working with her so much.

 

Transferring might be an option down the road. But, unless she got an amazing transfer scholarship, it will probably be unlikely bc it would have to be private or OOS.

 

She just told me she wants to drop Latin for sure. She is supposed to take the 2 in a couple of weeks and then she just wants to stop.

 

So I guess what I really need to decide is if I just have her take the Clep for pre-cal and then stop math. (She should definitely get the score required to place out of the 2 required pre-cal classes.) she could take that Clep later this summer when she is feeling better.

 

She could do American history and take that Clep. (Ds took that Clep last yr and scored very high.)

 

Bio or no bio? Gov't? Econ? Sigh....I don't even really care.

[MBM]

Lupus can be really difficult to diagnose. I'm sorry to hear she has it. ((((( )))))

 

Keeping her closer to home, a lighter load and meeting with professors all sound like a prudent plan. ETA Keeping her stress down is key so maybe just do the minimum?

 

[Lawyer&Mom]

If the university has no linguistics, I think it would be a valuable high school elective for a future Russian major. Or you know, just read an intro textbook for fun.

[8filltheheart]

Lupus can be really difficult to diagnose. I'm sorry to hear she has it. ((((( )))))

 

Keeping her closer to home, a lighter load and meeting with professors all sound like a prudent plan. ETA Keeping her stress down is key so maybe just do the minimum?

When her brother was diagnosed, it was very obvious. He had severe arthritis (he couldn't even turn on the shower by himself), he lost so much weight he looked like a walking skeleton, and he had the classic butterfly rash, all combined with the high SED rate, ANA, fevers, extreme fatigue.

 

Dd's symptoms have been different, but actually very similar when I step back and look the big picture.

 

Stress is a big thing. I definitely want her to relax and enjoy her last 2 yrs of high school.

[swimmermom3]

:grouphug: I am really sorry.

 

You don't care and it's overwhelming to sort through all the potential options because none of those things are as important right now as getting your daughter feeling better and for you, Mom, to sit with what the diagnosis means for this child, for your family, and for you.

 

Can you set this decision process aside for a week or two to adjust emotionally. I really hope I am saying this right and that it doesn't sound patronizing. That's not at all what I mean. Just give yourself space to breath. You have a diagnosis. Those usually involve a plan. Start there.

 

You have seven classes lined up and a daughter who is both ill and ahead of most high schoolers in her classes. Can't you scale that back to 3-4 classes she really enjoys? Go deeper when she is up to it. Linguistics could be a "breather" class that she can do in bits a pieces when she is not feeling well, but needs the satisfaction of "moving ahead." I don't know how far she is into her study of linguistics, but if she is at the beginning, then she can do something like Crystal's The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. It's interesting (at least to me) and can be done in bits and pieces. Build a basic, simple, flexible plan. Worry about the testing when you see how she does with your first plan.

 

Maybe I am being dense and need more coffee, but I think it would be hard to make complex educational decisions right at this moment. But then we both know you are made of sterner stuff than I am.

[8filltheheart]

LOL, Lisa,  what I really want to do is cop out and have someone else make the decisions.   The list of classes is what she and I had planned before she got so sick.  French and Russian are the only classes I can say she will be doing next year.

 

As far as waiting, this keeps me from thinking about it.  :(  Did you know that if a sibling has Lupus, the likelihood of having Lupus is 20%.  With 2 having it?????  I just really don't want to think about it.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

[swimmermom3]

It makes perfect sense to want to hand the decision-making off to someone else and it's also understandable that the planning is a distraction. So make your plan and hold it loosely; you've done this long enough to know that you will probably be teaching and guiding your dd more from a place of deep intuition and faith than any plan. As to the risk percentages, honey, I don't even know what to say, but to send more :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: .  May strength, courage, and peace of mind be yours and well-being to your daughter.

[elegantlion]

:grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug:

[Teachin'Mine]

Praying for both of you.   :grouphug:

[Junie]

 

By the end of this summer finishing 10th) she will have completed

 

math through pre-cal

 

History-- 1 semester of Western Civ, 2 semesters of Russian culture and history, 2 semesters worth of communism in the 20th century

 

Science--(in 8th ecology), chemistry, physics

 

Lit---she was reading Dante and Milton in 8th grade, so this is way beyond what we need to worry about

 

Latin 4

 

Russian and French--- these are the only 2 subjects I know for sure she wants to continue at full steam, so these we won't be changing.

 

We are now looking seriously at her living at home and attending the local university. She already exceeds their admission requirements in every category except they require 3 yrs of social science, so she is lacking 1 semester.

 

Our plans for next yr had included

DE in cal,

linguistics,

American history,

American gov't, Econ,

Lit

Russian,

French,

and at the beginning of this yr she had planned on Latin through high school, but by the end of this yr she was so tired, she said she would drop Latin for next yr.

 

 

 

Here are my suggestions:

 

11th grade

 

prepare for Calculus Clep at a relaxed pace (i.e. only on days she feels really well)

linguistics

American History or Economics/Governent

some kind of relaxed Lit

Russian

French

Biology at half-pace -- perhaps she could do a human biology;  this will also give her an understanding of how lupus will affect her

[Junie]

Dear 8,

 

The last post was the "practical/do something to forget about it" post.  This is the "I am so sorry" post.   :grouphug:  :grouphug:  Hugs for you and your dd.

 

I've been fighting a chronic illness for the last 8 years.  Not the same as lupus, but in the same autoimmune family.  I hope that they are able to find a treatment (quickly) that will help with the symptoms.  I guess the best advice regarding homeschool would be to let her work at her own pace, but don't let her give up.  It sounds like you've already btdt.  Sorry.   :crying:

 

Junie

[BlsdMama]

I've been thinking on this and I've constructed a plan.

 

So, you relax, enjoy this year. We can adopt her, she can attend our state university (with both Russian and Linguistics) for in state tuition. Our state u was VERY generous to Ana as a homeschooled kiddo and she's majoring in Psych and Russian so they'd be able to co-study and commute together, so no dorm or food or boarding fees either. ;) And you'd have to visit often. I'd make coffee, it's what I'm good at. ;)

 

You like it, yes?

[wapiti]

I'm so sorry your family is dealing with this - I wish I had some suggestions.

 

One of mine has some new-ish immune/autoimmune issues and we are in uncharted medical territory.  I just got back his latest standardized test scores, which showed no growth in the past year and a little backsliding (it helps that he was working far ahead).  I am daunted by what I just heard about the output requirements at his next grade level, though it's nice to have the possibility of homeschooling in my back pocket if needed.

 

:grouphug:  I'll add in a prayer for your dd when I get around to yet another novena  :tongue_smilie:

[8filltheheart]

I've been thinking on this and I've constructed a plan.

 

So, you relax, enjoy this year. We can adopt her, she can attend our state university (with both Russian and Linguistics) for in state tuition. Our state u was VERY generous to Ana as a homeschooled kiddo and she's majoring in Psych and Russian so they'd be able to co-study and commute together, so no dorm or food or boarding fees either. ;) And you'd have to visit often. I'd make coffee, it's what I'm good at. ;)

 

You like it, yes?

Your sweet.  Thank you.  This one is a complete and total keeper.    :)

 

Seriously, thank you for thinking about us.

[katilac]

Another idea to add to the mix: what about adding another year to high school? 

 

The first year of a dx is tough, and autoimmune disorders are notoriously difficult to pin down and treat (which you already know, I realize). It may take some time to figure out what treatments help and what triggers flare ups. 

 

If she is open to the idea of another possible year in high school, then the stress of what to take each semester is that much less. 

 

It would also make dual enrollment a much stronger possibility. She can start with one class when her health permits, maybe next spring. Yes, she then has outside commitments to deal with, but also the luxury of rearranging the rest of her schedule as she adjusts. If it goes well, she can add more classes. 

 

To me, that seems easier and more manageable than diving straight into full-time college, particularly a year early. Even if you decide against graduating her early, a senior year at home with 3 DE classes isn't that different from starting full-time college at home, and it's much more flexible. 

 

I think this strategy might keep more doors open for her in the long run, while still being lower stress. 

 

Hugs to you and dd. 

 

[8filltheheart]

I'm so sorry your family is dealing with this - I wish I had some suggestions.

 

One of mine has some new-ish immune/autoimmune issues and we are in uncharted medical territory.  I just got back his latest standardized test scores, which showed no growth in the past year and a little backsliding (it helps that he was working far ahead).  I am daunted by what I just heard about the output requirements at his next grade level, though it's nice to have the possibility of homeschooling in my back pocket if needed.

 

:grouphug:  I'll add in a prayer for your dd when I get around to yet another novena  :tongue_smilie:

 

Thank you for the prayers.

 

And, yes, her muddled thinking is concerning me.  She is supposed to take the Latin subject test in 2 weeks.  Based on her performance before she just got so sick, a mid 700 score should have been realistic.  I'm not so sure right now.   I don't know if this is going to be short term or maybe longer??   :(

[MBM]

Another idea to add to the mix: what about adding another year to high school? 

 

 

In some countries in Europe it's fine for teens to take more time to finish, and if they fail a course, they can take it again, according to my Italian prof. I don't like how we do things here in the US. Kids feel too much pressure sometimes.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

Thank you for the prayers.

 

And, yes, her muddled thinking is concerning me.  She is supposed to take the Latin subject test in 2 weeks.  Based on her performance before she just got so sick, a mid 700 score should have been realistic.  I'm not so sure right now.   I don't know if this is going to be short term or maybe longer??   :(

 

Not the same scenario, but dd gets confusional migraines. The muddled thinking can last days....  It's so scary not knowing if and when it will get better... 

 

:grouphug: :grouphug:     Thinking of you...

[RootAnn]

he can attend our state university (with both Russian and Linguistics) for in state tuition. Our state u was VERY generous to Ana as a homeschooled kiddo and she's majoring in Psych and Russian so they'd be able to co-study and commute together, so no dorm or food or boarding fees either. ;) And you'd have to visit often. I'd make coffee, it's what I'm good at. ;)

 

You like it, yes?

 

This is so sweet. I just love our (online) homeschool community here.

 

:grouphug:  Hugs to you & your daughter, Heart.

[Lori D.]

:grouphug:  No advice; just adding love and support.  :grouphug:

[StillStanding]

Praying for you.

[swimmermom3]

A couple of points for clarification:

 

1. The revised plan would have your dd (who would chronologically be an 11th grader) enter the local university this fall as a college freshman, not a DE student?

 

2. In order to enter the university this fall as a college freshman, she will need one semester of a social science?  Economics  or American government could be covered this summer, depending on how she feels. I know more about how you could do econ over the summer than I do American government, but you probably already have resources on hand for those. You can keep it simple and check it off the admissions list.

 

3. However, given your daughter's health currently, you are not sure if DE is a good plan? Okay, that makes complete sense. So you could still do step 2 and keep your options open in the fall or leave those two courses for a later date.

 

4. In the fall, you could start with just the Russian and the French courses as those are her highest priority. Remind me please, will those be with a tutor?  I am anticipating that if she is mentally and physically fatigued, a narrower scope of focus with two classes may be helpful. If two language classes prove to be overwhelming, then perhaps work on one language with one of the other planned classes.

 

*You will be off of any type of standard academic pacing. The advantage could be feeling as though she is making progress more routinely and spreading out the CLEP exams. For example, working with just two classes, a year of Russian might be done in 6 months, but the economics class would be done in three months.  If she doesn't do both languages at one time, one day or afternoon a week could be designated for language practices so she keeps in practice.

 

I don't know advanced you need the linguistics class to be, but you could keep that in your back pocket. For Fine Arts here, it is spread out over a couple of years and intertwined in a couple of subjects. The units are short and while they do build on each other, a quick review is all that's needed even if we haven't touched it in several months. I think you could do that with the linguistics. If she is having a really good time and feels more energetic, then she could work on the linguistics and she has three classes. If her energy drops, then she can set the linguistics aside.

 

My concern in trying to do more than 3 classes at a time would be both focus and the fact that if there is a bad time, a school year may take longer than a year. By doing just a couple at a time, she is more consistently finishing a course and moving closer to her goal. The way my brain works, this would be more motivating, but that is just me.

 

If you are her primary teacher, then you have fewer subjects to deal with because I know there are other children to teach as well.

 

I do like the idea of "balancing" her class load as someone mentioned upstream, an easier class combined with a more difficult one.

 

Just a couple of thoughts, fwiw.

 

 

[swimmermom3]

A couple of points for clarification:

 

1. The revised plan would have your dd (who would chronologically be an 11th grader) enter the local university this fall as a college freshman, not a DE student?

 

2. In order to enter the university this fall as a college freshman, she will need one semester of a social science?  Economics  or American government could be covered this summer, depending on how she feels. I know more about how you could do econ over the summer than I do American government, but you probably already have resources on hand for those. You can keep it simple and check it off the admissions list.

 

3. However, given your daughter's health currently, you are not sure if DE is a good plan? Okay, that makes complete sense. So you could still do step 2 and keep your options open in the fall or leave those two courses for a later date.

 

4. In the fall, you could start with just the Russian and the French courses as those are her highest priority. Remind me please, will those be with a tutor?  I am anticipating that if she is mentally and physically fatigued, a narrower scope of focus with two classes may be helpful. If two language classes prove to be overwhelming, then perhaps work on one language with one of the other planned classes.

 

*You will be off of any type of standard academic pacing. The advantage could be feeling as though she is making progress more routinely and spreading out the CLEP exams. For example, working with just two classes, a year of Russian might be done in 6 months, but the economics class would be done in three months.  If she doesn't do both languages at one time, one day or afternoon a week could be designated for language practices so she keeps in practice.

 

I don't know advanced you need the linguistics class to be, but you could keep that in your back pocket. For Fine Arts here, it is spread out over a couple of years and intertwined in a couple of subjects. The units are short and while they do build on each other, a quick review is all that's needed even if we haven't touched it in several months. I think you could do that with the linguistics. If she is having a really good time and feels more energetic, then she could work on the linguistics and she has three classes. If her energy drops, then she can set the linguistics aside.

 

My concern in trying to do more than 3 classes at a time would be both focus and the fact that if there is a bad time, a school year may take longer than a year. By doing just a couple at a time, she is more consistently finishing a course and moving closer to her goal. The way my brain works, this would be more motivating, but that is just me.

 

If you are her primary teacher, then you have fewer subjects to deal with because I know there are other children to teach as well.

 

I do like the idea of "balancing" her class load as someone mentioned upstream, an easier class combined with a more difficult one.

 

Just a couple of thoughts, fwiw.

 

I started off in the right direction, but got derailed. Everything hinges on if you are counting her as a college student or a high school student. Sorry about that.

 

 

[8filltheheart]

I started off in the right direction, but got derailed. Everything hinges on if you are counting her as a college student or a high school student. Sorry about that.

 

 

I think my response to Cynthia made things confusing.  DE is not even an option for next yr, fall for sure anyway.  I do not want her to be stressed about anything.  The early graduation and full-time was if we let her enroll full-time for what would be her sr yr.   That would only be if she is healthy and that was just a brief conversation she and I had, not at all serious.

[Elise]

8, I’ve been thinking about you and your daughter since I read this.  I am so sorry to hear of her illness. :grouphug:   Our daughter became very sick last August and was diagnosed with a chronic illness in January.  She is still very sick, but I think we are starting to come to terms with what this means for our family.  I think your daughter and mine are the same age and share similar interests—in fact, I probably could have written your post if you just switch out Japanese for French.  (I bet I even bought the same Teaching Co. linguistics courses for next year!)

 

I just wanted you to know that you’re not alone.  I’m having trouble planning too.  I think for me planning is a way of trying to make sense out of all this uncertainty.   It makes me feel better, but truth be told, so far this journey is requiring more flexibility than foresight!  

 

 

I wanted to encourage you—she might surprise you with what she is able to accomplish once her symptoms are under better control.   Despite being ill, our daughter has been able to take dual enrollment classes this past year.  She isn’t taking as many classes as we had originally planned, but she is doing well.  She’s currently taking a summer school class in order to spread things out a little--she really can't do more than one or two at once.  I was worried that it would be too much, and we told her that she could drop if she needs to, but so far the experience has been good.  She really looks forward to getting out of the house and feeling “normal†for a little while, and her success gives her hope for what she might be able to do in the future.  (Hope for the future is a very, very good thing for a chronically ill teen!)  We’ve been able to structure her days in order to make these things possible, and I am so thankful for that flexibility.  Basically we are trying to keep as many doors open for her as possible with close to zero stress (lofty goal, hah!).  

 

 

Another thing we’re looking into is online dual enrollment offerings for the fall.  So far, I’ve found several online classes that might be more doable for her (being physically present is sometimes a challenge.)  I was just looking at the list yesterday, and they are offering online English Comp, DiffEQ, and even online basic Biology for example.  These are tempting!

 

 

Oh, one thought on math: our local uni offers credit for Pre-Cal based on the COMPASS score—might yours?  That would be one way to earn some credit without paying for the CLEP.  Additionally, your dd would already have the testing done in case she is interested in doing Calculus there later.

 

 

Please know that I am thinking of you both and praying that she feels better soon!  This diagnosis is a lot to take in.  Don't feel like you have to have everything figured out right away. :grouphug: 

[swimmermom3]

 

8, I’ve been thinking about you and your daughter since I read this.  I am so sorry to hear of her illness. :grouphug:   Our daughter became very sick last August and was diagnosed with a chronic illness in January.  She is still very sick, but I think we are starting to come to terms with what this means for our family.  I think your daughter and mine are the same age and share similar interests—in fact, I probably could have written your post if you just switch out Japanese for French.  (I bet I even bought the same Teaching Co. linguistics courses for next year!)

 

I just wanted you to know that you’re not alone.  I’m having trouble planning too.  I think for me planning is a way of trying to make sense out of all this uncertainty.   It makes me feel better, but truth be told, so far this journey is requiring more flexibility than foresight!  

 

 

I wanted to encourage you—she might surprise you with what she is able to accomplish once her symptoms are under better control.   Despite being ill, our daughter has been able to take dual enrollment classes this past year.  She isn’t taking as many classes as we had originally planned, but she is doing well.  She’s currently taking a summer school class in order to spread things out a little--she really can't do more than one or two at once.  I was worried that it would be too much, and we told her that she could drop if she needs to, but so far the experience has been good.  She really looks forward to getting out of the house and feeling “normal†for a little while, and her success gives her hope for what she might be able to do in the future.  (Hope for the future is a very, very good thing for a chronically ill teen!)  We’ve been able to structure her days in order to make these things possible, and I am so thankful for that flexibility.  Basically we are trying to keep as many doors open for her as possible with close to zero stress (lofty goal, hah!).  

 

 

Another thing we’re looking into is online dual enrollment offerings for the fall.  So far, I’ve found several online classes that might be more doable for her (being physically present is sometimes a challenge.)  I was just looking at the list yesterday, and they are offering online English Comp, DiffEQ, and even online basic Biology for example.  These are tempting!

 

 

Oh, one thought on math: our local uni offers credit for Pre-Cal based on the COMPASS score—might yours?  That would be one way to earn some credit without paying for the CLEP.  Additionally, your dd would already have the testing done in case she is interested in doing Calculus there later.

 

 

Please know that I am thinking of you both and praying that she feels better soon!  This diagnosis is a lot to take in.  Don't feel like you have to have everything figured out right away. :grouphug: 

 

 

:grouphug: Best wishes to you and your dd as well.

 

 

[MaeFlowers]

I'm sorry to hear about your daughter. I'm not an expert on Lupus but I understand exhaustion and being too ill to function.

Like others said, less is more. I remember my Dr telling me that I wasn't going to be able to do things full steam like I did the past. I had to switch gears to slow and steady. She is really going to have to learn her limits to maintain optional functioning. (Of course, you probably already know this.)

Is she planning on taking courses primarily online or can she set her own pace? I was thinking that if she was working independently, you might consider switching to a trimester set-up. She could take languages or math across the year but then setup her other courses where she takes one a time for three months or so. I'm completely projecting here, but one course at a time is often easier. It's less stressful for me than juggling multiple things and becoming scattered. If she finds that she is feeling better, she might try two courses the next trimester.

I don't know if that helps any or if it's even possible but I was just thinking it might allow her to keep moving forward without too much stress or pressure.

[swimmermom3]

I think my response to Cynthia made things confusing.  DE is not even an option for next yr, fall for sure anyway.  I do not want her to be stressed about anything.  The early graduation and full-time was if we let her enroll full-time for what would be her sr yr.   That would only be if she is healthy and that was just a brief conversation she and I had, not at all serious.

 

Thanks for the clarification. 

 

In thinking about what Elise posted, maybe you would still want to complete that semester of social science at your dd's earliest convenience, when she feels good enough, in order to have one more option open. Remember, this comes from a woman who has a student that requires Plans A-F every year, you know, just in case.

 

Other options could include Derek Owens for calculus, if it is self-paced online like his other classes, should you both decide that she could use it.  If getting "out" for any type of class is problematic, would you consider auditing one of the PAHS classes? If she took the economics, government, or US history classes, there would be a discussion element, I believe, and Sailor Dude actually did enjoy those. The kids are bright and I think most of them want to be in the classes. Explaining one's viewpoint and defending it, as well as considering and responding to your peers' thoughts has been a pretty good exercise. With auditing, you remove a lot of the AP pressure and could still CLEP at the end if she wanted to.

 

Sailor Dude is doing both government classes through PAHS, but after this year, we've decided we can only do so many AP classes. We'll be doing American history at home, roughly following the new AP framework, but deviating when we feel like it. You could do your favorite resources and the kids could Skype at specific points utilizing one of the opposing viewpoints resources or anything else with debate potential. Just another thought.

 

The year may not look like you envisioned, but I still think it can be done in a way that takes your dd's health needs into consideration and yet still keeps her mentally engaged.

 

[Elise]

I agree about doing fewer things at a time.  That has been really helpful here. Also, video-based courses are a life-saver.  As a practical example, dd planned her own Asian Literature & History course this year based on a college text and Teaching Co. lectures.  She wasn't able to fit in everything she wanted to (sometimes she was too sick to even read), but it was still a great course.  We wrapped that up at Christmas and moved on.  This semester we watched Asian films (I found a syllabus for "Asian History through Film" at MIT).  These were perfect for the many days that she spent in bed or on the sofa. I'm envisioning something similar for Linguistics for next year, but I haven't had time to plan it out yet....

 

Foreign language is her favorite, so that continues year-round: Japanese and Russian.  But last semester, she didn't do math or science.  She's taking math now (summer course), while she doesn't have to do anything else. This kind of arrangement is definitely not what we had planned out in the high school "master plan", but I'm learning that it can still be good. :001_smile:

 

I was going to mention Derek Owens for Calculus, like Lisa.  Dd did that and really liked it, and I am sure it would be great prep for the CLEP.  It's super flexible.

[8filltheheart]

Elise, I'm so sorry your dd is going through this.  It is so difficult watching them suffer.  I know I feel completely helpless.

 

I have read dd all of the responses.  MaeFlowers, your post is what she said she has felt for the last several months....she just can't focus on too many things b/c it is overwhelming.  Things were definitely sliding downward the past few months, I just didn't realize how badly.   She loves the idea of only doing French and Russian daily and doing other subjects on a trimester system.  She thinks that would actually work.  Thank you so much for that suggestion.

 

Thank you, everyone, for all of your responses.  She was feeling a lot better today, so we had a cook-out and all of our kids came. It was so nice to hear joyful noise.  

[Corraleno]

I'm so sorry to hear this.  :sad:

 

The TC linguistics courses are really interesting, and I bet she would really enjoy them. My son loved them, especially McWhorter's, and learned so much. Perhaps she could use them as a semester-long course called Language and Culture, and count it as the additional social studies credit she needs — most anthro departments offer a course like this, and it counts as social science.  McWhorter's book, The Power of Babel, is a fun read and would be a great supplement. Output could primarily be discussion and maybe an essay on a topic that piques her interest. That way she'd have at least one course that would be easy and fun and no pressure (no CLEP to study for), to balance out the math and languages, and it could still count towards the entrance requirements at the local uni if she's feeling well enough to attend for 12th grade.

 

 

 

[Elise]

I'm so sorry to hear this.  :sad:

 

The TC linguistics courses are really interesting, and I bet she would really enjoy them. My son loved them, especially McWhorter's, and learned so much. Perhaps she could use them as a semester-long course called Language and Culture, and count it as the additional social studies credit she needs — most anthro departments offer a course like this, and it counts as social science.  McWhorter's book, The Power of Babel, is a fun read and would be a great supplement. Output could primarily be discussion and maybe an essay on a topic that piques her interest. That way she'd have at least one course that would be easy and fun and no pressure (no CLEP to study for), to balance out the math and languages, and it could still count towards the entrance requirements at the local uni if she's feeling well enough to attend for 12th grade.

 

I love this idea!

[8filltheheart]

I'm so sorry to hear this.  :sad:

 

The TC linguistics courses are really interesting, and I bet she would really enjoy them. My son loved them, especially McWhorter's, and learned so much. Perhaps she could use them as a semester-long course called Language and Culture, and count it as the additional social studies credit she needs — most anthro departments offer a course like this, and it counts as social science.  McWhorter's book, The Power of Babel, is a fun read and would be a great supplement. Output could primarily be discussion and maybe an essay on a topic that piques her interest. That way she'd have at least one course that would be easy and fun and no pressure (no CLEP to study for), to balance out the math and languages, and it could still count towards the entrance requirements at the local uni if she's feeling well enough to attend for 12th grade.

 

I downloaded 4 linguistics courses during the last Audible sale:  Myths, Lies, and 1/2 Truths of Lang Usage, History of English Lang, The Story of Human Lang, and Writing and Civilization: From Ancient Worlds to Modernity.  If I wanted to reduce that list to 1 or 2, do you have a recommendation on how you would narrow that list?

 

 (Part of me is reluctant to pursue the linguistics b/c I think she is going to love it and there is literally not a single linguistics program in our entire state.  That makes it rough.  She would have to push herself to be competitive for scholarships b/c she would have to attend OOS or private.)

 

[maize]

BA in Russian and linguistics for grad school might be an option.

[maize]

I would not try to avoid studying linguistics now just because it might not be a workable undergrad major.

[8filltheheart]

I would not try to avoid studying linguistics now just because it might not be a workable undergrad major.

 

It isn't really an avoidance.  It is more that she is a type A, driven personality.  She is having a hard time adjusting to the idea that she can't do everything.without feeling guilty and like a failure.  She has been battling that particular beast the past 3 months and that was before she got this bad.

[Teachin'Mine]

Are there any state universities other than yours which offer linguistics and have reasonable in-state COA?  Some only require 12 months of living in-state to establish residency.  Maybe there's one with family or friends nearby?  With a light year of academics and concentrating on health, maybe she'd be ready the following year, or even the year after that to make a move.  She could live and work there and still apply as an in-state freshman.  If it's at all a possibility, I'd start with a list of the lowest cost universities for in-state and go from there.

[Corraleno]

 

I downloaded 4 linguistics courses during the last Audible sale:  Myths, Lies, and 1/2 Truths of Lang Usage, History of English Lang, The Story of Human Lang, and Writing and Civilization: From Ancient Worlds to Modernity.  If I wanted to reduce that list to 1 or 2, do you have a recommendation on how you would narrow that list?

 

For a Language & Culture course that would count for Social Studies credit, I would do Story of Human Language + Writing & Civilization, since those both take a cross-cultural approach. For accompanying readings, the following books are all "catalog" type books that can be dipped into and read selectively according to interest (IOW the kind of books that linguistically-oriented kids consider fun bedtime reading!), and you can get used copies for ~$10:

                 Languages of the World: An Introduction

                 The World's Major Languages

                 An Introduction to Languages of the World

                 The World's Writing Systems: A Linguistics Introduction

The next two are fantastic books but very expensive, so worth checking your library for:

                 The World's Writing Systems

                 Cambridge Encyclopedia of the World's Ancient Languages

 

 

The other two TC courses that you have cover the History of English and would themselves make a fun semester-long credit in English. The Adventure of English, Melvyn Bragg's 7-hr documentary on the history of English would be a fun supplement. If you're interested in books on the history of English, I can look through DS's shelves and see what we have; I know he has several in addition to McWhorter's Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue.

 

[Corraleno]

 

I downloaded 4 linguistics courses during the last Audible sale:  Myths, Lies, and 1/2 Truths of Lang Usage, History of English Lang, The Story of Human Lang, and Writing and Civilization: From Ancient Worlds to Modernity.  If I wanted to reduce that list to 1 or 2, do you have a recommendation on how you would narrow that list?

 

 (Part of me is reluctant to pursue the linguistics b/c I think she is going to love it and there is literally not a single linguistics program in our entire state.  That makes it rough.  She would have to push herself to be competitive for scholarships b/c she would have to attend OOS or private.)

 

 

 

 

Are you sure your state flagship doesn't have some sort of "linguistics concentration" even if they don't have a full department? In some colleges, linguistics can be a subset of another department (e.g. at Brown, it used to be part of Cognitive Science), and some don't have a separate department, but do allow students to use courses from related departments to create a major or "area of concentration."

 

Even if that's not possible, I would check the course listings for the departments of English, anthropology, psychology, philosophy, and cognitive science (if there is one) for related courses. She might be able to pull together enough courses from different departments to do a customized minor using courses like Language & Culture, Anthropological Linguistics, Psychology of Language, Language Acquisition, Philosophy of Language, etc.

[8filltheheart]

Are you sure your state flagship doesn't have some sort of "linguistics concentration" even if they don't have a full department? In some colleges, linguistics can be a subset of another department (e.g. at Brown, it used to be part of Cognitive Science), and some don't have a separate department, but do allow students to use courses from related departments to create a major or "area of concentration."

 

Even if that's not possible, I would check the course listings for the departments of English, anthropology, psychology, philosophy, and cognitive science (if there is one) for related courses. She might be able to pull together enough courses from different departments to do a customized minor using courses like Language & Culture, Anthropological Linguistics, Psychology of Language, Language Acquisition, Philosophy of Language, etc.

 

I haven't found anything more than 2 or 3 total linguistics undergrad courses at any of the IS universities.  One university offers 2 in their anthropology dept.  The other courses are 500 level courses in their English dept.  Another university doesn't offer any at the undergrad level but has a clinical linguistics dept in the med school.  Another university offers 3 linguistics courses but no Russian.   I spent hours combing their sites months ago.

 

There is a university that is only 3 hrs away that has a linguistics program and a Russian program, but it is OOS.  It is one that we might be able to pursue to see if b/c there is no IS program if we can get a tuition exchange.  Linguistics is not listed as one of the majors in the exchange.

[Lori D.]

There is a university that is only 3 hrs away that has a linguistics program and a Russian program, but it is OOS.  It is one that we might be able to pursue to see if b/c there is no IS program if we can get a tuition exchange.  Linguistics is not listed as one of the majors in the exchange.

 

Not sure which states you're in/looking at, but maybe one of these will help:

 

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators

State Financial Aid Programs -- click on your state for special grants, scholarships, and loans

Southern Regional Education Board: Academic Common Market -- tuition exchange program (go at in-state rates to out-of-state schools in the program)

[8filltheheart]

Not sure which states you're in/looking at, but maybe one of these will help:

 

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators

State Financial Aid Programs -- click on your state for special grants, scholarships, and loans

Southern Regional Education Board: Academic Common Market -- tuition exchange program (go at in-state rates to out-of-state schools in the program)

Thanks, Lori.  I have explored the top and bottom links in the past.  There are no tuition exchange programs for linguistics.  I will explore the middle one.  I am going to need time to dig through it when I am not surrounded by distractions.