My son just heard about this a couple of days ago. It looks cool. Does your kid do it with a team of friends or alone?

Does anyone know what opportunities there are for teens who are already doing game development with Unity, C# and Blender? Are there clubs or competitions? Internships? My son has been doing this for about 6 months and wants to know what his options are.

Do we need to do the last chapter of the book for Chalkdust Algebra 2? I am not a math person, but it looks like at least some of it is either trig or precalc maybe? Here are the topics: Sequences and Series Arithmentic sequences Geometric sequences and series Binomial theorem

What do you think made the difference, if you don't mind me asking?

That's really helpful! How do you know which sections are ok to skip? I am not a math person. I also wouldn't know what a high school student needs to know and what is ok to skip. Would you mind linking to the conversation you had about other sections? That might be helpful to me, too. He has been having some trouble with earlier sections. Not right at first, but it has definitely gotten harder recently. I can tell that some of his frustration does come from making mistakes that he has to fix (he expressed his frustration that dropping a negative sign or making a slight error in calculation throws the whole thing off). I know that this comes with the territory in upper level math and changing curricula won't necessarily fix this. But what I can't tell for sure is whether the mistakes are a result of this book being a poor fit because there is a disconnect between the instruction and the expectations in the exercises or if he is being careless or some combination of both.

We are using Foerster's Algebra 2, and my son is having a hard time. We are in chapter 4, systems of linear equations with three or more variables. We use the Math without Borders lectures. It's hard for me to tell if the problem is with the curriculum or if we just need to keep plugging away. We used Foerster for algebra 1, and it took us 1 1/2 years. He hit a wall about halfway through that book and we had to slow down. He was in 7th grade at the time, so I thought it could just be a maturity issue. We decided to just slow down instead of changing the curriculum. Then we started geometry in January of 8th grade and finished it over the summer before 9th with no problems. Now we are in Algebra 2 with Foerster and again hitting a wall, only earlier than last time. He is a math/science kid who wants to major in engineering or computer programming. He is doing well in his outsourced Biology class and is a good student. I am tempted to switch to Derek Owens, but the price tag is the reason we went with Math without Borders in the first place. How can I know whether changing to DO would help my son? What if we spend the money and it ends up being the same? Has anyone had experience with both who can give me some insight on this? Thank you in advance!

Can I get advice for what to do for extracurricular activities? I'm stumped. My oldest is in 9th grade this year, and we are trying to figure out what to do for him. The only things that interest him enough to really motivate him are learning to program (he has been learning to use Blender and Unity using an online course we found on Udemy) and playing video games. He wanted to do First Robotics, but the local team we were planning to join requires a LOT of hours, most of which are done on the weekends because of the way the club structures things. It is more than we can commit to as a family right now (we have 4 other kids and lots of outside stuff going on). So we ended up encouraging him to sign up for speech and debate. We found a local team that we really like and he joined. They meet on a night of the week that works for us. But he just isn't that into it. He is overwhelmed by how much work it is, I think in part because he just isn't internally motivated to do it. But I also know that this is new for him so it's possible he could push through and enjoy it more as time goes on. I want him to pursue things that interest him so that he is driven to do them. I don't want to force him to do things at this age. But at the same time, I know he is young and still learning what he is interested in. So pushing him to try new things can be beneficial. I also would like for him to try things outside of the world of computers to help him really get a sense of his interests. Our homeschool group has a Yearbook club, too, which he could try out instead.But it's hard to know what will align with his interests. Would love input from people who have BTDT. How much do you let the student decide and how much do you push your student beyond their comfort zone? Also, any ideas about how to account for his interest in coding? He really seems to have an aptitude for it and is doing some really cool stuff on Unity. He isn't a prodigy or anything, but he could end up pursuing a career in computer programming or game design. If we could somehow make this into his extracurricular activity so that we can show colleges what he has done, then that would be good too. But I feel like we can't put on his college applications that all he did was tinker on the computer at home, kwim?

Oh man. I guess I just missed it. Ugh.

Does anyone know whether it's possible to get a discount on Analytical Grammar? Does it go on sale? HSBC only has free shipping and smartpoints currently.

Thank you! These are all good suggestions.

I'm planning to use Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings for 9th grade English Lit and Comp (with Kilgallon and other grammar/composition resources thrown in). How do other people title this class on the transcript? We will be doing the Unit Studies and reading some of the lit selections like the Iliad, Odyssey, Beowulf, Green Knight, and Macbeth (not sure we will read all of those - still working this out). I want to be consistent with the way I title our English classes for all four years. I plan to do an American Lit and Comp year and a British Lit and comp year, so I need to figure out what to call this class so that it fits into the rest of his transcript. It seems like "Ancient lit and comp" doesn't work as a course title because some of the lit is medieval. World Lit doesn't totally work because there aren't enough selections from all over the world and from different time periods. I'd rather not just go with English I, English II, English III, English IV. That seems too generic. Would this be something like English I: Ancient/Medival Lit and Comp? That seems long. This is my first high school student so I'm still figuring this stuff out. What did other people do?

My son used Thinkwell for 6th grade math and really liked it. I'm thinking of using it for prealgebra. Is it enough? The 6th grade level seemed a little light on practice and review. He is good at math but probably will not end up pursuing math/science/engineering as a career. So I don't need rigorous, but I do want to challenge him. Is there an easy way to beef it up a little? My older son used the geometry, and I kind of felt the same way about it (just seemed like it needed more depth). But maybe prealgebra doesn't need to be complicated....

Thank you! I hadn't thought to do EE first. But that makes sense.

Our tentative plan (updated): Bible - Theology 1 (homegrown, using ESV Bible, Christian Beliefs by Wayne Grudem, and not sure what else - Ligonier online lectures maybe? still researching this) Math - Algebra II (Derek Owens) Math without Borders World History - BJU (team teaching through co-op) Science - Abeka Biology with lab (outside class at co-op) English - Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings (so excited about this one!), Kilgallon Paragraphs for High School, and some other grammar resource (haven't chosen this yet) still working this out. Probably Jill Pike syllabus using Teaching the Classics and Windows to the World, but I'm wondering if I'd rather do WttW first semester then Intro to Lit by Excellence in Lit second semester. The latter option might just be too much for my ds this year. Foreign Language - Spanish 1 (co-op) Fine Art - Photography (co-op) He also wants to do Mock Trial and Speech and Debate and Robotics - could be a tough year

I asked a similar question in another post, but I wanted to write a separate post for this question. I am thinking of using EIL Intro to Literature for 9th. But my son still needs some help with sentence structure and style. And he has limited background in lit analysis. What writing component would you recommend adding? Would it help to add Kilgallon Paragraphs for High School and spread out over the whole year? Should I start with Windows to the World first semester and do only some of Intro to Lit the second semester? He is a STEM kid and has a full load and a couple of extra curriculars, so I don't want to overwhelm him.

For my 9th grader this coming year, I was planning to use the Jill Pike Syllabus, which would combine Teaching the Classics with Windows to the World. But I went to the local homeschool convention, and the kind representative at the Excellence in Literature booth recommended using Elegant Essay after Teaching the Classics instead. But my understanding is that Teaching the Classics is actually teacher training rather than aimed at the student, so I'm wondering whether we should use WttW first semester and Elegant Essay second.I definitely want to have him read novels as well. I've also looked at Kilgallon Paragraphs for High School, and I think that my son would really benefit from this. He has done Lost Tools level 1 and is good at invention, but could use help with sentence structure. I'm at a loss for how to put together our 9th grade Lit and Composition class using some combination of these resources. Am I better off watching Teaching the Classics myself this summer, then using WttW and a few novels that we choose ourselves? Or maybe get a guide from Center for Lit to make my life easier? How would I fit Kilgallon in? Any suggestions? One other consideration is that I have a 7th grader who might be able to tag along with Elegant Essay. (My expectations for output would obviously be different than what I expect from my 9th grader.) So it might be nice to use one program for both. But I was thinking of using Lost Tools for him, so I don't have to use Elegant Essay. Another factor is that I have 5 kids, so the less I have to come up with myself the better! ETA: And now I've been looking at Excellence in Literature and I like the looks of it. But I'm not 100% sure he is ready for it. He probably needs more writing instruction than is given in this curriculum. Has anyone added in something like Kilgallon to this? Should we watch Teaching the Classics over the summer together, then start Excellence in Lit this fall?

Has anyone seen the new edition of Teaching the Classics? Can it still be used with the Jill Pike syllabus?

If you have used Teaching the Classics/Windows to the World with Jill Pike's Syllabus, did you feel it was enough literature for 9th grade? It looks like there are only plans for 2 novels and one play (Hamlet). This doesn't seem like enough longer works for this to count as a full year of high school lit and composition. Are there enough shorter works covered? Did anyone add more novels? If you added, how did you schedule them? I'm thinking of adding one or two more novels over the year, but either not requiring writing for them (oral discussion and maybe a quiz only) or only requiring a short response. Would this be too much on top of the work assigned for WttW? It looks like weeks 9-12 are only spent on a literary analysis essay. Would this be a good time to add in a novel? He is a fast reader, but I don't want to overwhelm him in his first year of high school. But I do want to make sure this is rigorous enough for freshman English.

I have the same dream, but alas, that is not my reality either. :001_rolleyes: Local high schools here are actually pretty good, but the kids' schedules are insane. I'd like to actually see my teen and not overwhelm him. He is connected in our PSP and has some outside classes. I did sign him up for one more last night, so he will have 3 outside classes at the PSP and we will outsource the rest online. That will take some of it off my plate at least. I'll just have to help him manage it all, which hopefully will be fine. I think he can handle it. It leaves less money for the youngers, but it will be better this way. Would love to outsource more jr high, but that's probably not in the budget at this point. I do think I will use at least some video based instruction for jr high, which will help. I think I've just been cobbling together too much on my own or using things like MFW that use too many books and feel disjointed to me. Plus some of it is feeling overwhelmed by keeping them on task and having too many transitions. I think I will use some of the curriculum suggestions from this thread to streamline the younger ones next year and it will help.

We are using Thinkwell online right now, which is fine, but maybe not as rigorous as other providers. I've heard Derek Owens is more thorough. We will be switching to something else for Algebra II, but mainly because my son wants a STEM career, so I need to be sure he gets challenging classes in math and science. We waited until we finished Algebra 1 to start geometry, but he has been moving very quickly through geometry. That is one nice thing about using a self-paced class - you can finish it faster. He started in January and will finish early summer (or maybe sooner). He is in 8th grade now. (We spent 1 1/2 years going through Foerster's algebra, in part because we started with Tabletclass and switched in October to Foerster, then he hit a wall around Christmas his 7th grade year, and then we sold our house and moved at the end of that year. Life circumstances meant it went slower than originally planned.) Anyway, if you don't feel like you need uber rigorous geometry, Thinkwell is pretty good. My son enjoys it. Maybe you could start it near the end of Algebra 1 and finish it up concurrently with Algebra 2.

Haha! Yes, it is. I feel your pain. This is the first year I have had all 5 in school and it's so different. But at the same time, it's not, because my younger 3 get off task when I'm not looking and spread toys all. over. the. house. when they should be doing school. It's crazy how fast it happens! :001_rolleyes:

There are, but our co-op/PSP doesn't allow families to also register with charters.

I haven't looked at this - I'll check it out. Thanks! And I think you are right that SL would not help me, especially since I need to combine multiple children. I have always liked the idea of Sonlight, though.