Having dealt with a similar situation, I went with repeating algebra. Especially if he will use Jacobs, that's what I would do. I have never regretted the decision, nor has my son. He was "good" at math, but it wasn't his strong suit, but having that extra year of algebra under his belt really helped him understand geometry, and super-duper really helped him score high on his SAT math (though that wasn't the reason we did it). Hope that helps a bit. ~Kathleen

Thanks everyone! I appreciate the welcome back. Margaret in CO, he is really looking forward to the Honors Program. He's actually taking a summer class at Hillsdale beginning next week, and then going on their Italy Western Civilization trip in July. I guess he's pretty excited about Hillsdale :001_smile:.

Hi everyone! I have been gone from the board for nearly a year now, though still homeschooling my youngest son. He graduates at the end of next week--can't believe it!--and will matriculate at Hillsdale College in their honors program late in the summer. I am also just about finished with the 20th C history and literature class I have been teaching online. That has been fun, a lot of work, and challenging because of all the changes that have taken place over the past year. Anyway, it is good to see so many familiar names, and I hope to pay more attention in the future. I do hope to continue teaching some online classes over the next few years. What does everyone else do with their time after finishing homeschooling? It would feel so weird not to teach someone! Blessings,

Thank you for the information, LaJuana! I couldn't resist and called this morning. My son scored a 5 on the English literature exam. He's very happy.

I agree with the above poster. My son did this course in 7th grade, and it was actually pretty light for him at the time. He spent 1/2 to one hour a day on it (and hated every minute of it, I might add--I didn't like it, either).

No, it does not. It only goes through the 90s.

My son and I absolutely loved all the Medieval DVDs by Philip Daileader. He does have some interesting habits, but we got a real kick out of them. We have watched all three of them--early, high, and late middle ages, and I can't recommend them highly enough.

Can you post a link (or the phone number)? I did this last year, but can't seem to find the information. Thanks, and congratulations to your son!

Yes, you should give two full high school credits for finishing Wheelock's.

I agree! Guelzo is awesome. I have several books by him, too, along with TC's The American Mind. We just finished with Gallagher and have yet to see/hear Allit.

The Teaching Company course on United States history might be something for you. It covers all the topics you mentioned in one 84-lecture course (three separate lecturers). We just finished lecture 48, and it has been a wonderful. Unfortunately, it's not on sale right now, but no doubt it will be soon. It's quite popular. Alternatively, there is a set (2 courses together) on sale that covers the American Revolution and the Civil War.The two lecturers are two of the ones in the US history course mentioned above.. I'd hold out for a sale on the whole shebang (you might even call and see if you can get the sale price) because you get more for your $$.

Yes. My son has taken two AP Latin classes with Scholars Online. He was very well prepared for the exam.

I used Johnson's book for high school American history (supplemented with other books and primary sources). You do not need a textbook. Boy, you're going to get "both sides" (and then some) by using both Johnson and Zinn!

You can purchase the solutions manual directly from the publisher for about $45. You have to give proof of homeschooling, but it's easy and they are very nice! The tests cost over $50, but there are tests right in the book, so I'm not sure why you'd need an extra book for that.

This is so funny! One of the reasons my son did not decide on Bethany Gilmore's class was Thoreau. He read a bunch of T. this year in Am lit (yes, he had two literature classes), and the thought of reading more Walden etc. was more than he could bear :). And yes, he is taking SS III this summer. Is your daughter, too? Connor wants to know what her name is so he can look for her.

We dithered, too, Hilary, and my son liked the idea of the blog ;). That wasn't the only thing that drew him to Mrs. Bell's class (even having read Gwen's daughter's review of her lit class :tongue_smilie:), but it was difficult to decide. We corresponded with all three of the teachers for next year, and frankly, the classes all sound good. Also, three of my son's friends will be in Mrs. Bell's lang class next year--and all three independently chose that class out of the three from the descriptions. But I agree with you about Mrs. Inspektor--I was almost sad that he didn't chose her class. She was just so nice!

My son just finished AP English lit with Mrs. Green, and has nothing but good things to say about both the teacher and the class. She is helpful, thorough, knowledgeable, and fair. My son did not want the class to end. He also thought he was very well-prepared for the exam, but also that the class is much more than just preparing for the exam. He's taking AP English lang next year with Mrs. Bell. We read the descriptions of the three choices, and he liked the sound of her class the best.

I have somewhere around a dozen TC courses in a variety of formats (mostly DVD). I have never purchased the transcripts, chiefly because of the cost. The courses themselves are pricey enough even when on sale (which is the only way I purchase them), and I have never felt a need to have the transcript.

I have homeschooled all the way through using Saxon, beginning with Saxon 54 in 3rd grade (when we began, many moons ago, Saxon didn't have their early years program). We went all the way through Advanced Math, and it worked very well for my boys, both in terms of understanding and in SAT scores (if that's important to you).

R & S 8 is the "gold standard" in grammar as far as I'm concerned! (you can skip the writing projects). There isn't much in the way of grammar on the SAT, though. Your daughter would probably get more out of working through a SAT prep book or two than studying more grammar (if you are mostly concerned about that). A good option for the comma problem is Jensen's Punctuation.

I think it's a very good idea to keep a list of both. One of the schools to which my older son applied asked specifically for a list of both the books he read that were assigned, and the ones he chose on his own (during high school).

If you substitute the phrase "opposite of" for the negative sign, maybe it will make sense. So, if the number inside the absolute value sign is a negative number, then the absolute value is the opposite of that negative number (in other words, a positive number). |-3| = -(-3), or 3.

As the mom of a son who just came home from the AP English literature exam, I'd have to say I both agree and disagree with this student. I agree about the history (Euro and US) exams. They can be more slanted to massive amounts of memorization (though I don't think they necessarily have to be). But my son has taken two AP classes, Latin Vergil and the English lit (he'll take two more next year), and neither one was like that at all. In his Vergil class they didn't even do practice exams (though he did some on his own)--they just translated all year. In his English lit, the students did more practice of essays and multiple choice questions, but that was probably only 20% (or less) of the class. Mostly it was reading, analyzing, and writing about literature.

Right! The book I mentioned above is an ISI publication. Sort of like a sister book to Choosing, but focusing on more conservative colleges.

University of Dallas, Hillsdale, Grove City, Gutenberg, New St. Andrews, Patrick Henry, to name just a few. A good resource is All American Colleges: Top Schools for Conservatives, Old-Fashioned Liberals, and People of Faith.