How about ordering from Shutterfly and having the photos mailed to your interested party instead of mailed to you?

It is all a game. What benefit can you get, what do you have to do to get it? The College Board wants to stay in business, so it needs to keep AP tests looking beneficial to students, high schools and colleges. Colleges get more money if they require students to take courses there and don't give credit for AP tests. Yes, some do give credit, but most we have looked at don't. They don't give credit, but do allow students to begin with upper level classes, which may or may not actually help the student. But the student still has to take the same number of credits because the AP tests don't result in credits. The college wins because it gets the money, and it also has some assurance that the student is prepared because he did take an AP class and tested well (as long as we assume that an AP class is higher level work with higher expectations, which while not always, is often true). High schools want good statistics they can advertise. If a high percentage of their students take AP classes, then the school must be high quality, right? (Yeah, I know...but this is what happens around here.) So the school offers a lot of AP classes and pushes students to take them. The classes end up with a number of students who are not prepared for an AP level course, so the instructor has to dumb down the material to match the less prepared students. Now those students can't do well on the AP test because they are not academically ready to be in the class, and the students who want to do well can't get the level of instruction they need. But a high percentage of students take AP classes, and the school looks really good on paper. Students want an edge so they look better to college admissions officers. Taking AP classes and testing well can help them be more competitive when applying to colleges. If they had good AP classes, they did get a better than average education, which is good for them whether or not they get college credit. They may have been challenged instead of bored in class. If AP classes help them get admitted to the college of their choice, then they get that benefit. If they want college credit, they may be out of luck. It all depends on what their goal is. After looking into it, my dc all decided that they didn't want to go the AP route because they didn't like everything being based on one test, and they wanted to get college credit for their effort. They decided it was better for them to take community college courses while in high school. This way they always knew what their grade was (instead of the unknown one-time test) and could get credit as long as they took the courses that were guaranteed to transfer to state and private colleges. Plus they got high school credit at the same time - a year of high school credit for each semester cc course. To them, it was a better investment with more of a guaranteed benefit. But high schools don't like this option because they don't want to lose the top students to cc classes instead of AP classes. They tend to refuse to give permission for ps students to take cc classes. The College Board doesn't like it because students are not paying to take the tests. The cc doesn't seem to care and has welcomed concurrent enrollment students. So it all comes down to what the student has to do to get the benefit he is looking for, and what the school has to do to offer the AP classes and convince students to take them, and what the College Board needs to do to satisfy students, high schools and colleges and convince them that the AP classes are the best option. I am not surprised that the College Board is going to change the tests and thus the course content.

The Tech Museum in San Jose is a lot of fun, especially for your oldest. In San Francisco is Zeum, another hands-on children's museum that is totally different from Exploratorium, another excellent place to visit. At Zeum you can do stop motion movies, green screen music videos, etc. If you want to get outdoors, go to Muir Woods and do some short and easy hikes (some are paved) among the redwoods. Stinson Beach is nearby if you want to play there. Santa Cruz has a fun boardwalk, and nearby Natural Bridges State Park is a nice beach and has great tidepooling if you go at low tide.

What I have seen is that snacks are often used as time fillers so the people in charge don't have to plan an activity for that time period. I mentioned once that the children in a class don't need a snack (my dc included). It was from 8:30 - 10:00 am. These children ate breakfast at home before arriving. I knew the families and they all fed their dc. There was also coffee and snacks from 10:00 - 10:30 for everyone, adults and children. Usually this was donuts and grapes and pretzels. Kids could have waited for that snack time, when parents could decide if their dc needed a snack. Snacks in the class were usually sugary, like donut holes or Kix cereal, sometimes pretzels, etc. Sometimes it was crackers (Cheese Nips, etc.). They also got a drink, usually a juice type drink that was usually mostly corn syrup but contains 10% fruit juice. But honestly, none of the kids needed that snack. They could have waited till 10:00 and snacked with their parents if necessary. When I brought up that point, the teacher said, "Well, what else will we do for that 15 minutes?" The teachers really did plan snack time as a way to keep the kids busy. It was filler. That is a problem. There are better things to do than feed kids who don't need to eat, just because you don't want to read a story aloud or plan a game, or just supervise free play. My dc were early risers and usually finished breakfast by 7:00. They were fine waiting until 11:00 or 12:00 for lunch. They didn't need a snack, especially a sugar filled one, so soon after eating breakfast. There are better ways to fill a child's time than snacking.

You don't need to waste money on a curriculum for preschool. Really. You can do it all on your own. If you really want to use something as a guide, I suggest Before Five In A Row for some fun, literature based ideas. Read, read, then read some more. Read the books your dc like over and over again. Read a variety of books - some with all pictures (and your dd can tell you what is happening), some with more words. Talk about the stories, what is happening in the story, what the character is feeling. I am not talking about analyzing the book, but basic "Is the little girl happy because she got an ice cream?", or "How does the little truck feel?". It will help increase her vocabulary, observations, and inferences. Read for fun. Read fiction and non-fiction. Read books that apply to the current season or holidays. Read about insects and weather. Read about ducks after you fed them at the park, etc. Read books with wonderful illustrations. Just read. Count things around the house, and when your dd is used to one-to-one correspondence (fancy term, but that's what it is), then give her napkins to put onto the table. If you need 4, give her 3, then ask her how many more she needs. If everyone gets 2 cookies for dessert, how many do you need? You can teach basic math skills easily and without pressure by daily conversation like this. Let her match socks, have her build a Lego wall with a pattern, etc. Play games with letters and sounds. My dc identified letter sounds before we ever learned the names of the letters. While in the car, or pushing them on the swing, etc. we played games. "What sound does the word "cat" start with?" Yes, a "c" (hard c) sound. What about dog? This helps her begin to isolate and identify sounds. She doesn't need to know that the letter "c" and "d" make that sound, but if she is understanding, then tell her. Yes, the letter d makes the "d" (quick duh) sound. This really helped my dc learn to read and spell because they could identify beginning and ending sounds, then they learned to match the sound to the letter by playing the same game. We played "Go Fish" with letter flashcards, first with sounds only, then with sounds and letter name. We used the same flashcards to play Memory (turn several cards upside down, choose two, and try to match them. If you get a match, you say the letter sound or letter name, then keep the cards. Whoever has the most matches wins). Start with only 6 or 8 cards, and increase as she learns the letters and sounds. If she wants to write, let her use a white board or chalk on the patio or driveway. Write a letter large and have her trace it. Start with large muscle use instead of a pencil. Let her write numbers and letters in the sandbox when she wants to start writing. Get a beach ball and write the letters of the alphabet on it. Use only lower case, or only upper case, whichever you are working on. Play catch and say the letter sound or name of the letter your hands are covering when you catch it. You can do the same thing with numbers. Write numbers ) 0 - 10 on the ball, and say the numbers your hands are touching when you catch the ball. Then as those skills are learned, add the numbers your hands are touching. You can play simple games like this over and over to teach and review basic math and reading skills. You don't need to use workbooks unless you have a child who loves them. You can plan activities without pressuring your dc. Introduce her to the world around her by taking walks or going to the museum. Again, read. If it's raining, read a book about weather and why it rains. What happens to all that water and how did it get into the sky? Get outside and explore. Catch or order a caterpillar and watch it change into a butterfly or moth. What happened? Why? Do all insects to this? Have fun and enjoy your preschoolers! It is a wonderful, exciting thing to enjoy, experience and explore the world from their perspective. You can wait to buy elementary curriculum until soon before you need it. Let her get older and see what her needs are first.

Be strong and confident. Know what the ps must do and have policies in writing in case you are speaking with a counselor who makes up policies as he goes along. If the ps is allowed to transfer in his 9th grade credits, then be sure to bring in his transcript, course of study, course descriptions, and any other documents the ps may want to see. Don't let the ps counselor speak down to you, but be polite and professional. If the ps can transfer in your ds's 9th grade credits, then firmly expect them to, and provide the needed documentation. It may be that they won't care about your documentation and will require your ds to take their end of course exams to prove he knows the material and will base transferring credits on those test results. In my state, the ps won't accept any hs courses, so if you were here, you would be enrolling your dc in 9th grade where he would repeat the courses again. There is no other option. The ps must enroll the student, but does not have to accept any hs credits. Even a student who should be in 12th grade must start over as a ps 9th grade student. If the ps doesn't transfer the 9th grade hs credits, then the ps will require your ds to repeat those classes in order to graduate and get a diploma. Your ds will be in 9th grade again next year. You won't need to send colleges a copy of his 9th grade transcript because the ps will prepare one for him for grades 9-12. There will only be one high school transcript.

It's adorable! It must have been difficult to cut it up and eat it. You are quite creative at cake decorating.

How do I get them off to take them somewhere to be printed (after I crop them, and so forth)? What do I put the photos on? Yes, okay, a disk -- but what kind? CD? DVD? Either will work. A DVD holds a lot more photos than a CD, but it doesn't really matter. It is just important to back them up. What kind of disk can be added to, with capability of taking stuff off and putting stuff on from time to time? Does the package say CD-R? Or CD - something else? You won't be taking the photos off the CD if you want to save them for future use or as negatives. Just add photos until the CD is full, then store it someplace safe. Another idea is to get an external hard drive and use it for storing your photo 'negatives'. I have mine stored on an external hard drive and on either cds or dvds. If I want extra copies of a few of the photos, should I just put them on the disk say twice, if I want 2 photos? No - having two copies of the photos will just take up space you need for more photos. When you have the photos printed you tell the kiosk (or online ordering software) how many prints of each photo you want. Just put one copy of each photo onto the CD or DVD. Where do I take the photos to be printed from a disk? I want to end up with 4 x 6 real photographs to put in a photo album. The easiest was is to decide where you want them printed, then upload them directly from your computer. I print mostly at Costco. I go online to Costco's Photo site, and follow their directions to select my photos and upload them, tell them how many of each photo, and what size photos I want, then go pick them up at Costco about an hour later. Easy Peasy. Most places that print photos let you upload that way. Shutterfly will let you upload them and then they mail you the photos. It's your choice. Or, you can take your cd of photos to Costco, Sam's, Walgreens, etc. and put it into the photo kiosk computer and tell it how many and what size of each photo you want printed. The big decision is where you want to have them printed. The process is about the same everywhere. Since there are no negatives, do I just save the photos on another disk for posterity? I do have Carbonite, and it looks like (from the green dots on the icons) that they are saved there as well. As I mentioned above, you can save on cds, dvds, or on an external hard drive. There are also online photo storage sites where you can upload your photos.

Some colleges only recognize classes taken in grades 10 - 12, and others don't care at all. It really varies, so the only thing you can do is check with potential colleges (look on the websites) to see what each looks for. Sorry, but there is not a simple answer.

It does seem that each cc can make its own policies regarding hsed students attending and concurrent enrollment. We have been fortunate that our cc is very open to hsed students attending. There are several webpages on the cc's site specifically for concurrent enrollment students. We do have to download a form and our cc requires the student to list 3 or 4 specific courses he wants to take, then a school official has to sign that he approves and gives permission. For a hsed student, we NEVER use the term home schooled. It is always 'private school' because the staff only knows what to do with public school students and private school students. They get confused when people mention hsing, so only use the term private school. Then let your PSP administrator sign it. I suggest you just go into the Administration office and ask for the paperwork for a concurrent enrollment student. Don't even mention hsing. They don't need to know because it is not important. Fill out the paperwork and return it. Just have a 'school' or PSP official sign. We did concurrent enrollment, then when our dc were old enough, they took the CHSPE. This enabled them to have an earlier registration date so they could actually get into the classes they wanted (concurrent enrollment students have a late registration date and classes tend to be full by then) and they could take any courses without concurrent enrollment limitations. As far as the cc is concerned, our dc are just students, not concurrent enrolled. We have to pay for the credits, but it is worth it. You may want to reconsider the CHSPE. Taking and passing the CHSPE does NOT mean your dc are graduated from high school. This is a common misconception. Any student can pass the CHSPE and remain in high school and receive a diploma. Your dc can compete in speech and debate after passing the CHSPE. My dc did, and probably half the students in our debate club had passed the CHSPE because they wanted to take cc courses more conveniently. What your child can't do is receive a diploma or participate in a high school graduation ceremony if he wants to debate, at least with NCFCA and Stoa, and both have rules on the amount of cc classes per semester. If a student wants so leave school after passing the CHSPE, there is a separate form that must be completed. Anyway, the benefits to passing the CHSPE are no work permit needed if your child wants to have a job (and employers appreciate not having to deal with work permits and the limitations it places on hours, etc.) and the student can register at a cc as a regular student by checking the box on the application for having an equivalent to a diploma. The cc never knows the student is still in high school because it doesn't matter. Then the student stays in high school and earns a diploma and never needs to mention the CHSPE again. The CHSPE is an excellent option for hsed students who want to register at a cc. But if you do concurrent enrollment you won't have to pay for the credits, which is really nice. We went the CHSPE route because of not knowing if our dc would be able to get in the classes they wanted or not.

My ds has been looking, too, but we have not found them yet.

The term "wonderful school system" seems to have different meanings, depending on who one speaks with. I have spent years listening to people talk about the wonderful school system, and they have different things they are looking for. Some told me that our area has a wonderful school system because it has money to spend on PE teachers, Art and Music teachers. Some school districts don't have that funding. Well, our district doesn't have it anymore, either. Others base it on high standardized test scores or high state ranking. But when one really looks at the numbers, the scores are really not very high (but may be higher than other schools' scores) and the drop out rate is high, so the interpretation is not always a true picture. Some base it on the number of high schoolers taking AP classes and the number of AP classes offered. A local school offers a lot of AP classes and there are many students taking them - more than should. Students are pushed into taking AP classes and some students are taking 4 per year. It sounds really good, but students have told me that many students in the AP classes are not prepared for the work and the teachers have to go very slowly through the content. Some who have tried to change from an AP class to a regular class have been denied by the counselor, or told they won't be able to go to college if they don't take AP classes. The school is very pushy about it. Many students either don't take the AP test or score low on the tests. So while the actual percentage of students taking AP classes is high, it is not a true picture of what is going on. But people tell me the school system is excellent because of the AP classes and the high number of students taking them. Some say the school system is great because schools have received state Distinguished School awards. It sounds good. But part of the criteria for getting the award is improvement in test scores. A teacher told me that they would give the students the test at the beginning of the school year and to tell the kids to mark answers, any answers, or just make patterns because they are not supposed to know the answers yet anyway. Many of these students didn't speak or read English and the test was in English. Then when they are tested at the end of the year, the test scores improved dramatically. So is the improvement real? No. But it looks good when the sign is in front of the school, and receiving an award must mean the school system is good. Some have told me the school system is wonderful because they really like their dc's teachers, and their dc like school. A woman told me the school system is wonderful and when I asked what made it was so good, she told me it is because she was told that by the real estate agent when she bought her house. She was serious. If someone says it, it must be true. :tongue_smilie: I think some people use the "good school system" as an excuse to accept things happening at the school that they don't like or that are hurting their dc academically. If it is a good school system, then the school must know something they don't, so the fact that they don't like what is happening is just because they are not as experienced as the school. They can choose to ignore things happening at the school because it is a good school. For ex., there can't be much drug use because this is a good school. Does that make any sense? A neighbor told me her ds had not learned anything that year (2nd grade) because he was put into a bilingual class (she was told it was a privilege) and the entire class was taught in Spanish. The theory was that the Spanish speaking children will learn English, but also learn academics in their own language and not fall behind. Half the class was English speaking only, and they were supposed to learn Spanish and somehow learn academics being taught in Spanish. Many students did learn conversational Spanish, but they fell behind academically because instruction was in Spanish, with little teaching in English if there was time. Their standardized test scores were low. The Spanish speaking students did not learn English because English was not taught in class, nor was much content taught in English. It was a failure as a teaching method. But after complaining about it, saying she was sending her ds to tutoring so he would be ready for 3rd grade, she stated that it must be a good program because the school was a wonderful, distinguished award school with a nice principal. She assumed the problem was her not understanding, not the class structure and teaching method. I think people like to believe that their school district is wonderful because it is easier. If they admit it is not, then they have to do something about it, like move, or private school, or hs. If they don't want to do those things or can't do them, it is easier to believe that the school district is wonderful. In their case, ignorance is bliss.

Boil them first, till they are almost completely cooked. Then put them onto the grill and cover with BBQ sauce. They meat falls off the bone and is incredibly tender - and tasty! I learned this at a rib cook-off where I tasted the most wonderful ribs ever.

History (Tog Yr 3) 1 Literature 1785-1900 0.5 Composition 1 0.5 Fine Arts (Tog +Co-op) 0.5 Church History/Bible 0.5 Philosophy 0.5 Government 0.5 Biology 1 Algebra 1 Piano/Guitar 0.5 Latin 1 P.E. 0.5 Traditional Logic 1 0.5 Total credits: 8.5 You know, 8.5 credits in one year, without any cc classes contributing to the number, is a bit high and could be questioned by a college, if that is in the future. Seven credits per year is common, but not more unless there is a summer school or cc class involved. Completing all this would be very time consuming, too. Just because TOG includes it doesn't mean you have to do it all, as valuable as the content is. One idea (and it is certainly not the only way to do it): Combine Literature and Composition into one English 9 course worth 1 credit. History 1 credit Algebra 1 credit Biology 1 credit Latin 1 credit PE .5 credit Logic .5 credit Then consider accumulating hours/course work in Philosophy, Fine Arts, Government and/or music and actually award those credits when the other .5 credit is completed. Award those credits next year or the year after when your dc has a full credit. It would make the transcript look more usual to a college (I assume that is in the picture) because most high school courses for one credit last one year, not a semester one year and a second semester a different year. Your dc will still be completing that coursework, but if you find it is too much, you can drop it or put it off till the summer, or whenever is a better time. You may consider not giving credit to piano/guitar, but list it as extra curricular. If your dc will be majoring in music in college, then absolutely include it on the transcript, but otherwise you have Fine Arts to meet that requirement (many colleges want 1 credit of the same fine art), so the music lessons/performance could be extra curricular, unless you have a requirement for a performance fine art course. Here is something else to consider. While you can award .5 credit in church history/Bible, you don't have to. One thing I have seen is that hsers can award validly earned credit for far more than is necessary. Not everything our dc do needs to be awarded credit. If the credit is needed, then award it. Often there are other courses that will mean more to a college, so list those on the transcript and leave off the Bible credit. Yes, it is an important subject, as is church history, and my dc studied those also, but I didn't have room to award them credit on the transcript without making it overloaded. A college doesn't care if they study those courses, but your dc will still gain from studying them. I hope that makes sense. You have a lot of other courses you can award credit to. If you accumulate credits, then 10th grade could look like (depending on when the other .5 credit is earned): History 1 credit Math 1 credit English 10 1 credit Science 1 credit Latin (or foreign language) 1 credit Fine Arts 1 credit Philosophy 1 credit Then in 11th grade, award the credit for Government.

I also thought of ASL. A friend's ds took ASL for his foreign language because they thought he might have a difficult time memorizing lists of vocabulary, and it was easier for him because of all the movement associated with signing. He loved it and did very well.

I would choose the Communications class because I wouldn't want to take two semesters (of foreign language) to meet the requirement when one semester will do, and the Philosophy class sounds much more difficult than giving a few speeches.

The Pushcart War (one of our favorite books)

I have a ds who used Apologia Physics and also Adv. Physics (his choice to do it because he didn't need another year of lab science). He enjoyed the subject and the texts. The labs used things already around the house, and explanations were good. My dh did do the labs along with ds and ds's friends who also wanted to do Adv. Physics, so he was able to answer questions the boys had and take them deeper when they wondered, "what would happen if we ...?" (Dh was an Engineering and Physics double major, so this was totally fun for him.) My ds also really enjoys theoretical Physics and watched the Teaching Co. dvds on String Theory (I can't remember the exact title). In fact he enjoyed it so much that he watched it twice and has often had conversations with adults about physics topics. Anyway, my ds learned plenty from the Apologia and the Teaching Co. course. My ds is able to have an educated discussion with adults knowledgeable in Physics. It's humorous to sit back and listen to my dh and ds converse because my dh's Physics is very practical (used daily at work) and my ds enjoys theoretical physics, so their discussions are interesting. My ds has not taken Physics in college, and won't because he doesn't need more than a basic science class because he is a Digital Media/Editing major. His friend did take Physics in college and said most of the first level Physics course was a repeat of Apologia, so he was well prepared.

We didn't use any online classes. The local cc cost less, and my dc received college credit as well as high school credit. That option was more cost effective and a better use of my dc's time.

Shutterfly has a lot of options, as does Costco.com (go to the photobook area). It really depends on what you want to do. Do you want an online service that pretty much has prepared pages and you just add your photos? This would be the fastest, but leaves you with the least number of options. It would allow you to quickly get your photos into a printed book and allows you to add journaling. If you like having more control over your scrapbooking, you may want to consider using Photoshop Elements software and preparing your own digital scrapbook pages. Then you can print them and add them to your albums (I print at Costco, but you can print just about anywhere) or you can upload them to someplace like Shutterfly and have them printed into a book.

I would do my best to remain calm and not give the rise that the child is hoping for. That is probably one main reason for the child making the statement in the first place. Responding calmly and not taking the bait can help diffuse the situation (even though I would probably feel very hurt). I would also make a comment along the lines of, "Well, I will do my best to prepare you for the adult world you will be entering so when the time comes for you to move out, you will be ready." Then I would be sure to teach my dc what they need to know to be independent adults, living on their own. Hopefully as the child grows up, the situation will change. If not, I would like my child to be as prepared as possible to be successful.

Minty Iced Tea Make tea - black or green Add a crushed mint leaf Add a wedge of orange Yummy!

I am so glad you and your dh have decided to go to church. I am very grieved at the inappropriate demand/request this pastor has set upon you. There is no way - not one, tiny way - that his prerequisite for returning to church is appropriate or acceptable or Biblical. What he has required is wrong, and I apologize that he has done this to you. You don't own him or this church one cent. Giving and tithing is between the individual/couple and God. Period. God doesn't require payment for loving you and guiding you and saving you. A pastor shouldn't require payment for attending church or for becoming a member, and he certainly has no mandate or authority to ask you to pay 'back dues' for years you were not attending church. You need to find a church that welcomes you as people, and doesn't look at you as a source of income. This pastor's priorities are wrong. Based on the little information you provided, this pastor sounds terribly controlling. I worry about what other unscriptural demands he may place on church members. Please, reconsider your decision. Visit some other churches. Find one that welcomes you, where you can be comfortable and taught and part of a Christian community. Then, you can make a decision to freely give and/or tithe as God leads you instead of essentially being handed a bill to be a part of this particular church. Please, don't fall for this. As others have said, let the the pastor know that his request is completely inappropriate, and you will attend church elsewhere. There is nothing in the Bible to support his actions.

Look into her getting a Government Direct Loan (used to be the Stafford Loan). As a freshman, she can get a loan for up to $5,500. Some of it could be subsidized depending on the school's criteria. If any is subsidized, then interest does not accrue during the time she is in school. Then you can possibly cover the last $1,500 yourselves with your own bank or credit union loan. The value is that the loan will be in her name, not yours, so it won't show up as your debt like a regular loan would, and the interest rate is usually lower than bank loans. Next year she could borrow up to $6,500, and as a junior and senior she can borrow up to $7,500, should she need additional money in future years. She needs to talk to the college about this and they will give her the website to apply. You need to file the FAFSA before she can apply. She will qualify. Your other option is to have her get a bank or credit union student loan and you will have to cosign, making it really your loan, and it will appear as your debt. If she does get a loan that is not subsidized, be sure she tries to pay the interest quarterly if at all possible. It does not have to be paid while she is in school, but it will capitalize and she could end up owing thousands more than she originally borrowed if she doesn't make interest payments. No payments have to be made until she graduates or quits school, though.

The AP website lists suggested texts and guides to use (or at least it used to). I would start there. I know some students who self studied for literature and history AP tests and scored well. I think a student needs to be highly self motivated to do it, though.