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Kendall

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Posts posted by Kendall

    Document camera What can I do with that?

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Do any of you have experience with document cameras?  Would it help in any of these situations?

     

    Live video chat with grandchild and the book could be under the document camera and I could read to them.

     

    Working through math problems long distance with my nephews either recording a video and sending it or live via zoom or video chat?

     

    Are the inexpensive ones (under 100) going to be too low quality or frustrating to be worth it?

     

    Thanks,

    Kendall 

    Text based vs immersion based foreign language debate (non Latin languages)

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Thank you all so much for this discussion.  So many helpful points from all of you.

    The reason I have had my high schoolers do 2 years of high school Latin and 2 years of American Sign Language is because I suspected that being around a fluent speaker for large chunks of time was the way to get to the point where you could converse and I didn't have that option. With ASL they can and do get to the point that they can converse in the first year and fairly functional (but by no means fluent) in the second year. 

    This child is already functional in ASL and knows as a future nurse that knowing Spanish would be good. I think I need to view this as getting her as much vocabulary/language structure/conversation as I can so that if she does get to the point that she could be around native speakers a lot, she would have a good foundation.

    Her math skills are very strong; I'm going to look into trading math tutoring for conversations with a native speaker. 

    Now to find a good text based program...

     

     

    Text based vs immersion based foreign language debate (non Latin languages)

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    My rising senior announced  1 week before the start of school that she wanted to learn Spanish. I found this fabulous thread which led me to this video

     

    https://www.theulat.com/PROBLEM.HTM

    in which he claims that an immersion based start is best. I would have definitely gone for an intensive text based program and would love to hear both sides of this issue.  Any thoughts? Do you agree with him? 

     

    Thanks in advance,

    Kendall 

     

     

     

    Balanced/accurate writings on Native American history?

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    14 hours ago, Alte Veste Academy said:

    The three I landed on to incorporate Native American history into our American history study are:

    An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States

    Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West

    The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present

    I personally found the first a little drier than the others, but it is a good overview. Nothing beats Bury My Heart for heartbreaking but necessary detail to balance rah-rah Manifest Destiny stuff. The last book is awesome because it quickly goes through 1890 (one chapter!), then moves forward to what is almost never taught. I mean, it didn't get much nicer as time went on, and this teaches how what was done from the "end of the Indian wars" to now has had a profound effect on the current state of native people and land.

     

    Thank you so much. This is exactly what I was looking for!

    Give me your best non fiction and fiction for 1850-present

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    24 minutes ago, Steven said:

    Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler. Be sure to get the new translation of the recently rediscovered original German manuscript. https://www.amazon.com/Darkness-at-Noon-Arthur-Koestler/dp/1501161318/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1CPGZSKEJD2RE&dchild=1&keywords=darkness+at+noon+by+arthur+koestler&qid=1620177694&sprefix=darkness+at+noon%2Caps%2C276&sr=8-1

    Gulag Archepeligo by Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn

    Witness by Whittaker Chambershttps://www.amazon.com/Witness-Cold-Classics-Whittaker-Chambers/dp/162157296X/ref=sr_1_7?dchild=1&keywords=autobiography+w+chambers&qid=1620177988&sr=8-7

    I also second King Leopold's Ghost, but I would pair it with the Joseph Conrad novel, Heart of Darkness. 

    Thank you! Our library has the new translation of Darkness at Noon. I've put the others on hold. I'm excited about my reading summer! 

    Give me your best non fiction and fiction for 1850-present

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    On 5/1/2021 at 6:43 AM, Amy M said:

    I'd highly recommend Fate of Africa by Martin Meredith, if you're wanting world history. It goes through each African country after they get their independence, so it covers about 1950-2000, maybe 2010. Very readable. If you want a novel to go with it, try Cry the Beloved Country by Alan Paton.

    Thank you! Fate of Africa is the kind of book I'm looking for! 

    Give me your best non fiction and fiction for 1850-present

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Thank you so much!!! I just put quite a few on hold and am picking up several of the others tomorrow at the library. I'm looking forward to a few months of history reading for myself as I choose which ones my girls might most appreciate.

     

    4 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

    Man, I wish I liked non-fiction better. I always look at lists like this and think I'd enjoy reading them, and then I just don't 😕 . I prefer my books to be story-driven. 

    Here are a few more story driven non fiction works

    The Hero of the Empire that I mentioned above and the author has written some others

    The Great Halifax Explosion by Bacon

     

    • Like 1

    Give me your best non fiction and fiction for 1850-present

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    I think they have all read Sherlock Holmes, but I'll check. Dickens we did this year.   I'm happy with a range of suggestions!   Non fiction, both biography and more event focused, is my first priority.

     

    I found some novels here that I might try reading myself. I don't know if any of them will be appropriate for high school.

    https://modernmrsdarcy.com/immersive-historical-fiction-books-overlooked-events?utm_source=convertkit&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=📚15+immersive+fiction+books+about+overlooked+historical+events+%2B+a+book+birthday - 5409522

     

    Farrar- great question, why indeed. hmm I should think about this more, but first I want something that is well written and engagaing so that they are interested in it. They will be reading a sweeping history text and I want to zero in on some different events or time periods.  You get more of a feel for what events and life was really like reading biographies or narrative like non fiction or just well written non fiction. 

    I'll try to think of some events/time periods but I'm more concerned with it being engaging and well written than I am in covering certain time periods. 

    For the most part, fiction will be for suggested reading in their free time for my more voracious readers.

     

    Thank you!

    Give me your best non fiction and fiction for 1850-present

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

     

    I am going to have them read Hero of the Empire by Millard. (non fiction about Boer War and Churchill)

    What else is engaging non fiction for anywhere in this time period?

    I have Just Mercy on my next to read list, so I might have them read that.

    Also, fiction that is set in this historical time period?  As opposed to strictly historical fiction.  So, I will have them read Blackout and All Clear by Willis. Time travel, but such a great immersion in what it was like to be in London during the WWII bombing raids.

    Thanks in advance,

    Kendall 

     

     

     

     

     

    Literature for a 9th grader to start mid year

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    I will put in another vote for just letting her read for literature and if you have time, read them yourself and have fun chatting about them with her.

    I do these with my kids at some point in high school. We do lost of more traditional classics as well, but this is a fun set of books and would be a great transition from public school as you are finishing out a year.

    The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins  (early modern example of detective/mystery novel Dickens contemporary)

    Carry On, Jeeves by Wodehouse  (British humor, read a few of the stories more if she enjoys them, but enough to know who Jeeves is)

    Three Men in a Boat - this is free online and she/you could read a few chapters and decide, not necessary before the next one, but funny and is refered to

     

    And then they read 

    To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis (The previous two before this one) A modern novel, time travel but reads more like historical fiction/mystery. Lots of literary and historical allusions.  My kids really enjoy this one and all of the above.

    PSAT Thread for 2020

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Here is a direct link to speculations about 2022

    https://www.compassprep.com/psat-national-merit-class-of-2022/

     

    My daughter is at the highest value our state has had (the first year of the new PSAT I think) and a point higher than it was in the two highest in the last 3 years. So we are watching this with interest, though it seems there aren't as many scholarship opportunities from it as there were 10 years ago.  

    Question about how homeschool sports organizations operate when more than one are available

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I am looking for information about how sports participation is handled in homeschool groups in communities where there is more than one homeschool sports organization. Are you allowed to participate in both for different sports? Are you only allowed to participate in the 2nd group if the 1st doesn't have the sport? Our community is growing to this point and wondering how it is handled.  Does your state high school sports association have any say in the matter or restrictions on the groups (Assuming they are competing against non homeschool groups as well)

    Feel free to send me a private message

     

    Thanks,

    Kendall 

    ACT scores can't be downloaded or screen printed

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    I don't currently need them for those reasons (or they will take our word for it), but those are the reasons I have needed it in the past.  It just seems wrong that you pay for a test and can't either print or get a copy of the result.  A brick and mortar school could download one (According to the ACT rep) and give it to you, but that obviously doesn't work if you homeschool. I don't usually get worked up about such things much less post about them, but this got to me. I must need a nap:).   Thanks for listening.

    I was wrong about the last name, though. The first name is all that is listed above the score, but in the upper right hand corner is her full name at the account icon, so I could use a screen shot or snipping tool to get the score and her full name on the same page. Not very professional looking, but it works. 

     

    • Like 2

    ACT scores can't be downloaded or screen printed

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    In the past you could download a PDF of your child's ACT score. That option is not available anymore. Also, only the student's first name is on the score report screen.

    So if you need an unofficial copy for car insurance or application to the homeschool national honor society or homeschool accountability group or other reasons, you can not get one that has your child's first and last name on it.

    I was told via email from ACT (a very nice person who responded quickly to all 3 of my emails) that I could have a copy sent to a local school and have them make a copy for me.  This would be free if we haven't used all 4 of our free ones. Or we can pay $13 to have it sent to a local school (I assume he meant high school). 

    I'm not happy with this option. It seems if you pay for a test you should have some way of getting a copy of the scores.

    Have any of you experienced this? Thoughts?

     

    Thanks,

    Kendall 

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