I would go during the school year and keep the younger two with me. You can find out an awful lot what you need to know just poking around with the younger two. Or go on separate tours. Send the college-bound one off on her own. You can always visit another time without the other kids if this is a serious option for your older child. HTH!

I have heard that for each year of additional schooling, it adds 1-2 points to the ACT score. I don't know if it is true, but it does make sense to me that a student's score WOULD be higher with more time to learn. --M

On the National chart that you can access on this page, it looks like 36 students took AP exams at grades younger than 9th grade. (If I read it correctly. . .I was in a hurry.) These charts are very interesting for showing which are the most popular exams at various grade levels. Mostlyamom http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/exgrd_sum/2009.html

It has a lot of material on the history of science in it, too. I've posted before about the great experience my child had with this course. Another option would be to skip science for a year, which wasn't what you were asking, but it could allow your student to study AP Music Theory or some other course that might be very valuable. Mostlyamom

http://www.ehow.com/how_2129742_demonstrate-leadership-college-admissions.html I thought this was a good starting point to think about demonstrating leadership. Also, you might be able to make their mentoring idea work with some tweaking. Mostlyamom

Do not hesitate to contact any parents whose children are not completing their assignments. It drags down a whole class if there are some who are not working along with the assignments. The parents expect that you will contact them, plus you will lose them in the class if they do not catch up right away. It is hard enough to round up homeschool students for a class--you'd hate to lose them in the first weeks! My latest approach to teaching Henle this year was to type out the exercises they need to do. Then during class we work from a stapled set. It makes one less thing to handle. Plus, it segments the work beautifully. We are trying to do as many exercises as possible during class, and that seems to help it from being overwhelming. It also means the students understand the material better, too. Hope this helps! Mostlyamom

Our home school group has offered the AMC8 for two years now. I think it needs to be offered in a public place, such as a library. The proctors can't be the parents of the students taking the exam. I think we had the proctor mail the test the day that it was offered, but you'd need to read the rules. I may be getting it mixed up with the National Latin Exam that we also offered last year. We divided the cost between students taking the exam, which I think was about $5 each for the 8-10 students. Some of our students received awards for their high score. If your student is eligible for the AMC8, you should take that. In our area, the AMC10 test was offered (for free) at a local college, so our group did not offer that test separately--we didn't have enough students who were interested in it, either. Also, I know of one case where we had great results with having 6th graders take the AMC8 test to prepare for higher scores at a later stage; the results proved to be very motivational for that student. The students use this website for reviewing a problem/day: http://maaminutemath.blogspot.com/ Oh, and if you don't have enough students to make your own group, if you don't mind paying the fee, I imagine you could just have a class of one, but just with an outside proctor. Hope that helps! Mostlyamom

I've posted here a few times, but we had a great experience with the Scholarsonline.org program. My child took the Natural Science I and II classes for two years, beginning in 7th grade, and it was a great experience. Mostlyamom

There are a number of threads on this board about taking an extra year in high school, and just this past week talked to two different middle school parents who are planning an extra 8th grade (or 7th grade) year for their sons who need more maturity before high school. There is such a wide variation in maturity level at this age, and further brain development with just one more year to work on it may completely solve many of the problems in understanding these math concepts. Also, I think there is motivation for students in not getting just "passed along" from grade to grade, but realizing they need to "earn" it. I think it requires a lot of love to be willing to "hold back" a student who needs more time working on a particular skill, too. I don't think kids grow in a linear way, do you? Mostlyamom

I have a friend whose children are students at a very respected and competitive engineering school. When I asked what they would be doing this summer, she explained that community college courses can provide an "intro" to certain subject matter that can really help. For her students, this helps a lot with co-requisite classes. So, you can tell your students that they are not unique--a lot of people do it, and it helps make the class easier. Mostlyamom

My son had a great experience with Dr. Christe at Scholarsonline.org over two years of class. I have posted about this several times before, so hesitated to comment earlier, but she did a GREAT job. We did not have a problem that I can recall about slow feedback. She inspired such a love of science that really boosted his knowledge at a critical phase of development. For our family, she was the professional teacher who really inspired him. I know he aced the science section of the EXPLORE test right after her class. Pat

Use the Homeschooler's High School Journal. This is Item #: 004568 at Rainbow Resource. Also, this year for the first time instead of a calendar from January-December, I purchased an "Academic Monthly Appointment Planner" which goes from August to July. This works really well for planning the school year, so that when there is a break from a class or activity, I don't have to transfer all that information from my notes in December to a new calendar in January when I'm always busy! The one I purchased last year is titled: "House of Doolittle Academic Monthly Appointment Planner." Pat

We listened to the recording of "In Freedom's Cause" in the car this year, and it was enjoyable. The narrator's emPHAsis on some of the words/phrases was different than the way I'd speak, sometimes, but it got better, or I got used to it. Pat

I have been working with a high school student this year who took an online Latin class. The online quizzes were quite a problem. If the word order did not match the answer key in the computer, there was a discount on the grades. I think a teacher-graded quiz would be a nice feature so that the student might have a little help in understanding what went wrong. However, that would add to the cost of the class, too. Pat

We did not use the labs for the courses that my child took from Scholarsonline.org, so I can't answer your questions. I remember looking at the lab instructions and they would have been manageable, but we chose not to do them. And I spelled Dr. Criste's name wrong in my last title, but this is the correct spelling. Pat

In preparing my students for the NLE, we have been using the Wheelock's vocabulary lists which you can customize by type (verb, etc.) or by chapter in the book. Today, I gave them a list of chapter 5 words to study quickly and then gave them a copy of the quiz that I generated from this site. Amazing how many words they can suddenly remember when it's for candy! http://www.warmenhoven.org/latin/vocab/ Also, the Quia games for Wheelock's chapters are here: http://www.quia.com/pages/wheelock.html The matching games are a nice way to learn additional vocabulary. I really like how Henle focuses so much attention on the grammar, and then lets students "coast" a little with new vocabulary words. It is working well for us. Pat

I really like the two year experience my child had with Dr. Criste's Natural Science I and II classes, and I see that she is the teacher for the Astronomy class, too. She was well-organized, very knowledgeable, and has encouraged a great interest in science. I cannot say enough about how this class and teacher fostered my child's developing interests in a very useful way. The lectures were well written and the use of Internet resources was a wonderful introduction into the plethora of sources available to a student, plus encouraging the skill of reducing the quantity of information to a usable level. She is a great teacher, and the whole organization was set up well for running online classes. If you have other questions about our experience, please let me know. Hope this helps. Oh, and I have no connection with the school other than that of a satisfied homeschool parent. Pat

An interesting tidbit about this question is available here: http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/exgrd_sum/2009.html Download the National Report and then look at the spreadsheet tab labeled, "program summary report." It shows the number of AP exams taken, by grade level. So, you can see that of the 101,000 exams taken last year for European History, over half of them were taken by 10th graders. Nearly 300,000 of the 360,000 US History exams were taken by 11th graders. This shouldn't determine when YOUR student is ready for this exam, but does give you an idea when other students have taken the exam. Pat

I took our Henle I books to the local Kinkos and had them split the book into two sections (right before Unit 6) and add spirals. I also spiral bound the grammar book. It really helps to be able to lay them flat on the table as "I" often need both text and grammar book plus the answer book and a pencil/paper to write the translation. It cost more than I thought it should, but it has made doing Latin so much easier! And yes, I think you will have a much easier time with two copies of text, answer book, and grammar book. I would try for an exercise each day, and quit after a set time period, say 15 minutes. I would also chant for 2-3 minutes every day, practice vocabulary recall, and write grammar forms. (Start with first declension nouns every day.) And as you move through the book, I might add doing some part of a review exercise each day to the list. Pat

I went out and bought this ISBN, but it is not the Teacher's Edition for the Third Edition. It says "Third Edition with Expanded Technology." Pat

I tried Wheelocks with the online study group. It was too hard for this old brain to absorb the vocabulary. Nor was my grammar education adequate. Henle uses a limited set of vocabulary which has helped me immensely. In a way you can't see by looking at the text, but only by doing it, manages to gently introduce new concepts. I'd probably suggest getting the Latina Christiana CD so that you can HEAR the chants before you have to practice them. Also buy the book so you can see what they are chanting. (Then you can use it with your kids. I don't have an age recommendation to use the Prima level, but I would wait till they are reading well, and probably not before 3rd grade to start the Latina Christiana I book.) There are other posts in the archive about this topic as this has been asked before. Pat

I'm in the same situation with having covered LCI and LCII with my 5th grader (and 6 of her friends in the class I'm teaching.) However, I have an older child who has successfully moved to Henle I from the LC series. I LOVE how the two programs intersect in vocabulary which makes it easier for me to stuff those words in this balky brain! I started the 5th-7th graders on Henle in December, and it is going fine. The Henle text takes a little getting used to and requires more thought on their part than the LC memory work required. However, I think Henle does a wonderful job in reinforcing the concepts through using them in the exercises which is something you can't SEE as a teacher until you are working through them. Somehow, by the end of the exercise, it usually makes sense! Henle Unit 6 is poorly written, IMHO, and I've written some exercises to clarify it for my class. If they work, I'll be happy to send you a copy. I tried to do Wheelock's with a self-study group, but the pace of the program's vocabulary, plus weaknesses in my understanding of grammar made it difficult for me. Henle, by comparison, after LC is just a small stepping stone ahead for a mom who didn't study Latin before. Hope this helps! Pat

In hopes that this might light the path for some of you, I wanted to share some thoughts about what we have done right in launching a science-oriented kid toward his goals. 1. Scholarsonline.org class with Dr. Christe McMenomy. My son started in 7th grade with the Natural Science I class. It has been a great experience, and challenged him to sort through a large quantity of online information to find what he needs--a very useful skill for the future, but also a wonderful way to add lots of arcane knowledge to his brain! {grin} There was a local course that many of his homeschooled peers were attending this year, but I don't think he could have had better preparation for high school than the Natural Science II class he has taken this year. This course is a lot of work, and I modified our other history assignments to allow time for this class. As a result of these classes, my child aced the science portion of the EXPLORE test. He got 25 out of 25 questions correct! We live in a very competitive school district, but my son is probably ahead of where he would have been in the public school with the fantastic teachers at Scholarsonline.org. http://www.scholarsonline.org/Info/coursedesc.php?id=304&title=Natural%20Science%20I 2. Subscription to Science News magazine. 3. Visiting Engineering Open House at college, and campus visitation day at another engineering school. Visits to science museums, national labs, etc. 4. Volunteer work at planetarium/science museum. And no, I don't have any financial reason to write about any of these resources! I have been helped enormously by others who have shared their success stories, and wanted to help others. I also will recommend the book I heard about first on this board, "What High Schools Don't Tell You." Hope this helps someone! Pat

I found a gameboard to help the Grinch get back to his cave. I might add stars along the path and have a marker. If they can pick out a noun from the text and tell which declension it is, they can move to the next spot. Or they could roll the dice (+/-) to see if they move forward one or back one. . .seems Grinchian! Maybe have some cinnamon red-hots "decorating" the tree for if they go down that path? With my class, I may have them read the story first in English (words below), and discuss what words they might find that they might know. Then, finding them could lead to a prize? Also, have you tried using the Vulgate and the latin audio available at http://www.helding.net/greeklatinaudio/? Pat http://www.seussville.com/grinch/ EveryWho Down in Who-ville Liked Christmas a lot... But the Grinch,Who lived just north of Who-ville, Did NOT! The Grinch hated Christmas! The whole Christmas season! Now, please don't ask why. No one quite knows the reason. It could be his head wasn't screwed on just right. It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight. But I think that the most likely reason of all May have been that his heart was two sizes too small. But, Whatever the reason, His heart or his shoes, He stood there on Christmas Eve, hating the Whos, Staring down from his cave with a sour, Grinchy frown At the warm lighted windows below in their town. For he knew every Who down in Who-ville beneath Was busy now, hanging a mistletoe wreath. "And they're hanging their stockings!" he snarled with a sneer, "Tomorrow is Christmas! It's practically here!" Then he growled, with his Grinch fingers nervously drumming, "I MUST find some way to stop Christmas from coming!" For,Tomorrow, he knew... ...All the Who girls and boys Would wake bright and early. They'd rush for their toys! And then! Oh, the noise! Oh, the Noise! Noise! Noise! Noise! That's one thing he hated! The NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! Then the Whos, young and old, would sit down to a feast. And they'd feast! And they'd feast! And they'd FEAST! FEAST! FEAST! FEAST! They would feast on Who-pudding, and rare Who-roast beast Which was something the Grinch couldn't stand in the least! And THEN They'd do something He liked least of all! Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small, Would stand close together, with Christmas bells ringing. They'd stand hand-in-hand. And the Whos would start singing! They'd sing! And they'd sing! And they'd SING! SING! SING! SING! And the more the Grinch thought of this Who-Christmas-Sing, The more the Grinch thought, "I must stop this whole thing!" "Why, for fifty-three years I've put up with it now!" "I MUST stop this Christmas from coming! ...But HOW?" Then he got an idea! An awful idea! THE GRINCH GOT A WONDERFUL, AWFUL IDEA! "I know just what to do!" The Grinch laughed in his throat. And he made a quick Santy Claus hat and a coat. And he chuckled, and clucked, "What a great Grinchy trick!" "With this coat and this hat, I look just like Saint Nick!" "All I need is a reindeer..." The Grinch looked around. But, since reindeer are scarce, there was none to be found. Did that stop the old Grinch...? No! The Grinch simply said, "If I can't find a reindeer, I'll make one instead!" So he called his dog, Max. Then he took some red thread And he tied a big horn on the top of his head. THEN He loaded some bags And some old empty sacks On a ramshackle sleigh And he hitched up old Max. Then the Grinch said, "Giddap!" And the sleigh started down Toward the homes where the Whos Lay a-snooze in their town. All their windows were dark. Quiet snow filled the air. All the Whos were all dreaming sweet dreams without care When he came to the first little house on the square. "This is stop number one," the old Grinchy Claus hissed And he climbed to the roof, empty bags in his fist. Then he slid down the chimney. A rather tight pinch. But, if Santa could do it, then so could the Grinch. He got stuck only once, for a moment or two. Then he stuck his head out of the fireplace flue Where the little Who stockings all hung in a row. "These stockings," he grinned, "are the first things to go!" Then he slithered and slunk, with a smile most unpleasant, Around the whole room, and he took every present! Pop guns! And bicycles! Roller skates! Drums! Checkerboards! Tricycles! Popcorn! And plums! And he stuffed them in bags. Then the Grinch, very nimbly, Stuffed all the bags, one by one, up the chimbley! Then he slunk to the icebox. He took the Whos' feast! He took the Who-pudding! He took the roast beast! He cleaned out that icebox as quick as a flash. Why, that Grinch even took their last can of Who-hash! Then he stuffed all the food up the chimney with glee. "And NOW!" grinned the Grinch, "I will stuff up the tree!" And the Grinch grabbed the tree, and he started to shove When he heard a small sound like the coo of a dove. He turned around fast, and he saw a small Who! Little Cindy-Lou Who, who was not more than two. The Grinch had been caught by this tiny Who daughter Who'd got out of bed for a cup of cold water. She stared at the Grinch and said, "Santy Claus, why, "Why are you taking our Christmas tree? WHY?" But, you know, that old Grinch was so smart and so slick He thought up a lie, and he thought it up quick! "Why, my sweet little tot," the fake Santy Claus lied, "There's a light on this tree that won't light on one side." "So I'm taking it home to my workshop, my dear." "I'll fix it up there. Then I'll bring it back here." And his fib fooled the child. Then he patted her head And he got her a drink and he sent her to bed. And when Cindy-Lou Who went to bed with her cup, HE went to the chimney and stuffed the tree up! Then the last thing he took Was the log for their fire! Then he went up the chimney, himself, the old liar. On their walls he left nothing but hooks and some wire. And the one speck of food That he left in the house Was a crumb that was even too small for a mouse. Then He did the same thing To the other Whos' houses Leaving crumbs Much too small For the other Whos' mouses! It was quarter past dawn... All the Whos, still a-bed, All the Whos, still a-snooze When he packed up his sled, Packed it up with their presents! The ribbons! The wrappings! The tags! And the tinsel! The trimmings! The trappings! Three thousand feet up! Up the side of Mt. Crumpit, He rode with his load to the tiptop to dump it! "Pooh-Pooh to the Whos!" he was grinch-ish-ly humming. "They're finding out now that no Christmas is coming!" "They're just waking up! I know just what they'll do!" "Their mouths will hang open a minute or two Then the Whos down in Who-ville will all cry Boo-Hoo!" "That's a noise," grinned the Grinch, "That I simply MUST hear!" So he paused. And the Grinch put his hand to his ear. And he did hear a sound rising over the snow. It started in low. Then it started to grow... But the sound wasn't sad! Why, this sound sounded merry! It couldn't be so! But it WAS merry! VERY! He stared down at Who-ville! The Grinch popped his eyes! Then he shook! What he saw was a shocking surprise! Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small, Was singing! Without any presents at all! He HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming! IT CAME! Somehow or other, it came just the same! And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow, Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?" "It came with out ribbons! It came without tags!" "It came without packages, boxes or bags!" And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! "Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store." "Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!" And what happened then...? Well...in Who-ville they say That the Grinch's small heart Grew three sizes that day! And the minute his heart didn't feel quite so tight, He whizzed with his load through the bright morning light And he brought back the toys! And the food for the feast! And he... ...HE HIMSELF...! The Grinch carved the roast beast!

I've been trying to learn Latin for about four years now. I tried the Wheelock's Latin group, but found it difficult to remember the vocabulary as there wasn't enough reinforcement for my "old" brain. Also, I found that my grammar was not strong enough, especially at the beginning, and I really struggled. Henle, however, has an elegant style which is not apparent when you just pick up a book and just look at it. It has limited vocabulary and a lovely way of reinforcing the material (and reviewing it, too) that is just right for motivated self-study. There is an Yahoo group for Henle questions that is very responsive, too, for questions about the exercises. Hope this helps! Pat