I have a kid in Blue Tent's English classes now. As a counter-narrative, she loves them. Christine Proctor is probably her favorite teacher of all time. But there's no doubt it is a lot of work. If you are looking for moderate output, I'd hesitate with Blue Tent. But if you are willing to do the work, my daughter's writing skills have increased and she's fallen more deeply in love with English and literature (after have a non Blue Tent 9th grade that made her dislike English and feel like she had writer's block all year).

@WTM, I know. Where I struggle with it is this: 1. My kid isn't outside the box. Either by nature or nurture, she's still taking pretty much what she'd be taking at the B&M school. I feel like so many homeschool parents do all this amazing creative stuff that reflects their kids' personalities and looks totally different than a public school education. If I'm not careful, I can feel sensitive that her education looks much more traditional. (To be fair, we've only been homeschooling a year, so it's not like I've had ample opportunity to deviate. This year was also an experiment to see if she liked homeschooling, so we mirrored what she would take in the B&M in case she went back next year. But she likes it!) I feel like there's this expectation that my homeschooled via PSA child will look different than that, and that because she doesn't she will be rejected on the face of it. 2. Aside from vendor choices, which I acknowledge to be a big issue, I'm not sure how different her courses would look. Freely admitted here is that if Blue Tent were not a vendor, I would be PSA'ing in a heartbeat. But BTO has been a very good fit for my kid, so I'm feeling like between them, AIM Academy, and DEs we can make the public charter work. Well, aside from physics, gov't, and econ, hence the post. And really, it's physics that haunts me. I'm willing to deal with a less than stellar gov't/econ since they will likely be a semester each.

@Ann.without.an.e, we can't use Derek Owens. He's not a vendor. I reached out to his group this year to see if they could become a vendor, and , long story short, the answer is no. Our options for any physics that is honors or AP is limited to UC Scout and DE unless I can find a new vendor. I'm going to consider AP Lit first. (She spent K-9 in public school, so is reticent to switch things up bc her friends won't take it until 12th, but I can probably convince her.) @Malam, you're making me want to just do a PSA. Kiddo will be applying to at least a few highly rejectives and she's not a totally out of the box kid, so I think she needs to have the triumvirate of bio/chem/physics. I'll keep looking....

Ann, if it's worth its weight in gold, maybe that's a sign. 🙂 Just clarifying, as this is my first kid, she couldn't ask her for a rec if she is taking AP Lit with her while applying for colleges (in 12th)? My guess is she'd take AP Lang in 12th if she took AP Lit in 11th, unless there's a different DE English class that strikes her fancy. (The plan was to do 11th Lang, 12th Lit, so if I'm upending "the plan" then I'm open to other suggestions.) Malam, Thinkwell has an Honors Physics 1, but it's calculus based, so I'm presuming it wouldn't be appropriate for my kid taking pre-calc next year. Right? (They are also not technically a vendor for physics for us, but I'd be willing to ask our charter to add it to the binder.)

Malam, I don't know if I even *want* AP Precalc. I was just planning on having my kid do Precalc H, but then it sprang up both for BTO and MathAmelia, so now I'm unsure what she should do. Thanks for the input re: Lit.

Hi WTM, I'm in the initial planning stages for the 2023-24 school year for my kid. Can people chime in about these vendors (ideally for these classes, but I'll take any feedback)? My kid is with a public charter, so our vendors are limited. (I'm toying with switching to a PSA, but...am just not sure. PSA options in parentheses.) Pre-Calc H (or AP Pre-Calc? This confuses me): Blue Tent. Ashley Porter seems to have mostly positive reviews, but some negative ones. (Will either stay with BT or switch to MathAmelia.) APUSH: Aim Academy. Lisa Hawkins has great reviews from when she was at PAH. My daughter is freaked out about this class for some unknown reason, so she might DE it instead. AP Physics 1: HELP! Our only option is UC Scout, which has been a poor experience this year. Taylor Made Science is not an option to join the charter. (I tried, believe me, I tried.).Jack Kernion is looking into becoming a vendor so I'm still keeping my fingers crossed. But if this doesn't work, does anyone have any suggestions? Or a physics H class? "All" the physics profs at the local CCs have dismal reviews except one--but I asked her and she's not sure if she's teaching the early physics course next fall. AP Eng Lang: Blue Tent (Lisa Glover) or AIM (Lili Serbecki). Opinions? Or, since my kid *loves* Christine Proctor at Blue Tent, does she jump to AP Eng Lit and enjoy her for another year? (My kid would absolutely ask her for a rec for college, if that sways anyone's thoughts.) Gov't Honors/Econ Honors: I'm totally not opposed to APs for either of these, but the only vendor options for the APs (gov't and macro/micro) are APEX, FLVS, and UC Scout. So I'm thinking we'll try Thinkwell? Maybe? Thoughts? 2 DE classes (likely psych related, as she's loving her intro to psych class this term). Thanks for letting me engage the hive mind!

@Roadrunner and @Lawyer&Mom, I apologize for not responding earlier; I didn't realize you had posted! Roadrunner, I agree with you--I'm not excited about either UC Scout or BYU for her, but those are the options we have. I'm hoping it's the only class she has to take with either of them. I floated the idea of her taking a DE world history course, but this is when I know we're still transitioning to homeschooling: "But, Mom, all of my friends are taking AP World. I want to take the test with them." One friend is doing it through UC Scout, so I think I'll choose it and they can study together. Lawyer&Mom, her former hs has said she could take the test at the school as long as she signs up in the fall. You make me pause and reconsider rolling the die about not having a-g credit and then passing the test, but I think she also wants the gpa boost for UCs. Sigh.

Thanks, daijobu! You at WTM both recommended this group, so I'm sure it'll be helpful. I have unsuccessfully lobbied for PA Homeschooler classes; I was told that it would never happen and I needed to move on. Sigh.

WTM, I know a number of people do PSAs instead of charters, but I confess that as a first time homeschooling parent with a child who has been at a brick and mortar school, I wasn't ready to do a PSA and wanted a bit more handholding. And if I can make the vendors work, it's pretty nice to receive money that more or less covers the tuition and supplies she needs for the year. (Aim Academy + Blue Tent + DE should work well for her.) I will look into the groups you sent; thank you! And I understand a-g requirements, but get tripped up when they say an AP class would somehow not fit a-g, when for OOS students UCs view AP classes in core subjects as fitting the a-g requirements and give the gpa bump when they calculate UC capped and weighted gpa. Thanks again!

Hi all, We're new to homeschooling as of this year (rising 10th grader) and are enrolled in a public charter with limited vendors. At this point AP World History is only offered by BYU and UC Scout. (Aim Academy is in the process of becoming a vendor, and we'd really, really, really prefer to take Farrar's class, but unless something changes, I have been informed that my kid can't take her class if they aren't approved before school starts. I feel like banging my head against a wall.) If you had to choose between BYU and UC Scout for AP World History, which would you choose? And, if any of you are in CA or understand a-g requirements, my charter says "if she takes this class [at Aim Academy before approval] it won't be a-g approved". What does that really mean, in practice? If it's not a-g approved, does that mean she'll have to take an extra history class later because we're in a charter public school? I've emailed the academic advisor to try to set up an appointment to discuss, but haven't heard back. Thanks!