Mom2boys
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Posts posted by Mom2boys
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I have had some wonderful meals at Orzo Kitchen and Wine Bar. If you want to go in the comfort-food-sticky-tables direction, a white pizza at Lord Hardwicke's can't be beat. Great wine list, good food and a fun "elegant buffet" atmosphere at the Boars Head Inn--the entrees aren't always amazing but the salads are, and the bread pudding is to DIE for. Plus you can stroll around the pond afterwards, and when you're eating with kids it's always nice when they can pick exactly what they want.
SWB
Thanks so much!
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Are you looking for good restaurants as in fancy/expensive, or good as in cool/unique?
"Good" as in good food. :thumbup: The place doesn't have to be fancy or expensive.
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Can anyone recommend a few good restaurants in Charlottesville? We are going to be spending a few nights there soon and would like to try the local flavor. I'm hoping our resident foodie, who has a son living in Charlottesville, will chime in. (Susan Wise Bauer - this means you!)
We are also going to be staying in Virginia Beach and Chincoteague, and would appreciate restaurant recommendations for those locales as well - especially seafood.
Thanks!
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Veritas Press Scholars Online Spanish. http://resource2.veritaspress.com/Resources/Scholars_Online/Scholars_Online_Main.html
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Does anyone have any experience with Ed Thurber's Spanish 2 class at Veritas Press? I wanted to get a feel for what the assignments and exams are like, to see if the class would be a good fit for my son.
Thanks!
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You are welcome!
I needed this year off to recuperate (and rework all my presentations, for the better I hope), but I'm looking forward to Cincinnati next year.
Although the GHC conventions have had their difficulties, I appreciate their willingness to host a variety of speakers. I used to speak at HEAV regularly, but a year ago I was told that I would not be invited back (ever, so far as I can tell) because my workshops are "not turning people to the Lord for solutions; there seems to be less dependence on the Lord and more on counseling and psychology." Apparently the HEAV committee also felt that my workshops "put aside character development in favor of educational attainment." So apparently I will not be at HEAV again.
For many years, HEAV was my home convention, and it distresses me that they have chosen to restrict their speakers in this way.
SWB
The only reason my friend and I drove 8 hours to the HEAV convention in the first place was to hear you speak. And then the Deans started the Cincinnati convention, and you came to us, so we didn't go back. :-)
It is very disappointing to hear that there isn't a place for sessions on educational attainment at a homeschool convention. When did seeking academic excellence become a bad thing? And why do they feel that precludes character development?
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I personally like to attend a convention every year to hear the speakers and shop the vendor hall. Getting my batteries recharged at a convention every year is one of the reasons I am still homeschooling after 11 years. I have been to the HEAV convention twice. Your used curriculum sale is awesome. That alone makes it worthwhile to attend.
Now that we have the Midwest Homeschool convention in Cincinnati, I don't drive to HEAV anymore. (I live in Ohio.) Last year the Duggars spoke at our convention. To say it was a zoo is an understatement. Because there were no assigned seats, people lined up hours ahead of time That line snaked through several levels of the convention center, making it difficult to navigate the already crowded hallways. I had never seen a line that long in my life. I was sitting in a session with the lovely Susan Wise Bauer, who was attempting to give her talk, but kept being interrupted by announcements over the loud speaker that said things like "no sitting in line" and "you will not be allowed to save seats". (Susan, thank you once again for being willing to come back to Cincinnati next year. Between the Duggars and the kid with the purple balloon, I thought we'd lost you forever.) My friends and I had tickets to see the Duggars, but after we saw the mad house that was unfolding, we decided to leave and grab dinner at a nice quiet restaurant instead.
So, to the OP, I personally recommend attending a convention as often as you can swing it, but you might want to rethink HEAV this year - or at least go in knowing that it may be extra crowded due to the Duggars and plan accordingly. Hopefully HEAV will manage their appearance better than the Midwest convention did.
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Yes, they are two different talks. I own them both on cd. One is about getting ready for college, and one is about getting ready for high school. It looks like they only have the Getting Ready for High School talk available for sale on their web site: http://peacehillpress.com/audio-products/audio-lectures.html My cds were purchased at the Midwest Homeschool Convention.
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Very excited to learn that Susan Wise Bauer will be back here in 2014! Thank you Susan! This year's convention isn't the same without you!
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My confirmation says "present this email or a photo ID", so you don't need a ticket.
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Ok, I'll disclose my one greatest tip that will save you hours and leave you eternally grateful: You can place your order ahead online with Chipotle then just go there and pick it up using the short pick-up line! Normally, if you go at lunch the lines are LONG. It's the cheapest, most filling place to eat, but who wants to stand in line 45 minutes! So use the wifi at the convention, place your order on your device, and go pick it up.
Elizabeth, you are brilliant! Why didn't I think of this?
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Oh, and as far as sessions at hotels and elevators are concerned, I think it's more of an issue at the Hyatt than Millennium because of the layout of the hotels concerned. I think the meeting rooms at the Millennium are on the 2nd floor, which is where the skywalk comes across, so there's no need to take an elevator to get there, or you can take the escalator from the 1st floor. At the Hyatt they have a funny layout that's hard to figure out--lots of half levels and bunny trails. :)
There aren't any sessions at the Hyatt this year, according to the current schedule. And yes, you do not need to ride an elevator to access the meeting rooms at the Millennium.
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Thank you Greta!
We currently have reservations at a few different hotels. We are going out for dessert Tuesday night after the kiddos are in bed to make a final decision!
I am hesitant to stay at the Millenium because of the "crowded and slow elevators" I hear about. Is it really that bad?
Certain times of day you will wait in a line for the elevators at the Millennium, in my experience. Think rush hour traffic. When everything shuts down for the night, and everyone goes to their hotel at the same time, there will be a line. Here is my tip for that - take the skywalk back so you are getting on the elevator on the second floor instead of the first, and then take the elevator DOWN to go up. Get on a DOWN elevator, which will be empty, ride it to the first floor so you will already be on it ahead of the line of people on the first floor, and then ride it up to your room. If you stand on the skywalk level and wait for an UP elevator, it will take forever because everyone on the first floor will fill the elevator before it gets to you.
The wait for an elevator never deterred me from staying at the Millennium. The only reason I switched to the Hyatt last year was because I was bringing my ds with me, and his buddies were staying at the Hyatt, and we wanted to all stay at the same hotel so it would be easier for them to run around together.
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I want to say a HUGE thank you to all the moms who have been there, done that, and took the time to share your experiences with me. It is so encouraging to know that other parents have made similar choices for their children and not regretted it.
And I appreciate all the helpful suggestions for ways to approach this with our son. It is so important to us that our son not view this as a failing on his part, but as an opportunity to be better prepared for all that college has to offer.
When my husband and I make a final decision, I'll come back and let you know what we decided. Best wishes to all of you and your children.
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So, my son did two "seventh grade" years. Did this affect the level of work he did? Not one iota. It was purely an administrative change, made before I was required to keep a transcript, so it would not appear on his high school record.
I stressed to my son that it was not because he was stupid, nor was I actually holding him back in any way other than on paper. His level of schoolwork kept on the same path as before. I explained the difference between the two states, and how it would be much to his advantage to start Running Start when turning 17 instead of 16. We had to have several conversations about it before he was okay with it. But I think it was a good decision. I guess we'll find out in a few years! ; )
It sounds like you made a great decision for your son. I'd love to know how this works out for him. Maybe we can all come back to this thread a year from now and post updates our personal situations.
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We are leaving open the option as well. It has nothing to do with ability or perhaps even maturity. It has to do with being able to make of this season of life all that Dd wants.
I like the idea of making this season of life all that ds wants it to be. I think that approach would appeal to him as well.
We adjusted my son's grade level last year and I also worried about the tests he had taken with the College Board. Just in case anyone else is thinking about making a grade adjustment during high school, don't worry about the College Board test records.
While the PSAT was not a factor, he had taken an AP exam and two SAT Subject Tests that had a record of his "old" grade level. I called the College Board and explained the situation to them and they went into the test records and simply updated the records to reflect the "new" grade level. It was a very easy process.
We are all very happy with the decision to "repeat" 10th grade.
This is good to know. Thank you for sharing. I had assumed that once a grade level was recorded with an organization like the College Board, it would be set in stone.
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We decided to have ds repeat 9th grade (he has an end of September birthday). Academically, he is working far above many kids, but he wants to go into computer science/computer engineering. My husband and I felt he would be that much more academically prepared, as well as more mature, if we held him back a year. Our ds was actually fine with it. This will give him the chance to have all AP sciences in high school, as well as a solid math foundation, which will help him be prepared for rigorous studies in college. We made sure when we discussed it with him that we let him know it WAS NOT because he was not doing well with his academics. We also discussed the social temptations at college and felt ds would be better able to handle these if he were a year older. Bottom line is I would follow your "gut instinct". You are his parents and know what the right decision is for your chid.
Thank you Michelle. It's encouraging to hear that your son was fine with the idea of repeating 9th grade. So far my gut instinct has been that this child needs another year at home. The social temptations at college are a big concern for us as well with regards to this particular child.
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Just agreeing with pps - it needn't be a negative thing, it can be presented as an opportunity. I would definitely discuss it with the dc and want to have their buy-in for the idea.
Yes, we definitely want our ds to be on board with this decision. We don't want him to feel like we are forcing the situation on him.
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I just wanted to thank everyone for yet another great discussion that helps me so much! My 16 y.o. son was born in late July and I wish I would have given him an extra year during elementary years. I have seen so much improvement in his maturity level and math ability over this past year and I was feeling bad that I felt I needed to push him to "catch up" so he could take the SAT next year -- as a senior... and "behind." After reading this discussion yesterday I spoke to my son, his tutor, his dad and the local HS counselor and all were agreeable with the plan to repeat Junior/11th grade this year. He has not taken PSAT or any other big tests so I am RELIEVED because there is no college tests which record a grade before now. *** I can not tell you how relieved I feel to have made this decision ***
Thanks again for all the great discussion!
Kristin in Hawaii
I am so glad this thread has helped you. Best of luck to you and your son. :-)
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I just came across your post. I have stayed at the Millennium and the Hyatt and was happy with both. They are the hotels that are closest to the convention center. The Millennium has the convenience of an indoor skywalk connecting it to the convention center, which is handy in bad weather The Hyatt has an outdoor skywalk connection. The Hilton is several blocks away, but still walkable. It is a lovely, historic art deco hotel.
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Maybe make this next year a special focus year of DS's choice? You could call it Adventure Year. Or Middle School Exploration and Prep. Or call it "part 2" if you are continuing a study of a History or Science topic he is esp. enjoying. Or call the next three years Middle School part 1, part 2, part 3. Whatever you decide, call it something creative and positive to get away from the idea of "holding back" or failing. Because the reality is he WILL be working academically at 7th grade level. DS is NOT a failure NOR is he repeating a grade! It is *YOU,* the parents, who are just choosing to hold off on what you ultimately call this grade until later down the road when you see where he is emotionally and maturity-wise for graduating. :)
One last thing to note: you WILL have to make a determination as to what will be 11th grade if you decide to have your DS take the PSAT test with the hope of him scoring high and earning National Merit Scholarship $$. That can ONLY happen in when the PSAT is taken in grade 11 (or rather, grade 11 is the year the test score counts for NMS $$), and once you've declared a year as grade 11 through taking the PSAT, there's no mind-changing. However, you can easily choose to NOT do the PSAT, in which case, you still have your flexibility.
BEST of luck! Warmly, Lori D.
Thank you Lori D. I appreciate your words of wisdom. I especially like the idea of calling the next three years "middle school part 1, 2, and 3".
My older ds is a 10th grader, so I am familiar with the PSAT and National Merit Scholarships. That is a reason that we are considering adding the extra year in middle school versus trying to add a year in high school.
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As someone who was held back... it was very hard on me emotionally and socially, and didn't do me any particular favors academically (I wasn't held back for academic reasons). I don't think it's universally a bad idea, but something to approach with great caution.
I do think a gap/unschooling year sounds like a reasonable plan, especially if he can possibly attend a high school where he won't be a year behind his former classmates.
I'm sorry you had such a negative experience. I think being held back can be a difficult thing if you attend school. However, we intend to homeschool all the way through high school.
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I gave each of my boys an extra year. Like the others, I haven't regretted it for a moment. In fact, over the years, I haven't met one person who regretted giving an extra year. But I have met plenty who wished they had. And usually they don't question it until the middle school years when academic and emotional immaturity catch up. It's a tough world out there; I would like my child to have the best opportunity to face it. Really - does it really matter whether the kid is one year older than most? I just recently asked my college-age son what he thought of our decision. He said he was glad we did it. And I had a chance to be with him for an extra year! Yay!
There are plenty of people who will question your decision. Do what is best for your family. And don't look back!
This is exactly where we now find ourselves. Thank you for the words of encouragement.
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Greta, you know my boy has a b-day close to your boy's, and I've pre-emptively decided to call him by the lower grade. He's K3 this year doing the MFW K5, haha. (shrug) I know, like you're saying, that people need time to mature. If your gut is saying put him back, do it. I'm assuming since you posted here it's on your mind, as in your gut is saying it. It's not like you have to, but I think it's always good to listen to your gut.
Thanks Elizabeth! Sometimes it's hard to trust your gut when there is a lot at stake. Thankfully I have all you wise women to "talk" things through with me.
On another note - I want to pick your brain about the Cornerstone Co-op. I'll PM you.
Ds not ready for Chemistry...ideas?
in High School and Self-Education Board
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We were in the same boat last fall, and chose AP Environmental Science through PA Homeschoolers. Ds really enjoyed the class, and there was very little math - nothing he couldn't handle.