DS17 did AoPS prealgebra that way, but then moved onto reading the chapter and then doing just the challenge problems at the end of the chapter. Then he started taking the classes, which require, at the intermediate level, about 10 questions per chapter. He's been highly successful that way, but not all my kids would have been. Emily

Hi all, I'm muddling through the FAFSA for the first time. DS17 teaches piano to two different families on a weekly basis. He has never filed taxes, but now that I'm working on the FAFSA, I realize that he might be required to for the self-employment tax. Now, I certainly never filed taxes for babysitting, and I made bank babysitting. But, I also didn't get checks for babysitting. Have you come across a situation like this? What is he supposed to do? Thanks, Emily

In case anyone else is interested, we're getting the book The Life and Times of the Central Limit Theorem from a university library. He doesn't want another class, but he does want more context. And, Lady Tasting Tea is good, too, and more widely available.

I can't believe how much mail Yale sends. Besides the regular brochures, postcards, etc, they sent a book about the school. Bizarre.

Hi all, My oldest is taking AP Stats and is pretty darn disappointed. He is annoyed at how little depth the class has. In retrospect, he should have self-studied, but he can't drop it at this point. Any ideas for making it deeper, or for readings to go along with the class to give the material more context or to incorporate calculus? This is a kid who was doing a big data project in R last summer for fun. Thanks, Emily

Mine is boring: First name + Middle Initial + Last Initial. But, I sort of like that they are EGF in alphabetical order. I think some users thought GF was for gluten free, but I'm not gluten free and I love baking. Emily

We had the same experience, with non-AP English teaching next to nothing. Now my kid who is a super slow reader is in AP Lit... and he loves his teacher and is actually learning something. (First English teacher he's even respected. He's a senior.) DD15 has learned and is not choosing non AP for anything that isn't in the summer. But the AP classes are really top notch. Much better than the AP classes I took at a top-100 high school in the 1990s.

He's not committed enough to AI to commit to a PhD at this point. He wants a degree that could lead that way OR to industry straight out of school.

So, we just got a big magazine in the mail from RIT and it totally turned my son off! He was planning to apply because they had offered him a waived application fee, but now he's changed his mind. The long, glossy magazine highlighted student life and told him absolutely nothing about academics. It didn't even have anything about tech or engineering. He said, "I want to go to school with kids who are interested in what they are studying."

We lived with my grandparents for 9 months when my parents were victims of theft. I was 3, my sister was 1. It was a small house in a moderate climate and my mom worked on having us outside as much as possible. My grandmother could not stand toys on the floor, so she worked very hard to clean up immediately after any movement. This would be completely normal in many societies. Good for you guys trying to figure out ways to help. Emily

I haven't looked at the data, but you can absolutely have a situation where the top kids are getting stronger AND the lowest kids are getting lower showing that the average drops. Another alternative would be that everyone is getting better but that a higher percentage of lower kids are taking the test, bringing the scores down. That could happen if states started requiring the ACT for graduation or of stronger states, like MA or IL, dropped the test and weaker states, like Mississippi, adopted it. I wonder what the de-emphasis on college tests has done to the testing pool? We may be comparing very different sets of kids. Finally, at my kids' high school, the AP classes are really great, and my kids are taking more, and better taught, AP classes than I took. However, the non-AP classes seem often to have very low expectations, IMO.

I agree @Frances. It struck me when I was living in the former East Germany and working with a very international crew, and the Italians were talking about how the East Germans didn't realize how wealthy they were. To the Italians, the fact that Germans expected that young people could live on their own was a sign of unacknowledged wealth. I think the same is true in the US. It is nice to be wealthy, though, and to take it for granted.

Our rental in the Cambridge, MA, area had hardwood floors AND a stipulation that at least 75% of every room floor had to be covered by a tenant-provided area rug. I thought that was the best compromise because we didn't have gross wall-to-wall stressing us out but we also kept the floors in great condition. We bought some of our area rugs from the out-going tenants and then resold some of ours later. Emily

Is your husband willing to do something over and over again? DD14's violin teacher generally won't take adult students, but she does have one. The man was an athlete in college, so she says he's used to doing boring things over and over again to get better. 🤣

Thanks @Pawz4me. They do eat a full banana, as well as raisins, which are also high potassium, for breakfast frequently. The levels were tested four times, and were high three times. I will ask about this. Emily

Ahh, good point! All-or-nothing thinking does no good! I hadn't thought of subbing 1-2 days of running per week to my exercise routine instead of thinking, "I am either a runner or not." Thanks!

Schools like Caltech have a school-specific test for the content that incoming students can take. My sister tested out of one subject, my husband out of another.

No. No medications at all.

Hi all, (please don't quote, will delete later) Someone I love has tested high for potassium three times in the past year. They aren't good at self-advocating for medical care and I am trying to help in a non-confrontational way. Looking at the internet, Addison's disease seems to be the most likely cause (concurrent weight loss, depression, abdominal pain). What tests should they ask for? What type of specialist? The concurrent depression, manifesting as some level of helplessness and hopelessness, isn't helping. Thanks, Emily

First, we read about makes and models of flute that were good for a serious beginner and then we bought one "open box" on e-bay. It cost about $350. The e-bay flute was brand new and we have been very happy with it. It is a Jupiter flute with an offset G-key. We've never had any issues with the flute at all, and the cork is still in good condition. We've had it for 6 years. I think I decided not to buy a Yamaha because I figured we could upgrade in a couple of years when the flute wasn't good enough anymore. I was not sure how serious DD would be. She is in an advanced high school band. I do not think she will play in college. Unless your husband knows a lot about flutes already, I don't know that it makes sense to look at them in person. We're buying DD14 a violin soon, and we'll do that in person, but she's already performing Bach concertos and teaching younger students. Additionally, we'll bring her teacher with us. Emily

I have two kids in high school now and I'd say it is a mixed bag. I think both of them would say they feel lonely at school, but neither would ask to homeschool during these high school years. OTOH, both highly value their homeschooling through 8th grade and are much more self-driven, independent learners because of it. DS17 has found buddies on the cross-country team, but hasn't really connected closely with anyone. OTOH, he has learned a lot about interacting with people and has been mentored remarkably well by some of his teachers. He's found a 17-yo storm-chaser whom he deems "interesting enough" to spend time with. He often comes home with stories to tell of stupid and obnoxious stuff other students did. DD15 was so happy to finally go to school. She's super extroverted and loves all of her interactions with people all day long. She comes home brimming full of stories to tell of funny things people said. She's built a persona as a math and science whiz, which surprised me. I thought she'd blossom as a writer at school and away from our heavy emphasis on math. The school is in the top 100 in the country and kids have to test in, but it is public and has a wide income diversity. There is no pressure towards mediocrity at their school, and the teachers range from "meh" to superb. It has been good for both of them (academically, socially, emotionally), though not perfect in any of those categories.

@Miss Tick Thanks for the link. Looking at it.

As my hubby always says, quoting Back to the Future 3, "Run for fun? What the hell kinda fun is that?" (He bikes.)

Thanks, @Frances. I put in some of the search terms you recommended and found some promising programs she can apply to. Thanks for the pointers! It also sounds like your son has done some amazing things. That's awesome!

Hi Hive, I used to run. I ran cross country in high school and ran for fitness on and off during my twenties. I found running to be inconvenient with little kids around and took to fitness videos. I now walk a fair amount (2 miles most days) and do fitness videos with HIIT, cardio, and weights 3-4 days per week. A number of my friends run, and sometimes I wonder if I should take it up again. DS17 is running a lot currently, and while I remember enjoying running, I haven't been a consistent runner in over a decade. I looked into a local running club and have not found one. I live in a place with a fairly brutal winter, but I also live next door to a Planet Fitness and could theoretically use their treadmills for $12/month. Is there any reason to prefer running to walking daily with 2-ish hours of HIIT/Cardio/weights per week? Emily