We haven't used the CTY online classes. I've heard that they can be quite hit or miss, depending on the class and even on the tutor you get. I've heard good things about the Crafting the Essay class and bad things about the math classes (they just use Thinkwell, which you can get for much less money on your own). We didn't go to the ceremony, as we live on the opposite coast. Even if it had been nearby, though, we probably wouldn't have participated. The Boy did, however, spend two wonderful summers at CTY camp. He did the younger students' camp, known fondly as Baby CTY, and just loved it.

I'm pretty sure you can.

Are you familiar with Library Thing? (http://www.librarything.com) We use that to catalog our books and it's been really useful for checking whether we already have something.

It is scary, isn't it? Our son, who had never even had a sleepover other than with a grandparent, went to summer camp for three weeks when he was 10. It was several states from where we live. He was fine. And, more amazingly, so was I. I was jittery for a few days, but it was much easier than I expected. He went to camp for four weeks last summer (age 12), also quite far away, and he loved it. So if you find a camp you trust and your daughter is excited about it, you'll do fine. And if she's hesitant, there's always next summer. Good luck!

We're looking into using one of the math courses in the upcoming year. It's causing some planning problems for me, though, as I don't know whether it will be better to treat it as a one- or two-semester course. I suppose I'll plan for one semester and have another class planned for spring but be prepared to postpone the other class if we need to extend the first one.

MUS is awesome. But so, evidently, is your son. Great job!

I agree with everybody who recommends Art of Problem Solving. Especially if you think your kids might be interested in math competitions (Mathcounts, AMCs, USAMTS), AOPS is a lifesaver. Thinkwell recently introduced math courses for younger kids, starting with Grade 6. I can't speak to those particular classes, but we've been really pleased with Thinkwell's calculus course, which uses the same professor.

Brand new here, and delighted to have found this forum. Our household is my husband (a writer who works from home), our son, who is just finishing Grade 8, and me. Plus two indolent housecats. People ask if we drive one another crazy being home most of the time, but we've managed to avoid fisticuffs so far. :001_smile: In what I can only figure must be a grand gesture of universal humor, I've been blessed with a math-loving kid. Whereas high school precalc was very nearly the death of me. So far, we've been able to make it work. We've always homeschooled and plan to continue through high school, which seems to surprise a lot of people. My proudest accomplishment of late? Reading all 600-some pages of the high school board in four days. So pleased to meet you all.

Nakia, I am a complete newbie here, and the post you refer to served only to make me feel more welcome. I was so pleased to see that troubling matters are addressed directly and politely.

The Art of Problem Solving website has a wiki with explanations of mathematical concepts. If you do a search for "combination" on that site, you might find some helpful information, as well as some practice problems.

No better reason to make my first post, I think, than to congratulate a successful student. Well done! What great news. I've heard such good things about the UW program. I'm also delighted to hear that the math campers are well-received. My son attends the younger kid version of the camp Nicole and Kathy are discussing, and I've worried that the kids might be a bit of a challenge.