Pre-1982 pennies have more copper.

While I personally think Rainbow would be very light for a high school science, some folks will use it with non-science bound kids. It really would only qualify as a general science (or maybe you could call it a survey of chemistry, physics, and biology with applications). That will limit her college selection, but again, that might not be an issue for you. You could easily cover it in one year. The experiment kit is a nice addition especially if you don't like science and don't want to hunt for stuff. Doing it in a year, you would be doing 6 readings and two experiments a week. Some of the experiments are ones that you could easily omit or just read through. I think you may find it to be much more enjoyable than Apologia general (we did). We covered physics, chemistry, and biology with labs in our co-op this year (30 weeks) with 6th and 7th graders.

I think you can teach it to one child. But remember that discussion is probably the most valuable part of this program. And to have adequate discussion, mom must keep up with the readings, too. The parents of the kids I taught would not have done this program by themselves because of the "mom time" required. And, yes, I do plan to teach this to my other kids. In fact, the parents of many of my first students have asked me to teach it again to their younger kids so I'm working on that for the fall. I will be doing it a bit differently and tweaking the program to fit our needs. Best wishes

The link to the yahoo group in the linked post is an old link. That site is no longer active for the WVWW group (it's been overrun with spam). The new link is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WVWW1/. It is a moderated group and tends to be more active in late spring and early fall.

Here's a link to a recent previous discussion. If you have any further questions that aren't answered in that link, let me know. http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17978&highlight=WVWW

It does seem like a scheduling nightmare, especially if one uses a homeschool curriculum such as Sonlight, TOG, Apologia, etc. And these are the courses which were hard for my son to sustain any enthusiasm after our break. Hmmm...still mulling this over...

I was having a conversation with my oldest son yesterday. The topic of high school vs. college classes came up and he said something that interested me. He said that college classes were more fun because you worked hard for a short time and then moved onto something else. In other words, a semester of science was more "fun" than a full year of the same science. He said that he always felt tired when we returned to schooling after being on Christmas break. He would have preferred to begin another subject rather than just picking up where we left off. So, as I look forward to the next 3 boys going through high school, I wonder if there is a way one can do this kind of scheduling (and still stay sane). Is it feasible to do a semester of English, Geometry, and Chemistry and then a semester of History, Foreign Language, and an elective or two? Obviously one would have to determine what and how many credits one needs for graduation. I believe the kids can do it because my son has been doing this since his junior year (concurrent enrollment), but it seems like it might be a nightmare to schedule at home, esp. labs, etc. Has anyone done this?

We'll pray for surgery as scheduled and a swift, non-eventful recovery. Also for skillful hands for the surgeon :-)

My son has been invited to apply the Honors College and one of the components for application is to write an essay about 2 literary characters he would like to have to dinner and why. He would like to write about Hume and Descarte. However, they were real people and IMO may not be acceptable. He thought it would be fun to contrast their ideas because they are so opposite (he's really enjoying his philosophy course this year). My impression is that the essay is to be over fictional characters, but my lack of expertise in college applications leads me to check with those who have gone before :001_smile: Any thoughts?

I have one finishing this year and I liked what we did with him. I will continue this plan with the 2nd son, but my 3rd son may be different. We've used NEM 1-4 as well as Primary Math continuing with Lial's & ChalkDust. We finished through Alg. 2 (Alg. 1, geometry, Alg. 2) by the end of 10th grade. This allowed us to enroll concurrently at our local university (branch of state school) for College Algebra, then Trig, then Calculus 1. So, by graduation from high school my sons have completed through Calc. 1 at the college level. And the bonus is that I didn't have to teach it (although I could have because I've had through Calc. 2 in college) and could focus on other subjects.

Thanks so much for the information. We may give it a try.

Does *anyone* use Galore Park English?

I'm looking for something for my youngest sons (rising 7th & 8th grades). They are probably both at the same grammar level right now so I would use the same books for both. By age level, they would be in the So You Really Want to Learn English Book 3 but should they start out in book 1 instead? We've almost completed Jensen's Journey Through Grammarland and I would say they are doing fine at this level...I just want a different program because we're all a little bored with grammar right now. Also, I'd appreciate any critique of the English program that you can give. TIA

Here's my plan for my rising 10th grader: Finish Geometry/Begin Alg. 2 (Lial's Intermediate Alg) Chemistry (Singapore O Level) Great Books/Worldviews (I'm putting this together myself - will be a mish-mash of WVWW, TTC, and others) Sonlight 300 History? (this is up in the air still) Rosetta Stone Spanish (continue from this year) Ethics - 1 semester Vocabulary (continue with Wordly Wise or begin Vocab. for the College Bound) Lots of writing will be incorporated into the Great Books, History, and Ethics courses Oklahoma History (this will be taken this summer in a co-op) Continue private music lessons and Boy Scouts

Thanks for the google tips. I really don't want to go with him at all, other than to drive him to the door. I'm sure that I would say or do something stupid that might jeopardize his chances. I just didn't know if it was expected that I meet the staff, etc :001_unsure:. But, I'd really rather not. He's quite good with people, but he's sure he'll get lost in the big building :-). We got the outfit yesterday and haircut scheduled for this afternoon - then we wait until Tuesday of next week for the interview...

I would second Mere Christianity; Ready or Not Here Life Comes; and would add Ordering Your Private World (I like this better than Ready or Not).

I've seen different numbers on posts. What does it mean?

AWW! You guys are so encouraging! I certainly appreciate it because I'm feeling like jello right now:tongue_smilie: Another question: Do I walk into the main office with him and wait there? I don't want to look like a pushy mom or have him viewed as a mama's boy. The gentleman for whom the scholarship is named, and who is doing the interviewing, is a West Texas oil man who is very family oriented - do you think he wants to see what kind of *stock* the boy came from?

OK, son has done very well in school, has decent scores on standardized tests but excels in his college classes, so we have only anticipated scholarships based on academic merit. And because of my son changing his mind about his degree, we applied to another school but we missed all the deadlines for academic merit scholarships. My jaw dropped today when I received a call asking for him to interview for a scholarship that is only offered to 4 students. Last year they only interviewed 5 people for these scholarships. The lady indicated that this was a big honor - I wouldn't have known :001_huh: So what do I need to do to prepare him for this interview? How should he dress? Business dress? Casual? Sportcoat? ARGH!

I had to bottle feed my youngest son due to medication I was taking after his birth. The breast engorgement was not fun! But I did get through it. A friend who was a L & D nurse told me to pack cold cabbage leaves in my bra. Sounded crazy, but I did it and it really helped although I smelled like cabbage soup. Also, I did develop a fever for about a day, but tylenol helped with that. It's been 12 years now so I don't really remember how long it lasted, but I think it went on for about 5 days. I do remember that it really hurt to lay on my side. I got through it...but it doesn't bring back fond memories!:-). And, just FYI, he has turned out fine and healthy (he was born at 35 weeks).

Oh, definitely don't panic. My oldest son is taking all concurrent classes and he types his own papers now (I rebelled) but his speed is probably only about 30-40 wmp. He works on our typing program intermittently, but he is definitely functional - and that's probably all that really matters.

Here are another couple: Of Pandas and People Darwin on Trial

I've never been overly fond of Sonlight's LA programs. If you have something that is already working for you, I'd suggest you stick with that. And, yes, as a mom of four boys I would say that your son is pretty typical. The act of writing is difficult for many boys and the combination of thinking and writing can be overwhelming for them. As far as spelling goes, we didn't bother with spelling for the first time through a paragraph. We picked that up on the editing portion. That way he did have to think about 3 different things at the same time.

It took my son about a year to get up to speed. He had played around with typing for several years, but once the incentive was added, he made it a priority. He probably spent 15 minutes a day with our typing program (Typing Instructor Deluxe). It really didn't take that long, but he was consistent in his practice. Everything my son turns in (in our co-op) is typed. If you could see his handwriting, you would understand why! If your dd is only typing for typing class, she probably doesn't have the incentive to improve in speed. Does she type her essays?

Some classes go by semester at our house. Usually these are electives (speech, logic, etc.). My 9th grade son begins school at 9:00 and works until lunch and usually has 2-3 hours after lunch. He does most of his scheduling himself, but I gave him a plan to accomplish at the beginning of the year to guide him.