Is there a master list of Biology resources? I don't see one pinned. EDIT: Never mind!! Dear me...Like all those times I ask for directions to the restroom and I am standing under the sign. \ Thanks!

One of my sons took visual basic at the high school and then went on to take AP CS which is Java based. Visual basic was a nice gentle intro to programming. In his AP CS class, a couple of students who did not take Visual Basic dropped the class because it moved too quickly. The instructor says this happens each year. This son actually plans to major in CS and is pretty good at it. He found visual basic useful, although he did take it as a freshman so it didn't prevent him from taking more programming in high school. He is now a junior doing an independent study in data structures with the public high school teacher. If your child isn't particularly interested in a CS field, i think the visual basic class could be just what they need as an intro class. Also, if they plan on continuing to take classes at the CC, it is nice to stay with their sequence. Does your son have any plans for after high school? If they are considering colleges, you could look into the programming classes offered at their target schools and try to figure out which programming would be most useful. I know at our local U, they start with Python but the 2nd year classes can be done in python or Java. My older son took AP CS and was able to transition to Python on his own pretty smoothly. Both of my boys are STEM oriented and taking these classes with an instructor was hugely beneficial. Not saying other options aren't good, but they definitely stretched themselves and learned so much. GL with your choice!

My husband did a post-doc at BYU. He had applied to a position at a different university, was offered the job, accepted it and then the prof moved to BYU. We didn't have other options at that point, so off to Provo we went. I can tell you this, the area is spectacularly beautiful and the people are nice. No one pressured us to convert or even queried us on our religious views (well, except for the non LDS missionaries who frequently came to our house assuming we were LDS). But, the community activities were overwhelmingly centered on the LDS church. I worked part time there with many young college students. Most of them had had little exposure to non-LDS people and they were quite curious about my life, asking some of the most basic questions. The young women, in particular, asked so many questions about how I, as a non LDS woman, courted and married. It was sometimes pretty bizarre. I think for a single person who wasn't in the church life could be pretty alienating, honestly. On the other hand, if there is a strong Catholic presence at BYU< that might automatically help her find a "tribe" or niche into which she could fit quite nicely. I would not immediately discount it, but I would be sure to visit, get in touch with Catholic groups there and continue to look at other options.

So sorry to hear about your D's injury. I hope she recovers quickly. Son is a senior NMSF also interested in physics, maybe math or cs as minor. I think University of Arizona only offered reduction of out of state tuition (not a full ride) along with the opportunity to apply for a more generous scholarship (more along the lines for free tuition). Arizona State U and UT Dallas sent mail indicating big awards for NMSF, I think these were full tuition, but don't quote me. Son also received mailing from several small, local colleges stating he could receive full tuition scholarships if he made it to NM status (can't remember what exactly they call the last tier). USC (Univ. Southern CA) offered half tuition, but that is still a lot of tuition money. These were all schools that sent unsolicited mail about NMSF. He did not actually apply so we do not know if they would have ended up offering even more generous aid. We have family in AZ and TX so we did read through the info from those schools. Son pretty much eliminated these schools though because he has already received free tuition and has applied for full ride at our local U (where he is dual enrolled and volunteers in a lab). He actually is interested in going away for college but these schools would all be big unknowns and what we have locally is comparable. He is hoping for some good news from the private schools where he applied, keeping fingers crossed!

My son is a senior also and will be facing this decision soon. I also want this to be his decision, but honestly it is very hard! He asks our opinions and relies on us for advice in so many ways, I cannot imagine not giving him final input one way or another. He also has a few issues going on (dyslexic and aspie) which cause some concern over adjusting to full time college. I am torn, honestly. He still needs guidance in some ways, but in others he is completely independent. For him going away to college is mostly a big unknown, so he sometimes doesn't even know the kinds of questions to ask when assessing a school. He is de'ed at our local big state U so he does have college exposure. I hope your daughter finds a great place for her college years. Also, I do keep in mind that, although it may be hard, the kids are not tied down to their choice for 4 years. Transfers are an option if majors change or things just don't go well.

My older son is a senior also. We have encouraged him to apply to some schools that are not top picks. My thought is that next spring we want to be sure he has plenty of options, especially since we do not know how FA will work out for our family. Now, there are some schools that he has definitely eliminated for specific reasons. Would this be your son's financial safety? Does he have other financial safeties? This is one thing we have insisted DS has--schools he can attend at minimal cost.

When we lived about 6 hours away, my parents visited us a few times a year. It helped that we lived near the beach. Lots of my family tended to visit us. Dh's family has visited us one time, and they left early because they couldn't watch their regular tv shows. Now that we live in the Midwest, the kids only see grandparents when we visit them. DH's parents have passed away and I don't think my kids, now teens, remember much about them, and if they do, they probably do not have very fond memories of them, unfortunately. They were grandparents who said they wanted us to visit, but then they didn't actually like having little kids around. Visits there were always pretty stressful. I hope I will be more engaged in my grandkids' lives (provided my kids have kids, which is by no means a given.) I would love to end up living near my kids when they are adults. I suspect they will end up moving to wherever they obtain jobs in their fields, so I think it is actually unlikely that we will end up all living near each other.

I do believe copious amounts of chocolate can help prevent heads from exploding.

I'd try to let him stay spring semester but make it clear that in order to stay on beyond that he needs to get his grades up. I'd help him look into changing majors into some kind of computer tech, not necessarily programming. But, if it is unaffordable, then there would be very little debate and he would just have to come home and adjust as well as possible.

Aw, well that is sweet of you, but yea, just let it go. DH went on a trip last week and he told me he ordered a gift for me and that I should expect a package. He then told me exactly what was in the package. I thought it was funny!

I know regulations vary by state and school districts, but here a student in that situation could enroll at the high school as a senior and choose their own level of math, LA, etc. If they were unsure of placement, the school will issue placement tests, but they are not required. The student would not be able to get an accredited high school diploma. So when applying to colleges, they would still have a homeschool issued diploma. My kid have attended public school part time for high school and it has been a great experience for them overall. I think it was a useful transition for kids between homeschooling and then college (one son is now DE'd at the university). I wouldn't worry about it being a red flag.

The whole thing is pretty stressful! I don't like how much can depend on these single sitting tests. My son's scores for PSAT and SAT were not very similar, but for him PSAT was higher, SAT lower, but high enough for the cutoff. Younger son doesn't even want to get involved in taking the PSAT bc it stresses him out thinking about it. I hope your daughter will get lots of other opportunities and I hope she doesn't take it too hard.

Three teens in the house here now since my niece has just come to live with us as well. I love having them all around and enjoy their company. Great kids. :) I don't know if it is actually all in how you raise them. I think genetics play a huge role as well. So many conditions are unavoidable. :(

What kinds of gifts are you all getting for your older teens? My oldest son is a high school senior, heading off to college next year. We don't know WHERE yet though. There isn't anything he wants and I can't even think of anything he needs, other than a new phone case, which he argued against because his current one is holding up quite well with the duck tape. He just is a pretty minimalist guy. SO, hoping to get some ideas flowing based on gifts other people are getting. I am currently at ear buds and fuzzy lounge pants. Whoopie!

Aw, I can't be the only one who felt a little emotional reading that (in a good, babies are so cute kind of way). Hope you get in as many naps as possible!

I would probably buy it if one of my kids wanted it. If I lived in an area with a lot of gang activity I might feel differently. I don't personally find anything wrong with it and it does not conjure up any kkk images for me.

Sometimes a humor approach works with my kids. "Please clean up your own messes instead of relying on me to do it lest I become a horrid nag." Then mess up your hair, make a deranged facial expression and slowly limp away while mumbling to your self.

I am like you and really don't care much about getting things. If I don't give DH suggestions he comes up with weird and expensive things that I just do not want, so now I try to have somethings on my wish list. Some kind of tools for building furniture (since you said you enjoy making it) Felco pruners for the garden A garden tool tote for a 5 gallon bucket A nice framed poster ( I asked for this one year and DH picked out something very nice, to my surprise. I gave him general color guidelines and told him where I'd like it to go.) A new mouse/earbuds/mousepad Car charger for a phone if applicable An ice cream maker Fancy waffle maker I have considered asking for a kitchemaid mixer. Costco has them all the time. But, I don't really want something taking up more counter space and we don't have a good place to store it. But if you like to bake and don't already have one. Roomba (this is another thing I asked for in the past and I love it.) Hope you all have great birthdays! That has got to be intense. :)

How about a nice food item? Specialty smoked salmon, nice wine or beverage of his liking, special cheeses. I know gift food baskets are all over the place and some are pretty crummy, but some foods that particularly appeal to my dad are always appreciated by him. Specialty fudge or truffles are liked around here. audio book cd A nice pair of slippers Have you asked your mom for ideas? BTW, I think I would love a rock from our yard. :laugh: We have some pretty cool rocks out there and sometimes we sit and admire them. ETA: I hope you all have a wonderful visit. So sorry to hear about your dad's health.

Wait, what? Kids aren't supposed to wear coats in car seats? I think I have a long list of "no nos" about which I am blissfully unaware.

:hurray: wishing them both good luck!

Calligraphy set ear buds soft fuzzy robe soft fuzzy socks special hair treatment products Otherwise...gift card.

Does she enjoy Teaching Company lectures (audio and visual). Our library has several and my kids have enjoyed trying them out. Some are more appealing than others. My kids also enjoy Coursera classes and Khan academy. These are not documentary based but they do provide much information in an A/V format. Also we would sometimes pick topics and then just scour netflix and the library for resources. ' As my kids transitioned to high school though, they had to do a certain amount of text book reading. They transitioned slowly and then started taking classes at the high school and university.

I met a family who did this. Within a year one of them wanted to go back to the US. Within 2 years they were divorced. :( I think the reality of the experience stressed the marriage and it didn't survive. Not saying this is bound to happen, but it did make me think a lot about different expectations and communication in a marriage.

Get one with the helicopter blades. So much fun. But be sure they don't put their face over it as it launches. :)