DS says that in playing EU for about 25 hours, he hasn't seen anything. The ESRB rating mentions brief references to sexual material. It's rated Teen for "Drug Reference, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Themes, Mild Violence ." Sorry I can't find more details for you. Maybe Mike in SA or someone else with more experience can speak to this better.

Thanks for the note about the SPICE programs -- I had never heard of them. They both sound very interesting. I'm curious about the ethnic background of the participants - if they are primarily Korean and Japanese? Have you found them to be time-intensive? I can see DS being intrigued by both, but not wanting either to consume too much time. Maybe this is a stupid question, but is North Korea part of the study? DS has a strong interest there. He will participate in a MUN this year for the first time; he is looking forward to it.

Yes, we may need to settle for family discussions. I can see DH and I both enjoying discussions stemming from his studies. It's just that we are always discussing things, and it would be nice for him to have someone else other than us to hear from. Maybe I can convince a friend of his (who attends a private school), to join him somehow.

I have only been able to find one by PAHS, and very little information about it. A few WTM posts with concerns about it, and one or two with positive reviews. The posted stats from last year's exam are impressive -- 85% scored a 5 on the AP exam. This is an area of high interest for DS, so I am feeling sad about him self-studying and not getting to interact with a knowledgeable instructor and other students about the material. He is great at self-studying, and would do fine on the exam on his own, but I wish he could have some avenue for interaction with others (beyond his family) over the material. My main concern about the PAHS class, and really about any class, would be busywork. He took WHAP through PAHS last year, and it was overall a negative experience with huge loads of what felt like busywork. Maybe he could self-study for the exam, but join some kind of active discussion group. More ideal would be a very well-run class with a great instructor! Anyone with recent reviews of the PAHS or other AP Comp. Gov't class?

Yes, DLC (downloadable content) refers to the expansion packs. Yes, each game covers a different time period. DS was saying that it would be difficult to actually play straight through from Crusaders to Hearts of Iron, as they are separate games -- when you start each one, it will restart everything to look historically like that point in time. DS recommends just googling for information about the expansion packs related to the game you want (Europa Universalis, or Hearts of Iron, or whichever time period game you are interested in). There is a lot of information available about the expansion packs; some are excellent, others are lame and not worth the money.

DS says this looks like a great deal! https://www.humblebundle.com/store/p/paradoxgrandstrategycollection_storefront He recommends some expansion packs to go with it. He suggests googling for advice about expansion packs; apparently there is a lot of info available about each option.

Thanks Mike in SA for explaining how the game differs from Civilization. DS was explaining that in Civilization, if you play well you can have nuclear weapons in the 17th century; it really is all about technology development. E.U. places much greater emphasis on diplomacy and the balance of power involving several factors. This is where it gets complicated -- the game is continuously keeping track of your legitimacy, power, stability, prestige, manpower, treasury, and several other factors I can't remember. Also, Civilization is played by taking turns. E.U. is simultaneous; while you are making your own decisions, the nations around you are also making decisions. This complicates play (and often requires you to pause the game.) I personally think one of the coolest things about Europa Universalis is the map at the start of the game which allows you to see in fairly small detail how the world changed from year to year. I also think its really cool that you can play as a Native American tribe (the map shows where each people group lived in the Americas, and you can choose from among several to play) -- I think this came from an expansion pack. Again, you can view the map of the Americas and watch the shifting of Native people groups over the years in the same way you can view country names and borders change in Europe, Asia, etc. The historical content is primarily at the start of the game; afterwards your own play disrupts the flow too much to represent actual history (though it still involves historical concepts of that time period.) Other DS, who has not studied as much World History, does not find the game quite as exciting; he feels it is best played when you are more intimately familiar with world events in that time period (mid 1400s to mid 1800s). Its still a fun game, but he doesn't get the same thrill as older DS who loves the little details that tie in with what he has learned about. DS bought the game when Steam was having a 75% off sale. He bought it for $10, and then spent another $10 on expansion packs. The basic version is $40 right now on Steam.

Yes, it is similar to Civilization but much more detailed.

I did a search for this and couldn't find anything, so thought I'd submit a very brief review. DS 15 has been raving to me about how great the video strategy game Europa Universalis IV is. Basically you choose a country and play as that country in whichever time period you choose, anywhere from the mid-1400s to the mid-1800s. After taking AP World last year, he feels this should be part of a World History curriculum. The makers have gone to great lengths to provide historically accurate information about each time period. In particular you learn a lot about the balance of power in a region (since this is a strategy game, and you do want to take over the world), but you also learn a lot about culture, leaders, religion, etc. You learn the most about the time period you start in; eventually your own actions will affect the tide of events, so the story becomes less historical. There is a steep learning curve, as the game is quite complicated. According to DS, this is an excellent game for a teen who enjoys strategy games and world history.

This is what my parents did for me, and what we plan to do with our kids. (Well, actually it was a credit card taken out in my name, so that I could build credit, but my parents paid the bill.) I also had a bank account with money I earned in the summers, and from part time campus jobs. I mostly used the credit card, though. My dad would joke about how he knew everywhere I had been. I was always aware that my parents were paying that bill, and so was pretty frugal. It is a fond memory for me actually, that place of new freedom and trust. I hope we have that same kind of relationship and trust with our kids.

Yesterday at the dinner table: DS15 trying to convince dyslexic DS13 that memorizing a 3 min. speech for a competition will be easy: "Can you sing the alphabet? A, B, C, D, E, F, G...?" DS 13: Yes DS 15: See? You memorized 26 random letters. You can memorize a 3 min. speech. DS 13: Do you know how many YEARS that took? :lol:

My DS took this course last year as a 9th grader and loved it. He was continually sharing with me interesting things he was reading about. The "workbook/diary" is essential and was very engaging; he also used the Barrons AP guide. He got a 5 on the AP test, which he felt he was well prepared for.

OK, I want a slapping-the-forehead emoticon. I had no idea that they were restructuring the essay as well! Thank you! I am sure this will still be challenging for DS, but overall WAY easier. :hurray:

We've started preparing for SAT essays using the brilliant method shared by 8Fill and Lori D. My 10th grade DS is having the toughest time with these essay prompts. They are all just too vague for him. He can handle writing essays about historical facts, but these questions involving "finding true happiness" or "what is real success" are driving him batty! A few times there was a prompt that he was able to just go ahead and start writing about. But often he can't think of any response at all, and then we just end up discussing and discussing the entire prompt, with me trying to explain it to him, and him just not getting it. He is a very smart, very literal-minded kid, who has great difficulty with these "soft" topics. Any ideas of how I can help him? Thanks for your thoughts!

DS took this class and was also frustrated with the many assignments that didn't seem to add anything to his understanding of world history or his preparation for the AP exam. Several of the assignments encouraged thoughtless work, like the class competition that required comments on other classmate's work - any kind of comment. The results were sometimes hilariously off. We did find her responsive and helpful, though. DS had some health challenges, and she was very understanding. He also wanted more practice writing timed essays, and she was willing to read and respond to several extra essays (one thing we found odd -- she never assigned any 40 min. essays, which is what the exam requires - only 60 min. ones, so DS did several 40 min. ones on his own.) He also felt he knew exactly how he wanted to prepare for the exam, and she was willing to flex her requirements in the last few weeks for him. I think it was a great learning experience for DS, to take responsibility for his own education and understand that the instructor is on his side and worth working with.

If they have younger children and no good library nearby, they will still really want to own a good number of excellent children's picture books. We don't have a good library where we live, so we just ended up slowly building our own mini-library. Having good books around is worth it. Betterworldbooks sells used books and has free global shipping; it's awesome. I'd recommend FIAR for the younger set and also the preschool cores of Sonlight. We used a lot of Sonlight for the older ones too. They ship internationally, and its pricey, but at least it comes quickly and without being rummaged through/damaged. They could always get kindle versions of the books and just purchase the instructor guides. And if they have good internet access, they still CAN spend a ridiculous amount of time researching various options to meet the unique needs of each kid...not that I would know anything about that. :rolleyes:

IMO this is the coolest thing about Brave Writer. (And the best thing I learned from hearing Julie Bogart speak at a homeschool conference.) My DS -also very much a STEM kid- produced some excellent writing in the Brave Writer course he took. I'm not sure how many of their classes we'll do, but I am grateful for the lessons they've taught us. This year we're going to try Write Guide, using assignments from Lightning Literature.

I was told by College Board that if the student is 13 yrs or below, you need to send in a letter to have them keep AP scores. However, another poster here said that she didn't need to do anything extra to have her young student's AP scores saved. (The College Board site does say clearly that SAT scores taken before 9th grade are purged if a letter is not sent- this applies to SAT subject tests as well. I haven't seen anything on the site related to saving AP scores.)

I like these much more than the askmrh videos, but are you sure they go with the Jurgensen text? The chapters don't quite line up. I'm sure you could still use them, but you'd have to move things around a bit to correspond with the text.

My DS took it in 8th grade and got a 5. He used TeenCoder and the Barron's review bk. He felt it was an easy exam. One funny thing that happened as he took his first practice test: he realized that he couldn't remember how to print! Seriously. His thoughts were "Wait, I don't think I can write code in cursive." So he sat for a few minutes printing out the alphabet (looking at the printed test for examples of a few letters he forgot.) We had a good laugh about that. He felt that Barron's was very helpful in preparing for the exam. (And since then he has realized his printing is far more legible than his cursive and has switched completely to printing. :))

Thank you so much for sharing all of this! [Wow, cannot imagine handling a seriously ill child with Lupus, and a child with Asperger's, at the same time as figuring out high school for your first dyslexic child. :ohmy: ] Super encouraging what he was able to handle, and the bolded is full of helpful guidance I had not considered. I didn't realize the structure of the SAT has a break in it that would help with reading fatigue - I can totally see that benefitting my DS. I love your tips for working on reading speed! Hadn't considered that - I'm still just so happy he is picking up books to read for fun. I can see him being up for that challenge (though maybe a bit grudgingly). And going for schools with a semester system again makes so much sense. I feel like this is all "College Prep Info for Dyslexics" that must be written down somewhere (is it?). (OH, and CLEP for US history... good idea!) My DS, too, is really good at math and physics, and says "being an engineer sounds ridiculously fun." He excels at crazy creative problem solving and is deadly at any game requiring spatial reasoning. I think he does appreciate the strengths he has, but I'm not sure he sees dyslexia as a gift yet (though DH and I do; he is a remarkable kid). Thanks again for sharing your experience!! :)

Oh, man that stinks!! I said a quick prayer for you just now to find a place for AP exams -- don't give up! Even if it means driving a ways. And this is a possibility I had not considered. Taking any exam, including APs, is a slightly different process for us here in India where we live right now. In some ways (for AP), its easier because the hosting sites are used to people from all over using them. But I had not considered the issue of accommodations. Blah. I can see people here having a BIG problem with that. We'll see; we have a few years.

Thank you so much for sharing! I think it is definitely not bragging!! I personally really need to hear these stories. It can be so discouraging, seeing the hurdles this DS of mine has. Sometimes when he's reading (for fun now, hooray!), I feel like I almost see steam coming up from his head, with those gears working so hard. He is exhausted after reading for long stretches, just completely winded, collapsing on the coach. And then its easy to wonder how on earth he going to achieve all that I know he is capable of, when he has to work so much harder than others to do simple things like read. So anyway, I love to hear these stories. And I appreciate the advice to wait and re-evaluate after a few years. Past experience with this kid has already shown growth in huge leaps (just after I was despairing of any progress). :)

If you are anywhere near Michigan, we found the University of Michigan dyslexia help center to be very thorough and helpful in their evaluation (but not cheap! :tongue_smilie: ). I think the exact dept has changed names, but their website is http://dyslexiahelp.umich.edu/ . Their website is a nice resource on its own. You can find a provider in your state here: https://eida.org/ida-accredited-provider-directory/ You've probably already seen this on the Barton website, but her videos on spotting dyslexia are very helpful. They are worth watching. It sounds like you're probably beyond those, though, and need more specific guidance. [Also wanted to thank the OP -and others - for being so specific in your posts -- so helpful for others in similar situations! I have a 13yo dyslexic/dysgraphic DS, and am suspecting 7yo DD is also mildly dyslexic.... I can relate to so much of what others have mentioned here!!]

Thanks, Chanley, that is helpful! I can see how the type of student interaction you mention would improve a student's ability to critique their own papers.