For these courses, we had a separate area on our transcripts titled "Courses in Progress". We included expected completion dates and credits that would be earned when each course was completed. As our sons completed each of these courses, we "bumped them up" into the "Courses Completed" area of the transcript.

Good question, and you've received some good answers. However, just wanted to share a little more with you. We have friends who have (reluctantly) kept the names of the older rescue dogs they've adopted. We also have friends who have changed the names. The dogs really do fine either way. They learn their new names very quickly. We have friends who just adopted an older rescue dog, and her full name to that point was, believe it or not, "Minty Fresh" (the family who gave her up called her, simply, "Minty"). Our friends couldn't bear to use that name, so they changed it to "Mindy". Their new little girl adapted to the name change in no time.

We homeschooled our younger two sons all the way through. Neither we nor our sons ever felt tempted to quit, so I can't answer your question about that. Our sons felt secure and confident about homeschooling because that's the way I felt about it. It has long been my belief that many, if not most, of the doubts that homeschooled students feel about homeschooling are picked up from the doubts of their parents.

I have to agree with the others. The review at the beginning of the Advanced Math book moves very quickly. The early lessons are packed with review concepts, and assumes the student has learned those concepts in the previous book.

Yes, it's possible. But as the others have said, it's a lot more work. My intention is that our next dog will be a non-shedder. Non-shedders need grooming, but I'd rather that than constant vacuuming.

I voted "other" because one of our sons who really detested chemistry (and didn't really need chemistry specifically) was a happy camper when we skipped it and let him take physics (Apologia) instead. You'd just need to be sure your student had the math under her belt that she needed for physics.

The non-coffee-drinkers have obviously skewed the poll.

Keep in mind that I have sons, but one of our favorite read-alouds was Cheaper by the Dozen.

I have to echo the others -- report only what is required. Even that much is intrusive, and you won't do yourself or other homeschoolers any favors if you don't draw the line right there.

We looked only at college admissions requirements.

Can't speak for myself (I went the other way -- Catholic to Protestant) but my SIL converted to Catholicism. She did so because she married a young man who was Catholic.

Personally, I don't remember any dates I ever memorized for a test. The only dates I remember are those to which I was repeatedly exposed, and in more than one context. I asked our sons to memorize only things I knew they would use often enough to remember them. That didn't include many dates. Much more effective and useful, in my experience, was building timelines.

In our experience, most (probably all) colleges are fine with homeschool foreign language credits. However, some of them (typically the more selective ones) want documentation of mastery of that language study with something besides mommy-issued credits. The usual route for that is SATII subject tests. Other avenues for the homeschooled student to satisfy the admission requirements for such colleges include accredited distance learning courses and community college classes (both options exercised by our sons).

Yes, you're right. And it's been done by many homeschoolers (including our sons) for as long as there's been homeschooling. Yep. Not a thing.

I would be VERY reluctant to encourage you to do anything to undermine your current pack. But under the circumstances, you may find that there are other boys in your current den who would be interested in traveling to the new den 30 minutes away, and you might be able to work out a car pool arrangement so that drive isn't something you have to make for every meeting.

In WA, they accept the parent's documentation that the student has the GPA to participate. Many homeschoolers would consider even this too intrusive, and I can respect that.

Another example: Steve Martin is considered among the top banjo players in the world. He taught himself to play as an adult by watching videos of other banjo players -- frame by frame -- and copying their movements.

That's probably the most reliable piece of advice anyone here can give.

Humph. I'll bet you don't like eating from dishes dogs have licked clean either. Even if they have been sanitized in the dishwasher (the dishes, not the dog).

Just want to clarify: It's not that we didn't say anything, it's that nothing we said did much to help him. No matter what we said, he remained determined to play sports and to imagine himself skilled at them, and to be disappointed that others didn't seem to agree.

We had one of those kids. It hurts, huh? We never found the right thing to say, but I hope you'll get some good advice from others.

I voted for "cart" because that's what I call it today. But I could have also chosen "other" because I grew up caliing it a "basket".

This is the clincher for me. If ALL of the students had done poorly, or if the older students had done well but the younger had not, I would be tempted to think the failing students might have been at some disadvantage not of their own making, and I'd be looking for ways for them to have a second shot at the test. As it is, I'd be very reluctant to do anything more than let those older students learn a hard lesson at a time in their lives when that lesson doesn't mean college tuition money down the drain.

I didn't vote, but I just wanted to say that when we lived in TX, the Arlington Curriculum Fair didn't allow children under (I think) 12. I see they have changed the rules. Whatever you decide, HAVE FUN! It was such a great event -- I miss it.

WA does -- both academic and extracurricular.