Is Hershey's chocolate syrup mixed in a possibility? I'm not sure if this would work with such a little one but it worked well for us with a toddler. We went about 80% syrup for the first couple of doses to make him really like it and then steadily decreased the syrup and upped the medicine. I hope your baby is feeling better soon.

SAT subject tests have several test dates through the year. The foreign language are more tricky for timing, but both math levels are offered six times through the year. Does that help? I really wouldn't give up a good extracurricular for an AP, especially not AP enviro science which is viewed as a really light AP that doesn't carry much weight. Also, you don't have to look at the previous years test dates if that helps. The 2015 schedule is available.

I'm not talking about self-disciplined students who are self studying for tests - I agree they can do better with an SAT prep book and you can get it for free at the library. The core issue is that there are big state and public school district contracts. Not just for the ACT and SAT but for the tests that come before the ACT and SAT. The ACT now has an annual testing product. Testing takes on even more importance with the Common Core. If districts feel there is free and effective test prep available that's another marketing angle for the test. SAT may be fighting a losing battle here because ACT has greater market share.

It is important to understand though that there is an allowance for you to have home equity, investments, and savings that are in line with where they feel the numbers should be for your income. So, it isn't the case that they don't want people to own a house or have any savings. Rather, that they are saying that the picture is bigger than just your income this year. You may not have been over the threshold for any of these questions. In the example that was posted about of the student with the much higher EFC - the EFC they came up with is the same as it would have been found on the FAFSA (the federal form). They asked about savings and home equity, but her family was below the thresholds where the amount they had made a difference. Sorry this stuff is all complicated and I hope my post didn't make it more confusing. Just to boil it down.. as a general thing families overestimate how they will be punished for savings or home equity. Over 90% of families do not have enough savings or investments to exceed allowances. This article may help. http://www.thecollegesolution.com/will-your-savings-hurt-your-financial-aid-chances/

While I will never underestimate their ability to find a way to monetize everything... With this one, I think it is more subtle and indirect. Perhaps because the SAT was viewed as more coachable and benefiting rich students that leads to less credibility for the test with the all important school districts and state legislatures that are making long term testing commitments. The SAT has really been losing out on this versus the ACT and that's big bucks. If there are really good and free test prep materials available that increases the chance the SAT will be the test of choice (which leads to exam fees, fees for sending scores, fees for cancelling scores, fees for archiving scores, fees for sending scores faster, fees to register by phone, fees to register late, fees to get on the wait list for registration, fees for seeing the answers from the test, etc. etc. etc.)

This example is for a family with an annual income of $130,000 though. The Expected Family Contribution for an income of $130,000 is usually around $25,000. So, what the student is being expected to pay in this situation is right around what the EFC would be. In other words, while they offer this asset information in the example, I don't think they are posing a significant reduction to the financial aid being offered this hypothetical family. For a family that is looking at a much lower EFC (I think Sparkly said $6,000) typically assets exceeding the allowable limits isn't usually an issue. Most often when poses a problem is in the case of a small business or farm, but even then institutional judgement can come into play. The biggest challenge with financial aid is that it is hard to speak in generalities and to compare individual circumstances. But, I hate to see families writing off options that may end up being more affordable without really investigating.

The test prep is free and accessible to all. To me that seems like a positive thing.

At Cornell it means that the university will give you most of that in grant money. They place limits on loans based on income. Under $60,000 family income and the student has no loans, in between $60,000 and $75,000 it is limited to $2,500. Between $75,000 and $120,000 it is limited to $5,000. Here's a link that explains how it works at Cornell. http://www.finaid.cornell.edu/cost-attend/financial-aid-initiatives What you need to know going into this college planning business is that it is primarily at these most selective schools where financial need is well met. Sometimes parents new to this assume that when people want their kids at top ranked schools that's all about prestige... In reality a lot for a lot of middle income families is that it is less expensive to go to a more expensive school that meets financial need well than it is to go to a less selective school that doesn't.

It is hard but sounds like you are doing all the right things. My thought is that random strangers are just random strangers. Most will mean well even if they are misguided but some will always be jerks. When you are addressing their comments or questions remember your most important audience is and will always be your daughter. The fact that she's hearing your pleasant tone and positive statement - "she's a very happy baby" - is what counts. Hang in there!

LOL, I can relate to that. My rationalization is if there was an annual membership fee to belong to the library, I would pay it without complaint.

Hive Therapy Couch - like that! For what it is worth, the research finds that the most important thing in determining college success is social fit. If students make connections and have friends they are much more likely to do well and to graduate. A great program in your major doesn't mean a lot if you are miserable and you hole up in your room. So I agree strongly with the suggestion that mental health support and social fit need to be prioritized over the ideal academic program.

Particularly at a lot of state universities that have a lot of general education requirements it can be nearly impossible to get out in 4 years for students who aren't coming in with AP credits. Five or six years to graduation is much more the norm and that's the case even though MOST students are coming in with AP credits. It depends a lot on the major of course too. Some majors, like engineering and education, simply have a lot of requirements and it is a haul to get through all of them. One trend a lot of parents haven't heard of are "pre-major" requirements. These are separate from general education or major requirements. Some majors may require two semesters of calculus for example, but they don't count toward requirements for completing the major. So the credits that were supposed to get the student "ahead" may just be getting them on a more level playing field.

One challenge with this would be that the Prometric test centers (owned by ETS) are often pretty small. Students scheduling MCAT and GRE are often surprised to find it can take a month to get a slot on the schedule at busy times of the year so it would take quite a bit of expansion. It does seem like it will be a big technical challenge to eventually get all these tests computer for all students.

Lots of good advice. I strongly agree with the advice to make it clear you are shopping only for price on the vehicle - not interested in talking about payments or trade in. You are interested in what you think is a reasonable price for that vehicle only. Get the vehicle history first - don't waste time driving or looking at any car that has a bad history. My other suggestion would be to try to get firm in your own mind what your parameters are as far as cost and the brands/models you will consider. That way you don't have to waste time resisting getting pushed into stuff you aren't interested in. Rather than saying "I want to spend x dollars." I would say "I'm interested in brand, model, year..." So, something like "we are interested in a budget sedan, such as a 2008-2010 Hyundai Elantra or a 2007-2009 Toyota Corolla." They may respond "how much do you want to spend?" and you go back to talking about the years and models you've already identified. Good luck!

Crazy thing but they actually accept a pretty similar number of students - Harvard around 2,000 and Middlebury about 1,500. It is just that Harvard's yield is very high - a small percentage of students turn them down. For sure though, all of these schools are hard to get into!

The rules don't apply to you is a very big one. That's a dangerous message for kids to get at any age. It is tricky because obviously in the homeschooling world we do to some extent get to break the rules. We don't have to beg for permission to give our kids the custom education they deserve and that's a positive thing. But it is a dangerous thing to extend that into the idea that they are somehow separate from all constraints or expectations that affect other people.

There are a lot of individual particulars (his goals, the withdraw and dual enrollment policies at this school, etc.) that will influence his decision. So, I can't say if this would be a good fit without knowing more about the specifics but I wanted to offer one other idea. I worked with one homeschooler who ran into difficulty with a dual enrollment Calc II after an A in Calc I. He ended up being allowed to take a W in the course, but the professor agreed to continue to allow him to go to class, get graded feedback, go to the tutoring center etc. So, he continued just like he was enrolled in the class even though he dropped. Of course not every school would allow this but he was fortunate this one did. The next semester he reenrolled in the same class, this time on his own dime because dual enrollment would not cover it, and was able to pull a high B. I do not believe he would have been able to do so well the next time through if he quit after taking the W. He approached it the second time with some familiarity with the material and with different homework strategies in place.

This may be off track of the theme of the conversation but it is not particularly uncommon to be rejected from med school admissions on the first year trying. I can think of three typical age graduates I know in this situation just in the last couple of years. Yes, for students who have always done well in life, that can be a blow but life doesn't always proceed in a straight line with no bumps in the road. Some students who don't get in the first time take more prep and retake the MCAT, beef up their science, try a master's program first, etc.

That's excellent. And, it is great to frame this as a victory. He was stressed out about the thin pages and the honest statement - but he totally got through it. That's huge! It is good that when they are ready they get the opportunity to learn this stuff because in other forms they will experience it again. In big university classrooms there is often quite a bit of test security with monitors walking around, ID checking, etc. Also, tests like GRE, MCAT, etc. have really intense security now. Dozens of cameras, electronic scanner or pat down, several honesty statements, etc. So, it is good for students to become aware so it isn't a surprise and they understand that's just the way it is done now.

My understanding is that they only look at the honesty statement if there was some incident like they think someone is taking the test for money. Even then they would not care that the handwriting was weird or illegible. It would only be used as a means to verify identity and establish that the person indeed was aware they were violating the rules. I'm sorry he's stressed. Your comment that everyone else in the same situation is right on. While I understand why they've got so much test security right now because it was really ridiculous how much cheating was going on... it certainly can make already anxious kids who would never cheat feel worried.

I'm happy to hear you are back at work. That's unfortunate about the changes at the school. This kind of rigidity may buy compliance from teenagers but it will never earn respect. And, it is always striking to me how as a culture we can act like 12th graders can't be trusted to leave class to go to the bathroom, but magically four months later they can live on their own, decide if and when to go to class, etc.

The ACT is given by the ACT. http://www.actstudent.org/ This site has the registration information. Some colleges require all scores from 9th grade and later. Most people find the best, and least expensive way, to get practice is by taking a sample test at home. You can do it just the regular test, make sure the electronics are off, use a timer, etc. Here's the best source of practice tests. http://www.amazon.com/Real-ACT-3rd-Prep-Guide/dp/0768934400

These changes have been in the works for a while. The SAT has been losing market share to the ACT for some time. It isn't just the money they make off the test itself, but also all the long line of versions of the test for younger and younger students. There are states and school districts spending a lot on these tests and it is big business. One thing for students to keep in mind is while the test company may make the essay optional, the ultimate decision is really up to colleges Right now the ACT essay is optional, but many more selective colleges require that students submitting the ACT score for admissions do so "with writing" - which means with the optional essay. So, depending on your student's college goals they may still need to take the essay.

I think students benefit as much from prep for the ACT as they do the SAT. I don't really buy the big distinction that the ACT is less affected by preparation. While the ACT has less tricky questions, many students find they are more likely to run out of time on the ACT so learning pacing is an issue. The science section is a bit of a wildcard too. I've seen enough students who have had scores change significantly with prep on the science section that I no longer even put a lot of stock in the predictive powers of the first score a student gets on a practice test in science.

One of the breaks is probably just a "stretch break" where they let students get up from their desk for a minute. I'm told most kids just stay seated, but I would advise if they are given a stretch break that they send up and get the blood moving a little bit. They may not want to if everyone is sitting still, but any opportunity to move they should take it.