7th grade is a great time to master and practice some fundamental skills, learn to begin producing longer term work product and generally learn to learn. You seem have a rich emphasis on composition elements. Writing longer papers and essays really can wait for 8th grade and onward if times is being used to solidify the buidling blocks (grammar, vocabulary, spelling...). Enjoy the time and go with what you have planned for a while to see how it all fits into your schedule. You can always add, but beginning with too much initially can result in being overwhelmed and discouraged.

With July waning and August roaring in, I am finding myself asking where the summer went as we scramble to the next thing. Dd has several summer related activities (camps/intensives/short trips) on the schedule for August. We start "school" full on the last week of August. What I find myself asking is "how we can structure/approach the upcoming school year to feel less like we are on a speedway and more like we are on a journey?" With a couple of classes outsourced (History, Latin, Science in part), we have less control over the flow than we might otherwise. I am hoping that serves more to steady the pace than to escalate it, but we will see. What types of adjustments are any of you trying in the upcoming year to savor more than survive? I am looking for ideas.

Huge----long----exasperated----SIGH! Yet another attempt to suggest evidence exists that homeschoolers lack "proper socialization". One problem is few if any traditionally schooled high schoolers are submitting lists of all the books they read in the past four years as part of their college applications. I would think it might be relevant to know what both sides of the comparison are reading. What we find in our experience is that Dd simply reads more than her contemporaries who are otherwise schooled. She reads far more in what may be considered the classics, but she also reads a great deal of contemporary literature. This loony assumption that homeschoolers live in some alternate universe devoid of current trends and are being raised as anachronistic foot soldiers in some countercultural devolution must end at some point.

Two things make me think this kid needs fairly rigid structure, high expectations, and very clear directions/expectations/rules. Both ROTC and working with CAD are filled with those elements and features. Step one for me would be to talk to his ROTC leader and ask them what his strengths and weaknesses are there. If he did homeschool, I would make sure he could do something like Civil Air Patrol (if ROTC not an option). Homeschool for him would likely be best where it is a series of small concrete goals working toward a larger ones. It would likely also be best if he had at least one or two very structured classes (online or local). However, I would not have writing be one of them, because it sounds like he will need some carefully targeted multi-level simultaneous remediation and acceleration. Although you did not say it, I don't suspect he is going to do any of it to please/impress a teacher or parent. If I am right, it is hard to be the adult in his life because he is not easily bribed, coaxed or persuaded. He uses apathy to mask insecurity and avoids tasks he has deemed himself to perform poorly doing. For writing he may well need an ex-military tutor, a no nonsense sort who can speak the language of writing as a process using tools. One thing about schools, he likely figured out is that they will pass you on along, and thus played the game but not to win. The standards are low and this is a kid who at least in unflinched by a challenge like West Point. He has to be convinced that he has to be West Point material. It may be possible to find out about someone in his state who is currently there who might be willing to have a chat with him if a concerned mom/dad asked (and that may help make the impression). I have a friend who's son would talk to high schoolers while he was at West Point because he felt he could be help someone else wake up (you never know). Is he by chance a wee bit silently defiant in other areas? If so he would not be out of line with other gifted underachievers.

We still have tracking at the high school level, it just appears to be a choice of the student/family more so than in the past (AP, IB, Concurrent Enrollment). These programs grew as the movement away from ability grouping gained steam within the systems/ed community. Parents responded at earlier ages by increasingly seeking "gifted" designations in elementary to assure being on track for access to Algebra 1 (and increasingly Geometry) in middle school. Honors levels in high school seems increasingly a destinction without a difference, except to be something that is not AP/IB or Concurrent Enrollment but not remedial. Dd studies/reads the classics and reads from the current teen oriented selections. She likes both, for different reasons. She loves being lost in a language and conversation rarely encountered today, but she also likes that breezy read that keeps her in touch with the contemporary conversation and trends. A good reading of Paradise Lost may take her a few weeks, but she can pick up Orson Scott Card and be done in a day. For many of her friends, the issue is more than not reading. They don't follow any news, understand other cultures, assume black and white films have nothing to offer, can't imagine why one would worry about a painting beyond whether it matches the sofa and can recall the latest hip/hop verbage but have never read a poem outside a classroom.

TY for the links. I remember that Foresman book from long ago, before textbooks really became muddled.

I found this article http://www.educationnews.org/technology/study-computer-ownership-doesnt-mitigate-income-achievement-gap/ and thought others who follow the achievement gap debates/discussions might be interested.

If pressed to select a single text, I think I would go with either a Norton Anthology or Bedford Anthology. The problem is they both tend to be a bit raw in the sense of analysis and explanation of literary elements/devices. What they do well is give you a bound collection of works from a particular time range and location that each tend to be fairly representative examples from the major movements in literature. My issue with most true texts in literature is that they tend to use excerpts or condensed versions of the works included, be very reflective of the popular emphasis of the moment in which they are printed, and in some cases be very cluttered visually. In some of the high school level ones I have looked over the questions are not terribly analytical. The one series I have had others say they did like was Prentice Hall. Another option to consider is a Teaching Company course and read the selections discussed therein. The accompanying course books often have questions to prompt discussion/composition. We go the route of a mix of many resources -- which is what you stated you wanted to avoid.

It is true.

Dd consistently spends at least 14 hours and usually 20+ in a combination of voice, guitar, showchoir, theatre, and dance. Yes, I am constantly asking, "are we nuts". We feel hardest it in December and May/early June when the performances and holiday/year end stuff really challenge stamina. Dd takes it in stride. It is doable, but it does require respecting time for academics. They go hand in hand. Being in the performing arts teaches a great deal: how to handle rejection/praise, presentation/speaking skills, meeting deadlines, being organized, working with others for common goals, persistence (and finding enthusiasm) in repetitive tasks, how to negotiate/compromise, how to advocate for oneself, how to think on your feet, how to solve problems before an audience, memorization techniques, how to comply graciously with the demands of others, long term planning, and how to manage time/health. You have to learn to be reliable, resilient and sometimes remarkable (even if you feel terrible). I try to remember some these lessons are as valuable as the contents of the next chapter and carry over into an understanding of the work required to master academics pursuits. Performing under pressure and learning to manage stress is always a plus. For example, Dd doesn't question the need to edit her writing, she sees the work that goes into a production and equates the two.

We also do not count music, theatre or dance (cummulatively/consistently 20+ hours a week) for credits. It is a significant extracurricular and Dd will have plenty of credits otherwise. We felt that making it a credit would actually understate the long term sustained effort and time involved. It helps explain where her time when not in "school" went.

In our area, only math and foreign languages taken prior to 9th grade may be counted toward high school.

Thanks to those who cheated, the security system for the entire testing process is on the rivaling the airport security. Body scans and biometrics in our future?

I suspect it will remain a hybrid but that could mean a lot of things. There really is no reason a BA has to be a 4 year residential experience. When you think about it, many students live in the dorms for a year or two and then progress to apartments even going the most traditional routes. Think about how often colleges say they don't guarantee on campus housing beyond Freshman year. Harvard and some of the other Ivies are limited in growth because they are landlocked. They could shift to a 6 month on campus, 6 month off campus experience and double their class sizes while still accomplishing their goals. We keep hearing how globally interconnected the future will be. A hybrid/mobile experience may arguably make more sense for cultivating a global citizen than the tradition 4 year community experience. I am waiting for the college model that has students live abroad, connect online and the campus be a hub.

bumping this to see if the weekend provides an answer.

Priceless.

The Count of Monte Cristo or Don Quixote. Both stimulate a lot of chatter.

I was thinking about the kids in some of the tornado hit areas and how tough it must be for them with the disruptions and SAT's. Best of luck to all of you and prayers to them.

I can't help with a specific provider suggestions but in a general sense you may want to check any suggestion to see if it is Statistics with Calculus or without. I noticed a distinction when I was browsing options a while back.

TY for posting. Maybe someone on the West Coast was saved by it and thereby your mistake is redeemed in the universal order. Seriously, I am glad you posted and shared because it sounds like just the sort of thing I would do and need to remind myself to watch for.

Cookies!!!! Now there is a topic I want to investigate!

Now I have images of naked adult bananas! Funny images...pass more coffee please. :tongue_smilie:

We can imagine it. Dd is in the midst of deciding whether to graduate a year early (17), "right on time" (18) or later (19). Assuming she does what is required, the decision is ultimately hers. She is not "challenged/delayed" and she doesn't need her path smoothed. She tests extremely well, performs very well academically, navigates a very busy schedule well and thus has options. I actually had another mom suggest that letting Dd have an extra year would be unfair because she is already a "competitive" applicant and an extra year would give her "too much" of an advantage. While I appreciated the candor/honesty, our family culture is not about competing with others. It is about being appreciative for what you have, striving to be your personal best and giving back/paying forward. I have always felt uneasy with the idea that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, because sometimes it wounds you. You may survive, but thriving may be limited. We can find strength we may not have been called upon previously to use in times of adversity, but sometimes we emerge from the struggle with challenges that lessen our potentials. Strength of character can shine in the sunlight.

We are not dedicating a set year to study Health, the 1/2 credit is more of a cummulative study over time via liviing, smaller included goals and sharing articles/discussion. She has earned and will maintain CPR/First Aid certification, reviewed common toxins in the home/yard, calculates Resting Heart Rate and Body Fat Index in association with dance, we talk about reproductive health/STD's, and intoxicant use and abuse are ongoing coversations. Dd is very aware of respiratory health. She has taken the Red Cross Babysitting course. We also review kitchen safety continously and discuss nutrition issues. She has also taken a survival skills course, which was great! Some projects still on our list: Filing a health insurance claim, reading a policy Drug store tour to really examine what is on the shelves, compare/contrast Assemble a first aid kit to take to college Review health claims in a couple of popular healthy living magazines

Dd is shooting for 400, but that could be a stretch. She is in dance/theatre/music formally 20+ hours a week with practice time on top of that, taking a fairly rigorous course load and we both feel social life and downtime are part of a healthy whole. She earned 90 this past year, next year she has about 60 booked. If she graduates early, she will not meet 400. If she graduates on time, it will be possible but not certain.