74Heaven
-
Posts
981 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Classifieds
Store
Posts posted by 74Heaven
-
-
It is about 30 lessons on the schedule that is provided on the website (I think that is where the sked is?).
We are on about Lesson 10. Daughter is taking first AP Lit class next year and there will be *tons* of writing and literature evaluation. My daughter shows a lot of good "thinking skills" for writing but we have neglected to be diligent in IEW this year. Tho she did write 4-5 literary essays as well as character, plot, literature analyzation charts, etc. this year.
The truth is, I think she needs more writing practice and prep. If you are familiar with IEW-C (Continuation), do you think we could jam this in like a "4 day" seminar? I don't remember if the class is done that way on the videos - I think Pudewa is meeting with students weekly over a longer period.
I would like to do it now in a plow-thru-it way. I know finishing it now and then not writing throughout the next months is not optimum. It is the only subject we are not *done* with so this would be her only subject.
The weak link could be me. I love summer and need a break. We could do it now; do it slowly over the summer tho I doubt I'd be diligent; or start in August and do it over 4-5 weeks. Personally, I'd like to just get it done!!!
I guess if we could do it as a "seminar" kind of thing, it might be best & if not is it worthwhile to do it at all - and then *not* write for 2 months?
(Don't be too hard on me, I am finishing a very rough year and I have 5 children that I homeschool - I really need a break!)
Lisaj, mom to 3 teens and 2 sanity savers
-
I am very much thinking I need to change the game for my son. I hadn't wanted my girls to be locked into a W-2 job in high school because it would limit our schedule so severely. When I had 3 at home, I couldn't afford to be driving 20-30 minutes one way to take a high school student to work on someone else's time plan. We live semi-rural, and the major business strips are at least 20 minutes away. With only one at home now, and a boy to boot, I'm thinking this kid had BETTER work during high school if he's going to have a chance at jobs when he's in college.
I'm pretty big on developing a strong work ethic and I think it is worth it even if I end up driving way too much. And your rural location, etc. sounds very similar to ours. (My brother thought I was crazy because this was during the high gas prices 2 summers ago.) A neighbor teen has a weekend dog kennel job 1/4 mile away (think very rural area) and she makes $50 a weekend doing morning/evening dog kennel chores. I consider that the premium oppty for a rural teen. We didn't get that lucky.
Also, we have found employers very flexible - way too flexible imho because I think the teens take advantage of it. The kids trade shifts for everything. IOW, "I need a sub because my friends are going to play Ultimate Frisbee" rather than, <smile> "I need a sub to go to my grandma's 100th birthday party".
Another good job oppty is swim instructor - those are sep. certifications in my state and kids can do one and not the other. And a banquet server or working for a catering company. It turned out my dtr went to a retirement home to get a job and the retirement home operated a kitchen at a summer camp out by our home so my daughter was able to work there.
After all these years, one of my favorite is still the retirement home dining room. Besides the intergenerational experience (my daughter didn't even know she loved older people til she had the job - and they loved her back!!!), the hours are very set. 3-4 hours at dinner time for most of these jobs. Some kids work 2-3 evenings a week; kids with sports often just worked the weekend shift.
Above all, keep trying! As we all know, the experience is as valuable as the job! And I hope we are all reminding them constantly that the rejection is NOT personal.
Oh one other tip, if your child doesn't have a $10 (in our state) food handler's permit, have them get one Now. That makes them more hirable, gives them a quick food safety lesson (there's an easy pamphlet and/or onine video at our local health dept. followed by an easy test). We have had these permits come in handy at retreats, youth "soup kitchen" serving opptys, etc.
lisaj, mom to 3 teenagers and 2 sanity-givers
-
and asked "Are you hiring?" telling them her age, what she is looking for. It took her an hour and she did this on her own (after I suggested it for a week) as she is looking for a second part time job. About 4 of the 30 businesses told her to come in or go online and fill out an application (these 4 said to bring in the application personally) and she was hired on the spot at her first go-in. It took her about an hour to make those calls and I helped her make a little mini "script" to give her more confidence. As in "hello, my name .... I am interested in.... I will work any hours.... I am available now.... (I just told her to know those answers in case they asked. She didn't always get to say all of them.) (LOL - she called right during the dinner hour - I told her the fast food restaurants were prob. NOT happy.)
However, this is her 3rd job and she is very outgoing. This helps tremendously. I practically had to push her out of the car (I kid you not) when she first went in to ask for an application 2 years ago. We live 20 min from the location of these jobs and I told her to stay very close to a certain grocery/drug store little mini-mini-mall for transportation reasons. Lots of role-playing is good too.
I would highly suggest that getting a job is a numbers game for these teens. My daughter called the fllg. kind of places: retirement home as a kitchen/waitress/server/dishwasher, coffee shops, restaurants, pizza hut, mini-family-type "family fun center". I would sugg. every teen who is looking for a summer job practice their phone pitch, fill out applications just for practice and call so many places a day and visit so many a week.
Craigslist in the part time job section is also good. Lots of times I think they need someone right away so time is of the essence. And perseverance.
Second bit of advice: lifeguarding is my dtr's first job and she had 4 job offers last year after she finished her lifeguarding class - and I am shocked at how many jobs there are for lifeguards. The classes take about 40 hours and obviously they have to be a good (not great, or super-fast) swimmer.
Another great job oppty here is serving dinner at a retirement home with a small cafeteria. Those jobs seem to be open all the time. And dishwashers at same places.... The county pools hire cashiers and concession attendants.
My sympathies to those whose economies are tighter. We live 20min north of a big city and that helps. I know my second daughter lacks the confidence of daughter #1. So I think it will be harder for her. We also have ran into a big hurdle for jobs for 15 years olds - about 1 out of 20 employers will hire someone who is not yet 16. It is ironic, though, because daughter #2 will probably be a better worker in the diligence, timeliness and work ethic.
lisaj, free advice
-
We have 5 kids so that may not be very much. My dh is nearing mandated retirement age so our income could take a dive in the next few years.
I put myself thru 100% and truthfully, there is a huge benefit in that. However, all my choices were based on "the cheapest way" to do "x". I lived on my own virtually all of my college days and spent little or not time socializing thru college.
Thus, I feel that I missed out on a lot and I might even be more well-rounded (lol) if I had not had to work so hard. I might have learned more and I might have applied myself to more enriching activity if I wasn't always tied to making money for food, rent and tuition :().
I want to float an idea here though. It sounds a little pie-in-the-sky but what if parents, (think tight budgets & multiple kids), paid a little less each year? Ideally, the child would become more independent. But probably the child would just be very poor and have to drop out???
Like $5000 the first year; then $4000, $3000, $2000, $1000. Or make that $10,000, $8000, etc. etc.
I like that it gives parents a way to more accurately forecast and budget.... but I'm not sure it is realistic?
lisaj
-
Definitely, much to think about....
A few clarifications: yes, this is for next fall; no summer school - dtr has to work all summer to earn money; dtr is paying about 50% of her college costs; we gave our dtr reasonable freedom in choosing this college but the neat thing was all of us (daughter, self, husband) all had this college as the first choice!
We do think daughter is ready (or as ready as the average college freshman who tends to procrastinate, but has great smarts but tends to look for the easy way thru disliked homework). But, an admissions counselor told us that 25% of college freshman are not responsible and organized enough to succeed their first semester. Apparently the transition to independence, maturity and responsibility is a journey - not an event - for lots of 18yos. And yes we are talking about this .....
I don't want to make it sound like we'll be hurting financially for years if she fails. It isn't that way. But we live on a budget - and that frugality will reach new heights for most of us with children enrolled in private colleges. Daughter needs some standards and I think grades are one of the easiest to measure her ambition and effort.
Oh I should add that we are covering about 50% of the cost and we have made it clear to my daughter that she is fully reponsible for the rest. Daughter was required to save money thru her high school part time job and has saved quite a bit that way. She should easily be able to earn the rest of the money she needs by the end of the summer. But that is *her* responsibility. And she knows if she doesn't, than she'll have to decide to go one semester and come home to finish cheaper or take a loan or whatever...
One other caveat, money does *not* motivate this girl. She just has that "everything will work out fine" head-in-the-clouds mindset on money :().
So, my "quick post" questions are just asking how one props up a little, encourages a lot and offers accountability to the new young adult.... I've talked to many older adults who tell of these exact kind of "plans" that they had with their kids or that their parents had with them when they were in college. So, there must be lots of ideas out there...
I like outtamyshell's general plan. I think we could adopt something like that. And I haven't given it much thought but apparently, we should be doling out our share one semester at a time or monthly or something....
Btw, I asked daughter very vaguely and she said something like, "well I'm sure I'll get a 3.0 but maybe a 2.5 would be the minimum okay gpa" - so she obviously understands that somewhere there is a measure to take.
I'll also throw in that obviously a huge amt. of effort that nets a 2.5 is more acceptable than a didn't-do-anything, blew-it-off 3.0 - but there will be no way to really tell what effort = what results. I know my dtr tends to slide to get by.
Ok, thanks - hoping to get more feedback
too long as usual..
lisa
-
What is the minimum gpa that you expect your college freshman to maintain?
My dtr got a "D" average in her senior year running start qurater at the community college last fall, almost exclusively due to lack of effort, poor time management, mild teenage rebellion and socializing as often as possible...... (We took her out of Comm college after the first quarter and put her in a homeschool co op at the local Christian school.)
Now we have agreed to send her away to a small Christian college next year in a dorm. We will be incurring a large financial burden (that we can barely (!)afford for her to have this oppty. We do think is God's will for her and this is a relatively safe environment to *not* repeat the errors of last fall.
Daughter has a very respectable 3.5ish high school gpa with a very rigorous courseload. She did well on her SATs. She has the ability. She does not have a hard work ethic though. This last year, we have "let her fail" by allowing her mostly to manage her own courseload, homework, etc. We have had to curtail her work hours due to poor academic effot (as in being in danger of flunking 1-2 subjects through poor effort) but have mostly encouraged her in every way we know how to get organized, be diligent, etc. She has mostly just slid by with minimum effort in *any* class that she did not enjoy (i.e. science, math, econ) - she did great in the language arts classes she enjoys.
My dh feels (and I can fully understand and support) that daughter needs to realize there are some standards she must keep up to as we sacrifice greatly (as do her siblings in the opptys that will not be available to them due to restricted finances) to put her in this college.
Can you help us determine some guidelines for daughter? I'm thinking we should expect a "transition time"; I am thinking that my daughter will do the minimum - if we say 2.5 min gpa - she will earn a 2.5 or a 2.4. IF we say 3.0; she'll earn a 3.0 or 2.9. What I am having trouble discerning is just how hard that transition time will be - given her problems (she has medicated ADD) with distractions, socializing, poor effort and in general, doing the minimum?
Thanks - btw, she thinks she wants to be a elem. or high school teacher.
Lisaj, mom to 5
-
i.e. home-school
Personally I like it as one word.
Lisaj
-
Just wondering if I am correctly perceiving a trend or if in fact, the opposite is happening.
Back in the day (1980s), I think many "semester" colleges were changing to quarters? Or so I thought?
Thanks!!!
lisa
-
For all of you and God's wisdom as you struggle.
lisaj
-
We called PCC and we were told upfront that the courses wouldn't transfer to other colleges and that their teaching (and I think nursing) degrees were accepted by the state of Florida and their graduates could teach/nurse in FL schools/hospitals but in order to teach in say Nebraska - the graduates would need to get a job in FL, get their teacher certification (nursing or whatever?) and then another state would almost certainly (no guarantees from PCC) allow them to transfer their certification and they could teach in the new state.
This is all kind of "general info" from me because I wasn't taking notes and verifying every bit of info from PCC but I thought it might be good to mention that PCC was upfront with us about this fact.
And altho they explained what "other graduates" had done; they made sure we knew there were no guarantees. Also, we know a local teacher personally who went to PCC and then retook her whole coursework with a national university (online) to get her state teaching certificate. So, yes, did the whole B.A. over... And this particular teacher also said something to the effect, that she felt it was "God's will for her to go to PCC; she loved it there and she doesn't regret it at all."
Btw, our pastor thinks "a year of Bible college" is good for every young student as preparation for the challengers of the 18-25yo years....
lisaj
-
to make my life easier (and it saves money), I virtually always buy 1st grade phonics (Alpha-Phonics, followed by Pathway Readers and A Beka math) and just do them at half-pace. Usually about midway thru the year, with little input from me, the child start doing full 1st grade pace.
I teach my children to read with 100 Easy Lessons before kindergarten - to me that takes all the "pressure" off for Kindergarten. If they know how to read, and read aloud for 5-10min daily with me along with some mild phonics and numbers, all is well.
I tell people who are all ready to put their Kers in the local school, "Kindergarten is a freebie". There's no law they have to be in school and as long as you are introducing phonics and numbers, they'll be ready for 1st grade. Of course my hope is that they will so enjoy their 5-6yo at home, they will never enroll them....
lisaj, mom to 5
-
I think "rigorous courses" look better on the transcript for those students who might need that "sway" to gain acceptance to some private or high end secular universities. Thus, precalculus "looks good" on the transcript and I think precalc and overall (generally) more rigorous course load (4 yrs of all core high school courses: science, math, Lit/Eng, Latin and 3 yrs of Spanish and history) is helping my dd get into some colleges that might not be so impressed if she took easier courses. If college "acceptance" is not a concern, than I would say go ahead with the consumer math. Personally, I think consumer math is incredibly helpful and worthwhile.
Btw, I can't see any reason why your dd couldn't take precalculus just for a semester. Either do it the whole year at a reduced pace (completing only half) and give her 1 sem credit or do it at a regular pace (completing half the course) the first semester and quit halfway thru the year and give her 1/2 credit. ???
Lisaj
-
bumping again. Thanks for any ideas/links.
lisa ljdeerparkATaol.com
-
Jane & Brownie -
Thanks - not a Triple A member. i couldn't get to the site Jane sent with my dial up so I'll try at the library.
Thanks - bumping for more ideas??? map sites???
lisa
-
To answer Nicole, yes, these are important factors - they are not the only criteria. I would def want my science-minded dtr to be taught from a Bible believing (Genesis) perspective. A nonscience major; it might not be so important.
And I was told (by my hsing friend) that Biola was one of the ones that taught required a statement of faith.
lisaj, not looking for controversy
-
Statement #1
We were told by a private Christian college admissions counselor that there are only about 4 Christian schools on the West Coast that require students to sign a statement of faith to attend. (I am sure he did not mean seminaries or Bible colleges that only award Bible or theology degrees. And I am assuming such a statement is about adhering to Jesus' divinity and salvation by faith alone. I didn't ask about the statement.)
Statement #2
Another friend told me a professor at a Christian college told her that there are only a handful of Christian colleges across the nation that teach college science classes from an Christian (or creationist) viewpoint.
I realize these statements (mindsets) are not important to many Christians and others.
I wonder if others are finding these statements to be true?
Curious.
Lisaj
-
Hi, I have procrastinated.
This Thursday I teach about six K-1st graders my first co op class:
Beautiful Feet Geography: A Literature Approach using the Holling C Holling books, Paddle to the Sea; Minn of the Mississippi and either Tree in the Trail OR Seabird.
I just looked at the Beautiful Feet website and they want $16.95 + $5 shipping for the 4 maps for these books.... Extra student map packages are $12.95 per student. I have 6 students and I put the class fee at $4 (to cover some copying and treats really). (No offense, but are they gold plated???)
So, I really don't have time or energy to reinvent the wheel but I need some easy to use/ download maps to use instead. Free maps.
The 3 main maps I need should be about 8.5" x 11" and cover:
the northern midwest U.S. incl Great Lakes & into Canada (St. Lawrence River to the Atlantic Coast);
midwest & TX/Rocky Mtn areas (Miss. River, Ohio River Missouri Rivers)
If you have done this curriculum or used these maps can you tell me how "specific" the maps need to be or if any generic area map will do?
Thanks!!!!
Lisa - you can email me direct if it is easier - ljdeerparkATaol.com
-
Thank ya'll so much! Yes, we are Christian I will check that out. We did decide yesterday to take away the texting option on her phone, and I am also going to make some other "major" changes!
Btw, the OP's dtr sounds just like my dtr. Somewhere around 14-15yo, my excellent student became "I care about nothing except texting, chatting and face-booking all hours of the day and night." She just could not discipline herself with these things.
Every mom I know is in shock when I tell them you can view your child's exact call/text/download history online at the Verizon website. I would assume other carriers have this too. This may seem intrusive for people who are not having trust/inappropriate use issues with their dtr/son's phones. But when the child breaks the trust or has severe self control issues, this can be necessary for safety, personal success, etc.
Also, you can block things on your child's phone w/o calling the carrier. This is true with the phones we have; not so sure about all others. But it starts with every phone own lock code - with Verizon I think it is the last 4 digits of the phone as the default lock code. Most people change theirs at some point. You have access to these blocking feature when you enter the security code - which is not the same as the lock code. On our phones you need to know both codes to figure it out. I think you set your own "security code".
Anyway, if you flip thru the phone options you'll be able to figure it out. I like this better than the blocking available by calling your cell phone carrier because it is easier to adjust. There is also an option for blocking or allowing certain phone numbers; blocking all texting, etc. The easiest is something like "allow only calls FROM contact list" and the opposite "allow only calls TO the contact list". That way your child can still carry the phone for safety or convenience but you can control who is on the contact list - also thru the phone's settings and your setting it up and knowing the password. When I did this a few months ago, I had to put a code in that only dad and I know.
Just a warning, no matter what you do, your dtr prob may find a way around it. My dtr was running up huge cell phone bills when we had to restrict her from texting/night calling, etc.. She figured out how to download songs and IM her friends from her cell phone. I had to delete the service she had subscibed to and I was able to solve this one by resetting the phone to factory default settings.
Lastly, I have 2 teen dtrs with cell phones. One dtr has absolutely no restrictions. She does have to follow the house rules of no calls during school; no calls after 9p at night when you are home; and keeping the ringer off at night. She keeps it in her room. The other dtr has shown no self control and there are other issues and her phone is kept in our room and has severe restrictions on it.
Lisaj
-
Hi all,
Now that my taxes are very close to finished :) :) :) I would like to know when the best time is to sell books on the book swap section of this forum.
Thanks!
I would def. say between now and late June is the best time to sell books.
Even better seems to be mid-March to mid-May - people really seem to get moving for next year at this time of year. Unlike me, who is scrapping for books in August LOL. (Usually due to shortage of money and procrastinating on final curriculum choices.)
Lisaj
-
One problem with TT though, is that it is spiral like Saxon. We had problems with both programs because of the spiral learning.
I started this year with dd's geometry with Chalkdust Traditional, it was too hard, so I got BJU Geometry with the dvd rental. Love it. A real teacher that does ALL of the teaching. All I have to do is grade tests. And they only cover one concept at a time.
Both my mathy and my not-so-mathy dtrs did it. I added a few proofs in some of the lessons and I thought the teacher covered the proofs sections at a slightly too sparse level - but the book had plenty of proof instruction so we just added those in when I thought the homework wasn't covering proofs enough. It seemed the teacher (Dr. Conn on the 2003 DVDS I think - tho we did it in 2008 I think) for some reason didn't think the students needed to learn proofs as thoroughly as I did. Not a big deal tho. Same critique with the constructions - we did a little more than the homework required.
Also I can't remember if the DVD/teacher required the daily review exercises (I think algebra review) so I just had them do the 4-6 review exercises daily.
All that said, I was very pleased with the geometry education they got and the teaching. It was the most hands-off math year I have had thus far for my non-mathy dtr.
Lisaj
-
I wouldn't pay much attention to the errors unless I found it pervasive throughout the co op.
Lisaj, mom to 5
-
or how about for a slightly different approach, "The Wizard of Oz" - we've watched both lately and Up! is sure to please...really can't imagine any parental objections...
Lisaj, or has everyone saw it already, besides us...
-
The difficulty we find with maintaining the chore rotation is that DS18 is often not home at the appropriate time due to work, classes, sports. This really was never an issue until this year.
I think it's quite appropriate to have them help around the house. But we have had to make adjustments so that the things he is helping with are not time-sensitive. For example, clearing the table/cleaning the kitchen after dinner didn't work when he wasn't there for dinner. But he is glad to haul the trash/wash out the cans when he gets home from sports practice.
The chore rotation we have with the 3 teen girls (1 week kitchen, dining room, laundry) has worked better than anything else we have done.
The older 2 teens do have some absences and usually my husband, myself or my youngest 2 boys (who have other chores) all kick in and cover fo r the absent teenager. Or we do the lion's share of the chore and the teen comes home and sweeps and mops or something...Since this relatively new chore system works so well, I hope we can keep something close to it in place.
Lisaj, thanks
-
Thanks, ladies... (don't think any men have commented yet) -
This is great information. I'll be printing it out to share with my daughter and my husband. I really think these comments will help our daughter to see that our house rules will be much like most everyone else's.
We have no plans to charge rent of any kind, ever, but we have in the past had people stay with us - and we took their rent money and put it in the bank and let them know we would return it to them when they left. (great motivator, lol) We may do this with daughter, i.e. you pay us $100 a month and we'll put that away for you for college (or a house pmt, etc.) in addition to what we have already said we'd pay/contributed.)
I esp. appreciate the advice being centered on 18-19yo "very young" new adults, because I think this is a unique transition time.
Thanks!
Lisa
Can you help me prepare a list of "adult" behaviors/responsibilities?
in High School and Self-Education Board
Posted · Edited by 74Heaven
my title was nondescriptive
My husband and my almost 18yo daughter are having conversations about young adult reponsibilities while living in the family home:
Can you give me some ideas for topics of conversation?
Maybe a list of adult behaviors/responsibilities:
Getting up on time for work/other activities.
Treating parents and siblings with respect.
etc
lj