I just found a sample week schedule from Mrs. Inspektor's class. I will let dd to take a look and decide between the two teachers. They both sound like great teachers! Thank you so much for your help.

Thanks for the link. Did you kids find the daily assignment inconvenient? My dd is in speech and debate, and I doubt she has time for any assignment on tournament days. Does the student have the flexibility to work ahead?

I am looking for recommendations for AP English Language teachers with PA Homeschoolers for dd next year. She has been taking English classes from TPS and is now in Adv. Composition. TPS also offers AP English Language but it's twice a week, and we don't think she needs that much class time. I'd love to hear about your experiences with the AP English classes and teacher recommendation is appreciated. Thanks! Shirley

Dd had Mrs. Cooper, but she is no longer teaching. English 1 covers grammar and literature on top of writing. I'd say not as much writing as WW. Dd also did a poet power point presentation in 2nd semester.

We've had Mrs. Smith for both kids. She is cheerful, encouraging, and has a great sense of humor - that really helped my reluctant writer. She lays out claer expectations so it's easy to follow. She answers emails quickly and is very helpful. We highly recommend her.

We've only had Mrs. Smith for both kids. Dd liked her so much she insisted ds should take her class as well. We really like her. She gives clear expectations, is encouraging yet at the same time stretches the students to do more. We appreciate her sense of humor that makes writing fun. She is also very good at communicating with parents. We don't have any experience with the other teachers you mentioned, but I am sure they are all good. We like all the teachers we've had at TPS so far. They may have different teachers for WW for next year though. It seems to change a little every year.

Yes, the class is "live" with the teacher presenting and students type in the chat box. But students need a microphone to present their writings in class. Mrs. Smith is very good at keeping all students engaged and she makes sure the chatting is related to class activity. Process essay is about 5 paragraphs. Compare and Contrast requires 6 paragraphs. Like others have mentioned, English 1 has grammar, writing, and literature. Dd also did a power point presentation on a poet. The teachers in TPS are very helpful and they return emails quickly, usually within a day. They probably will have an open house before registration so you can get more information. Take a look at the placement tests on their website. They may recommend a different class if they feel it fits the student better.

I hesitate to be the first to answer your question, but I know you are probably anxious to get some response. : ) We really like Writer's Workshop (WW) here. My dd took it as a 6th grader. Being a good writer, it was not difficult for her. Yet the class challenged her to write in different genres and helped her to become a stronger writer. It laid a good foundation for English 1 and 2. On the other hand, ds is taking WW now as a 7th grader. Not being a natural writer, it was a struggle at first, but I am seeing big improvement in his writing and confidence. I am glad I waited one more year for him to take this class. It would have been too much for him as a 6th grader. The way it works is like this: student writes draft 1, teacher conference it, then they work on draft 2 (in the beginning parents will be the partner, they later get a classmate), then they work on it more, turn it in for teacher to conference it one more time (TC) before they can publish it in the forum. What we like about WW: variety of assignments outside accountability - having deadlines help us to be diligent teacher and classmate feedback (they start having partners to conference each other's paper) class interaction - my kids really enjoy having classmates from all over the country and they get to read their classmates' finished work. they work on different pieces at the same time (maybe a draft 1 with a TC) learning how to conference other's work one parent will need to sit in class for the 1st semester. sometimes it can be confusing about the technical side of class (how to upload work, using the correct file name and stuff like that.) But overall we really like WW and would highly recommend it. Both kids have Mrs. Smith for WW and she is the best! She is very encouraging and at the same time she challenges her students. I hope this helps you make the decision. Shirley

Kendall, I am taking the same approach to use both Foerster and NEM 1 for 2 years (7th and 8th) and haven't figured out the logistics. What does that look like on a weekly basis? Do you do both everyday? Or do you rotate between the two? Do you skip the geometry section in NEM? Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Thanks, Beth!

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into Mrs.Runkle's class. Dd is taking English I at TPS this year. We are really happy about it. Beth, do you like your teacher for Eng 2? Shirley

thank you both for your advice! I won't attempt to do both then. big thanks from my kids! :) Shirley

I'd like to do a year of physical geography with my dd next year (8th and 7th grade) since we have always done cultural geography only. I am leaning towards Runkle's geography. They will also be doing BJU's earth science at co-op. Will that be redundant, or will they compliment each other? Thanks for your help! Shirley

This being our first year with Potter's School and dd's only class, we can't compare other teachers for this class, but we are extremely happy with Mrs. Loretta Smith. She is very encouraging to the students and offers timely and helpful comments. She communicates with parents and returns emails very quickly, usually within a day or two. She even helped dd with other writings that were not part of the course. She is funny yet firm in her requirement for the students. We are really happy with the class. Dd has learned a lot from Mrs. Smith. Dd will take 2 classes from TPS next year. Hope this helps. Shirley

Our library has Conversational Spanish and I will look into the other book you mentioned. She is coming to learn more English. It would be nice to learn some conversational Spanish from her, but our main responsibility is to help her learn English. Thanks all for your help. We are looking forward to this exciting experience. Shirley