I go round and round in circles with this, and could really do with some advice. ds - starting 10th grade - is a strong reader, great conversationalist, but poor writer. He has been using R&S English (as WTM recommends) for many years, probably since about 3rd or 4th grade. We have also supplemented with various books along the way, such as the book WTM recommends for Outlining, He also did WriteShop I last year (9th grade) We are considering doing R&S 9/10 Book One this year - communicating effectively, and then Book Two next year (11th grade). He is familiar with the layout / approach and is happy to use R&S again. I am just not sure that is the right direction. His writing is really appalling, he struggles, it is slow, he produces very little, and takes way too long to do it. He really hasn't grasped the basics of putting together a paragraph or essay He is clearly heading for a science degree - his passion. He would like to write the AP English exam to get the English requirement for college freshman out of the way. I might sign him up for AP English with PA Homeschoolers next year ( 11th grade) What do you recommend he does this year (10th grade) to prepare himself so that he will be ready for the rigors of the AP English course next year?

My son will be studying for AP US Govt this year. I have ordered the Edwards 15th. I was considering using NROC as a course outline for him to follow. It gives which pages to read from the text, assignments, highlights key terms, and a multiple choice test at the end of each Chapter. Has anyone else tried NROC? Any feedback on your experience?

I will look into Dive Science. Thankx for the recommendation.

It sounds as though some parents have tried to get this problem addressed and the moderator doesn't agree that kids chatting or texting each other during class is a problem. Personally I am concerned this will be a waste of our time and it might be best if I looked elsewhere. I would want a respectful environment for my dd where learning is a priority for the students and instructors. Are there any other alternatives you can recommend? dd would like to pursue a science based major in college, so I would want her to be well prepared. We would like to stick with Apologia for the high school science, but perhaps there is supplementary material elsewhere?

Based on recommendations here I am looking into signing up my daughter for Apologia Biology at this online group. I was looking at the group's facebook page and I saw parent's complain about the 'chatting' from other kids during the class. It seems the problem is acknowledged by most parents, though they had different opinions on how to resolve it. It looks like the 'chatting' is kids sending text msgs to each other in some kind of way that the whole class sees it, some parents thought this was distracting. It sounds pretty darn rude to me. Have you ever encountered this problem? I would like to know before I sign dd up and later regret the decision.

My 6th grade son would like to do some experiments with electrical circuits beyond the basic switches and light bulbs. He built a basic circuit with an old motor taken from somewhere and attached a fan (made from a plastic straw that he split open). He wanted to be able to adjust the speed of the fan, but we were not successful in making a reostat. Also, the resistors we have, taken out of old circuit boards, do not seem to let enough current through. Once in my past I tried to make a homemade radio, but I seem to remember it not working very well. Perhaps there are better directions somewhere? Do you have any suggestions for a book that has some middle school level electrical experiments he can do? He is very keen and I can see a career about to bud here ...

Thank you everyone for your thoughtful responses. I am taking it all in! I've only just found out about coops, I hadn't known about them, and ds is also very positive about such an opportunity. It seems like coops are not offered everywhere. Can you tell me more about the pros and cons of coops. It seems they take longer to complete their degree - this isn't too much of a big deal. Anything else I need to find out about?

ds currently 9th grade has his sights set on Mech Eng, but I have some concerns. I suspect that he will get accepted into an engineering program, though not easily, and probably wont have much choice and I am certainly not putting any hope on merit scholarships. He has always been very mechanically minded, not just taking things apart, but building things that actually work. He is not the quickest of students, a strong reader, very strong in science, lousy at spelling, tediously slow at writing a paragraph let alone an essay, and average to okay in math. He started off 9th grade aiming to do 7 credits, and has had to cut back 6 as he is not coping with the workload - he is just very slow at anything that involves writing. If he does get accepted into an engineering school, my concern is that he will not cope with the workload and end up dropping out. How do I determine if he has the aptitude to pass a rigorous course such as engineering? I would just like to know, if he does get accepted into an engineering school, how do I determine if he has the aptitude to pass and not go through the pain of dropping out.

I phoned around until I found a high school offering the AP exam that I was looking for - Human Geo. This is not offered at all schools, so it took a few phone calls. The school I found offering Human Geo was very helpful. The high school Geography teacher offered to mail us his course outline, told me which textbook they are using, and has added me to his email list. In general the county I live in is luke warm towards homeschoolers, for example, we are not permitted to participate in any public school activities, so this was a very pleasant surprise and probably has more to do with the teachers personality than the school's policy.

I agree. When scores arrived for ds 9th grade, he was thrilled and we celebrated with song and dance. But when I came to this board I was quite concerned to see that his R 68 M 51 W 64 was no where near what others were posting. I tried to tell myself that it was because he is only 9th grade and hasn't done geometry and is only just starting algebra. But I couldn't shake this nagging feeling. Thank you for the average folks like us thread!

Haven't visited any yet, but are planning to in the summer. I can't believe we are really considering an 'away' college. We had always said the local / state colleges are perfectly good enough. How on earth do you decide? Our goal is for him to finish his degree and not drop out. Very worried about the stories of kids dropping out of classes. He will need support to ensure that he doesn't fall through the cracks.

ds would like to go into Mech Eng. We are near Annapolis, MD so we had always thought he would apply to UMBC or UMD. But on thinking about this, we realise that without doubt his personality is better suited to a smaller class size. He will probably only just qualify academically for mech eng. He is not strong academically, just loves everything physics and has obviously got a strength for anything mechanical. If he attends UMBC or UMD then he would live at home and drive into class each day. Considering an away college changes things for us. What do we need to consider? Feeling very overwhelmed by all the options at the moment. How on earth do you decide? My goal is for him to finish his degree and not drop out. He will need support to ensure that he doesn't fall through the cracks.

ds plans to eventually go into engineering. Writing lots is not a strength. He is very creative with language, but also very picky and takes an inordinately long time to put anything in writing. He has nice ideas in his head, but putting them to paper is painful. He will be in 10th grade next year, and is thinking of preparing for the AP US History during his 10th grade year. I am concerned about trying for an AP exam which I suspect will involve a lot of writing. I am not familiar with any of the AP exams or how much writing is actually involved (I immigrated to the US recently) We were thinking of getting "America: A Narrative History" by Tindall. Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions for him on how to prepare?

Where can I find out what are the actual dollar amounts of these scholarships?

Thank you - I googled and found the list on collegeboard's website. Why do the scores vary by state?

How do you know if ds score makes it for NMF? I am new to this and it is all very confusing to me. What are the scores per state - where can I find them?

We are using So You Really Want to Learn Spanish - SYRWTL - from Galore Park. I was hesistant about trying to learn a foreign language from a book, but it is going well. dd11 and ds10 are working through it together with no input from me at all, and so far no sibling fights or problems! That calls for :lurk5:

We do the same - all my kids use TT and they do their work in the textbook, I want to see them writing out all the steps in solving the problem, and then they type the answers in the computer to check.

I am not sure if this will work - I am trying to upload pics for you. They are two pics that ds has taken with the microscope - rotifiers that he found in pond water after growing the cultures with hay.

I found the link to it here. http://www.celestron.com/science_education/lcd-digital-microscope.html My father bought it as a gift for my son, so I didn't do any research and wasn't aware of why he selected this one in particular. He got it from B&H in NYC. My son(14) says it is as good as he needs - he has never felt it is lacking or that he needed anything more. He loves taking photos with it and posting online or emailing someone for questions. I like that we can all sit around and look at the same time without anyone struggling to see what we are looking at. We have had a lot of fun exploring all kinds of bacteria, rotofiers from our pond, cells, insect parts, etc. We has some pre-prepared slides that are available from a number of different sources. When deciding which prepared slides to get - I suggest you look at the curriculum you will use and get slides which match those in the curriculum. I am sure you will enjoy the digital microscope as much as we do!

My son works through the Apologia books on his own. He is an average student and is doing fine. He is doing Biology this year. He read in one of the Apologia books that global warming isn't happening / doesn't exist. But then got frustrated becuase he says everywhere else he reads about global warming - economist, time, popular mechanics. How have other families dealt with this issue?

I have to disagree with all the negative feedback you have heard about TT. I have used it since it was first available. My kids are doing very well with the program. I studied electrical engineering at university, my husband is a carpenter, and our kids vary greatly in math ability, depending on what genes they got from their very different parents. They are all doing very well with TT. My child who is exceptionally strong with math is not bored by the program, just progresses much faster, my struggling child plods along at his own pace. Do the placement test to get the right level for your child, you will find the first ten or so lessons include quite a bit of review - I allowed my kids to skip over those *if* they asked.

Have you considered a program where he would teach himself from the program - without needing your input. My son is 14, average in math ability, and doing very well with Teaching Textbooks. He needs no input or extra help from me. I have him do the CAT at the end of each year and he consistently scores in the top 90% percentile. I have five kids, so I couldn't possibly teach them a subject myself, so I rely on the kids teaching themselves from the books or programs. It is going very well for each of them. Just dd7 needs more input as she is only second grade. But the rest are pretty much left to their own.

Personally I am frustrated by WriteShop I. I find the assignments doable and worthwhile - ds is certainly learning new writing skills, he is doing much better as far as draft - revision - final version. But the teachers guide and the student guide are not organized well. It isn't a book that you start at page 1, do the lesson, move onto the next page and continue in order. I have to jump around, flipping pages back and forth to find articles that the lesson refers to. Sometimes the teachers guide refers to an assignment or article that the student folder doesn't have. This flipping back and forth might work if I only had one child - but with five kids - from preschool through to high school - I find it a frustrating program. Sometimes I don't even bother to use the teachers guide and just follow the student folder. I just wish it was better organized, that I could follow from one page to the next, with all that I need in the right order. The program itself is well suited for ds to improve his writing skills and provides me with what I need to guide him.

My two boys devour popular mechanics and popular science. Grandpa recommended new scientist and has just ordered this subscription for all my kids - he says the girls will also enjoy it as the articles are short - the first has not yet arrived - so I can't give comment yet I read the Economist - ds14 reads an article here and there out of it - mainly the science or tech articles. This week we were giggling as he read the 'tributary' - turns out it was an obit - despite our teasing he did a great job and telling us what the man had achieved!