I was a member at my community college, and because of my membership, I was able to apply for free to my 4 year school. I wasn't very involved, but I know that the PTK group at the community college near me now is pretty active in sending people to conferences, has an agreement with (my school) a state university, etc.

When she clocks out, does she have to enter how many tips she's made that day? When I was working in restaurants, the computer automatically calculated a certain percent of our cash sales. When we went to clock out, that amount would come up on the screen and we could either accept it or change it to enter a different amount. In the other restaurant I worked in it would tell us our total cash sales and we could figure out on our own how much to enter. If the computer does anything like that, she should be fine. Has she asked a manager about how their system works? That may be the best way to make sure she's not owing taxes next year.

I agree with those who have said to investigate the specific program more. It's one of those things that is going to vary widely by school. This!! I'm in the honors program at a state university. I *LOVE* it. I have a hard time making friends, because I'm a little older and have a child, (Okay, let's not make excuses. I've always had a hard time making friends! :lol: ) All of the friends I have made are from the honors program. The smaller, discussion based courses really encourage both a higher level of academics and making social bonds. Smaller classes also mean that you are generally taking classes over and over again with the same people. Next semester I'm taking a course with 12 people in it, and I know for a fact that at least 6 of those people are good friends of mine. And, speaking of classes, honors classes can also be more interesting. I'm taking glassblowing! It's a course not typically available to those outside the art program, but they are running a special semester. Also, at my university, we have an honors house. It has a computer lab, two living room/social areas to hang out in, a piano, a full kitchen we can use, a ping pong table, a TV.... the computer lab is GREAT, because sometimes the other labs get full. Plus, it's a great place for hanging out. We do seasonal pot luck/parties. No alcohol, just a bunch of food and fun. We take field trips also. Last year a group of us went to see The Two Gentlemen of Verona in DC for free. I also got to participate in a research conference just for honors students in Baltimore. The honors program paid for our registrations, hotel, transportation, and we had SO. MUCH. FUN. This coming semester, I'm doing two honors-specific conferences, one in MD and one in Philly. I seriously can't say enough good about my university's honors program. It's been amazing. But the only way to find out how it is at that specific school would be to ask more questions. Visit the webpage, if there is one. See if you can set up a day to visit, often they will let incoming students shadow a current student for the day.

My 6 year old spelled. Sqoalid. She knew that a certain letter went with Q, but couldn't remember if it was O or U. She guessed (the wrong one, clearly! ) (Edited to add- She didn't know what the word was. She told me that it wasn't a real word. She's still not convinced I'm not just putting her on, because why else would I ask her to spell a random word at 11pm? :lol: )

Have I? Yes. Will I again? Probably not. Many of the people I dated when I was younger, even long term relationships, were with people who weren't... 'intellectual.' But that was a different time in my life. IF I settle down with someone now, one of the things I want is someone to share 'smart things' with. I read, A LOT, follow the news and current events closely, and enjoy discussions (and debates!) about important issues. So much of my life is wrapped up in intellectual pursuits, I can't really imagine sharing my life with someone who doesn't share that.

Yes!!!! I hate talking on the phone. With a deep and abiding passion. Except for one friend, when her and I get on the phone we talk for HOURS. But I only see her two or three times a year, and we are super close. I also don't leave voicemail messages. Not happening. Ever.

Well. I have no gymnastics experience- so take this with a grain of salt! Unlike everyone else, I like the names embroidered on the hip. Maybe I'm just clueless, but I don't understand how it is a security risk? And I think the little girls would love having their name on their leo- My daughter (6) loves anything with her name on it!! :tongue_smilie:

Well, her description of the college class sounds pretty much like almost every class in my schedule. Many people skip classes, most of the class comes unprepared, and very few people speak up and contribute to class discussions. So if that's the issue... well, she better be very, very picky about her colleges! I think it is important to allow kids of that age some input on decisions that affect them.... but also, like you, worried about her ability to stick with something. Like you said, not everything can be enjoyable, but there are times when you just need to suck it up and get through. She needs to learn how to do that. What is she going to do if she switches schools and doesn't like that either? I see that she's in a boarding school. I don't know what the situation is, but could this be about coming home? So really, no advice. Just some commiseration and :grouphug: . I hope that a good option presents itself soon!

I heard the same thing. Although, I was diagnosed 10 years ago now! (Wow.... now I feel old...) I had an ablation at 17, right when I was diagnosed. It worked.... for a little while. Then I went on the pill, and it worked pretty well for years. It isn't very effective now, and I've been seriously considering going for the hysterectomy. But I keep waffling. I definitely don't want any more children until I finish school, and I'll be in my mid-thirties by then. Getting pregnant with DD was a stroke of luck as it was, and I've always wanted to adopt..... but I'm not totally, completely sure that I don't want any more biological children.... :glare: Right, completely off topic! To summarize.... :lol: for me, the ablation only worked for a short time, the pill worked for longer, but not forever. But I have a pretty severe case, and the endometrial tissue is all through my abdomen.

In general, I dislike timed things for my 1st grader. It is very likely related to my own issues with timed assignments. I worry so much about beating the time that I can't even concentrate on the assignment. So I haven't timed her. But then, yesterday, during math, she was whining and complaining (as usual... she hates math), and I told her that she had 5 minutes to finish the assignment or she wouldn't be getting on the computer when we were done. She FLEW through the assignment. She kept asking me how much time she had left, and actually wanted me to count down how many problems were left and keep reminding her about the time. Then for the next assignment, when she was about halfway through, she wanted to know how much time she had. When I told her I hadn't given her a time limit, she made me set a limit. All this to say, I guess some people enjoy having a timer to beat!

Too bad you don't need a history teacher. :crying: I would love to teach abroad.

I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who had family members that thought Harlequin Romances were appropriate for kids.... my grandmother read them, and starting when I was... 9 or so?, after she finished with them she'd give the books to me. I had stacks and stacks of 'em. Then again, I read a book a day, sometimes more, so it was a challenge to keep me in books when I was a kid. My parents weren't readers, so they probably had no idea what I was reading. Overall, I won't stop DD from reading anything she wants. I keep the house stocked with 'good' books. (We do have plenty of twaddle here, but I also have a bunch of really good books from when I was a kid. through books assigned to me in college) When we go to the library, she's allowed to get 1 character book, since that's her 'thing' right now. When she grows out of those, I'll switch from allowing 1 character book to allowing 1 book that I deem 'easy'. That's the closest I get to controlling her free reading.

We'd love to do it. One girl, she'll be 7 by then. :hurray:

We would love to do it. DD has never gotten Valentine's from anyone but me! :laugh:

We used Progressive Phonics. (You can find it online.) It's free and leveled. After try many different things, this was what really jump started my daughter's reading.

I agree. Well, mostly. I do have one favorite book of all time- Le Petit Prince. But other than that one, my favorites rotate depending on my mood. But, here are some of the poems I love right now. I really love Prévert. I did a paper analyzing some of his work and it was the first long paper I wrote in French, so his work holds a special place in my heart. Plus, his work just sounds so beautiful when recited aloud. Le Jardin Des milliers et des milliers d'années Ne sauraient suffire Pour dire La petite seconde d'éternité Où tu m'as embrassé Où je t'ai embrassé Un moment dans la lumière de l'hiver Au Parc Montsouris à Paris À Paris Sur la terre La terre qui est un astre. Le Jardin (English - The Garden) Thousands and thousands Of years Would not suffice To tell of The sweet moment of eternity Where you kissed me Where I kissed you One moment in the light of winter In Montsouris Park in Paris In Paris Upon this Earth This Earth which is a star. Paris at Night Trois allumettes une à une allumées dans la nuit La première pour voir ton visage tout entier La deuxière pour voir tes yeux La dernière pour voir ta bouche Et l’obscurité tout entière pour me rappeler de tout cela En te serrant dans mes bras. Paris at Night (English) Three matchsticks lit one by one in the night The first to see the whole of your face The second to see your eyes The third to see your mouth And complete darkness to remember this all With you locked in my arms I also really love Christina Rossetti's Goblin Market. It's too long to post, but here's a link. http://www.poetryfou...org/poem/174262

We lost my father last year (actually, one year ago today.) During his illness and after he passed, we did school when we felt like it. There were days when neither of us could handle that. We spent many days just being together. Playing games, watching movies, taking walks.... just togetherness. This is one of the reasons I chose to homeschool: to be involved in my child's life, and to tailor her educational experience to her needs. While grieving, what she needed was me as a mommy, and not to worry about school work. She's not at all behind, and when we finally did get back to school, it was exciting. You all need time. Take that time. Seriously. You'll make more progress in the long run if you take time now to grieve. If you have some easy, no set-up needed school activities that can be pulled out on good days, make them easily accessible so that when you and the children are feeling like it, they can be done on a whim. :grouphug: to you and your family during this difficult time.

It's enough of a struggle to keep DD in clothes. We have a huge glass door off the living room that opens onto a patio that overlooks a busy parking lot, so the rule is that she must be covered. Whether that be in a long tshirt, pajamas, clothes... I don't really care. Just... something!!!!

My daughter (6) has a small TV with a DVD player in her room. It isn't hooked up to the cable, so she can only watch DVDs, and I don't have any non-kid friendly movies in the house. She almost exclusively watches her old dance recital videos. I'm TIRED of seeing those things, she watches at least one a day and only has three, so I'm quite happy she can watch them in the bedroom!

I agree with both of these. I never babyproofed or toddler proofed. I mean, dangerous chemicals were put away, breakables were kept a little higher, but I never had outlet covers, cabinet locks, and never used the baby gate- except to keep the dogs in or out. Of course, I was lucky to have a child that listened really well (oh, how things change...). When I have friends with young children over, I generally shut bedroom and bathroom doors, and take a look around to make sure breakables are up. I want my guests to enjoy their visit, but I also expect that someone will keep an eye on the children. But the only visitor we have with a toddler is my best friend, and I'm as likely to be keeping an eye on the kids (including the toddler) as she is. When we're together, we don't make a distinction between which kid belongs to who. This counts for feeding, discipline, etc. (And anyways, right now, my house is probably safer than it's ever been. I have a 6 month old lab puppy who wants to eat EVERYTHING!!)

:scared: No Facebook!??!? :smilielol5: Kidding. Sort of. I've thought about deleting my account, but can't bring myself to do it. But I live far away from all of my friends and family, and it's an easy way to keep up with what's going on back home. If I still lived where I consider 'home,' I'd probably do it in a heartbeat.

My daughter is 6.5 and has been doing violin for almost a year now. She loves it. She's also been begging for guitar lessons, and piano, and drums, and when she gets older she's apparently going to take flute and sax.... :glare: (Is it too early to force her to get a job to pay for her own lessons? :lol:) Violin is a great instrument to start young, since they make smaller instruments. She started playing completely by ear, but is learning to read notes now. Piano is good also, if you actually have a piano. I don't think it's actually any fun taking lessons if you don't HAVE the instrument, which is why we went with violin over piano. :D The one thing I did for DD that you might be interested in, check local pawn shops for guitars. I got a 3/4 size guitar for like... $60? The guitar is one of those instruments you can pick up and pluck around on and still make a nice sound (unlike say.. the violin! :001_huh:) and it's satisfied her need for lessons for now. She also has a nice keyboard to play around on (a real keyboard, not a child's one), various percussion instruments, and I make sure to play a wide range of music styles.

Drama doesn't minimize it at all. I've lived it, and drama would be the word I'd use to describe it at times!! I completely understood what you were trying to get at. I just wanted to make the point that sometimes people (not saying YOU, but maybe the mother of the girl) think that because of the "drama" it isn't serious. I sure hope someone can help this girl. I'm glad you are there worrying about it. :grouphug:

Deleted because the person who needed to see it, did.

I don't think you need anything else. Put AAR on the shelf and play with letters and letter sounds. Take the free suggestions in the thread- Starfall, Letter factory videos (from the library) and combine them with lots of reading aloud together. Also, check out sites like pbskids.org or sproutonline.com and look for more games that deal with letter sounds. In a couple months, come back to AAR and I think you'll find that he's more than ready. :001_smile: We had to take a break in reading instruction also. My DD was a little further along, she knew the letter sounds, but blending (and frustration!!) was getting her. I stopped "teaching" for a couple months and we just read together, came back to it and she's been flying through it since.