One option could be earth/space science as a freshman, planning for bio as a sophomore. Another option could be choosing a biology course that's very oriented towards biochemistry/molecular biology (I don't have specific advice here).

I'd work lightly through the summer to finish it. Honestly, a solid foundation in arithmetic and reading are the most important things in elementary school. I'd be reluctant to take a summer break and then try to come back in the middle of the math text. There's review at the beginning for a reason; many students who take summer breaks need that review. Coming in the middle will be difficult. If you DO take a long summer break, I'd move back a bit and repeat lessons if necessary. If math is the only subject, "school" can be over very quickly, and still have plenty of time left for summer activities.

Psychologically, I think it's a lot easier to be the smart kid who got bumped up a grade and/or graduated high school after 11th grade than to be the kid who got retained at a later age.

Nothing wrong with that, but in that case I'd prefer to stick with traditional programs if they're working well. Is there a reason you really want to do Saxon for Algebra 2? You might PM Jann in TX -- she's taught out of Saxon for a long time and generally (if I recall) recommends against switching into it after Algebra 1.

If you know you want to go to Saxon Alg 2, why not do Saxon Alg 1? Changing between conventional programs (e.g. doing jacobs alg and then foerster or chalkdust for alg 2) is unlikely to cause issues, but I'd prefer not to switch back and forth between programs with such a different scope, sequence, and teaching style.

It really, really depends on the kid and the class. If you're enrolling with an outside provider, you should follow their recommendations as they'll often assume prior knowledge. Some courses don't really have prereqs (like psychology) and those are fine to jump into. Others (like chemistry, physics, biology) would be a lot more challenging to jump into without a high school prerequisite. I've known people (in PS) who went straight for AP chem, but those tended to be the underchallenged students for whom the pace, even in AP classes, was slow enough that they could easily fill in gaps as they went. For a homeschooled student who isn't tied to the pace of the class I'd rather do at least a quick run through an average chemistry text.

Yes, APs in senior year are better than not having them at all.

Nah, she could start to drop insinuations about how your kid isn't as special as her kids and won't be able to handle it.

I have never heard of this (but it sounds awesome! I would have so loved this when I was a kid -- I was a morbid little kid) but when I went to look at their website, they have two versions of it -- Plague! is the one adapted for a single homeschool student.

Sorry, I totally missed this post. Saxon's incremental method of teaching takes some getting used to and doesn't work for some students. If a student has been using it since Alg 1 or earlier and doing great, that's one thing, but I really don't like the idea of changing teaching styles completely for one year and then changing back to the more standard style. It's also going to be completely out of order for Thinkwell's lectures.

Does she understand that 10 + (-10) = 0? If she doesn't, I'd start there as addition of negative numbers is far more intuitive imo. If she does, then I would use a number line ... we know that when we're adding a positive number, we count right. When we're adding a negative number, we count left (the opposite direction). When we're subtracting a positive number, we count left -- so when we're subtracting a negative number, we should count right (the opposite of the way we count when subtracting a positive number). Another way to remember is that it wouldn't make sense for 10 + (-10) and 10 - (-10) to have the same answer, would it?

I don't think that foerster's is really expecting a lot of intuitive leaps -- the only math program that I really think does that is AOPS. I think the content will be very similar in either, so you should pick the one with the better presentation/more affordable/whatever other things are required.

They are both solid.

Summer school, extra year, or doing a light reading course for exposure with no real output requirements. In the 3rd case I wouldn't even transcript it, but the knowledge would still be useful. Not everything has to be on the transcript.

Yes, clearly there are two of that name -- the one from knowledge quest seems fine. :)

"How 'bout some bean dip?"

Science: I would be pretty concerned about a potential stem major (or anyone, really, but the understanding is essential for a potential stem major) taking de biology/chemistry without having taken high school biology/chemistry first. I'd really hate to turn a kid off something they're very interested in by throwing them in over their head. I'd be more inclined to do the standard bio/chem/phys classes at the high school level and then pick one for DE. It seems that your intended schedule is going from very average high school (9th/10th grades) to accelerated high school(11th/12th grades) and I just don't think this kind of a jump is a good idea without scaffolding. Math: I *really* think she'd be better off not taking summer breaks (and not repeating the Saxon AM, because it's not necessary if you don't take a summer break) and just working through until advanced math is finished. This would leave time for her to take AP/DE calculus or statistics if her mind changes, and put her more on the level of a strong high school student rather than an average one. Yes, you're looking at the minimum requirements for admittance, but there are likely to be significantly higher requirements for scholarships, and if she changes her mind, she'll be behind the curve. Furthermore, a double major is difficult (especially in two completely unrelated areas) and you want her coming in ready to hit the ground running. History: The sequence seems fine, but world geography and you is intended for students with learning difficulties -- the reading level is not high school, and expedition earth (unless there's a different program of that name) is an elementary school program. I'd be really reluctant to use those as the primary resources for a college-bound student. Music: I think DE music appreciation is likely to be a waste of her time and your money. I mean, yes, it should be an easy A, but it's going to be filled with bored students who don't really like music that much but think it's got to be better than taking art appreciation or theatre. Usually (not always, I guess) a music major can fulfill their fine arts gen ed with a music history for majors course instead. I'd either skip it (she'll still have a LOT more music credits than most other students), do something more rigorous at home, or DE a course for majors if you think it'll transfer. Foreign language: I assume you have a plan for how to accomplish this unusual language, so fine. English and PE: look fine

You really should do chapters 8 and 9. They'll be covered again in intermediate algebra, but most students need more than one exposure to really grasp these concepts.

Is she skipping 8th or is she skipping grammar in 8th? If she's skipping 8th, I have to echo the 'why' question -- she's on track for a rather average 9th grade, and I can't see a benefit to hurrying up to be average. Of course, if she IS the standard age-for-grade, I certainly wouldn't hold her back either.

I agree with giving the chapter 1 + 2 tests. I think this would be a good policy moving forward -- give her the chapter test before you teach the chapter, and if she gets an A, skip the chapter.

By genuine copy, do they mean the original and not a duplicate? That's utterly bizarre, and I've never heard of that being requested before. Many universities will not even allow duplicating the final as similar questions are used from year to year.

No wonder my college students can't do basic arithmetic.

Yep. Like Dmmetler said, it means he did as well as a 9th grader would on a 5th grade test.

I just don't think I'd jump into Saxon at the calculus level for a student who hasn't used it before. Goldstein Lay Schneider (the one you linked) is a perfectly reasonable textbook, and if you went with the 12th edition instead, much cheaper. Other solid, standard calculus textbooks would be Stewart, Larson, Thomas. They're all pretty interchangeable.

What has she used thus far? TT?