IMO she uses the tattoo as a symbol of how he's not her baby anymore--the one she fed, clothed, physically took care of. He is no longer concerned with what she thinks about some things. In the last line, she says she's "redundant." Sure, she says things that are over the top--hyperbole? Her message is children grow up and do their own things whether we like it or not and we become "redundant."

Rising senior here. Not ready, but time brutally marches on. My oldest graduated from college last year. My youngest is going into 9th grade. I don't want to be left alone, either. And I kinda do mean it. :sad:

For my 9th grader: Seton for English, Grammar and Composition, World History, Religion and Physical Science Algebra (Basic Algebra by Brown)--we started this last year and will finish this year, Aleks for review German 1 (OSU)--first half done last year, will complete second half this year DigiDesigns (Impact Virtual) Extracurriculars: Swimming, running, violin, puppy raiser for service organization, youth group, 4H

If you are going to have her do AP English next year, it might be helpful to read Maya Inspektor's comments (no personal experience with her courses but she consistently gets great reviews on this board) on being prepared for her class in her course description on the PAHS website. My daughter took AP Lit with Lili Serbicki this past year, loved the class, and got a 5 on the exam. Prior to AP English, our English studies were pretty unstructured. We included lots of reading and discussion. We added in some WaH essay and research paper workshops and did some grammar review. The summer before AP English, my daughter took a summer lit intensive with Lili to get an idea of what the AP class would be like. It was a great lead-in to AP English. If you are planning on an AP English class next year, IMO you can certainly skip cc English and CLEP this year. As Jackie said, those courses might be redundant. The CLEP exam, cc class, and AP exam score might all be considered equivalent.

Senior here, too. :) We are still making final decisions but as of now: Chemistry at community college in the fall, microbiology or more chemistry in the spring AP Calculus British and American Literature AP Human Geography--got a syllabus approved! AP Latin German 3 Extracurriculars--piano, dance, puppy raiser, free clinic volunteer, 1st grade teacher assistant in parish religion program.

Heading over to the other thread to post our plans there.:)

5 here on AP Lit. My daughter took AP Lit with Lili Serbicki via PAHS. Lili is awesome. Her class was enjoyable, efficient, flexible. Lots of opportunities for extra credit, lots of great feedback on essays. Overall, challenging but not overwhelming. Lili's class was great prep for the AP exam.

Hi! We don't have our AP scores back yet, but I think Lili is a great instructor! Very helpful and supportive and always willing to spend time answering questions and helping students. My daughter took AP Lit with Lili last year via PAHS. She very much enjoyed Lili's class and felt she learned a lot. The class was challenging but not overwhelming. No busywork IMO. The final weeks before the exam were spent on exam prep, and I found that a plus. During that time, Lili also offered extra suggestions for additional reading for kids who wanted to add more. Weekly lectures--you could attend or listen to a recording. My daughter felt very well-prepared for the AP Exam. Lili is very flexible, too. She sets her class up so that assignments are given on a weekly basis. The kids did lots of timed essays toward the end, which was helpful. There were lots of opportunities for extra credit--film reviews, book reviews, exercises in writing short fiction or poetry. Before winter break, a research paper was due. This paper was done over enough of an extended period of time that it was not stressful to do. I believe for the Language class, the paper is persuasive vs a literary analysis, and it can be on any topic the student chooses. I don't know if her class is any different in set-up via AIM Academy. HTH. :)

I'm taking Tirosint now--it's a gel capsule. I had Graves disease years ago. I took Synthroid after I had my thyroid radiated. Synthroid was terrible. I switched to Armour after finally finding a doctor who'd give it to me, which was no small feat. It was like a miracle drug. I took it for years. However, when I entered my forties, I started feeling bad on it. I heard I should take half in the a.m. and half in the p.m. and did that for a while but it didn't make a difference. It gave me heart palpitations and anxiety. The dose was not too high, either, according to the doctor, but I asked the doctor to lower it, and she insisted it was fine. I saw a primary care doctor for my thyroid, and I then went back to my endocrinologist, who suggested I try Levoxyl. I did, and I felt much better. When that became unavailable--what is the deal with these thyroid drugs never being available???--they wanted to put me on Synthroid again, and I did not want that. So they gave me Tirosint, which I am doing well on.

A few that quickly come to mind: The Perks of Being a Wallflower. If I Stay and the sequel Where She Went. Six Months Later. How to Save a Life.

Here is a quote from and link to an article I found: "Some of the reading comprehension questions -- to date based on single passages -- will be based on comparing or drawing information from two separate passages." Read more: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/06/06/act-unveils-changes-reporting-and-some-parts-its-test#ixzz34nfSp9ch Inside Higher Ed

Same here. I don't know that any of the practice tests in the official practice book has anything like that in them.

Interesting. My daughter did not have the experimental section. I checked out the thread on college confidential and it seems many there are posting as well about these changes--that's what confirmed for us that something was different. Maybe the test with the experimental section did not have changes to the other sections? My daughter had just taken it in April, and she felt this was different. Did your kids have reading questions based off of two different passages? My daughter said she has not had anything like that when she's taken it previously from what she recalls.

My rising Senior took the ACT yesterday. Seems ACT changes are already underway. The reading section had many different kinds of questions than previously. More inference required. Of course, the time limit was the same, but it seems the questions required more thought, so it was harder to finish. Also, there was comparing of two passages--never had that before. The English also seemed different, but she couldn't be sure on that. She felt science had questions that you could not find the answers to in the info that was given and that you had to know the answer--testing content. Also, some kids had a fifth experimental section. ETA: To clarify, I was wondering with regard to the experimental section whether those kids also felt the test was somewhat different or if it was only the kids without the experimental section. You'd think they'd have forewarned that the June test would be different if, in fact, they made some changes. There are no prep materials for these changes. It does look like the test with the answers can be ordered, so we will be doing that. I wonder how these changes will impact the curve. If your child took the ACT yesterday, did they notice changes? ETA: I posted a link in reply 8 in this thread to an article outlining changes. According to the article, the dual passage reading section is indeed something new.

Hi, Brenda, Are you planning to sign him up for a class? If so, I think a Henle class would be fine. As a tenth grader, I'm not sure he needs any background to start a Latin 1 class. Latin for the New Millennium is another text you might want to check out. Not sure if anyone online courses use this text, but I have heard very good things about it. Also not sure how user-friendly it is if studying Latin independently. If you are planning to have your son study Latin on his own (wouldn't have worked here), you might want to start a thread asking for independent options for Latin.

Praying.

Too much IMO. What do you mean by Muse on the Loose for fall with Lukeion (Greek) with English?? Are you saying Muse on the Loose Greek Literature? Half a credit then if that's the case. What is Lit with English credit? If you do a semester of Greek lit, all you need is another semester's worth of something else--I see you mentioned finishing Lit Less Lord Rings. 1 credit total for English. I would say A and P is usually a full credit on its own. My daughter is taking a college A and P class right now. It's a lot of work! So, I'd spend a full year on a one-semester college A and P if doing it at home for a tenth grader. Then, you have Spectrum Chemistry. I'd drop one. Then, HOAW is a credit. Car care is .5 credit. Lukeion Latin and German is going to be a lot. It's been a lot of work keeping up with two languages here. Geometry is 1 credit. As I've written it out above, that's already 6.5 credits right there, 6 of which are solid academic credits. When you start talking Lukeion, you are going to have a large time commitment IMO, which I am sure you know from her doing first year Lukeion. It's only going to get more time-consuming IMO. Rolling Acres is wonderful, but, again, it will take time to do well. I do not believe it is all that manageable to do 7 or 7.5 challenging academic courses. And you have quite a few outside activities on top of it. Plus, you are working full-time? I think you need to scale back. JMO. Best wishes.

Thanks, Marie. I agree with your thoughts, they need to explain why they are shifting to a more restrictive setting. I would have to believe they know they are not supposed to do that, but who knows? I will definitely get the book From Emotions to Advocacy. Can I ask why you sent your son back to school after 10th grade, and how it has worked out? You can pm me if you want. Thanks again for your thoughts.

How about Basic Algebra by Brown? You can get is used on Amazon. It's a great book. You can also get a teacher edition for it, but make sure the editions match. If you can't find a matching TE, you probably don't even need it. http://www.amazon.com/Basic-Algebra-Richard-G-Brown/dp/0395564808

Thank you, Sandy! I appreciate your input. We did have several meetings where I participated, so I don't think I made it clear that I did participate. They gave me a draft ahead of time. They were very supportive through the whole thing. I had asked about classroom setting and her potential schedule at the meeting where we signed the IEP, which is why when I went in now to see gc about setting up a potential schedule, I was surprised by the change. Yes, I've signed the page that says I participated in preparing the IEP. It also clearly says the classroom environment is co-taught and something called "block" which is what I think they had explained as co-taught and an additional resource room to reinforce what was done in the co-taught room. This is a very large district and they definitely have co-taught classes, no issue there. I wonder if it costs more to have her in the co-taught and resource room vs just putting her in small group classes? If they thought it would be less overwhelming for her due to being on the spectrum, I still don't quite get why they didn't say that at the meeting. I will read From Emotions to Advocacy. I will also follow up with the special ed. teacher, who had participated in the meeting.

If you are in Ohio, only a certain amount of $ has been allocated to homeschoolers for DE. For the 2014-2015 school year, $250,000 was set aside from what I understand--so it's not free for as many classes as you want to take as it is for public school students. Homeschoolers are going to be allocated units starting with Seniors and going down from there until they run out of units. We will be treated the same way private schools are treated. However, private school funding is also separate from homeschooling funding right now. Typically, private schooled kids seem to get about 8 credit hours per year. As for what Cedarville wants, can't help you there. I do know that with our cc, I provided a transcript and ACT scores. That was it. However, I also know that a local private college has more requirements before they'll accept you. Best wishes. :)

Thank you! I do have a copy of the IEP, and I looked at it yesterday because I thought maybe it said co-taught OR small group, but it didn't. It said co-taught. When she shadowed, she did the co-taught and small group. When they wrote up the IEP, they were aware of her testing results, so they obviously took that into account I would think. I get that with ASD a large group might seem overwhelming to her, but she seemed to do fine with it. I think the reason they are working around this is because right now the IEP isn't in effect and according to the gc, they want to see how she does and give her lots of support with the small group. But part of me wonders if that's easier for them. We would meet within 30 days of her starting school. So, technically, they may be within what they are supposed to do, but I think it would have been better had they explained it to me or something, not just said this is what we're doing… I will check out the links you shared. Thank you.

My daughter is currently taking her third community college course, and she doesn't get to keep copies of tests or finals.

Thanks for the replies. I had shown them her work when we did the MFE. I also had them give me examples of things she missed on her assessments, which I realized she could easily do at home. I did tell them this, but I figured that when she went (if she went) they would see her performance. The school does have co-taught classes and they also have resource rooms. I think the small class settings probably have 10 or less students. I think the gc was emailing with the sped teacher. I guess I was thrown off by the change without any notice to me. After we did the IEP mtg, because I wasn't enrolling her right then for this year, I was required to say I was at that point refusing services. We will have an IEP meeting within a month of her starting school to adjust the current IEP. But I was just thrown off by the change in setting from what was written on my copy of the IEP. I guess I do need to ask them why there has been a change. I initially felt good about the co-taught because they were going to have her in co-taught AND have her in the small group for reinforcement of what is being taught in the co-taught. In co-taught, there are probably 25 kids with 2 teachers. So she would have had two classes if that makes sense. Now they are just giving her the more restrictive it seems, their thought being (I think) that if she does okay here, they can move her up as opposed to going from less restrictive to more if need be. Any more thoughts are welcome.

First, I may delete some of this for privacy, so I'd kindly ask if you could not quote. Thanks. My daughter had an evaluation at the public school this year and they drew up an IEP for her. She is 14 and going into 9th grade. They diagnosed her with HFA. Some of the academic/cognitive testing results were off IMO but that's another story. To give a bit of detail into that, I think she was anxious and nervous and did not exactly perform optimally. She also said when she was testing even though there was a do not disturb sign on the door, people kept knocking. Plus, I think with her HFA, some of the tests they used might not have been ideal for her. They were actually surprised I think at how well she was doing in some things. For example, they didn't even qualify her for OT services. She has had severe dysgraphia. The OT said that even though her "convergence" (I think that was the word she used) was very poor, each time she tested her handwriting, it was legible on four out of four times and she said she "couldn't believe it." I was fearful I would be viewed as someone who'd kept her from progressing but that didn't happen, so that was a relief. I have not used the school for any services since I pulled her out when she was 6. Her IEP says on it that she is to have co-taught classes but when I went to register her, the gc told me she would be in small group classes. I asked about co-taught, but he said they will start her off here and see how she does. At the IEP meeting I had, I was told she'd be in co-taught and then be in a resource class after that to support what was going on in the co-taught--IOW, she'd have two English and two math. But now they have her in all small classes for everything. I was annoyed by this because that's not what was said to me at the meeting a couple months ago. I am also concerned that they seem to want to start her off in a more restrictive environment as opposed to less restrictive. However, maybe I am overreacting? I am considering sending her to school because she wants to go--has become kind of obsessed with the idea of it. Not really something I had planned on doing with her yet, but I will consider it for her. However, I am not sure this is going to be good for her. My bigger worry is her future and I have this idea in my head they can help her with vocational programs, etc. I don't know if my perception is accurate. My friend's son was just released from special ed at school and is graduating and he can't get or hold a job in spite of all the interventions, etc. They'd had him in welding but she was told he just can't handle it. He'd gotten a temporary job at a restaurant but he was too rigid about certain things, so they are not hiring him. If they asked him to sweep the floor, he would say that he only did dishes--that sort of thing. My daughter is totally not like that, but my friend's comment to me got me wondering about some things. She said that her son has been in this safe bubble his whole life and now she is freaking out not knowing what to do because they are releasing him. Forgive my rambling. Hope someone can give me some insight into what I should make of this whole thing with the IEP saying co-taught and now them doing something else that's seeming more restrictive to me. As well, any thoughts on my ideas that school will help her vocationally? I am not really thinking they will do any more for her academically than I can at home but the structure might benefit her. She also does have the opportunity to participate in school sports and extracurriculars without being enrolled. Thanks.