I saw this, but wasn't sure how much of it would be beneficial to us at this point. My daughter is a junior this year, so we have to get her application packages together this summer. Does it address writing application essays, or who are the best people to get recommendation letters from/what a good recommendation letter should look like?

I was typing when you were. Thanks for your input. Which digital classes did you do? Did you find them helpful?

Yes, we have covered all of those things and built an impressive package. However, I, umm, have never made an official transcript. Gosh, I've never even seen one! (I don't think I've ever seen any of mine either.) On top of that, my daughter wants to attend a California UC - not an easy acceptance for homeschoolers. I really think she'd have a better chance getting into Stanford! However, my daughter wants to go to vet school at UC Davis, so we have to be really careful where she does undergrad (most accepted applicants went to a UC). Honestly, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by the process. I have navigated our homeschool years pretty much alone - not a lot of homeschoolers in our area are college-oriented. I have had to swim against the tide of popular homeschooling culture, which meant figuring out almost everything alone. I can't take a chance of dropping the ball now! I did email back and forth with Jeanette Webb, and she has helped homeschoolers get into California UCs, including some who were awarded Regents Scholars (not something we are focused on, but it is somewhat impressive). The price is pretty high though - $300/hour with a 3 hour retainer.

Has anyone used the services of Aiming Higher Consultants for your child's college planning and/or application process? If not Aiming Higher, has anyone used any other professional services? We are specifically looking for assistance with the college essay, transcripts, and making sure the whole package is properly put together (recommendation letters, other documentation such as AP/SAT II scores). Would love any feedback!

Hi Sparkly, We had no trouble getting exams last year, but much trouble this year. My recommendation would be to show up in person rather than calling. Nobody said no to my face. I will also tell you that it is pretty late in the year to be hoping to sign up for the AP exam. I would not wait another day. Judy

Correction: My daughter says it was more like 8 - 10 hours per week.

Gosh, it's hard to remember how much time she spent - I'd say six to eight hours a week. She felt that she was well prepared for the AP test. (She got a 5. The teacher let us know that nobody in the class got less than a 3.)

Goldberry - Please let us know what your daughter thinks of the actual exam versus the Khan prep!

My daughter is taking AP English Language from Mrs. Inspektor of PA Homeschoolers. There has been no busy work. Excellent instructor. Btw, my daughter is also taking AP Music Theory through PA Homeschoolers, and it is also a very good course.

My daughter took AP Biology from Terri Kanner of PA Homeschoolers last year, not this year. It was a very good course. Meaningful assignments.

Hi Yvonne - My daughter did the SAT French. We did it in June, and that was the only French exam available. SAT French w/Listening is only available in the fall, and we didn't want to wait. We also knew she would be doing AP French, which would surpass both in difficulty. If your children have decided against AP French, then maybe French w/Listening would be a good idea, as it would demonstrate some aspect of being able to communicate in a form other than writing. If they are doing AP French, I would stick with the regular SAT French and totally skip French w/Listening as that, and more, will be covered on the AP exam. Judy

Finally got my daughter's AP Music Theory scheduled! I did not try going to the principal of the school where I was told no (you know, the one where her orchestra plays for their musicals). Instead, I went to a rural-ish high school in the next town. So far, two exams at one high school (they only offered two of the four she was doing), one at another. Will be working on the last one next week. This has been hard work! It has also been eye-opening because last year was so easy (did all of them at school that she is doing two this year.) We need better laws in California to allow homeschoolers access to the things our tax dollars are paying for!

"I don't think that CB cares at all about high schools providing access." I agree! We live in CA; I wish there was a law similar to that in VA and many other states, but there isn't. In CA, we don't register with any local schools or districts. I am going to try calling a local charter school to see if they will allow testing for some of the courses, although I already know they don't offer AP Music Theory (which requires special equipment), so I will still have to find someplace to do that. I think the principal is a good idea. One of the AP coordinators that said no is the coordinator at a school for which my daughter has participated in their spring musicals. At this particular school, they put big money into their theater program and for the last two years my daughter has volunteered as the piano/keyboardist for the orchestra, including being the keyboardist for Les Miserables (which, if you know, is majorly dependent upon the keyboard). I found it ironic that the coordinator could have no problem turning down someone who has contributed to her school on three seperate productions (they make big money on these productions as well - six performances each year, all completely sold out once they started bringing in the live orchestra). I know the theater department staff would speak on her behalf, but am hesitant to ask. I'm thinking the principal might be the place to go...

Are you sure about this? I am having trouble this year getting AP Music Theory. Two local high schools offer the course and exam, but will not allow anyone but their own students to take it. When I contacted the College Board I got zero, I mean ZERO help. I would love to have some recourse.

My daughter is taking it with Molly Olsson this year. She likes the class and the teacher. Very fast at grading work!

I have a daughter in the class. I can let you know how it goes in a few months.

Are you asking as a parent of a student taking the class this year, or as a parent of a prospective student?

No, it is not her first AP class. She did AP Biology and AP French last year. They were both much more difficult.

Hi, My daughter is taking the class this year. Molly Olsson is very fast at returning graded work! My daughter spends about 6 hours a week on the class, and feels most of the assignments are worthwhile -some very worthwhile, with only a small amount seeming like "busy work." The level of student/teacher interaction isn't high, but if it is needed, the teacher gets back to the student right away with very good explanations. Environmental Science is the AP class with the lowest pass rate - my guess it that it's because it is such a broad subject that it is not as easy to prepare for as most of the other tests. Judy

Hi, My daughter is taking it through PA homeschoolers. Judy

I bought the AP Biology cards this last school year. The flashcard approach doesn't really appeal to my daughter to begin with, but these cards didn't seem to match the curriculum well (Campbell's Biology book or AP framework). And there were some errors. They pretty much went unused.

There are tons of AP classes available online. Do a search for AP online classes and you will get all sorts of hits. You can also do them at home. Maybe I'm missing something, as a lot of people here get their curriculum approved by the College Board, but I have done, and plan to do, AP classes at home without approval and plan on listing them on my daughter's transcript as AP. I figure that if she takes the AP test, her score will justify the designation. Perhaps someone else has some input on that. My daughter has enjoyed the challenge of the AP classes because of the depth and breadth of study provided.

Rosetta Stone used to be expensive, but now all five levels can be bought for a bargain. We used Rosetta Stone's really old version when my daughter was in second/third grade, and it was a lot better than the new version, with one exception: the new versions have pretty good voice recognition software that does a decent job of correcting pronunciation. Whatever Rosetta Stone says, each level is NOT equal to a year of high school French. Not even close. But it is very good as a part of the curriculum. Even though your daughter is starting at an older age, subscribing to a French children's magazine could be good because the vocabulary is basic. When my daughter was in early/mid elementary, we subscribed to Pomme D'api, and then, later, to Les Belles Histoires. Pomme D'api wouldn't work with an older student, but Les Belles Histoires would. It also gives good insight into French culture - after all, it is a French magazine intended for French children. In junior high, we used Bon Voyage 3, and I agree with Yvonne that it is pretty much the same as any other standard textbook. It was okay. The next year, we used Allons au-Dela, and probably liked it a little better. Both of these textbooks and the accompanying cds and dvds can be found used all over the place online. And Allons au-Dela can be purchased from the publisher and accessed online. As your daughter moves along in French, don't forget to include the French in Actions series by Yale University! It can be viewed for no cost on Annenberg Learner (at least it used to be - you'll have to check). There is also a workbook that goes with it that I found about halfway through the series. If you ever think you'll do AP French, I'll cut and paste below something I just messaged to someone the other day. My daughter got a 5, so it is very doable at home. I will also agree with Yvonne on the need for a tutor at some point. Judy Hi, Sorry for the delay. I found the tutor online. Her name is Anne Castelain, http://www.en.babiln...om/courses.html. We did twice a week, for 30 minutes or 45 minutes per tutoring time. During the last year, I also paid to have her correct essays and emails (as required by the AP French test) outside of tutoring time. She gave me a small discount on the time charge for that. You can see the cost on her website. Yes, I was the teacher in between time. I did not get my syllabus approved, although I'm sure it would have been. I didn't figure, however, that it really mattered - if my daughter did well on the exam, that would pretty well substantiate the grade I would give. We used a huge number of resources. Huge. Much I did on my own, finding things on French websites. We did use the AP French workbook by Ladd,http://www.amazon.co...words=ap french, and also the textbook Allons au-dela (although we purchased the online version of that one directly through Pearson). The AP French test area of the College Board Website has a lot of information, including parts of past tests. In the couple of weeks before the exam, she went through the Barron's AP French book, http://www.amazon.co...words=ap french. The book was not perfect, and did have errors, but it was helpful. One book that we purchased, but didn't use was the Crash Course one, http://www.amazon.com/French-Language-Culture-Access-Audio/dp/0738610607/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1438226082&sr=8-2&keywords=ap+french. It was really bad. I'm not sure your daughter's age, or her previous French experience. My daughter had started at 4, in an easy going type of exposure, then had a native speaker as a tutor until third grade (when the tutor moved back to France). After that, we did it alone until she started again with Anne in eighth grade. Ours was a slow and steady approach early on, speeding up as she got older. One thing you might want to consider, if you don't plan on doing the AP French this coming school year, is to have her take the French SAT subject test. That will give her a good idea where she is at. My daughter took it in 9th and scored an 800, so that gave us a good feeling. That said, though, the two tests are quite different. As far as French goes, the AP test is much harder because it really does require the student to prove they can understand spoken French as well as be able to speak it well themselves.

Your daughter is Clare! Hailey says hi. :) Is Clare taking any other classes through PA Homeschoolers this next school year? I think Dr. Kanner's Biology class did very well overall, especially considering that only 6 percent of test takers got 5s. Hailey keeps in sporadic contact with a few of the other students, and two of them got 5s and one got a 4. Thanks for the info regarding Music Theory. Can you recommend a study guide? Does Clare participate in something like Certificate of Merit or the Royal Conservatory of Music? I'm wondering because I'm hoping that by participating, it does help make the class a little easier ;)

Congratulations on her 5s! Interestingly, this coming school year, my daughter is taking AP Music Theory with Makin, and also AP Eng Language with Inspektor (well, we signed up late so we are technically with her section teacher, Ms Baert. :) I'm sure my daughter would love to know who your daughter is! I will give a hint: my daughter's name starts with an H. :)