Thanks, everyone. DS has three years of Latin for his foreign language, but found out he was eligible for German 1, tuition free, at a university 40 minutes away. So, he registered and takes that course in the fall. That brings him to 11 credit hours and I think that's plenty given we will be in application/interview mode this fall, too. I feel much better knowing the scheduled science course is fine! 🙂

Thanks @regentrude I was hoping you’d weigh in. My brain appreciates it! 😅

DS is entering his senior year and is making applications to two service academies where a solid science progression through some level of physics is important. DS has all of his high school science basics covered: Honors Physics 1 (2021), Honors Chem (2022), Honor Bio (2023). DS takes Calculus 1 this fall at the CC, which is a pre req for their Engineering Physics course which DS will take in the spring (no concurrent enrollment allowed). Doing this will show a science sequence that looks like this: Honors Physics 1 (2021), Honors Chem (2022), Honor Bio (2023), Engineering Physics 1 (2024) My gut says this looks fine (besides wishing he could've fit Calc 1 in this summer - not possible). But... not having a science in the fall feels like a missed opportunity? There's a general physics course at our uni DS could register for this fall, but it's just another Alg based Physics course. Though, it would put a college level physics course on his transcript before admissions' biggest decision making time (Jan-Feb). Would this beef up his science progression, or just look weird since he already has Alg based Physics? My overthinking brain is at war with my DO NOT OVERSCHEDULE brain. ARgh! Looking for others to weigh in! Thank you for your help!

We did World History focused on WW1 and WW2 with an emphasis on military strategies this year. There are soooo many great books. Search this forum - you’ll find a few booklists and recommendations on the wars. McMillan’s Guns of August launched me into great research territory for finding other books and we pieced together a great year with about 8 books, 3-4 films/documentaries, speeches, and a large wall map of Europe.

Hmm. That much grammar stands out to me as irregular on a high school transcript. But maybe the grammar course is an integrated composition/lit/grammar course? If it is really and truly only a grammar course, I would reconsider. I'd let French 2 handle grammar and then go for an ACT/SAT prep course focused on the English/Reading subject areas.

Instead of focusing on preferred high school instructor, I think I would zoom out and focus on choosing the course that best builds your DS’s transcript towards his college goal. A 6 week US history course may satisfy state requirements, but a transcript builder? Im not sure about that. Should your DS get the disorganized AP instructor, there are work arounds. Your DS could get the course syllabus for the other course to stay on track. And, AP exams are self studied all the time - there are plenty of resources. Knowing ahead of time that he’ll need to supplement/double down if the teacher isn’t driving content really is half the battle, I think. Fortunately, this isn’t a course that critically relies on an instructor, but I feel for you. It’s never ideal to have a disorganized instructor - but it happens.

I would want to know more about the specific dog and the situation. Is this pup from a home where it was not a good fit? Is mil’s bff’s friend a breeder? (ETA I see the friend is a breeder.) There are some really heartbreaking (and expensive) situations you can avoid by getting to know as much as possible about this pup’s current circumstances. If no vet has been involved in this pup’s life, Id be wary and at bare minimum have her looked over before agreeing to it. A puppy is super exciting and I hope my response doesn’t seem to rain on that… but the set up of taking a dog being offered from 3 relationships away is a gap that needs closing up.😉 Best of luck!

Thank you for the responses. For clarity, it sounds as though the issue is with Owens’ editorial follow-up to the course description - “War on the West.” Had the course description been provided without that, would there be an issue? I love higher ed, freedom of speech, and appreciate a good discussion on the merits of a course. The labels, though? My thinking is that he’s just a guy with a perspective - a perspective is inherently biased and his is no more or less radical than others, depending on what your political stripe is. Personally, I have an issue with history being taught from what seems an exclusively political motive. Whether that’s DO or a college professor, it doesn’t matter.

Serious question. Is the issue 1) that DO elevates the west in his perspective, 2) that the follow up assumes a politicized "war on the west," 3) or all of the above? And, if you had an ideal Western Civ course, what would the perspective be? To be up front, I am filled with a great deal of gratitude for the opportunities this country has afforded my family. So, DO's perspective on Western Civ resonates with me from that perspective. But I am genuine about wanting to understand where the issue lies and why it merits encouraging homeschoolers to ditch a resource that has been a mainstay in maths.

Physics prep provides a math placement test for physics c, which I just went through. I *think* I could see the concurrent plan working if DS was starting calculus BC. But I think AB needs to be under his belt before starting physics c.

Thank you for repeating this. It got me thinking... DS struggles with too many online classes and so I try to limit those. (Physics Prep is the only AP Physics C course I'm aware of.) If instead of doing AP Calculus with Derek Owens, I'm able to secure an in-person calculus 1 course at the CC, I could see DS being able to do the physics prep AP Physics C course. Hmmm! Now to wait for the CC fall course schedule. Thanks for bearing with me and letting me rattle off all my concerns and limitations. Things are getting sorted! 🙂

Thank you for your entire post, and yes, this thread is a bit all over the place because I didn't understand the varying levels of physics offered. Thank you for explaining! To update where we are... and sorry for the stream of consciousness posting! DS would need calculus before taking the general physics (calc based) at the universities in our area who offer that as a year long course. He's finishing up trig now. If he finished trig early, he could launch into calculus and complete it this summer. However... DS travels for competitive policy debate - this is a non negotiable for him and it presents some real problems committing to a year long university course. While Wilson Hill isn't offering the most competitive science, they have worked with us. I wouldn't expect that level of flexibility from a uni science course, nor would I want DS missing those classes. This may read as a minor loss of an extracurricular given DS's goal, but debate is where DS's friendships are, too. Perhaps more importantly, in digging through the course requirements for our tech school's engineering programs I have found that NO outside maths or sciences will transfer. So, my kid could push and scrape himself into the higher level coursework of an in person calc based science, but he would lose flexibility to pursue debate, friendships, and a fulfilling senior year. Further, it puts him really far ahead of students who would enter the tech school with him - but with no real advantage to him outside of being uber prepared... that's of value, of course, but at the expense of other high school experiences? We will probably pursue the garden variety science (AP physics 1&2) and AP calculus next year. If DS does not gain admission to an Academy, he can always take the higher level courses his freshman year and apply to the Academy again the following year. I can see pros to that, too.

Thank you @Sebastian (a lady) !!! Very helpful.

Yes, live classes are a real need, especially at this level. My kid can self-study language and history. But he knows he needs and prefers a knowledgeable live instructor for science and math.

Thank you for the advice. Im so disappointed in our cc. We live 5 min from a state uni and this should not be. (The uni offers DE courses exclusively through local highschools - so not an option for homeschool students.) Bummed.

Our community college has not offered calculus-based physics since covid AND their calculus instructor is not an option. (Multiple students reported on RMP that he did not grade/return their work until a week before the final). The fall course schedule has not yet been released, but I'm not hopeful based on the 2022-2023 schedule. So, with DE options out, I'm looking at APs, which is sad because DS would prefer an in person course. I'm happy with Derek Owens for AP calculus. Does anyone know of a live AP physics C course online?

What science course would make sense then? DS has a solid honors sci progression under his belt. Derek Owens Comp science and DE calculus are on the list for next year. Thanks so much for the advice! ETA: I now realize that I need to seek clarification from Wilson Hill about what exactly “AP Physics” entails. I assumed AP physics 2 b/c the course title used to be “honors physics 2.” But i suspect I may be mistaken. 🤦‍♀️Precalculus is a pre req for their current AP Physics course. Maybe theyre offering AP Physics C? In any case, calculus based physics is the way to go it seems. Sorry for the slow brain moment! Im trying to sort courses while recovering from respiratory grossness. 😉

Thanks so much for the helpful replies. Very much appreciated! He took algebra based Physics 1 in ninth - an accelerated course offered through Wilson Hill. He loved the content. Hated the online component. His stated area of interest has always been mechanical engineering, but I could see him going toward history or poli sci. At the root of my question -- DS is purely focused on a strong academy application. College credit for a science course as a potential engineering student is a pipe dream, imo. So no worries there. I guess the real queition is: if introductory physics courses are watered down, then is an AP really going to tip the balance on an application compared to a DE physics?

Hi all! Thanks in advance for any input you can provide. DS will be a senior next year! His reach school is the Air Force Academy. He will also apply to USMA and our state tech uni. He has a few DE credits, but no APs -- the online factor is not his thing. But, he will have the opportunity to take AP physics 2 through Wilson Hill next year. The teacher (Dwelle) seems solid. I think the service academies like to see APs as they are more standardized. However, an online AP science course as compared to an in person DE lab science? That seems like splitting hairs. I'm also concerned about getting DS a seat in an AP exam after our experience of the same with the PSAT. DE would be so much easier. But, I don't want to cut corners if AP is really a better offering. Curious to know the thoughts of those who know better than I do! DE or AP physics 2??? Thanks! Doodlebug

I’m glad my experience was helpful!@Quarter Note I had ds evaluated during the crash, but was uncomfortable trusting too much in the recommendations — there were a variety of factors that contributed to my hesitation. What I decided to do was read up on adhd brains and teaching strategies, specifically. I don’t think my ds would qualify as adhd now (16) but those teaching strategies were fresh air for both of us. Special needs approaches to education are incredibly rich and disabused me of formal ed priorities and expectations, like student independence. I began working math with ds problem by problem and did this from the age of 11-13/14! It was a game changer for learning and relationship!

You have already received some excellent replies. I thought I would add that there is an idealism crash that can happen in homeschooling -- and it is a good thing, imo. I had one child for whom I read all the books and did all the things. And around the age of 9, he became a lot less interested and compliant when it came to my ideals. This was one of those first stages where the dynamic of control needed to shift, and it was deeply unsettling on a personal level. It revealed I was far more invested in the positive outcome of homeschooling, something I would've outright denied at the time, than was good for the relationship I had with DS. After two years in a private school, DS wished to return to homeschooling and I was more than ready. Homeschoolers on this very board, as well as SWB's Rethinking School, were encouraging to me to teach the student in front of me. This began an entirely new and refreshing season of our homeschool journey. Sharing this because during my crash, I was sure there was a problem with DS. HE was unteachable. HE was unhomeschoolable. In hindsight, there was a dynamic at play which made me the worst teacher for him. When I was ready to learn about him, and approach his education with those learned things in mind, homeschooling was an entirely different experience. But it all started with recognizing "this isn't working" and making a plan for me to catch my breath. I would've told you it was the end of homeschooling at the time. But that would've been my anxiety talking -- this now level headed older mom now looks back and says "It was the right decision at that time" and knows that every season must be evaluated this way, with an open mind and heart!

I get frustrated by the lack of reading, too! It has caused me to consider the way the age of information is impacting memory and social communication. Memory suffers where there’s a loss of contextual clues, hierarchies/prioritization of information. Sooo much info on the daily makes it hard to prioritize, find context, etc. I tend to pay careful attention to end-user agreement because I’ve had to manage facilities before. But, generally speaking, detailed instruction lists that are emailed to me? Shoot me!

I just looked up credelio and increased urination is a side effect! https://www.credelio.com/about-credelio/side-effects

We have a 7 month old puppy who, after weeks of doing GREAT with potty training, peed in the house 5xs in a day. This continued to happen every couple of weeks and worsened in the fall. No uti. No change in food or flea meds - and the peeing didnt coincide with monthly doses. We eventually connected it to my departure times. The two days a week I left the house for several hours were the worst. Separation anxiety. Strictly kenneling pup whenever I leave has been the fix. She gets a filled and frozen kong to keep her busy. And, this has done wonders for her where that erratic peeing is concerned. And yes to the poster who recommends watching water intake! Our pup loved to play (bite at and gulp) in her water bowl. Adorable, but this def resulted in one-time accidents.

IME, the most effective counseling is focused on a specific issue and has a timeline/goal attached. I don't have any experience seeing a counselor for more generalized issues. I don't believe counseling is a cure all. That being said, I think DOING something about the way you feel is always a positive. Good for you trying something new. I try to keep in mind that there's a tipping point at which a therapeutic mindset of making peace with the past comes at the expense of present gifts, hope, and future joy. Sharing that because it really is so very individual and may serve as a sort of discerning metric for your next move - drop counseling, pursue a new provider, etc. Edited to remove personal details.