Thank you for the recommendation Kinsa. I just looked and sadly St. Mary's doesn't have most of my son' s most preferred academic majors (graphic design, architecture, film, theater).....the search continues.

Son is considering graphic design as a possible major. Can anyone recommend a live online course in graphic design?

I'm not really able to quantify affordable at this time. Maybe the better term is relatively affordable vs average college cost.

I am just beginning to look at possible colleges for my freshman. It is very early of course, but I would like to gather some general information starting now. At this point in time, I think a college with these characteristics would be best for my son: 1. Small to medium size liberal arts college 2. Conservative, Christian, preferably Catholic or Catholic friendly 3. Active student body with lots of clubs and things to do (son is very social) and especially enjoys theater as a hobby 3. Offers majors in all or most of the following: graphic design, architecture, film, theater. Business, and communications are secondary interests. 4. Affordable, or at least generous with needs based financial aid and merit based aid 5. Best locations are Texas, PA, NC, and FL for family/friend support nearby, but flexible. Thank you for any and all recommendations for me to begin our search.

Thank you - I will definitely check them out!

It was a local class that used Jensen's Format Writing. It was an expository writing class that went through classification essays, persuasive essays, cause and effect essays, descriptive essays, and a bunch of other types too.

My son took a year-long local format writing clas last year in 8th grade that was very helpful, and I saw much progression in his writing skills. He was writing weekly and by the end of the year, he’d become quite capable and produced a strong paper. He aced the course. This year in 9th he is taking a blended English class (English IV at Big River Academy) which is a combination of literature,grammar, vocabulary, and some writing, but not weekly writing, perhaps two papers per semester. I’ve seen his writing skills degrade. He’s not brainstorming, outlining, or using good transitions. He’s writing sloppy sentences, not building an idea fluidly, and not using well formulated logical conclusions. I think he’s just not getting the weekly writing practice to keep him on his toes. He was more concerned about the minimum word count, and threw in a whole lot of fluff to do so. I had to red pen more than a third of it! I feel he needs a one semester writing class to shore up this area, starting in January. But nothing too intense or time consuming, as he already has a full English class and its associated workload. He works better for an outside teacher, so looking to outsource this. I’d like a course with lots of detailed feedback especially on setting up a thesis, building a cogent argument, using fluid transitions and conclusions, omitting fluff words and phrases and using strong words to communicate. Does anyone have a good suggestion? Thank you kindly.

Thank you once again historymatters! You have been very helpful!

This was very helpful! Both my sons tune out when explanations get verbose. Short, visual, and to the point work best. Tabletclass Geometry is sounding better to me. Thank you History Matters!

I'm trying to compare MUS versus Tabletclass Geometry. Anyone have any insights? I think MUS uses a once a week video vs Tabletclass which is daily

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I found some encouragement and nuggets of wisdom here.

Tabletclass Geometry looks great. Anyone know how it might compare to MUS Geometry?

My understanding is that both Frau Cruz and Gleason teach German history along with the language and teach it with a distinctly Protestant view, extolling the virtues of the reformation and Martin Luther. That pretty well shut the doors to those classes for us, as we are Catholic. Will look for a secular or a Catholic teacher of German instead.

Thank you, off to look at Tabletclass.

ETA: If any other Geometry programs meet my requirements, please do mention them!

I like that this this model in the video is not a typical vocational school model - instead it offers real world experience in actual businesses that train the high schoolers themselves. IMO, colleges and degrees for a lot of people are wasteful of time and money, and many colleges do not produce what businesses need. This is why the model of the business training the students themselves is the solution. And the sooner the better for many For a lot of young adults, spending 4-8 years in college and a racking up a whole lot of debt is wasteful, time consuming, and life altering in a bad way. So many young adults with degrees are having to live with their parents because they are saddled with debt and do not have the real tangible skills to offer businesses and are underemployed.

Did you also do German I with OSU?

Kiana, Of the ones you mentioned, probably Astronomy would be the most interesting to my son.

I don't think he will go directly to a 4 year college. It will be either community college or a dedicated art school, more likely than not. The art school he is eyeing has NO specific requirements. No specific math, science, English, etc. It's all very individualized.

Fried Clams, Through OSU?

He is taking science and math as outside courses. All of his classes are outsourced. However, most of the work is done independently of course.

I shall do that. If a major requires higher math, he will probably say forget it. I mentioned business and teaching, but that is probably not his path. He is not even sure he wants college. Community college at this point is more likely, as it will save a lot of money and buy some time in declaring a major. And if he does pursue a degree, something in the visual arts or a creative field is most likely. The big issue is that these core classes take so much time and energy, there is little time to pursue his passions.

Thank you everyone for responding. I guess we will stay the course with Math up to Algebra II. Biology will be taken in 10th, and I will see about another science other than Chemistry in 11th. I think he might like Astronomy or Environmental Science better. This child is very social and needs a lot of breaks, so that is why school seems to take so long. Of course when it is his passion, he can work for hours on end. But math and science are not passions, nor are they easy, so they wind up taking a disproportionate share of time and sucking the joy out of school many days. Again, I wish it were different, where kids could pursue their passions instead of a prescribed course of courses that some college admissions rep wants to see and that many kids will never see or use again.

More on this model: Love this. Wish I could enroll my 15 year old right now in something like this.

Wish we had this model here in the USA: http://asiasociety.org/global-cities-education-network/apprenticeship-model-switzerland