Do any of you have experience with your student taking the statistics AP exam after a one semester community college statistics course? If we go this route, I will definitely get my ds an AP prep book. Thanks for sharing your own experience if you have done this.

The three most meaningful suggestions in our experience: 1) If your student is strong and interested in sci/math, start the high school sequence early (in middle school), so you can fit in advanced classes (a second year of chem and/or physics). 2) Get as much of the traditional math sequence in as possible. If you go the CC route, it is possible to get in more math, because of the semester-per-course structure. For us, CC math classes in 11th/12th grades provided the opportunity to get in Calc 1/2/3, providing a strong foundation for college. Your student doesn't HAVE to use the credits for college (can back up and retake); it provides options. 3) At my ds's college, chemistry is a "weeder" class that is intentionally extremely difficult. If your student can get CC chemistry before [4-yr] college, it will provide a strong foundation for chem in [4-yr] college or permit your student to opt out through transfer credits. Best of luck :001_smile:

We started right where you are now -- in the fall of ds's junior year. It was really hard for us to start any earlier. There just wasn't the time and inclination. For us, it needed to be impending for it to be meaningful. So we looked for colleges that were coming to town -- some come in groups like harvard/princeton/uva and some come to private schools in waves.

:iagree: We've been through grading that is discouraging and not representative of the level of work. I would definitely contact the instructor and ask about this.

:iagree:

We loved Fagles, but I don't think you can go wrong with Fitzgerald. Reading in conjunction with an audiobook is a phenomenal way to experience the tome. I would choose the translation that I could find an audiobook to go along with. :)

We are an Apologia family from General all the way through to Physics -- and now to Advanced Chem. We went off track one year with one ds (Spectrum chemistry), and regretted it. My two science-y guys loved Jay Wile's teaching style. They found it understandable, and they could work independently from their non-science-y mom:thumbup1:, My college soph/aerospace engineer thinks that Apologia prepared him well. Our $.02. :) ~Brigid

Yep. This is what I think, too. deh-NISS-o-vich :iagree:

If you want your dd to potentially get college credit, then taking the AP Psychology exam in May 2011 is not too late. You won't have an exam score for college admissions purposes, but your ds might be able to place out of a college elective. Also, I know of one family whose son took many APs with fee waivers. So you might check into that too. My impression of college admissions offices is that they do not expect homeschoolers to jump through all the same testing hoops as public/private schoolers. I would not despair that your ds has no AP exams on her record. The admissions counselors will look at your demonstration of high school rigor -- so use your course descriptions to document the rigor of your classes. One of the things I did was not have multiple .5 credit classes. An example - I folded a small geography co-op class and another small critical thinking/discussion co-op class into a single history/geog class on my ds's transcript. Then I felt I could call it an honors class, and the course description backed that up.

My ds took the PA Homeschoolers US Govt class last year. The instructor is very warm and kind. She or the Richmans might be willing to give you a multi-student discount. It wouldn't hurt to ask. The AP Govt class is a LOT of work -- definitely a year-long course, worthy of a full credit. I think your 9th grader could just do the work on a parallel track, following the syllabus and completing the assignments for you. What would be missing would be the essay assessments. But really, you could grade those. The essays come from past exams, and the rubrics are on the College Board/AP Central website. it seems like a great opportunity for your kids to benefit from at-home discussion and debate.

Do you know Spanish? If you can teach Spanish, you might look at Realidades. There are lots of online helps and activities that go along with the textbook. We have used it for two years (two books), but we had a Spanish instructor. This -French- mom could not begin to teach it. If you've had Spanish in the past though, I'll bet you would not have a problem. :001_smile:

:iagree:

I'm with you there! I have not used it yet myself, but I am thinking about using A Rulebook for Arguments, by Anthony Weston, when we get to AP Language in another year. It's a nifty little book, and I can see how a year-long writing plan could be developed with this one small book as a spine. Good luck, and let us know what you decide to do! ~Brigid

This was a big help to me when I was searching for schools to contact. The AP Ledger lists all the schools that have approved syllabi, by subject. You can search for schools in your area in a variety of ways, including by subject and city, to narrow down or expand the schools you might want to contact. When you call, you'll want to ask for the AP Coordinator. Good luck. I hope you find schools in your area who are willing to help you out. We have had good luck with the private schools (a good testing environment on test day), but our public schools seem fairly willing also. AP Ledger

I heard back very quickly also. I heard back in one day, and was asked to resubmit showing evidence of one aspect of writing. It was a quick fix, and when I resubmitted I got an email back in an hour. What a celebration! I spent months on my syllabus. I put in much more information than many of the syllabus examples that AP Central provides. Some of the syllabi that are provided by College Board/AP Central are fairly brief, so you don't necessarily have to have complete lesson plans for each week. If you are knowledgeable about the course material, the syllabus is not such a daunting process. I did a LOT of Googling -- looking at loads of public school AP teacher websites. There is also an AP "Listserv" that you can sign up for in most of the AP areas. I think some are more robust in their discussion than others. As you can imagine, the AP English listserve stays fairly busy. :001_smile:

That's great! Are you going to teach a class? I just got my AP English class approved over the summer. It's a great feeling to have that "stamp of approval"! Well done! :001_smile:

I would totally choose Physical Science, based on the description of your daughter. Sounds like the perfect fit for her, and a worthy high school class.

In my opinion, this is a very good way to see if you and your boys like the approach. I would totally do that. And start saving up. Because I'll bet you'll like what you see. There is a large demand for gently used IEW materials. If you think of it that way, it doesn't seem so expensive. :001_smile: Good luck!

Yep. The teacher and student workbooks are identical, except the teacher workbook has the answers.

Here you go: Lukeion

One more thing about Lukeion -- the Barrs encourage their Latin students to take the National Latin Exams. Their students score very, very well. A testament to the instruction.

If I remember correctly it is just the Wheelock's text -- over two years w/Latin 1 and 2.

If you only need the workbook for one student, all you need is the teacher's book. It is identical to the student book, and has the answers in the back.:001_smile:

Two years of Lukeion here, in 9th and 10th. Rigorous, good classes. I liked the fact that Lukeion used Wheelocks. Amy Barr is very good. Her syllabus/assignments are very straightforward. No grace on missed assignments, so you just need to be aware of her rules.