Having crossed the high school "end line" a year ago, what I would tell them is that they really can do it, and it really will be worth it. The education and life that they are blessing their children with is something that the moms and kids will cherish forever. I would also say that I believe that this is a great time for a home schooler to be a prospective college student. Our impression was that home schooling was an asset. It set my ds apart, and provided him with a valuable opportunity to be noticed among the masses of other students who are scrambling for that. So a solid course of study, along with the many opportunities to pursue interests that most ps kids have little time for, leads to a rich life and a well prepared college applicant. Hugs to all the moms of 9th graders out there. It's so daunting, but so doable! :001_smile:

This is the list that I am teaching this year to a local group and an online group of 11th and 12th graders: A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens, Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, Great Expectations, Charles Dickens, Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad, Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte, 1984, George Orwell, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen, Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller, A Doll’s House, Henrik Ibsen, Hamlet and King Lear, William Shakespeare.

I would definitely not consider an honors college letter "generic." By no means does everybody get them, and your dd should feel proud of her accomplishment. :001_smile:

In our area, the schools give an extra 1 point for honors and 2 points for AP. I followed the GPA calculation standards for the school systems in our area, which were: Regular class A=4.0 Honors class A=5.0 AP class A=6.0 CC class A=5.0 I changed CC to A=6.0, however, because I think it is ridiculous that a college class would not earn the same credit as an AP class. No schools asked me for anything. (I think colleges recalculate weighted GPAs anyway, based on their own system.)

I used the 11th grade book with eight kids in my English class (9th-11th) last year, and I really liked it. I think it is just enough reminder and review -- and the kids really can use the review. Bite-size grammar. I'm using the 12th grade book with the same group this year. I highly recommend it.

Another approach is -- don't come up with the essay topics yourself. Let your high schooler come up with them. Tell them to write a persuasive essay on a general topic you want (history, lit, econ, science). But let them decide what they want to argue. You can tell your student that he/she may write about XX. The only parameter is that the paper must have a thesis. Lucile Vaughan Payne, in The Lively Art of Writing, provides succinct direction: "The thesis is your opinion summarized in one arguable statement." Then, let your student decide what to write about. :001_smile:

I have used Edu-Track in my own homeschool. I have used this for a year in a co-op. It's really wonderful. And it is free. http://engrade.com/ If you are teaching in a co-op, the kids get a password and can view your running gradebook for them. I used it last year in a co-op class, and loved that students and parents could see grades, with all the assignments listed.

I think you have a GREAT year planned. Boy, swimming takes a huge chunk of time, and you want the kid to have a life! I would not worry about the lack of history -- you have economics in there, which fits into the same "slot." It looks like maybe your son is interested in going more of the technical trade route (judging from the HVAC apprenticeship). If so, I would not worry about foreign lang. If you think he wants to go to college, seems like schools want to see two years of foreign lang, and they like it to be consecutive. Looks like a terrific year, tailored to the interests of your son. Just what homeschooling is all about! Well done!

I am interested in hearing about cursive strategies too -- and hope we will hear from more who have tackled this issue. An additional concern I have is that my own kids, and kids I teach, cannot READ cursive! Even well written cursive. Beautiful, flowing cursive handwriting from grandparents is impossible for them. They stare at a note written in cursive like it was written in hieroglyphs :001_huh: and argue with me about whether an "r" is really an "r" ("It's not shaped like an R! That's not how I learned to make an R"!). Sure, honey, it's not your fault, it's grandma's fault you can't read it. So do I ask all my friends and relatives to write me letters in cursive and then have a unit on cursive reading? Or does learning to write -- more confidently and frequently -- in cursive, lead to the ability to read cursive?

I love the old version. If you can find a used old version, it is terrific. I am not a fan of having to print everything out, or work entirely from a computer screen. But it must work well for others. I can vouch for the old version in hard copy. I have all four years in notebooks on my shelf, and even though I am done with some (forever :crying:), it will be a while before I give them up! I hope others can help you with their digital experience.

If you've done all the work (and it IS a lot of work!), I'd send the course descriptions to all. That's what we did. The one-page transcript and multi-page course descriptions were clipped together as a package. It makes a nice presentation. :001_smile:

Good idea! I'm going to do that next time too! :iagree:

I was warned by several people to be sure to put Official in the name at the top. So ours said: Our High School Name -- Official High School Transcript Not sure why schools are so worried about that word -- but they seem to be. :)

Extra curricular :)

I included it as a PE credit. I wanted to make sure it was visible. Colleges can always recalculate grades in whatever manner they wish. It sure doesn't seem like it would hurt to include it on the transcript. Year round swimming takes an incredible amount of time (early early early morning swims) and discipline. So even if a college lops it off when they recalculate credits/grades, you have made it evident to them. :001_smile:

Yep. Plain white paper. I totally agree! In my view, my ds's homeschool status was an advantage. He didn't blend in. I would encourage you to highlight the ways that your student's homeschooling experience enabled him to move beyond the traditional, and explore/achieve/contribute in ways that would not have been otherwise possible. Best of luck with the college process!

When students take online science classes, how hard is it to follow through on the labs? My ds is signed up to take Advanced Chemistry with Apologia Academy next year, because it has gotten to be almost impossible to take dual-enrolled classes at our local community college (I could seriously rant on that topic). So I am concerned about the quality of the lab experience, and about the grading of lab reports. I'm sure that mileage will vary, but do online classes provide sufficient lab experience and lab report feedback? Any tips or things to look out for would be greatly appreciated. I want my ds to take the AP Chem exam at the end of the year, but if he gets a 3+ but doesn't have an adequate lab experience, I worry about him placing out of chemistry in college -- but not really having the lab-learning he should have had. Thanks for any wisdom!

I am a huge Tapestry of Grace/literature fan. I have used the literature selections as a guide and spine in the past for the local homeschool English classes I teach. The high school reading list is rigorous. I found TOG to be very helpful in determining just how much to expect at the high school level, and also to be helpful as a "safety net" in trying to avoid books with overtly objectionable content (particularly contemporary lit). It's a great resource. The discussion questions are adequate, not fantastic. But the whole orientation of TOG is very homeschooler-friendly. :001_smile: ~Brigid

Tapestry of Grace uses history as a spine, and then all geography, literature, and worldview is interconnected with that. The assignments are organized in four pillars - lower grammar, upper grammar, dialectic, and rhetoric. So a family can all be studying and discussing the same time period, but each student at his or her own level. The curriculum is sold by year (Year 1,2,3,4 - which corresponds to ancients, medieval, renaissance, modern -- or something along those lines ), and is organized by week within each year. There is background reading for mom, and assignments for each age range. There are activities, worksheets, discussion questions for each level. It's a fabulous curriculum. The older "models" are hard copy. I think the new versions are on DVDs. Not sure. I have the hard copies. I like some Years better than others, but it's really a terrific resource. I only have two kids, but if I had more, I'd find it even more appealing -- because it is intended for a family to be able to learn on the same history track -- and talk about it. Hope this helps! :001_smile:

I like Elements of Style, but another gem of a book is The Lively Art of Writing by Lucile Vaughan Payne. It is such a practical little book. Kids can immediately apply the teaching to their writing -- and they like that. :001_smile:

Tapestry of Grace integrates history and literature (it includes writing too, if you want to wrap all of your English together) over four years, with weekly assignments. :001_smile:

Here is the IEW yahoogroup: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IEWfamilies/ Here is the IEW buy and sell group (I think you have to have joined the families group before you can join the buy/sell)l:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IEWFamilies-Items_for_Sale/ IEW can be expensive, but there is a huge demand for used material, so the "sticker price" is not as bad as it seems. Where you go after SWI-C may depend on whether you like the DVD-approach. If you do, you might consider SICC-C. It is the "continuation course" (w/DVD's) and can be spread out over a year. The theme-based curriculum is mom-taught -- with plenty of help for mom. The IEW yahoogroup is a terrific place to get your questions answered. There are so many files, and so many experienced users who will jump in and give you their advice and experience. Good luck!

Wow, that looks like an incredible place! In our area of the world the Blackfriar Playhouse in Staunton, VA, is another option that is fantastic: http://www.americanshakespearecenter.com/ Shakespeare comes alive when it is seen and heard. :-) We always try to find a performance of the plays we read each year. I wish I could get out to Washington. Field trip! :001_smile: ~Brigid

My ds really like Timothy Taylor's Economics DVD series. He used those in an AP class and looked forward to watching them. We would highly recommend you "bookmark" those for later. :001_smile:

There is no way a $450 class should require you to do anything, other than to be the responsible parent who gives smiling encouragement, and peeks over her ds/dd's shoulder from time to time "just to be sure" all is well. :001_smile: