When did your child start CC and

[Lux Et Veritas Academy]

When did your child start CC and what class load did you begin with?

What was their initial thought process? Overwhelmed, underwhelmed...etc

Did they continue to attend after the first year?

[Kareni]

My recent graduate started at age 16 as a junior. She took thirteen hours of classes which was a full time course load. She took College Algebra (5), Introduction to Composition (4), and Geology 101 (4). These classes were all one quarter long. In addition to these classes, she was also doing AP Latin and AP Comparative Government & Politics at a resource center for homeschoolers.

 

She was initially concerned that the load would be too heavy; however, she was relieved to find the community college coursework to be less challenging than she had imagined.

 

The next quarter she took 12 hours (Trig, a second composition class, Geology 102) and the final quarter she took 8 hours (Mineralogy and World Literature). She took fewer classes that quarter since she was taking two AP exams, the SAT, and two SAT subject tests as well as the National Latin exam.

 

In her senior year, she did continue to take community college classes. She took two additional literature classes, a research paper writing class, Environmental Science, Art history, Introduction to Drawing, and Archery. She was also taking AP Statistics that year (through PA Homeschoolers), Ancient Greek, post-AP Latin, and a fiber arts class.

 

She was on the Dean's List all terms.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Pamela H in Texas]

My daughter had audited and done mentored college classes while young. I'll skip that.

 

Her official college courses started when she was 15. She took only 2 classes the first term (what is allowed). The second term, she could take up to 4 with permission (basically, just that she did well on the first two and had a schedule that would accomodate 3 or 4 classes).

 

Anyway, she found it easy for the most part.

 

She is doing an online university this year. Her load is listed below.

[SusanAR]

My ds took his first class (English)at 15

 

susan

[LoriM]

My older dd took advantage of our formerly awesome (LOL) community college program of dual enrollment here in North Carolina. She took 66 hours in high school, and graduated from high school with an Associate's Degree.

 

She took 13 hours first semester (4 courses). She had already completed *all* her high school requirements if she were a PS kid at age 16. But we had additional coursework (on top of this fulltime college load) that she did at home every semester as well. I'll just list the CC work. So, she took English 111, Spanish 111, Chemistry and College Algebra first semester in the Spring of 2006. She took only 1 hour over the summer (College Student Success--a lame study skills course required for the AA). The rest of her CC experience looked like:

 

Fall 2006: English 113, Spanish 112, Physics, PreCalculus (16 hours)

Spring 2007: American Literature I & II, Public Speaking, Health, Calculus I, Spanish 211 (18 hours)

Summer 2007: Statistics, Spanish 161 (Immersion in Mexico), Music Appreciation, Psychology, Sociology, Ethics (18 hours)

 

That's pretty close. :)

 

My younger dd took 15 hours her first semester. She took English 111, Spanish 111, Health, Art Appreciation and Digital Photography (her passion). Now she will have 7 hours this semester, starting on Tuesday, with Statistics and Physics (plus lab). Maybe we'll get a positive decision from the CC before then...and she can continue her English and Spanish sequences.

 

My dds both LOVED the CC. They established good relationships with their instructors, and earned nice side money tutoring. My older dd was named an "Academic Excellence" award winner in the Spring of 2007; she was nominated by her Spanish professor. She was also in Phi Theta Kappa. I don't think my younger dd will have that opportunity now. Sigh. (As she would say to me, "Bitter much, Mom?" LOL!)

 

Anyway, I think the CC can be an awesome addition to a homeschooler's transition to university life. We chose to add the CC courses for the rigor and routine and classroom experience. Besides, we started using college textbooks in 7th grade in our home, so there is only so long you can make kids do *the same* level of work they are going to do in their AA/BA program. Dual enrollment is "dual" so that they can get credit for the work when they do it, instead of doing it twice (or three times!).

 

Lori

[AngieW in Texas]

In Texas you can take 2 classes each semester as dual credit and still retain freshman status for admission and scholarships.

 

My dd took her first class in the 2nd summer session this year at 16yo. We went on vacation during the 1st summer session. She has enjoyed her Introduction to Psychology class. It's part of the core curriculum that will transfer to any Texas public university. The class met from 9:05-10:50am Monday-Thursday for 6 weeks. Tomorrow is the last day of the class.

 

In the fall, she is signed up for Japanese I (meets for 2hr15min 2x/week) and Drawing I (meets for 2hr40min 2x/week). She will take Japanese II in the spring, but I'm not sure what her other course is going to be.

[Janet in WA]

Our sons were 16 when they began taking cc classes through our state's dual enrollment program. They each took just one class, English 101, their first term. I wanted them to get their feet wet slowly, and to have the best chance to experience success with their first attempts at cc classes. One of our sons continued with a full load of classes at the cc thereafter. The other sometimes took a full load, and sometimes not. Both had great experiences. Neither was interested in earning an AA from the cc before graduating from high school, although that would have been possible for them to do.

[hsmamainva]

My oldest took her placement tests in the Spring of her Sophmore year (she had just turned 16).

 

The first semester (Fall of Junior Year), she only took one class -- College Composition I. She was nervous, but she did very well. English is "her thing", so that's why we started with that one -- and it's a prerequisite for numerous other classes, so we wanted to get it out of the way first.

 

Her second semester (Spring of Junior Year), she took College Composition II and US History I.

 

Her third semester (Summer between Junior Year and Senior Year), she took College Success Skills, which is a requirement of all students who intend to receive their AA degrees. You have to take it before you acquire more than 15 credits. It was a one-credit ... 'how to study' class.

 

Her fourth semester (Fall of Senior Year), she took Psychology and US History II.

 

Her fifth semester (Spring of Senior Year), she took Public Speaking and Introduction to the Short Story, which was her literature requirement.

 

She graduated from our homeschool at the end of her fifth semester at the CC.

 

Her sixth semester begins a week from Monday! She wants to complete her AA degree and, as long as she meets the GPA requirements, she has guaranteed acceptance at a number of 4-year colleges within the state of Virginia. Currently, her GPA is 3.0.

 

This Fall, she's taking Sociology, Developmental Psychology, and Biology I, with Yoga, Biology II, and another Psychology elective in the Spring. (Her major is General Studies with an Emphasis in Psychology).

 

Her last year (2010-2011), she'll take Precalculus I & II and more humanities and psychology electives and such. She intends to major in Psychology at a 4yr college, once she graduates from the CC in the Spring of 2011. Then she'll have automatic Junior status at that 4yr school.

 

It's been a wonderful experience for my daughter! She thoroughly enjoys the CC! And it's much less expensive for us, compared to sending her away to college. We're paying around $1000 to $1500 a semester, when you figure in tuition, fees, and books. Even the local 4yr college is $7000 a year for tuition and fees and that doesn't include books!

[TravelingChris]

MY dd took one class, honors psychology, when she had just turned 15. She is taking two one credit field geology classes now and she will be 16. SHe didn't get to take a class in spring semester because we moved to VA and she was not ond enough here. SHe is taking so little because she is already taking 6 credits at home and co-op and is involved in debate, soccer, 2 choirs, and probably volunteering too.

[K-FL]

We can start dual-enrollment (w/state $) after 9th grade & placing into college level courses.

 

Dd#1's started that summer sememster w/Statistics & b/w photography. She graduated w/her AA @ 18.

Dd#2 started the fall (would have been her hs sophmore yr) w/Fresh. Comp I & Ceramics I

[Quiver0f10]

Our kids usually start in their junior year and take 1-2 classes per semester.

[Ellie]

My dds began taking c.c. classes when they were 14. They loved it.

[TRILLIUM]

The policy of the schools out her is 16 years of age. We started at a local University which limited the number of classes you took to two. My dd took General Chemistry Iand Comp II. We then moved to the community college---she was unable to get the General Chem II class---she had lower priority for registration and it was full at the University. She took General Chem II and Introduction is United States Politics at the CC college in the spring. Then in the summer she took Karate and an intradisciplinary class. This fall she is registered for Physics, Calc, Honors World Lit, and Constitutional Issues. We have stayed with the community college. The local University would have limited her class selection to only 100 level. Since she had a 4.0 and more than 12 units of credit from the CC she was admitted to there honors program. Here's the biggest surprise---to me---she was awarded a 6 credit hour scholarship through the honors program although she is not a degree seeking student.

[MicheleinMN]

Ds will start at a CC this fall. He's 17 (18 in Jan.) and is only taking *fun* classes at the CC. He has Audio-Recording I, Acting I, and Ceramics (throwing) I. I kept all his tough classes at home, but that's because I do not expect him to keep pace in a CC math or science class, and he does history and literature at home with his sister. I wanted him to get his feet wet at the CC and maybe enjoy the experience enough to WANT to take other classes.

 

This child is considering NOT attending college at all. I'm hoping his experience will change his mind, so that he will at least consider attending after high school.

[Chris in VA]

Mine started his Sr year (but he was 19) and dual-enrolled. He took two courses but dropped one (kept Psychology).

We thought we'd have more money to send him for several classes the second semester, but he could only take one, so he took math. He failed the class.

Not every kid has a success story.

He did learn, however, ow to seek help, how to not get overwhelmed and then go sit in his hidey-hole and pretend it all away...and how to drop a class.

[TRILLIUM]

I'd make sure you get some local information. I know that some people out where I have live have tried to use CC science courses as high school courses for college. They wanted labs and assumed that because they were CC courses they would not be that hard. Well many of them were not sucessful. My local experience was that the science at the CC was actually more rigorous than at a small local University.

 

I think CC can really vary in their degree of difficulty.

 

One thing we found difficult was mixing CC course with definite deadlines, and test with mom courses----this is part of why my dd has a full load at the CC.

 

And one more piece of info she does have high standardized test scores and she self studied AP Biology and US History as a sophomore. --so I just did not move her to CC based on age. She was sucessful as an above average 16 yo.

[Sunshine State Sue]

My older dd took advantage of our formerly awesome (LOL) community college program of dual enrollment here in North Carolina. She took 66 hours in high school, and graduated from high school with an Associate's Degree.

Lori, at what age did your dds start? :confused:

[Jane in NC]

As noted, NC requires students to be 16 in order to participate in free concurrent enrollment.

 

My son began taking CC courses in 11th grade when he signed up for General Chemistry I and Western Civ I. We had been told that he could take as many as three courses (more on this later) but he decided to get his feet wet with just these two.

 

Western Civ depended on thorough notetaking skills. This did not present a problem for my son who came up with a system of typing up his class notes and then showing them to the prof for his comments. Chem I depended on using some Internet technology: Chem Skill Builder for exercises and Blackboard for some of the tests. I was grateful that he had a chance to figure these things out while still in high school.

 

During the second semester of 11th grade, my son continued his history studies with Western Civ II--same instructor. He took English 111 (Expository Writing) from a man with a reputation of being the hardest instructor at the college. Oy--did the boy work in this class! Lesson learned: make regular office hour visits to ask as many questions as possible. His third course was Microbiology (prerequisite fulfilled by AP Bio exam in 10th). He found the students in Micro to be more serious than the students in a first semester science class.

 

The labs in both science classes were well beyond anything we could do at home so I am particularly grateful for the opportunity presented.

 

My forte is math, so we will not utilize the CC for these courses. Personally, I am now most interested in having my son take English courses at the CC since he benefits from class discussions and peer reviews. I hope that he will be able to take a literature course in the spring, now that he will have the prerequisites under his belt.

 

About number of courses: we were told initially that concurrently enrolled students could only take three courses per semester but it appears that our CC bends their own rule for 12th graders who have been successful in their 11th grade concurrent experience. My son has enough on his plate this year with two APs and other home coursework so he is sticking with three CC courses this fall (Chem II, American History I, and Argument Based Research--English 112). Further, most of the colleges in which he is interested are out of state, so the CC credits may not transfer anyway. If he is to attend a state university, he will definitely have sophomore status with our state's articulation agreement.

 

Jane

[Plucky]

We haven't started the CC yet. Our plan is to wait until my ds is 17. And then take 2 years of dual enrollment. He could take classes earlier. He's very bright & astonished his engineering class teacher. I guess I don't want him to go the the CC too early. I'm enjoying his childhood/teenage hood too much and so is he. Anyone else waiting a little later?

[LoriM]

Lori, at what age did your dds start? :confused:

 

Both of them started at age 16. :) My older dd finished her AA in essentially four semesters (Spring/(Summer took one hour)/Fall 2006, Spring/Summer 2007). We are on a calendar year for our school year, so my dd did this for her junior/senior year, but finished her senior year abruptly and graduated about 10 months before I'd originally planned. LOL.

 

Fortunately, my younger one isn't going to go so fast.

[Starr]

My dd took a Spanish course at a local private university during her freshman year. She did very well but found that a lot was expected of the students in this class and she needed to study more than she had been at home.

[Miss Marple]

Son #2 will start his first day of university courses tomorrow - he is 16 (junior). We are utilizing our local university rather than the CC because of the driving distance. We went to the bookstore as well as the bursar's office today, checked out all the places he could park, found his classrooms, and enjoyed browsing through the Student Union (otherwise known as the SUB when I was in college).

 

Up until today, he wasn't looking forward to it, but I think our little trip to campus today helped. His backpack is packed and his older brother has given him tips, "You need to say 'hi' and 'bye' to Professor X because he really likes that." This could be a difficulty for ds#2. He isn't much of a talker. He is taking Spanish 1 and Microcomputer Applications - should be an easy semester.

[johnandtinagilbert]

We can dual enroll by age 15 at a local college, so in 10th grade ds will take Chem 1 w/ lab.

He's a rising 8th grader and has already passed the practice exams, so I think we'll be okay in 2 more years for sure.

 

The plan is to knock out the very hard Chem course while he's still at home with me, so his college level courses won't hit him all hard at once and he can focus on 1 heavy class. He'll do the Chem 2 w/ lab in the winter session, so long as he's successful in Chem 1 (which I believe he will be).

 

By 11th grade, he'll be enrolled full time at the school and graduate with his diploma and AA at the same time :)

 

I hope he'll continue at the college and live at home to finish with his BA. He thinks he wants to be a math or geography teacher. We haven't quite narrowed that down yet, but I will say...I'm a proud momma b/c so far, 2 of my children have said they wanted their teaching degree! They must see I like my job! :D

[Laurie4b]

When did your child start CC and what class load did you begin with?

What was their initial thought process? Overwhelmed, underwhelmed...etc

Did they continue to attend after the first year?

 

Our state requires that you be 16, so we started with one course in a subject he was good in for the first semester that he was eligible. He will be taking two courses this semester. Last semester's course was not overwhelming, though I wasn't pleased with the teacher. (She was a "gotcha" teacher on quizes which counted a whopping portion of the grade.)

[iluvmy4blessings]

I am kind of new to all this so please forgive me for my ignorance. I am assuming that these students are completing all the highschool requirements before starting CC? For some reason I thought any advanced classes that someone takes prior to 9th grade does not count for credit. I am so confused! Also are these students still eligible for scholarships? I thought there was some timeline we are required to follow? I am lost!!!

[Miss Marple]

Our CC and universities require the student to be a junior in high school or 16. Special consideration can be obtained from the CCs for younger (more advanced) kids. But the universities are pretty strict about the age 16 rule.

 

My oldest 2 have/are doing this. They took classes that I considered core classes for the high school years (Composition, Spanish, Trig, Calculus) and some electives (philosophy, music appreciation, computers, etc.). So these courses show up as satisfying my high school requirements *and* they receive college credit as well.

 

These classes are paid for by the state (tuition only, no fees or books) and the student must meet criteria in order to attend.

 

My oldest graduated from high school with 35 credit hours and he was still considered a freshman and eligible for all scholarships. However, this is a university system specific thing; you should check with the college your student wishes to attend esp. if it is private. Most of the state colleges I have checked will have no problem with transferring the credits as well as offering scholarships.

[Photo Ninja]

I believe that most, if not all, these students are completing their high school requirements while attending the cc. Usually a one semester college course is counted as a full year high school course. That is one incentive for a high school student to take cc classes.

 

Most states have options for high school students to be dual enrolled at a cc, and each has its own rules for how many classes the student may take. Some states pay for the tuition for a specific number of dual enrollment courses, and others required the student to pay. Some allow any course to be taken and others limit the type of courses the dual enrolled student may take. But no, the student does not have to complete high school requirements prior to taking cc classes. Just check into your local cc's policy.

 

Yes, students are still eligible for scholarships and freshman status after they graduate from high school, but this also varies by college. All the colleges my dc applied to and attend said that the student retains freshman status as long as the college courses were taken prior to high school graduation. Some colleges limit the freshman student to transferring in no more than a specific number of credits. One college told my dc 20 and another said 30. Other colleges have their own policies. One ds had 19 college credits and was awarded an excellent merit scholarship as a freshman.

[Piano&ViolinMom]

 

When did your child start CC and what class load did you begin with?

At 12, took Pre-Calculus.

[AnitaMcC]

I am kind of new to all this so please forgive me for my ignorance. I am assuming that these students are completing all the highschool requirements before starting CC? For some reason I thought any advanced classes that someone takes prior to 9th grade does not count for credit. I am so confused! Also are these students still eligible for scholarships? I thought there was some timeline we are required to follow? I am lost!!!

 

In IL, teens can start college anytime... if they take the COMPASS placement test and place well. My twins took the test in July and Ds placed in any college level course as long as the pre-requisites are met. He placed in accelerated precalculus/trig but it has a pre-req of 1yr high school geometry and/or take the CC geometry course, or place based on COMPASS test (Ds didn't take the geometry portion at the time he took the algebra portions). Oh, under age 17 the teens are limited to # of credit hours for the first semester or two. If they "prove" their ability to take the courses then that limit is waived there after.

 

What we will be doing is for our twins to take 1 course in winter semester, 1 in summer semester and then next year they will take 2 courses each semester (as high school sophmores). Then junior and senior years they will attend CC full time. Basically we are "skipping" high school level courses where possible. So when they are 18 they will graduate high school with an associates degree from CC.

[SkateLeft]

At 12, took Pre-Calculus.

 

My oldest also started at 12 (last summer), but it was a writing class. :)

[Kimm in WA]

My ds is 16 and will attend FT (15 cr.) in the Fall. He'll be going nearly directly into the engineering transfer degree program. After getting advice here and from IRL friends, I thought it best (since he was going into a math/science field) to have him start the math sequence at the CC. So, this summer he took College Algebra (his choice to do it over the summer) and wil take Trig. in the fall, even though these are basically repeats of his pre-calc. class he did @ home last year using Chalkdust. He will start the engineering math sequence winter quarter, with Calculus I. He'll start the science this fall, taking Chemistry I (prerequisite was 1 full year of chemistry in HS, which he did in 9th grade).

 

The benefit of him taking the 1 math class over the summer was that it was material that was very familiar to him, so he learned the other CC stuff like using the library, how to get around and where to use computers, get help at the math lab, etc... He had 24-year-olds asking for help/wanting to be his study partner, so that boosted his confidence immensely.

 

This fall, he'll be taking Chem. I (3 cr.), Chem. Lab (2 cr.), Trigonometry (5 cr.), and English Composition (5). We'll see how it goes with the amount of studying needed - he's one of those kiddos who can sit down, plow through the work in a focused block, and not have a whole lot (if any) of academics to have to do on the weekends and evenings. I know it will still be an adjustment.

 

I've enjoyed reading everyone's experiences - thanks for sharing!

 

Kimm

[Kimm in WA]

Lori,

Can you tell me more about how your kiddos got opportunities to tutor at the cc? Was that during their dual-enrollment time?

Thanks,

Kimm

[iluvmy4blessings]

My ds is 16 and will attend FT (15 cr.) in the Fall. He'll be going nearly directly into the engineering transfer degree program. After getting advice here and from IRL friends, I thought it best (since he was going into a math/science field) to have him start the math sequence at the CC. So, this summer he took College Algebra (his choice to do it over the summer) and wil take Trig. in the fall, even though these are basically repeats of his pre-calc. class he did @ home last year using Chalkdust. He will start the engineering math sequence winter quarter, with Calculus I. He'll start the science this fall, taking Chemistry I (prerequisite was 1 full year of chemistry in HS, which he did in 9th grade).

 

The benefit of him taking the 1 math class over the summer was that it was material that was very familiar to him, so he learned the other CC stuff like using the library, how to get around and where to use computers, get help at the math lab, etc... He had 24-year-olds asking for help/wanting to be his study partner, so that boosted his confidence immensely.

 

This fall, he'll be taking Chem. I (3 cr.), Chem. Lab (2 cr.), Trigonometry (5 cr.), and English Composition (5). We'll see how it goes with the amount of studying needed - he's one of those kiddos who can sit down, plow through the work in a focused block, and not have a whole lot (if any) of academics to have to do on the weekends and evenings. I know it will still be an adjustment.

 

I've enjoyed reading everyone's experiences - thanks for sharing!

 

Kimm

 

What math and science did he complete at home already before going into CC math/science classes? Also are you all automatically ruling out seeking college scholarships? I thought if you rack up a certain amount of credits you become ineligible for scholarships.

[Karen in CO]

My ds started with Japanese and Physics when he was 16. Science and foreign language were the whole reason for taking CC classes. He thought the classes were much better than the year he had attended public high school which he equated with daycare for teens. He was most impressed with the fact that the cc students seemed to actually care that they were in class and really wanted to learn.

 

He transferred 21 credits to his university. The courses he took were 4 semesters of Japanese, Italian, physics, chemistry, psychology and philosophy (which he loved because it was his first class that had small group discussions).

[Kimm in WA]

iluvmy4:

 

In WA, where we live, 11th & 12th graders can take up to 18 credits while they are in high school under the state's dual-enrollment program. Upon graduating from HS and completing 2 yrs. of cc, they retain freshman status and, therefore, eligibility for scholarships.

 

For entry into the engineering transfer degree program, they wanted my son to have completed 1 full year of high school chemistry (didn't even ask if he had done labs, which he had, or about physics, which he also had) and have taken lots of math, and really enjoy math. I don't recall exactly how much math they'd wanted him to have had. I think they asked him how many high school math classes he had taken (he had Alg. 1, 2, geom, & pre-calc.) but the Compass test for entry into the dual-enrollment program puts them at (approximately) the right level and if they have some courses to take before entry into the program they can take them there.

 

Not sure if it was our particular CC that made the math portion extra hard but from other homeschoolers I talked with in my area, they did not even PASS the math portion unless they had had pre-calculus @ home. My son had taken pre-calc last year and passed the test, but they placed him in trig. (he took the test in Feb. and wasn't done w/ pre-calc. yet). He could've appealed it since the prereq. for Calculus I was placement into college algebra and HS trig. But, after getting advice here and talking with friends IRL, he took College Algebra over the summer, will take trig. in the fall and then take calculus in winter. We did this since he was going to be going into a math/science field.

 

HTH,

Kimm

[LoriM]

Lori,

Can you tell me more about how your kiddos got opportunities to tutor at the cc? Was that during their dual-enrollment time?

Thanks,

Kimm

 

It is my experience that any good math student never has a shortage of people to tutor. :)

 

Yes, my older dd had lots of classmates and friends of classmates ask for her help tutoring in both math and Spanish. She did not get paid by the CC, if that's your question. She was a private contractor--LOL!

 

Lori

[Kelli in TN]

My daughter took her first dual credit class at the CC the summer between her junior and senior year. I wish we'd started in her junior year. She was a bit overwhelmed but only because it was a summer semester course and crammed a whole credit into a month. It was a lot of ground to cover very quickly and the three hour lectures were tough.

[Kimm in WA]

Lori,

Thanks, that answers my question. What did they charge, if you don't mind me asking...?