As your college kids come home for a break, ask them

[Karen in CO]

How each of their classes are and how prepared they felt for them.

 

 

My ds is loved by his professors because he reads well and can synthesize information from different sources. He said that his ability to tackle a really hard book then form an opinion on it and discuss it sets him apart from his peers. That makes me feel better about how we did high school history and literature since we mostly just read and then discussed everything.

 

He didn't take a math this semester, but when he took college algebra (which is where he placed), he said it was way too easy for him. I know I messed up with his math - I can do the higher maths, but I don't know them well enough to teach them, and I should have figured that out before he got to pre-calculus.

 

Ask your students, then share with us. I think it is exciting to see how our home schoolers are doing in college.

[hsmamainva]

My oldest tackled her first math class this semester. She struggled with math the entire time she was homeschooled, and she ended up needing a remedial math class, but she was surprised how much math she knew, compared to the other students in her class.

 

She was surprised that most of them didn't know their times tables, nor did they know how to show their work. The instructor didn't allow calculators in her class and my daughter said most of her fellow students were lost without them.

 

She was given the opportunity to move out of the class, as she missed the cut-off on the placement test by only 10 points, but she wanted to take it anyway, to hone her math skills and brush up on any weak areas and she's very glad she did. She needs a 65 on her final exam on Monday to earn an A in the class, so she's pretty sure she'll make it. ;)

[Sharon in MD]

how well we had done. I really think our relationship is honest enough that he would gently let me know if there were problem areas.

 

DS is at in the Honor's college at a Drexel. He is in the Materials Science field.

 

So far he has all A's except for a B+ in Chem 101. The only grades still outstanding are English, in which we know he has an A, and the Freshman engineering course, in which we think he has an A.

 

He feels that he is on par with his honors college colleagues. He also feels a bit more challenged for the first time in his life. He is living with his peers for the first time. (IE he is no longer the brightest bulb in the pack) That has been an adjustment. He is able to make the grade, but is finding that it takes more work, (DUH). Don't get me wrong....I challenged him too....but not like this.

 

For example, his chem class was not graded on a curve at all. So, his 89.542 garnered a B+....I would argue the significant figures...after all, isn't that what chem is all about?!

 

I was really surprised that they didn't curve the course at all. For every test over the quarter, the ave grades ranges from 66 to 78 .... Granted, they warned them of not curving at the outset. But, when the average grade on the final is a 77...I'm still a bit surprised by the decision not to curve. I guess they are using it to flush the students.

 

My impression is that he is clearly on par with his honor's college friends and ahead of the game with the non-honors friends. BUT he has to work his tail off to keep it that way, which is as it should be.

 

I feel vindicated as a homeschooler. I feel like I am reassured; that I prepared him well. I am delighted by and really proud of his achievements this fall.

 

HTH!

[LynnG in Arizona]

how well we had done. I really think our relationship is honest enough that he would gently let me know if there were problem areas.

 

DS is at in the Honor's college at a Drexel. He is in the Materials Science field.

 

So far he has all A's except for a B+ in Chem 101. The only grades still outstanding are English, in which we know he has an A, and the Freshman engineering course, in which we think he has an A.

 

He feels that he is on par with his honors college colleagues. He also feels a bit more challenged for the first time in his life. He is living with his peers for the first time. (IE he is no longer the brightest bulb in the pack) That has been an adjustment. He is able to make the grade, but is finding that it takes more work, (DUH). Don't get me wrong....I challenged him too....but not like this.

 

For example, his chem class was not graded on a curve at all. So, his 89.542 garnered a B+....I would argue the significant figures...after all, isn't that what chem is all about?!

 

I was really surprised that they didn't curve the course at all. For every test over the quarter, the ave grades ranges from 66 to 78 .... Granted, they warned them of not curving at the outset. But, when the average grade on the final is a 77...I'm still a bit surprised by the decision not to curve. I guess they are using it to flush the students.

 

My impression is that he is clearly on par with his honor's college friends and ahead of the game with the non-honors friends. BUT he has to work his tail off to keep it that way, which is as it should be.

 

I feel vindicated as a homeschooler. I feel like I am reassured; that I prepared him well. I am delighted by and really proud of his achievements this fall.

 

HTH!

 

Sharon, it sounds like both you and your son have a lot to be proud of! I'm glad he is having such a strong first semester. :)

[Jane in NC]

He feels that he is on par with his honors college colleagues. He also feels a bit more challenged for the first time in his life. He is living with his peers for the first time. (IE he is no longer the brightest bulb in the pack) That has been an adjustment. He is able to make the grade, but is finding that it takes more work, (DUH). Don't get me wrong....I challenged him too....but not like this.

 

 

 

This is exactly what I hope my son will find next year: peers!

 

Congratulations to your son for a good first semester. Sharon, didn't you just drop him off at Drexel last week? With my son applying to colleges, I don't know what happened to this thing called Autumn!

 

Jane

[Osmosis Mom]

I think dd is excelling at knowing how to get help. Not meant in a snarky way at all, but she is not shy to meet professors daily until she's got it or knows how to best study for her classes. I think that is a great skill to have.

 

Basically she was over-reading for her classes (think biology and psychology with lots and lots of reading) and not performing optimally on tests. She would go back after each class to do her notes (recommended by me, but lots of hard work when you already got new homework as well). She was finally advised by her biology professor -who is also her advisor- to not read before class, only skim, and that that was the suggested procedure. Seems she is much more on top of things now.

 

Dd's hardest thing has been to sleep before an exam and not cram. She is beginning to get that. At Wellesley nobody sleeps before midnight and she basically stays up till 2-3 every day. Doesn't work when you have a test next day. She figured that one out and is sleeping well this week for her exams...

 

I won't say dd's grades are brilliant, because there is no curve so grading is very harsh. Fx. last week she did a biology report (forgot what she calls this type of paper) and was told her analysis was one of the best the professor had encountered. She got a B+! That has been hard for dh to swallow in general, but I just don't think they have an abundance of A's on their keyboards available.... I am personally not worried as she is taking jr. classes as a sophomore fx. and the professors love her, so it's all good to me.

 

So, what did she bring fro her homeschool to college? I think most importantly she brought an incredible level of curiosity and guts. She is eager to learn and eager to live and meet new people. She realises this is just the start of her career and she is loving it. On the few occasions where she seems stressed I tell her there is nothing to stress about; just enjoy the ride. I see her years at W. as intense and cool as my own high school years were in Denmark (age 16-19).

 

Anyways, I strayed from the topic. Dd is coming home next week for a few days before going back to work at the Admissions office. She is hyped and bought a fancy new pair of boots last week to boot her through her exams into the new year, lol!!!!!

[Piano&ViolinMom]

DS is at in the Honor's college at a Drexel. He is in the Materials Science field. So far he has all A's except for a B+ in Chem 101....... when the average grade on the final is a 77...I'm still a bit surprised by the decision not to curve...... I feel vindicated as a homeschooler. I feel like I am reassured; that I prepared him well. I am delighted by and really proud of his achievements this fall.

Hi Sharon, Nice to hear that you prepared your son well for his college. Just one thing, what was his preparation in Chemistry as homeschooled high schooler?

[Tullia]

First, congratulations to your son. It sounds like he's in a great program! But, my goodness, his chemistry experience is so much like my son's this semester right down to average class grades on exams that I just had to comment! My son's situation is a lot different; he's taking courses at community college and is enrolled in a degree plan called engineering, but it is pretty general and designed to fulfill basic requirements for several different majors. The prevailing philosophy at the cc seems to be that remedial courses are there for those who need them, but once you enroll in a college level course expectations are high. Part of the reason for that is to ensure that graduating students are able to transfer successfully, as this cc often makes a point of advertising. :D

 

Ds doesn't yet know the general stats for his section's final, but going into finals week the average grade for his section was in the mid 70's, and from what he's heard his section is doing better than others. His instructor uses the ACS final, but does not report general chemistry grades to the ACS.

 

I did some poking around on the Internet to find out more about ACS exams, and quite a few chemistry departments in a wide variety of schools seem to use them. Every instructor website I looked at warned students to be prepared and to not expect anything like a perfect score on the ACS final. Ds was told that his instructor makes his own exams similarly challenging in preparation for the ACS.

 

http://chemexams.chem.iastate.edu/stats/index.cfm

[Sharon in MD]

This is exactly what I hope my son will find next year: peers!

 

Congratulations to your son for a good first semester. Sharon, didn't you just drop him off at Drexel last week? With my son applying to colleges, I don't know what happened to this thing called Autumn!

 

Jane

 

But then again to be honest, he is on a quarter system, so it was actually a shorter term for him.

 

He was a bit disappointed by the B+ in chem as he missed the A by a hair...but that is the way it goes. We are super proud of him, and relieved that he is making the grade so far.

 

Have you heard back from any of your son's college choices yet? I remember it was so hard at this time last year for us....waiting to hear back...

At times, when a deadline was approaching, the days flew, then they would drag as we waited to hear...;)

 

It surely is nice to have him home for a couple weeks!

[Sharon in MD]

I think dd is excelling at knowing how to get help. Not meant in a snarky way at all, but she is not shy to meet professors daily until she's got it or knows how to best study for her classes. I think that is a great skill to have....

 

 

 

I won't say dd's grades are brilliant, because there is no curve so grading is very harsh. Fx. last week she did a biology report (forgot what she calls this type of paper) and was told her analysis was one of the best the professor had encountered. She got a B+! ...

 

So, what did she bring fro her homeschool to college? I think most importantly she brought an incredible level of curiosity and guts. ...

 

Anyways, I strayed from the topic. Dd is coming home next week for a few days before going back to work at the Admissions office. She is hyped and bought a fancy new pair of boots last week to boot her through her exams into the new year, lol!!!!!

 

this sounds great! I agree that DS has really learned and matured a lot in the same types of areas.... Learning how to study at college is so different because of all the factors of being on their own and their own bosses. Ds also learned the lessons of sleep and it's importance and not waiting till the last minute. Well...he is doing better on the last minute part but he still makes me a bit nervous. :lol:

 

Congrats on her paper, but I too would be frustrated by the B+... it is hard to take sometimes.

 

I'm glad to hear she is doing so well!

[Sharon in MD]

Hi Sharon, Nice to hear that you prepared your son well for his college. Just one thing, what was his preparation in Chemistry as homeschooled high schooler?

 

 

He did Apologia Bio, Chem, Physics and Adv. Chem.

[Sharon in MD]

my goodness, his chemistry experience is so much like my son's this semester right down to average class grades on exams that I just had to comment! ......

 

His instructor uses the ACS final, but does not report general chemistry grades to the ACS.

 

http://chemexams.chem.iastate.edu/stats/index.cfm

 

I don't know if they use the ACS exams as a basis for theirs or not. I went over to the chem dept. website, but couldn't find anything about it in the syllabi or in general. I know they offer a BS that is ACS certified, but that is the extent of the info I could find. But it certainly sounds like there may be some sort of parallel there....

[Jane in NC]

Have you heard back from any of your son's college choices yet? I remember it was so hard at this time last year for us....waiting to hear back...

At times, when a deadline was approaching, the days flew, then they would drag as we waited to hear...;)

 

It surely is nice to have him home for a couple weeks!

 

Much to my son's consternation, none of the schools to which he has applied have responded. I keep checking College Confidential to see if anyone is being made offers by schools on his list. Nope. Apparently they move a bit slower than other colleges.

 

Sigh...

 

Jane

[Jane in NC]

Chemistry seems to have been the bugaboo of the semester for more than one student. My son's grades arrived today and may this proud mother announce that my son managed to pull out an A in General Chem II. Going into the final, it appeared that he might be headed for a B. If anything, I think that the many, many hours he spent on homework (ChemSkill Builder software) paid off.

 

For the record, my 12th grader is a dual enrollment student at the local CC. Chemistry was one subject that I did not want to tackle at home, knowing that our CC has relatively new labs and professors with good reputations in chemistry and biotechnology.

 

Happy dancing on this end! :D

 

Jane

Edited December 19, 2009 by Jane in NC

[Kareni]

Chemistry seems to have been the bugaboo of the semester for more than one student. My son's grades arrived today and may this proud mother announce that my son managed to pull out an A in General Chem II. Going into the final, it appeared that he might be headed for a B. If anything, I think that the many, many hours he spent on homework (ChemSkill Builder software) paid off.

 

 

 

Good for him, Jane! It's nice when that studying pays off.

 

My daughter is done with exams but instead of coming home as planned this evening, she is delayed due to a canceled flight (snow storm). Fortunately, she's with family and is even enjoying a party that she would otherwise have missed. We hope to see her tomorrow night if all goes well.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Jane in NC]

Good for him, Jane! It's nice when that studying pays off.

 

My daughter is done with exams but instead of coming home as planned this evening, she is delayed due to a canceled flight (snow storm). Fortunately, she's with family and is even enjoying a party that she would otherwise have missed. We hope to see her tomorrow night if all goes well.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

Hi Kareni,

 

I have been thinking about students who may be affected by the snow storm. So sorry to hear that your daughter is among them! I hope that her flights go smoothly tomorrow.

 

Best to you.

Jane

[Sharon in MD]

This weather is truly spectacular....wow. I love snow, but this has thrown a serious monkey wrench into the plans of so many! I am so glad your daughter is able to enjoy a party with family and hope that she'll be home really soon!

 

 

My hubby and son were supposed to head out in the early hours tomorrow, driving to KY from DC....definitely postponed for at least half a day for departure...but realistically more like a full day. I'm to fly in Weds night.

 

We haven't had this much snow in a long time..., not the greatest of timing for so many families trying to travel.

 

Congrats to your son again Jane!

[Kareni]

Thanks, Jane and Sharon. Right now the flight is still a go for tomorrow. We're being hopeful!

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Faithr]

My dd is back from the University of Dallas. She loves it there. Loves her friends, loved her classes, loved the whole college atmosphere. She keeps slipping up and calling UD home (as in 'when I go home' instead of 'when I go back'; but you are home, says my poor dh who is sad that she seems to have emotionally flown the coop!). She really bonded to the whole thing. I have a feeling that she is thinking a month at home is too long! She spends a lot of time text-messaging and chatting with her friends.

 

Frankly, I don't know what I did to prepare her. She says that she never worked so hard at school in her life! She gave me a lot of resistance while educating her. She came out of the womb with her own set opinions on things and has always been very independent. So far she's gotten an A- in Economics and an A in Political Philosophy. The other grades aren't posted yet. One thing it has done is gotten her into the habit of working hard. I sort of can't believe the transformation! She always complained about reading before but she has made a list of books she wants to read on vacation. She's now reading Sherlock Holmes! Something she never would have picked up on her own before. And she has been doing a lot of housework on her own without me even asking. I am sort of in shock about that!

 

One thing she has picked up is smoking cigarettes. That makes me sad but then again, I did the same thing in college. . . . . Dh absolutely forbids her to smoke here though. Maybe she'll quit while home.

 

I'm glad she's loving it and so far seems to have done very well.

[Jane in NC]

My dd is back from the University of Dallas. She loves it there. Loves her friends, loved her classes, loved the whole college atmosphere. She keeps slipping up and calling UD home (as in 'when I go home' instead of 'when I go back'; but you are home, says my poor dh who is sad that she seems to have emotionally flown the coop!). She really bonded to the whole thing. I have a feeling that she is thinking a month at home is too long! She spends a lot of time text-messaging and chatting with her friends.

 

Frankly, I don't know what I did to prepare her. She says that she never worked so hard at school in her life! She gave me a lot of resistance while educating her. She came out of the womb with her own set opinions on things and has always been very independent. So far she's gotten an A- in Economics and an A in Political Philosophy. The other grades aren't posted yet. One thing it has done is gotten her into the habit of working hard. I sort of can't believe the transformation! She always complained about reading before but she has made a list of books she wants to read on vacation. She's now reading Sherlock Holmes! Something she never would have picked up on her own before. And she has been doing a lot of housework on her own without me even asking. I am sort of in shock about that!

 

One thing she has picked up is smoking cigarettes. That makes me sad but then again, I did the same thing in college. . . . . Dh absolutely forbids her to smoke here though. Maybe she'll quit while home.

 

I'm glad she's loving it and so far seems to have done very well.

 

Thanks for the update on a successful semester. And a pat on the back to you for preparing your daughter well!

 

Jane

[LynnG in Arizona]

My daughter (18) just finished her first college semester and returned home yesterday. I have her here at my side and am "interviewing" her, in the hopes that it might help some other WTM families.

 

English . . . two things prepared her especially well for college English. One was Mrs. Troxell's Advanced Composition through the Potter's School, and the other was the use of Rod & Staff grammar. Her English prof was a hard grader, and gave only two "A"s per section per paper. DD got an "A" on three of the four assigned major papers. The focus was more on expository writing as opposed to literary analysis.

 

Math . . . was unusual in that it was "College Algebra" but actually included all math up to and including pre-calculus. It was quite rigorous. DD looks back and does not particularly recommend Videotext or Teaching Textbooks (too dry, not memorable). She does look back and gives high marks to Chalkdust SAT and Alexs.

 

Spanish . . . DD felt well prepared after our two years of BJU DVDs plus a year of Destinos, plus extra practice with Rosetta Stone. Her grammar and oral comprehension were both very solid. However, she did struggle with the heavy amount of required oral speaking in Spanish. This saddens me because I even have a strong background in Spanish and spoke often to her. In an ideal world, I would have arranged for DD to speak frequently with a native Spanish speaker.

 

Chemistry . . . We did Apologia Chemistry through Potter's School plus the Teaching Company DVDs as review. She says Apologia prepared her well for stochiometry in particular, but that the college level class was still extremely difficult. Also, she took chemistry as a high school sophomore and thus had forgotten much of it three years later when it was time to take it in college. With 20/20 hindsight, she and I both wish that she had taken Adv. Chemistry during her senior year.

 

Psychology . . . she had no background in this, but she already knew a bit on the subject through Apologia Human Anatomy as well as physics. This was a fairly straightforward class, mostly effort-based.

 

In summary, compared to typical college students, my daughter *did* feel extremely prepared after 7 years of homeschooling and looks back favorably on her education.

 

HTH!

Edited December 21, 2009 by LynnG in Hawaii

[Tullia]

We discussed it this afternoon before he'd seen grades for the last two courses he'd been waiting for. In general, he's glad he was home schooled through high school and feels he was well prepared for the work in all his classes.

 

Chemistry was probably the hardest of the courses. It had been a couple of years since he'd seen the material, and he thinks it would have been helpful if he'd had time to do the Apologia advanced course too. Ah, hindsight! He gives a big thumb's up to the Teaching Company dvd's because his instructor this semester assigned lots of problems.

 

Chem Lab caused him some anxiety because he'd never been in a "real" lab. However, the orientation session was so thorough that it wasn't a problem. We'd used Micro Chem at home, and ds credits it with helping him write good reports and understand the basic procedures. However, he says that there's no comparing MC to the titration labs done with full-scale equipment. OTOH, a lot of his peers had not done as many different experiments as we did at home due to budget constraints at their high schools.

 

English was his big question mark at the beginning of the semester. It focused on literary analysis which I knew would be a stretch for him. And, because he'd waited so long to register he had to settle for a 12 week "condensed course". That made meeting deadlines a challenge. I think that one of the best things he finally, truly learned was the value of allowing enough time to refine his work. One of the essays involved rhetorical analysis. Most of that unit was review for him, but some of the students needed a crash-course in the basics and were lost at first. I also thought peer review was a good thing. He heard some things from both his peers and instructor that he'd not wanted to hear from me :glare:.

 

Economics was a fairly basic intro course and I thought it would be dry, but his instructor has spent most of her working life outside academia. Ds enjoyed the work. And, he'd just finished working through an economics text over the summer, so the theoretical material was fresh but his text had enough more depth to make it interesting. Most of the exams were multiple choice/scantron format which he did not particularly enjoy. However, he did enjoy writing and presenting his paper about Chinese economic strengths and weaknesses. It was a topic which, for some reason, no one else wanted so he earned some unofficial credit for being willing to write on that subject. The assigned format was almost identical to the Lost Tools of Writing persuasive essay.

 

History of Architecture turned out to be his biggest surprise and the most enjoyable of his classes. From looking through the text before the class met he thought he was reasonably well prepared because it was laid out in a format similar to Spielvogel's Western Civ and History of Art for Young People, which we'd used over several years. He also worked on a semester-long project which was probably the most challenging of all his writing assignments because it was graded not only on text content, but also on the creativity of layout/format and use of images. I did not see the project until it was almost ready for printing, and have to say that I was impressed with the results. Seeing the finished product, and then the grade and comment sheet made me think we'd done at least a few things right. There were days when I wondered. Added information: All the exams were essay format and usually had a mix of questions requiring a response of 2-3 well developed paragraphs and longer questions which called for more lengthy, well-organized responses. All the compare/contrast and definition essays he'd written over the years based on essay prompts for Spielvogel and History of Art for Young People did a lot to prepare him for this course. Most of the writing called for definition of terms, a brief treatment of historical/social context, and a certain amount of compare/contrast.

 

From my perspective, it appears that ds was well-prepared. He has had no problem with the coursework or in interacting with his instructors. And, he was glad that he got to know a few people this semester in spite of being on a commuter campus where lots of students walk around texting or listening to music (they do it during class, too :confused:). I think he was ready for the motivation/competition element of the classroom. The biggest challenge was time management, but he figured things out for the most part after some anxious times with deadlines at mid-term. By the end of the semester he'd figured out how to juggle things better.

Edited December 21, 2009 by Martha in NM
add information

[creekland]

Thanks all for your reports. If anyone else has any, this is one parent (who's oldest goes off to college next year with two waiting in the wings) that is really enjoying reading and gleaning...

[Brenda in MA]

He is a freshman at an engineering college.

 

He took Calc I this term and found it pretty easy. We used Chalkdust Calc last year at home, and he said he felt very well prepared. He even brought the DVDs with him to school and watched a few sections as a refresher on complex topics. He also said that he wished he had taken the Calc AB AP exam last spring so he could have taken Calc II this term as many of his friends did.

 

He also had an introductory statics course. He said that he felt well prepared for this course after using Giancoli for Physics his junior year at home. He was very fortunate not to have to take the dreaded Chemisty I because he took that at the CC last fall, and his school accepted the transfer credits. What a big relief for all of us!

 

Still not sure about his major, he took an introductory IT course as a way of exploring a possible major in IT. While he quickly learned that he doesn't want to major in IT, he aced this course. His preparation was mostly his free time explorations involving computers and networking.

 

Lastly, he took a humanities course about how computer technology impacts the modern world. While the instructors loved his writing style, he had some difficulty in analyzing the business articles they had to read. This course also was heavy with group projects. We spent a lot of time in high school reading quality literature and doing essays/analysis, but we didn't do any formal study of business topics, current events, or economics. Although he had a small bit of group work in one on-line course and one CC course, it felt like more would have been helpful.

 

I will echo what Nadia said and say that I think the most useful thing my son brought with him to college was the willingness to seek out direction and help when he needed it. He learned to take advantage of the extra resources the school offers (like review sessions and TA office hours) to make sure he understood the material. I was also happy to hear him say that he personally thanked each instructor at the end of the course. Even though he had a couple of instructors that weren't his favorite, he appreciated their time and effort.

 

Have a Happy Holiday!

Brenda

[ereks mom]

ER said that the hardest thing about college for him has been 1) voice classes, and 2) having to "put life on hold for school instead of the other way around".

 

By way of explanation:

 

1) ER has been a musician (piano & guitar) since age 9. He learned music theory as well as sight singing and ear training (thanks to an EXCELLENT piano teacher) and has never had any trouble with those. In his college music theory classes, he is a prodigy of sorts, to the delight of his music professors. However, he had no training in vocal technique until college, and has had to work very hard to earn his A's in applied voice classes.

 

2) As you know, we homeschoolers have the freedom to be very flexible, and we can reschedule academics as necessary when life gets in the way. For example, we might set aside the books for one day and concentrate on housework if we're expecting guests, or we might not get to math on Monday if we're working on a time-consuming biology experiment instead. ER said that for him, an inflexible schedule and hard deadlines were a bit hard to get used to.

 

He says that the hardest course he's had so far was Psychology. He says that the professor expected the students to really know the material -- tests were a combination of essay ("tell everything you know about ___ ") and what ER calls "listing" ("list, define, and explain 15 terms from the chapter that were not on your study guide"). ER earned an A in the course, and he said it was by far the hardest he ever worked for an A in his life.

 

I was a bit concerned about English because he earned CLEP credit for English 101 & English 102, so the first English course he had was English 201. The reading assignments were primarily short stories, and the focus of the writing assignments was literary analysis. He earned an A in that course also.

 

ER will not have to take any math courses in college because he earned CLEP credit for two courses, College Mathematics and College Algebra, which are the only courses required for music/ministry majors at his school.

 

I believe that homeschooling prepared ER well for his coursework. IMO, time management has been his biggest challenge, but he is learning! Dh and I have met several of ER's professors, and every one of them has been very complimentary of him in regards to his attitude towards them, his fellow students, his work, and life in general.

 

ER says he feels that by being homeschooled all the way through, he was well-prepared for college from an academic standpoint. So far, he has earned 21 A's & 4 B's, has a 3.792 overall GPA, and is technically now a junior (he has 60 credit hours), although he is only mid-way through his second year at college.

Edited December 26, 2009 by ereks mom

[Janice H]

Thanks all for your reports. If anyone else has any, this is one parent (who's oldest goes off to college next year with two waiting in the wings) that is really enjoying reading and gleaning...

 

:iagree: I will have dd read these and any additional posts too. Many thanks to Karen in CO for starting this thread.

[ereks mom]

I feel vindicated as a homeschooler. I feel like I am reassured; that I prepared him well. I am delighted by and really proud of his achievements this fall.

 

 

 

This is exactly how I've felt since ER went away to college.

[LibraryLover]

Cool thread!

 

What did you all do for Chemistry and other labs?

[ereks mom]

Cool thread!

 

What did you all do for Chemistry and other labs?

 

ER did Apologia General Science (6th), Physical Science (7th), Biology (9th), Chemistry (10th), Physics (11th), and Advanced Chemistry (12th) courses with labs. Only one of those (Physical Science) was done in a co-op class. The rest he did at home. In 8th grade, we took a year off from Apologia and did Space Science, using the outline from an FLVS course I found online.

Edited December 29, 2009 by ereks mom

[Nan in Mass]

My middle son is a freshman this year after homeschooling and some CC classes. My public schooled oldest and his Ukrainian friend, sophomores, were in the car, too, and added their two cents. They are all at the same state college.

 

My homeschooled freshman said, "Community college. Community college. Community college." He said it would have been very difficult to manage if he hadn't had that experience. Interestingly, he said that his speech class was more helpful than his comp class. He said that it would have been inconvenient not to know how to cite things in a paper (which he learned in comp) but not critical. The Ukrainian friend backed him up in this. I asked about research and they both said that they had gone to the librarian and asked to be shown how to do research when they got their first assignment. They also said that they went to the writing center and got someone to show them how to do citations (my son had done them but didn't remember how). The Ukrainian used the writing center extensively to fix his grammar and spelling. They all laughed about how every word in his papers was green or red when he first wrote it. My son should have used it for his spelling. Sigh. They all agreed that the public schooled one wrote his papers most easily and most quickly, but the others managed and even did well on their papers.

 

I asked about math. All three said that graphing calculators were heavily discouraged. My oldest's prof even praised his cheap calculator, saying it was perfectly good and that he would understand his math better with it than if he had a graphing one. The middle one said that he was glad he had done NEM because his algebra was "bomb" compared to his classmates', and that it had been very helpful to take pre-calc at the CC because it taught him to take notes in math. The Ukrainian said that he went to the math center every day and they were the reason he made it through calculus. Another something my middle one should have done. Sigh.

 

I asked whether our not keeping firm deadlines had been a problem and the middle one said no. The oldest chimed in to say that everyone procrastinated and that staying up all night to do fundies drawings was the way everyone did fundies drawings. The older one said that if you went off to school not understanding about deadlines, it would be a problem, but that as long as you were forewarned, it wasn't. He also said that it hadn't been a problem that we didn't grade things. He is quick to tell me if he thinks I should change the way I teach the youngest, so I believe him in this.

 

He said it was a good thing he began CC classes with some easy ones that didn't require much note-taking (speech and drawing). He said (to my surprise - sigh) that he had learned in those classes to write down assignments. I made him keep an assignment book at home, but I guess he had to learn that himself. Better at CC than at his 4-year college.

 

The homeschooled one kept saying CC, CC, CC. The public schooled one kept saying it isn't hard if you study. The Ukrainian kept saying take advantage of all the extra tutoring and help.

 

I hope this helps someone.

-Nan

[Sharon in MD]

This is exactly how I've felt since ER went away to college.

 

:cheers2:

 

Have a great New Year's celebration!

[moki4]

May I ask what is "FLVS"

Thanks so much. I will bump this along...it is so encouraging (essential) for us to read about the successes!

Did any of your children tell you what may have worked better?

Again, thanks for all the stories:)

[Jane in NC]

May I ask what is "FLVS"

 

 

FLVS = Florida Virtual School (I think!)

[TravelingChris]

My son who is going to be a senior in a few weeks thinks that homeschooling was great. He is a philosophy major but he felt his non major science classes were too easy. He didn't have any problem in calculus either. I do remember him commenting that his French teacher didn't like his Belgian French but that didn't have anything especially to do with homeschooling rather than he was learning to speak French in Wallonia where we were living by watching tv and speaking to local residents and reading their newspapers and ads.

[ereks mom]

FLVS = Florida Virtual School (I think!)

 

:)

[moki4]

:)