tofuscramble Posted July 30, 2010 Share Posted July 30, 2010 My 11 year old son is very bright but he does not have a history of being a "genius" in academics. The thing is, he wants to go to community college to do a film studies course. He has a home schooled friend who goes but she is 14. I would really love for him to go, film is his passion, he stays up late at night writing scripts, he has been an actor, he has made many of his own movies, he makes his own costumes. It is unequivocally his "thing". Its what he loves. The college have said he can take the course and DH who went into the workplace at 14 and hasn't looked back, is all for it but I'm not sure for the one obvious reason which is his very young age. Anyone BTDT or just have any advice or thoughts on this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2smartones Posted July 30, 2010 Share Posted July 30, 2010 If it would be for only one class, there's a friend in the class, and the college has no problem with it, I'd do it, personally. That's just me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennW in SoCal Posted July 30, 2010 Share Posted July 30, 2010 Would they let you sit in on the class? At least for the first session or two until you have a feel for his classmates. Or could you just wait outside the classroom? I know a girl who took some CC classes at a young age, but I think her mom was with her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amydavis Posted July 30, 2010 Share Posted July 30, 2010 If it would be for only one class, there's a friend in the class, and the college has no problem with it, I'd do it, personally. That's just me. :iagree: Would you be able to stay? I would want to do that, at least at first, just to check out how he was handling the environment. But I would definitely take advantage of the opportunity to let him further explore something he was so passionate about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tofuscramble Posted July 30, 2010 Author Share Posted July 30, 2010 Thank you so much everyone! We are thinking of letting him take a distance course through them first to see if he can handle it. Its one of those questions, we *think* he could but really wont know until he tries it, kwim? Once again, thank you for your help! I love this site! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OLG Posted July 30, 2010 Share Posted July 30, 2010 Our son signed up for a film course at 14 at the college....it all looked fine on the surface. But then the subject matter of the discussions turned to areas that made me uncomfortable. Ds handled himself well by in the discussions and had an experience of defending his beliefs but I don't think I would have had him do the course if I had known the direction it was going to take. Eleven seems a bit young to me for this type of course. Just my two cents and no judgements made either way! Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted August 2, 2010 Share Posted August 2, 2010 I would let him do it but only if you've had a chance to have a nice long talk with the professor and perused he course syllabus to see what movies they will discuss. I've never heard of a film class that didn't spend time discussing a lot of films. You might find him exposed to information that he isn't emotionally mature enough to handle. Plus, gifted kids tend to be very sensitive to themes, less desensitized and far more bothered by gratuitous violence, etc. than most kids. So, I'd be concerned about the content of the class. But, if the content is appropriate and the professor is open minded and aware that he/she has an eleven year old and should be concerned about safety issues (if mom isn't there at the end of class to pick him up for some reason, takes him back to his office or to a secretary or whatever the agreed upon safety plan is), etc. then I would do it. I would also probably attend class twice with him just to make sure he feels comfortable with all of the adults around him. Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom-2-1 Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Thanks for the great thread! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theYoungerMrsWarde Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 No one has mentioned the writing requirements of a collage class. Can he write at a high enough level to be able to turn in classwork? At the cc I went to for a little while, everyone had to take a "Collage Writing" class first semester, even if you scored high in the entrance exam, because the other classes need you to write your papers a certain way. You should probably get information on the written requirements before you sign up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momling Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 I took a German class at a CC when I was 11 -- with my mom, and two anthropology classes when I was 12 -- with my dad. I absolutely loved it. I felt so grown-up... and it was fun to work with my mom or dad on homework. If I recall, the math and writing test I took was a pleasant surprise. I believe I passed into Intermediate Algebra even though I'd only taken pre-algebra. And I'm pretty sure I passed into a freshman level writing course. It was probably more a reflection of the low standards of this CC than my own ability though ;-) But I don't think film studies would be the right class to send a younger child... alone. Are you comfortable with R rated movies and discussions on controversial topics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest momk2000 Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 I would not send my 11 yo to community college d/t age and maturity level. He would be surrounded by adults of all ages and from all backgrounds, and possibly be faced with topics of discussion that may be inappropriate at that age. I'm wondering if he could take an online college level course? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 (FYI, the OP is nearly a year old.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 (FYI, the OP is nearly a year old.) How do these threads get resurrected? Eta -- I figured it out Anyway if the kid is now twelve.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trish h Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 If you are looking for an alternative. Ohio university has acourse they put out on dvd. It is quiet extensive. I tried to do a search but couldn't find it. You could possibly contact OU and see who carries it. I almost bought it for my daughter. It was only $139 and could be used for high school credit or college credit. I think the company who carried it was onesource. We opted instead to do an internship at our church. She worked there 10 hours a week to do editing and volunteered on the weekends during the service. I was a wonderful hands on experience which gave her the chance to see what doing this in the real world would be like. Just some thoughts on some other options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firestar Academy Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 i know this is a really old thread, but does anyone know, if later, the child goes to a 4 year university, how that school handles college credit earned before high school?? would it just transfer?? Robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momling Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 I'm guessing it depends on the college. I had lots of community college (and a few university) credits its by the time I graduated from high school and I did not use them. I believe the policy at the time from my college (Reed) was that if they were used for high school graduation (they were), then they couldn't be used for college. Also, the cc credits were a billion times easier than those from the 4 year college I went to, and I kind of agree that they were truly not equivalent. I did know a transfer from a CC who was able to transfer most of her credits in and start as a sophomore. But again, those were taken as a college student, not as a jr. high school or high schooler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firestar Academy Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 thanks maybe i'll post on the college board. robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.