FlockOfSillies Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I've been gone for a while, but now that I need to begin making decisions about next year, I'm popping in to say, "Hi!" and "Help!" DD12 is in 8th grade. I have her in VPSA's online Latin, and at a cottage school one day a week for science and art. The outside classes sort of swallow up all of her time, and I think she needs someone imposing deadlines on her -- I just don't do it well at all. She's very poky; always has been. Self-paced would be a disaster for her. She'd take two years to do one year's worth of work. I'm considering 100% online high school, with possibly some cc dual enrollment later on. VPSA? Keystone? Liberty? Torrey? A combo of two or three places? My dd likes the online Latin class, although she'd do better if she worked on her vocab more. I haven't talked to her yet about doing more classes online. She's in class for 90 minutes, twice a week. Please help. I'm trying not to panic, but I'm getting worried that we're really starting to fail, and that she won't be prepared for the rigors of high school this fall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowbeltmom Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 At 12 years old, your dd is very young for 8th grade. Have you thought about delaying the official start of high school for another year? You could still do all of the academics that you had planned for next year, without the pressure of having it count for high school. That might give her a bit more time to mature and be ready to handle a more time consuming and demanding high school curriculum the following year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlockOfSillies Posted January 24, 2012 Author Share Posted January 24, 2012 I've thought about it, but it doesn't change the fundamental dynamics I'm dealing with. I need to outsource her education. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 If VPSA is working for Latin, how about their online high school courses? I like the fact that their courses involve live interaction with instructors and classes are 1.5 hours twice a week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 This is the first year doing online for us, and I've decided that we can't do it all that way because of the schedule inflexibility and time it takes to watch the classes. I have no regrets academically, but we're not going to do more than three online classes per kid anytime soon. Maybe that will change, but that's my plan for 2012-2013. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedmom4 Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 If I was in your shoes I would definitely hold off on high school until your daughter has matured a bit. My oldest dd is very bright but needed some maturity before beginning high school. I am so glad I never bumped her up a grade. Based on your dds personality it sounds reasonable to have some outside classes so that she has deadlines and accountability. My concern would be piling her up with too much work and discouraging her. Maybe you could pick a few courses that you are comfortable with and then do the rest online? God Bless, Elise in NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlockOfSillies Posted January 24, 2012 Author Share Posted January 24, 2012 I started her off a year early, because that's what my parents did with me, LOL. This would be my last chance to hold her back, and I'm concerned it might discourage her more. IDK... I just can't keep on top of her anymore, and she needs grades and accountability that I just can't give her. I could try continuing at the cottage school for some classes, but it's 30-35 minutes each way and they're not the most rigorous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I started school a year early, too, and it did not hurt me. But high school is different now than when I was growing up, and so is the college admissions challenge. I attended a high school that was considered one of the toughest in the country, and I was considered kind of accelerated. I applied to a top college and got in on the first try. Neither of those characteristics would be true for me today. My 'acceleration' was taking honors English, taking algebra in ninth grade instead of tenth, and taking AP English and Chemistry in my senior year. My GPA was in the mid 3's. Nowadays my university has an average incoming GPA of 4.3 or so (I hear). If you don't start taking AP classes way earlier than senior year, you can't possibly achieve that GPA. And if you don't take algebra in eighth grade, you are almost remedial. I seriously considered giving DD the gift of an extra year in 8th grade. She chose to decline that gift, so she is a youngish (but not as young as yours) sophomore this year. I let her choose, and she has done well in high school, but in order to do so, I told her what she herself needed to accomplish in her first run through eighth grade. And I did not present this as remedial (it wasn't) but rather as one more year to be studying with a modicum of freedom. I strongly encourage you to evaluate whether or not your child would benefit from an extra year in eighth grade. I have been amazed at how rapidly DD has grown up in high school--the changes from 12 to 15 are dramatic, almost like infancy growth. And if you decide to give her an extra 8th grade year, figure out how to position it as a gift--because it really would be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 DD12 is in 8th grade. I have her in VPSA's online Latin, and at a cottage school one day a week for science and art. The outside classes sort of swallow up all of her time, and I think she needs someone imposing deadlines on her -- I just don't do it well at all. She's very poky; always has been. Self-paced would be a disaster for her. She'd take two years to do one year's worth of work. I started her off a year early, because that's what my parents did with me, LOL. This would be my last chance to hold her back, and I'm concerned it might discourage her more. IDK... I don't mean to read into this too much, but I just wanted to explore this a bit with you. Your "she's poky" can mean she has a low processing speed. Needing structure (beyond the norm) can be indicative of executive function problems. And when you are worried holding her back would discourage her *even more*, are you saying she's already frustrated or discouraged by the state of things? I'm totally with you on the need for structure and understand. I just want to make sure you understand what you're seeing. What you're saying can indicate some problems and is not personality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanna Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I hear ya on the "I need to outsource" position -- I was there just last year. One hundred percent online? Hmmm... I'm not totally comfortable with that. Are there any classes/co-ops in your area that you would consider having your dd in? :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I second what Carol in Cal suggested - give her another year. It may make all the difference. The high school years go by so incredibly fast. Let her have the time to pursue her interests before the heavy high school workload takes over. For us, I used 8th as a trial year for what we planned to use in high school. It worked very nicely that way as we found it worked well and it gave my dd a chance to get used to following the lesson plans, writing papers, submitting work and taking tests. If she's taking forever to get through her school work, it may also be that it's not challenging enough. Ask her. You can do any level of work that's appropriate for her and still call it 8th grade - she'll just be working at an advanced level in high school. Good luck with whatever you decide. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlockOfSillies Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 She just likes to putter. And I've been really unmotivated and puttery myself this year, so she just follows my lead. She takes forever to do e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlockOfSillies Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 The one closest to me isn't one that interests me. The cottage school we use now is about 30 minutes away. There are lots of options about 25-30 minutes north of me. The ps nearest us is my alma mater. My neighbor (also an alumnus) homeschools his kids, and he teaches there. When it was time to send their oldest to school, they sent her to a private school where his mom is the principal (big tuition discount). I'd like to avoid that if possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlockOfSillies Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 The Latin is definitely challenging her, and the science class is challenging, but manageable. The issue is that the outside classwork is getting done, but the mom work is not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldberry Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Just an observation about my dd who just turned 13. (She is in 7th). In previous years I have had to hover over her every step of the way, sit at the same table, etc.... I have really seen a difference this year. I think maturity can do alot for "putterers" :-) It's been encouraging! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom22ns Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Just an observation about my dd who just turned 13. (She is in 7th). In previous years I have had to hover over her every step of the way, sit at the same table, etc.... I have really seen a difference this year. I think maturity can do alot for "putterers" :-) It's been encouraging! This was very true here too. Ds was always sooo slooow and unfocused. It is like having a different child since he turned 14. He is no speed demon, but he is focused and hard working. Dd who was always quick has become a putterer and I'm hoping she'll grow out if it before hitting high school. I think the advice to pick your online classes is good. Do 3 or 4 so she has accountability outside then push yourself to give her more accountability on the rest. Try going for more outside accountability before you go to all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted January 29, 2012 Share Posted January 29, 2012 I'm a little late, but in case OP sees this, my children are enrolled in Keystone. My oldest did try Latin, but she tried jumping into Latin 2 after a two year gap from doing Latin 1. Naturally it was a disaster. However, the Latin class used the same book as her public school, Ecce Romani (sp?). If you have any questions about Keystone at all, feel free to PM me. 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.