ereks mom Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 http://www.thehomescholar.com/college-bound-reading-list.php From the article: "A variety of colleges have said that homeschool applicants may have an over-emphasis on classic literature, and that reading lists should include popular literature. Some colleges have mentioned that inclusion of current literature shows 'socialization.' You may want to include some popular fiction in your student’s reading list." I like the wide variety of books they've included. I was pleased to see that a lot of the books the author chose are books that my kids read (or read excerpts from) during their high school years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 My dd has two more years of high school. She has read a few classics but not very many. She is dyslexic. What we have done so far is let her substitute watching Shakespeare plays- she has seen many. She is also doing reading that interests her and she likes writing more than reading classics so she has concentrated on writing more. Next year, she will again do a combination. She will read some shorter books- including The Great Gatsby since she liked the movie. I think she would like the Help too. Then I will chose poems, short stories and excerpts. She will again do a lot of writing, speech- in competitions, and will be doing ACT reading and English prep along with PSAT prep. Finally she will continue working on her spelling- which is her worst problem. I am not going to fret about her not reading as many classics as her brother and sister did. Neither of them were dyslexic. Both of them loved to read the classics. She doesn't. She is a STEM type person and learning to write well is more important than getting her to read lots of classics. As it is, she likes watching Shakespeare Plays, foreign movies, movies of classical books, etc. She also likes to read, even if she does it slowly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I found that comment interesting, because my dc told me basically the same thing the colleges reported. They want to read more contemporary works in order to be able to talk about them with others who don't homeschool. They're going to read more than just The Help, but that's on our list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 http://www.thehomescholar.com/college-bound-reading-list.php From the article: "A variety of colleges have said that homeschool applicants may have an over-emphasis on classic literature, and that reading lists should include popular literature. Some colleges have mentioned that inclusion of current literature shows 'socialization.' You may want to include some popular fiction in your student’s reading list." Did I miss the popular literature recommendations?? Virtually the entire list were traditional classics, and older works, written by 1950, and the majority written prior to 1900... What more recent popular works (and by that I'm guessing the past 20 or so years, so 1990 and more recent) are colleges suggesting?? Genuinely interested in seeing such a list or suggestions! :) Warmest regards, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Lori, the article listed The Help. That's it. I suspect colleges are looking for exposure to pop lit like Hunger Games, Twilight, Harry Potter, etc. Not as literary masterpieces, you understand, but so students will fit in better with their peers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paige Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Is this a case of list it or it didn't happen? I did not think we needed to list every book our children read. I had thought popular fiction would be for free reading and pleasure reading and academic reading would be different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I had thought popular fiction would be for free reading and pleasure reading and academic reading would be different. Agree. I think of popular fiction more along the lines of free/pleasure reading as well. It's just from the way the article was worded, I was expecting to see a section of the list that followed the article to include recommended titles of popular literature that colleges were saying they wanted to see students to be familiar with... :) Guess I misread the article! ;) But, I'd still like to see some contemporary suggestions, such as klmama listed above. I was guessing things like: Life of Pi; Kiterunner; Hunger Games; Perks of Being a Wallflower; Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants; The Road; The Lovely Bones; Eragon series... Would love to see what people think should be on a list of contemporary young adult or popular literature so that homeschoolers will be "socialized" for college! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I was expecting a list showing more current international authors. You can tell I have been buried AP Lit planning. :lol: The classics will just happen over the next couple of years with the curriculum we are using. My problem is picking the more modern stuff for extra reading. Our favorite choices seem to appear once while others have repeated, in some cases several times. Dd spent hours last night trying to decide on her "plan" so I was hoping for direction when I read that list! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I was expecting a list showing more current international authors. You can tell I have been buried AP Lit planning. :lol: The classics will just happen over the next couple of years with the curriculum we are using. My problem is picking the more modern stuff for extra reading. Our favorite choices seem to appear once while others have repeated, in some cases several times. Dd spent hours last night trying to decide on her "plan" so I was hoping for direction when I read that list! Calvin is studying for the IB diploma. International books that he has been studying have included Rilke's Orpheus in the Don Paterson translation, and The Book of Disquiet by Pessoa. I haven't read either, but I just throw them out for you. Calvin loved the Rilke but was not so keen on the Pessoa. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 My guys read both classics (mainly for English, but also a couple for pleasure) and more current favorites (Enders Game, The Giver, etc). Everything they read in high school was put on their reading list. I wanted adcoms to see their diversity in reading. In hindsight, that appears to have been a good thing! I was extremely disappointed with the list in the article. It only did "traditional" books - totally in opposition to the meat of the article. My guys got their pleasure reading themselves - choosing from the library. The library often had "current favorites" in special displays. I looked to see if I kept middle son's reading list... unfortunately, I didn't. Sorry! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Actually... I found it in his document file. I didn't keep it, but he did. Let me see if I can cut and paste. You don't see a whole lot of Shakespeare on here. ;) I'm not fond of Shakespeare for one, and for two, some of the works (Julius Caesar, MacBeth, were read in 8th grade). BIG NOTE: He was my "super reader." Most students won't have a list as long as his. He was always reading... by choice. The only book he really didn't like and plugged through was Pride and Prejudice. This also covers 3 years + a little (up to college app time). Unfortunately, the formatting didn't stay. Books are alphabetized by author... 1 Things Fall Apart Achebe, Chinua2 The Other Side of the Sky: A Memoir Ahmedi, Farah with Ansary, Tamim3 Little Women Alcott, Louisa May4 The Year Before Yesterday Aldiss, Brian W.5 My Invented Country Allende, Isabel6 Whatever You Do, Don't Run: The Tales of a Botswana Safari Guide Allison, Peter7 Don't Look Behind You Allison, Peter8 This Vast Land Ambrose, Stephen E.9 Pride and Prejudice Austen, Jane10 Here I Stand Bainton, Roland H.11 George Washington: True Patriot Benge, Janet & Geoff12 Abraham Lincoln: A New Birth of Freedom Benge, Janet & Geoff13 I Have Lived a Thousand Years: Growing up in the Holocaust Bitton-Jackson, Livia14 The Meaning of Tingo: And Other Extraordinary Words From Around The World Boinod, Adam Jacot de15 Cauldron Bond, Larry16 The Pilgrim's Progress Bunyan, John17 Empire Card, Orson Scott18 Invasive Procedures Card, Orson Scott19 Ender's Game Card, Orson Scott20 Ender's Shadow Card, Orson Scott21 Shadow of the Hegemon Card, Orson Scott22 Shadow Puppets Card, Orson Scott23 Speaker For The Dead Card, Orson Scott24 Xenocide Card, Orson Scott25 Children of the Mind Card, Orson Scott26 The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking Carnegie, Dale27 Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story Carson, M.D., Ben with Murphey, Cecil28 Eric Liddell: Olympian and Missionary Caughey, Ellen29 The Secret Sharer Conrad, Joseph30 Heart of Darkness Conrad, Joseph31 When Helping Hurts: How To Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor Corbett, Steve & Fikkert, Brian32 Ben Franklin of Old Philadelphia Cousins, Margaret33 The Narrative of the Life of Davy Crockett Crockett, Davy34 Run Baby Run Cruz, Nicky35 The Eye of the Oracle Davis, Bryan36 Raising Dragons Davis, Bryan37 The Candlestone Davis, Bryan38 Circles of Seven Davis, Bryan39 The Witchmaster's Key Dixon, Franklin W.40 Atlantis: Devil's Sea Donegan, Greg41 Crime and Punishment Dostoevsky, Fyodor42 Alligator Crossing Douglas, Marjory Stoneman43 Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave Douglass, Frederick44 The Prophet of Yonwood Duprau, Jeanne45 Mama's Bank Account Forbes, Kathryn46 Dead Cert Francis, Dick47 The Danger Francis, Dick48 Break In Francis, Dick49 All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten Fulghum, Robert 50 Lord of The Flies Golding, William51 Black Like Me Griffin, John Howard52 Do Hard Things: A Teen Rebellion Against Low Expectations Harris, Alex & Brett53 Teach Yourself Better Chess Hartson, William54 The Scarlet Letter Hawthorne, Nathaniel55 The Floating Island Hayden, Elizabeth56 The Thief Queen's Daughter Hayden, Elizabeth57 The Incan Treasure Henty, G.A.58 The Cat of Bubastes Henty, G.A.59 The Young Carthaginian Henty, G.A.60 Dune: The Machine Crusade Herbert, Brian & Anderson, Kevin J.61 Chronicles of King Arthur Hopkins, Andrea62 Les Miserables Hugo, Victor63 An Artist of the Floating World Ishiguro, Kazuo64 The Bandit of Ashley Downs Jackson, Dave & Neta65 The Chimney Sweep's Ransom Jackson, Dave & Neta66 Shanghied to China Jackson, Dave & Neta67 Listen for the Whippoorwill Jackson, Dave & Neta68 Imprisoned in the Golden City Jackson, Dave & Neta69 Hostage on the Nighthawk Jackson, Dave & Neta70 High Rhulain Jacques, Brian71 Mossflower Jacques, Brian72 Mattimeo Jacques, Brian73 Lord Brocktree Jacques, Brian74 The Legend of Luke Jacques, Brian75 Pearls of Lutra Jacques, Brian76 Marlfox Jacques, Brian77 The Outcast of Redwall Jacques, Brian78 Taggerung Jacques, Brian79 Triss Jacques, Brian80 Redwall Jacques, Brian81 Eulalia! Jacques, Brian82 Doomwyte Jacques, Brian83 Across China Jenkins, Peter84 Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution Jiang, Ji Li85 The Imitation of Christ Kempis, Thomas A.86 Flowers For Algernon Keyes, Daniel87 Treatment Kind and Fair: Letters to a Young Doctor Klass, M.D., Perri88 A Not Entirely Benign Procedure: Four Years as a Medical Student Klass, M.D., Perri89 Soul Harvest: The World Takes Sides LaHaye, Tim & Jenkins, Jerry B.90 To Kill a Mockingbird Lee, Harper91 Out of the Silent Planet Lewis, C.S92 Mere Christianity Lewis, C.S93 The Abolition of Man Lewis, C.S94 The Giver Lowry, Lois95 In the Name of Identity Maalouf, Amin96 A Thousand Pieces of Gold Mah, Adelin Yen97 Fountain and Tomb Mahfouz, Naguib98 Christy Marshall, Catherine99 High-Tech Harvest: A Look at Genetically Engineered Foods Marshall, Elizabeth L.100 Dragonsong McCaffrey, Anne 101 Dragonsinger McCaffrey, Anne102 Dragondrums McCaffrey, Anne103 Dragonflight McCaffrey, Anne104 Dragonquest McCaffrey, Anne105 The White Dragon McCaffrey, Anne106 All of the Weyrs of Pern McCaffrey, Anne107 Freedom's Landing McCaffrey, Anne108 Freedom's Choice McCaffrey, Anne109 Freedom's Challenge McCaffrey, Anne110 Freedom's Ransom McCaffrey, Anne111 Dragon Fire McCaffrey, Anne & Todd112 Deepsix McDevitt, Jack113 Time Travelers Never Die McDevitt, Jack114 Moby Dick Melville, Herman115 A Boy's War Michell, David116 The Gallant Boys of Gettysburg Morris, Gilbert117 Malgudi Days Narayan, R.K.118 Rainbow Mars Niven, Larry119 Animal Farm Orwell, George120 1984: A Novel Orwell, George121 Dragon Knight Paul, Donita K.122 Dragon Fire Paul, Donita K.123 Caught By the Sea Paulson, Gary124 The Story of King Arthur and his Knights Pyle, Howard125 The Prefect Reynolds, Alastair126 Blackbeard and Other Pirates of the Atlantic Coast Roberts, Nancy127 Hamlet Shakespeare, William128 In His Steps Sheldon, Charles M.129 Days of Pleasure Singer, Isaac130 Of Mice and Men Steinbeck, John131 Treasure Island Stevenson, Robert Louis132 The Elements of Style 4th Ed. Strunk Jr., William & White, E.B.133 Gulliver's Travels Swift, Johnathan134 Open Lands Taplin, Mark135 The Door Within Thomas Batson, Wayne136 The Rise of the Wyrm Lord Thomas Batson, Wayne137 The Final Storm Thomas Batson, Wayne138 The Isle of Swords Thomas Batson, Wayne139 Isle of Fire Thomas Batson, Wayne140 Beowulf Translated By Raffel, Burton141 Humorous Stories and Sketches Twain, Mark142 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Twain, Mark143 This Same Sky: Poems Various144 South Sea Island Rescue Walsh, Kay145 Up From Slavery Washington, Booker T.146 "Co. Aytch" Watkins, Sam R.147 The Invisible Man Wells, H.G.148 The Cross and the Switchblade Wilkerson, David149 It Happened in Florida Wright, E. Lynne150 The Shack Young, W.M.151 The Ethics of Genetic Engineering Yount, Lisa (Editor)152 Survivors: True Stories of Children in the Holocaust Zullo, Allan & Bovsun, Mara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HodgesSchool Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Here's a list of "bestsellers" from Schmoop: http://www.shmoop.com/bestsellers/ On the tabs across the top, you can access interesting analysis of themes, etc. as well as discussion questions. If you find yourself wanting to have serious conversations about contemporary books, it is a great resource. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldberry Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Here's a list of "bestsellers" from Schmoop: http://www.shmoop.com/bestsellers/ On the tabs across the top, you can access interesting analysis of themes, etc. as well as discussion questions. If you find yourself wanting to have serious conversations about contemporary books, it is a great resource. I like that, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Interesting point on the modern/popular lit! It's a small list, but Lori or whoever might find the Sync summer selections interesting. They've been doing free downloads each week of a classic and a contemporary book paired. http://www.audiobooksync.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen in NY Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Tangentially related: It seems like all the kids I know going off to college have a summer reading assignment and book discussion groups during orientation, including my dd. This website for the "New Student Reading Project" is really cool... lots of resources and thoughts about each book. Thought it might be useful for some, especially the 'prior reading' : http://blogs.cornell.edu/reading2013/the-reading-project/ I am sure other colleges have similar websites and resources... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereks mom Posted July 10, 2013 Author Share Posted July 10, 2013 ...I was expecting to see a section of the list that followed the article to include recommended titles of popular literature that colleges were saying they wanted to see students to be familiar with... :) ... Would love to see what people think should be on a list of contemporary young adult or popular literature so that homeschoolers will be "socialized" for college! :D I was thinking the same thing, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nscribe Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Huge----long----exasperated----SIGH! Yet another attempt to suggest evidence exists that homeschoolers lack "proper socialization". One problem is few if any traditionally schooled high schoolers are submitting lists of all the books they read in the past four years as part of their college applications. I would think it might be relevant to know what both sides of the comparison are reading. What we find in our experience is that Dd simply reads more than her contemporaries who are otherwise schooled. She reads far more in what may be considered the classics, but she also reads a great deal of contemporary literature. This loony assumption that homeschoolers live in some alternate universe devoid of current trends and are being raised as anachronistic foot soldiers in some countercultural devolution must end at some point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen in NY Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 This loony assumption that homeschoolers live in some alternate universe devoid of current trends and are being raised as anachronistic foot soldiers in some countercultural devolution must end at some point. LOL--- I would love to steal this for my sig line --- or at least my fridge. : ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candid Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 The article is an advertisement for the services of someone who helps home schoolers get into college. While well intend, it is an advertisement. The quote the OP uses is not part of the introductory two paragraphs but buried further down with the one "popular" book. And the quote is not in any way documented. Which schools said this? In what situation? I, too, am cynical about this. Here's what I want to know: do colleges receive reading lists from non home schoolers at all? My readings about the admissions process, seems to answer this question as a "no," at least in terms of a list being provided by the school. As home schoolers we provide these lists to show that our students are studying something substantial or equivalent, or something. It strikes me that a mention somewhere or your students outside reading might be okay, but I'm not providing a list unless I hear the local PS students are doing one, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Huge----long----exasperated----SIGH! ...loony assumption that homeschoolers live in some alternate universe devoid of current trends and are being raised as anachronistic foot soldiers in some countercultural devolution... :smilielol5: LOVE the way you turn a phrase Nscribe! Agreeing with you ... But, just being the book-aholic that I am, I was hoping people would throw out some worthwhile or interesting or entertaining contemporary popular literature titles I could check out and read... ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 :smilielol5: LOVE the way you turn a phrase Nscribe! Agreeing with you ... But, just being the book-aholic that I am, I was hoping people would throw out some worthwhile or interesting or entertaining contemporary popular literature titles I could check out and read... ;) Have you thought about some book blogs like BookPage? They send you emails with the new books, and they group them by age, interest, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BakersDozen Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Big sigh from me as well but for different reasons. Here I have my dc reading things their public-schooled peers have never set a hand on (Iliad, Don Quixote, Tale of Two Cities) and I thought I was doing well. Now I find that my dc must read what I consider less than stellar literature just so it shows socialization?? What if I think today's society and what it offers is lame and downright stupid? Guess that means my dc who grew up reading rich classical literature just won't cut it in college. Whatever. I refuse to take up valuable time in our school day or free time to read books that some consider worth reading yet I consider a total waste of time if the only point is to prove that my dc are "socialized". Vent over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 This loony assumption that homeschoolers live in some alternate universe devoid of current trends and are being raised as anachronistic foot soldiers in some countercultural devolution must end at some point. The sad part is the stereotypical homeschoolers are still out there and folks latch on to them rather than see the diversity of the whole group. IMO it IS still important to show our offspring don't fit the mold as most will assume they do. (Actually, there are two stereotypical molds I hear of - one is the 100% religious reasons with low education and the other is 100% academics with no current social stuff. I've had to combat both.) The article is an advertisement for the services of someone who helps home schoolers get into college. While well intend, it is an advertisement. ... Here's what I want to know: do colleges receive reading lists from non home schoolers at all? My readings about the admissions process, seems to answer this question as a "no," at least in terms of a list being provided by the school. As home schoolers we provide these lists to show that our students are studying something substantial or equivalent, or something. It strikes me that a mention somewhere or your students outside reading might be okay, but I'm not providing a list unless I hear the local PS students are doing one, too. Good point on the advertisement. No, my public schooled son won't have a book list submitted. If he did, it wouldn't be nearly as long as his brother's list - probably a quarter the size or so. For English they've read 5 books each year - 3 from summer reading and 2 in class. He doesn't read much on his own - perhaps one or two books per year. He does look up a bit of science stuff that interests him on the internet. BUT, I'd never recommend a homeschooler not submit a book list. See my reasoning above (combating stereotypes). When I thanked the Dean of Admissions at middle son's school for considering homeschoolers he specifically said he liked them and they did well, BUT they work hard to be sure the students they accept are well rounded with their studies and experiences. I suspect books and his book list are a part of that. Interestingly enough, when he stayed with other students there (contemplating the U) the other kids he was staying with had read many of the same or similar books. One of the things they talked about were the various books they had read and what they liked/didn't about them. My guy said his list wasn't out of line at all with them. I'm certainly not saying it's right to have two different sets of rules, but life is what it is and I'd rather play by the rules than potentially suffer for not having done so. In several of my guy's interviews, he was asked about a book or two from his list. Big sigh from me as well but for different reasons. Here I have my dc reading things their public-schooled peers have never set a hand on (Iliad, Don Quixote, Tale of Two Cities) and I thought I was doing well. Now I find that my dc must read what I consider less than stellar literature just so it shows socialization?? What if I think today's society and what it offers is lame and downright stupid? Guess that means my dc who grew up reading rich classical literature just won't cut it in college. Whatever. I refuse to take up valuable time in our school day or free time to read books that some consider worth reading yet I consider a total waste of time if the only point is to prove that my dc are "socialized". My guys picked their free reading themselves based upon what they liked. I see absolutely nothing wrong with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbollin Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Big sigh from me as well but for different reasons. Here I have my dc reading things their public-schooled peers have never set a hand on (Iliad, Don Quixote, Tale of Two Cities) and I thought I was doing well. Now I find that my dc must read what I consider less than stellar literature just so it shows socialization?? What if I think today's society and what it offers is lame and downright stupid? Guess that means my dc who grew up reading rich classical literature just won't cut it in college. Whatever. I refuse to take up valuable time in our school day or free time to read books that some consider worth reading yet I consider a total waste of time if the only point is to prove that my dc are "socialized". Vent over. ((hugs))) I wouldn't sigh on it. yesterday I read the paragraph on that article/thing and laughed out loud. I thought it was trying to be funny. I'm not convinced the article/advertisement puts that much emphasis on it. and I'm not sure it is accurate information either. do college admins really say this? really? They aren't saying it at the places I"m listening. giggle with me....... Can you imagine this same idea applied to music? Instead of learning an instrument or doing classical composers studies, or "homeschoolers do too much fine arts"..., it becomes you must know how to do the pony ride from gangham style to be well rounded socialize at this college. We'd laugh it off if that were in the advertisment/article. oh wait... that song was from 2012, it's already outdated. and if it were true? what? the summer after 12th grade, we attend the hit movie of the summer, find out who won on American Idol and/or DWTS or whatever contest show is the "talk around the water cooler". and call it good enough to help them get through freshman orientation week, which is probably the last time it matters. after that, they'll have new stuff to learn in college culture and find new friends and new things.... and all of the stuff that was "cool" and "popular" in high school is long forgotten and not really needed. so... keep reading the good stuff. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen in NY Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 In several of my guy's interviews, he was asked about a book or two from his list. I had forgotten about this ... this also happened to my daughter. Dd said she and the interviewer talked about a couple of the books on her list, and then the adcom asked for a recommendation of something she had read lately! A few weeks later dd got a note commenting on the book and that the admissions officer had really enjoyed it. This was the book: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16200.Ella_Minnow_Pea It sparked an interesting discussion about censorship, societal rules and expectations, and unexpected consequences. This was Case Western Reserve, BTW. So I guess it's one thing to have a list... it's another to be able to talk about the books on the list. Eek! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Dd said she and the interviewer talked about a couple of the books on her list, ... So I guess it's one thing to have a list... it's another to be able to talk about the books on the list. Eek! I do wonder how many kids they catch who just "made up" a book list. Hopefully, not many, but I do know in ps many try to bluff their way through the summer reading. It never works well as the teachers are wise enough to ask about things not in the cliff notes or wiki articles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwen in VA Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 "BUT, I'd never recommend a homeschooler not submit a book list." ~Creekland (my computer won't let me do a direct quote -- weird!) I think the decision on whether or not to submit a book list depends on the college and the kid. Reading is an important part of a rigorous education, but it is not the be-all-end-all. My kids have radically different reading habits. Ds1 reads voraciously and widely; his reading list provides a window into his learning and thinking, his interests and struggles. He is an "intellectual" kid, and his reading list shows that. Since his classwork, while extremely rigorous, does not provide the window into his soul that his reading list does, we included his reading list, My other kids did not/will not submit a reading list, even though they have been accepted or will be applying to top-20 colleges. Their reading lists are very boring and typical, a list verifying that they are well-educated and widely read but nothing more. Their reading lists do not provide a window into understanding them better. We wanted to emphasize their unique EC's, and we felt that a reading list would just be one more piece of paper for the admissions people to read. We were concerned that the reading list might actually distract the admissions people from focusing on their REAL strengths -- their academics and EC's. Just a different take on the use of reading lists! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 I think the decision on whether or not to submit a book list depends on the college and the kid. My other kids did not/will not submit a reading list, even though they have been accepted or will be applying to top-20 colleges. Their reading lists are very boring and typical, a list verifying that they are well-educated and widely read but nothing more. Their reading lists do not provide a window into understanding them better. We wanted to emphasize their unique EC's, and we felt that a reading list would just be one more piece of paper for the admissions people to read. We were concerned that the reading list might actually distract the admissions people from focusing on their REAL strengths -- their academics and EC's. Definitely true on the first. I can't see where a reading list would hurt with the latter, but it is up to each of us to decide for ourselves. ;) There are some colleges where reading lists likely aren't necessary (homeschooler or not). I wouldn't put top colleges in that list for my guys - unless they weren't much of a reader (like my youngest - but he also isn't heading Top 20, so it's a non-issue for us). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saddlemomma Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Many of those books are part of TOG's literature throughout their 4 years and UG/D/R learning levels. Very glad to see that since we are switching to TOG after this next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janice in NJ Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Lee Binz claims she did no literary analysis with her kids. http://www.thehomescholar.com/blog/i-hate-literary-analysis-part-1/ I wonder if she included that info in her course descriptions. (Sorry, not a fan) Transcript and Course Descriptions for us included academic info. Books read for fun were not listed. I didn't want to water-down the lists with titles widely listed as appropriate for elementary-aged kids. During the scholarship interview process both kids were asked about their favorite books. It's one of the topics kids should prep for discussion. Dd talked about Huck Finn, a title her college prof talked about in his recommendation letter. He claimed she wrote a graduate-level paper worthy of publication on the book. She also spoke about how she hated Wuthering Heights and why. She didn't discuss Twilight sp??, nor was it listed anywhere. (Sorry, no italics on this device) I was invited in later when the admission's officer offered dd her scholarship. She commented to me that, when considering homeschoolers, they always hoped to get a packet as well organized as the one I put together. "Up until now, we never actually received one this comprehensive. Very specific information. A clear picture of your daughter's exceptional education." I vote for a course by course book list included in the course description document. I think a 9-12 book list is a weird homeschool thing. (Sorry, that's what I think.) For scholarship and admission, our goal was normal as possible with a heavy dose of better than most within the format that they have chosen. Kids at the high school don't add their free reading to their academic documents. My goal was to let folks know that we understand their rails; we just travel farther than most on them. Peace, Janice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 I was invited in later when the admission's officer offered dd her scholarship. She commented to me that, when considering homeschoolers, they always hoped to get a packet as well organized as the one I put together. "Up until now, we never actually received one this comprehensive. Very specific information. A clear picture of your daughter's exceptional education." I vote for a course by course book list included in the course description document. I think a 9-12 book list is a weird homeschool thing. (Sorry, that's what I think.) Janice, would you be willing to post the course description information you provided for one course so we can see how you did it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicheleinMN Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 I did not include a free reading list as part of our school's information, nor did I include it with transcripts or course descriptions, but dd did decide to include one in her section of the common app. She felt it gave the admissions people a chance to see what kind of reading she liked to do in her free time. Right or wrong she did (eventually - originally wait-listed) get in to the school of her choice and only the one true Ivy turned her down, so I guess she did okay. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
at the beach Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Some homeschoolers do school in an untraditional format. Kids may be left to their own devices in choosing what to read. So the book list IS the detail regarding their education. And lots of colleges apparently want to know what a homeschooler does with the freedom homeschooling affords. Re Lee Binz's cautionary comment, I agree that stereotypes still exist but really if you are not a person who would read x, y, or z book, how is it helpful to read it and include it? If you plan to submit a booklist, I think it ought to help give a picture of the child's personality, hence the idea that these are books the child *chose* to read. Which is why I would not scrub the booklist or tell a child what to read to include--not that anyone is advocating that anyway. I would want it to be a true representative sample of what my child has chosen to read. I also doubt colleges will offer any specifics on what they want kids to read because, again, if they are reviewing a list, I would think they want to see what a child chooses to read, not what they were told to read. To me, if you are sending course descriptions, this is where I would want to show what I am teaching my children and what they are being exposed to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 My goal was to let folks know that we understand their rails; we just travel farther than most on them. Peace, Janice I may have to cross stich this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candid Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Janice, would you be willing to post the course description information you provided for one course so we can see how you did it? I'm not Janice, but I'm doing this. First I have a database for each year that shows "Academic books" used. I've included the title, author, copyright, publisher, and subject used for. I chose to use publisher because I realized a lot of history books were not textbooks but were published by university presses. I figure it helps to show the quality (and you'd put that in a footnote so, hey easy enough to add on). I use a course description layout that is found over on the hs2col Yahoo! group. It runs contrary to most course description documents because it give one page to a course. It has title, course description, grading method, grade, and a list of books used. On history and lit sometimes I have to double column the works used. I don't expect admissions people are going to spend any more time on my course descriptions than they would on the shorter versions, but I want them to see if they read just one course completely the standard we have set. Then if they skim the rest of the course descriptions, I hope they will quickly see that other courses use that same standard. My readings of inside the admissions office tell me that a student's transcript gets two ratings. One is for class rank, I assume that test scores will have to mostly stand in for that. But the other is a, gasp, rigor score. Rigor is not a favorite word around here, but admissions officers do use it and grade it. My goal is to get the highest possible score for my children and that will be accurate of their work level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Candid, how do you handle it for short stories or for poems? Do you list them individually or do you just list the works they were taken from? If you list them, do you indicate their sources? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candid Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Candid, how do you handle it for short stories or for poems? Do you list them individually or do you just list the works they were taken from? If you list them, do you indicate their sources? Mostly poems will get listed under their source, in my case a Norton Anthology, in a lump such as "Renaissance Sonnets." Long poems like Dante's Inferno or Milton's Paradise Lost will get a listing separately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 A bit off topic, I know, but I really don't like breaking up literature into just "American" and "World Literature", with all the Brit Lit (or Commonwealth, if you prefer) in the latter. There's such a difference between literature in translation and reading it in the original language, that it isn't fair to lump English language works in with the great Russian novels and the like. JAWM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candid Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 A bit off topic, I know, but I really don't like breaking up literature into just "American" and "World Literature", with all the Brit Lit (or Commonwealth, if you prefer) in the latter. There's such a difference between literature in translation and reading it in the original language, that it isn't fair to lump English language works in with the great Russian novels and the like. JAWM. I agree that is kind of parochial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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