Please eyeball my plan for 9th? Ack!

[pgr]

I finally got a plan in place for my first high-schooler, and wrote out what the credits might look like on the transcript. She realized that she's pretty set on majoring in Molecular and Cell Biology/Genetics. Though this could obviously change, she'd need to get in Bio AP in 11th, with Bio, Chem, and Statistics before then. But she's already enrolled in WHA Physics, so... she's opting to double up. I'm not certain this is doable, especially with the other "electives". I'm fine with taking an extra year to do it right - she just turned 14 in July, so she could be in either 8th or 9th this fall, I think. She does want Logic and then Rhetoric, and I agree that would be useful for research writing. Spanish she'll do during her free time, not enough for a full credit. Fine arts may end up being participation at a local theater company instead of dance. 

My question - does this look OK?? Logical? Any issues I'm not seeing?? ACK! Please help (talk me down) and thank you...

Curriculum                                   Course                                 unit     Credit

WWS3/VCR                                  English I                               0.5      language arts

Great Books                                 World Lit I                             0.5      language arts

SWB/Cultural Landscape            World History/Geo I              1        social studies

AOPS Geometry                          Geometry                               1        math

WHA Physics H (online)               Physics H                               1       science

Novare Biology                             Biology                                   1       elective

SA Latin II (online)                         Latin II                                     1        foreign language

Duolingo Spanish                        Spanish                                 0.5       elective

Art/Music study (time period)      Fine Arts                               0.5         art

Logic/Discovery of Deduction     Logic                                    0.5        elective

Dance class 3.5h/week                PE                                         0.5         PE

[freesia]

That does seem very heavy.  I would drop Logic and Spanish.  I would let her do it "in her free time" if she wants (Duolingo) and have her keep track of time and eventually give her credit.  You could also see how it's going and add Logic for second semester. 

Why does she "have to get to AP Bio" by 11th grade? And I've never heard of stats being a pre-req for AP bio.  Is there a program she is trying to get into that requires that?

[pgr]

30 minutes ago, freesia said:

That does seem very heavy.  I would drop Logic and Spanish.  I would let her do it "in her free time" if she wants (Duolingo) and have her keep track of time and eventually give her credit.  You could also see how it's going and add Logic for second semester. 

Why does she "have to get to AP Bio" by 11th grade? And I've never heard of stats being a pre-req for AP bio.  Is there a program she is trying to get into that requires that?

 

I agree re: Spanish and Logic... I can't decide if I necessarily need to put everything she does on the transcript, even if she ends up putting in enough time for half a credit or so. It seems she's got a lot of electives?

As far as AP Bio, the thought is that she'd have taken it before applying to colleges. Statistics not as a prerequisite, but I've read in several places that it's helpful, so incorporated that into planning for 10th and 11th, taking into account the maths she'll be doing; it's not terribly pertinent to 9th. 

[Slache]

Duolingo isn't accepted anyway because there's no formal grammar instruction. What's the value in separating World Lit from English and giving 2 half credits instead of combining them for one solid English credit? I don't have a highschooler but I stalk the high school board for my own benefit.

If it were my kid I'd drop Spanish on the transcript but have her keep going on Duolingo, and instead of dropping Logic I'd drop Biology. She might want to do Biology next year as a science credit and dropping Bio instead of Logic makes for a lighter workload.

Some colleges want a separate Geography credit. Some hive members chose to give credit by subject rather than year. This would mean that this year you would give .75 credits history and .25 geography. At the end of it all she would have 3 history credits and one geography credit on the transcript, but nothing by year because .75 credits is a no-no.

Again, my kid is 8. I'm repeating some of the wiser things I've read.

Edited August 9, 2019 by Slache

[Frances]

I don’t think there’s any reason she has to take AP Bio before applying, senior year would be just fine. If she already knows she wants to major in a sub area of the field, it seems she must have some pretty significant knowledge and experience already. She’d probably even be fine just taking it without general biology first. Either way, I don’t think there’s any reason to double up on science this year. 

I’m not sure Duolingo on it’s own is worth 0.5 credits, it seems like more of a supplement. If she somehow came away from it able to converse well in basic Spanish, I wouldn’t be too concerned about the lack of formal grammar instruction. But if the main take away is just lots of Spanish vocab and phrases memorized, I’m not sure that is credit worthy. And we did Spanish in a very non-traditional way.

[freesia]

1 hour ago, pgr said:

 

I agree re: Spanish and Logic... I can't decide if I necessarily need to put everything she does on the transcript, even if she ends up putting in enough time for half a credit or so. It seems she's got a lot of electives?

As far as AP Bio, the thought is that she'd have taken it before applying to colleges. Statistics not as a prerequisite, but I've read in several places that it's helpful, so incorporated that into planning for 10th and 11th, taking into account the maths she'll be doing; it's not terribly pertinent to 9th. 

I think it’s ok to put on all she does, I would make sure, though, that she understands the priority of classes. 

In some ways, it’s hard to advise.  I had one dc who could have no way handled that schedule in ninth ( and he graduated with awesome stats and got great scholarships—very bright.). I have another who would have powered through and done it, but been completely stressed out.

Make sure she has time for fun and social and vegging.

Edited August 9, 2019 by freesia

[pgr]

Thank you to all - you’re confirming my gut feeling that we need to kick things down a notch.

Also, you’ve all raised points that hadn’t occurred to me (e.g. Duolingo, Geography credits) - thank you so much! 

❤️

 

 

Edited August 10, 2019 by pgr

[kokotg]

FWIW, I gave my second summer b-day kid an extra year before calling him a 9th grader (after seeing how challenging high school is with my oldest),  and so far (he's just starting 10th) now, it's been a great decision with no downsides. 

[pgr]

58 minutes ago, kokotg said:

FWIW, I gave my second summer b-day kid an extra year before calling him a 9th grader (after seeing how challenging high school is with my oldest),  and so far (he's just starting 10th) now, it's been a great decision with no downsides. 

 

Thank you for this. From my point of view, the only downside here is that she's hell-bent on graduating in four years. At the same time, she's a fairly reasonable and rational being, so there's hope.☺️

Edited August 10, 2019 by pgr

[kokotg]

1 minute ago, pgr said:

 

Thank you for this. From my point of view, the only downside here is that she's hell-bent on graduating in four years. At the same time, she's a fairly reasonable and rational being, so there's hope.☺️

It's trickier if they actually have an opinion about it! This is my most laid back kid; he pretty much just shrugged and said, "whatever" when I proposed it 😂

[Mbelle]

It does look like a lot.  You know your student though.  I would probably drop the bio and the spanish and focus on doing the other classes well. My older two have done a similar schedule for 9th.   I'm gonna go against the grain and say just go with 9th grade.  I have been surprised personally by the maturity jump by 11th grade and seeing students ready to move on to college at that time and just be done.  Having to wait an extra year has been hard for some of my friends kids and their parents too.  

[pgr]

1 hour ago, Mbelle said:

It does look like a lot.  You know your student though.  I would probably drop the bio and the spanish and focus on doing the other classes well. My older two have done a similar schedule for 9th.   I'm gonna go against the grain and say just go with 9th grade.  I have been surprised personally by the maturity jump by 11th grade and seeing students ready to move on to college at that time and just be done.  Having to wait an extra year has been hard for some of my friends kids and their parents too.  

 

Yes, that's definitely a consideration (it being hard on everyone to wait an extra year). At the same time, in addition to the other factors, she's been contemplating a "gap year" on and off for a while, and has so many things she really wants to study in HS. I guess we'll take it one step at a time. You have a point - and it will be clearer in a couple years where she stands as far as maturity.

[Lori D.]

current planned schedule:
1.0 = English: World Lit & Composition (Lit = Great Books / Writing = WWS3 + VCR)
1.0 = Math: Geometry (AOPS)
1.0 = Science: Physics, honors (WHA online)
1.0 = Science: Biology (Novare)
1.0 = Social Studies: World History & Geography (SWB + Cultural Landscape)
1.0 = Foreign Language: Latin II (SA online)
0.5 = Foreign Language: Spanish (Duolingo)
0.5 = Fine Arts: Music & Art Appreciation -- or Theater
0.5 = Elective: PE: Dance (local class)
0.5 = Elective: Logic (Discovery of Deduction)
8.0 credits total

Agreeing with previous posters -- that is esp. heavy for also having to transition into high school level work -- AND possibly transitioning into doing online courses for the first time. Also, you want to make sure that at least something in there is "lighter" and is a personal interest, otherwise school becomes an overwhelming burden and a fast track to burnout. Totally just my rambling thoughts. 😉 Here are some ideas:

Things that could be dropped (to lighten up the all-heavy credits):
- Vocabulary from Classical Roots -- you can get plenty of vocabulary out of the Great Books, and study words in context
- Geography -- if doing SWB's History of the Ancient World, it makes a very solid 1.0 of just History without also trying to cover Geography

Credits that could be dropped or postponed:
- Logic - could postpone and do as a summer school course or as an elective next year. Or could drop entirely.
- Spanish - that's fine to dabble with Duolingo, but there's no written work or grammar, so you would need a text to make that a solid 0.5 credit; perhaps drop entirely. Or postpone until after done with Latin (perhaps consider taking as dual enrollment in 11th/12th grades, when 1 semester college class = 1 credit of high school Spanish). Or switch from Latin to Spanish this year (Latin I would provide a solid base for Spanish).

Possible alternative schedule
Since Natural Sciences are DD's priority, I'd suggest the following as the "core", and only add on as DD can handle it:

1.0 = English: World Lit & Composition (Lit = Great Books / Writing = WWS3)
1.0 = Math: Geometry (AOPS)
1.0 = Science: Physics, honors (WHA online)
1.0 = Science: Biology (Novare)
1.0 = Social Studies: World History (SWB)
1.0 = Foreign Language: Latin II (SA online)
6.0 credits total

add 1 or 2 of the following:, for a total of 6.5 - 7.0 credits:
0.5 = Elective: Logic (Discovery of Deduction)
0.5 = Elective: PE: Dance (local class)
0.5 = Foreign Language: Spanish (Duolingo)
0.5 = Fine Arts: Music & Art Appreciation -- or Theater

BEST of luck as you plan, and have a great 9th grade year! Warmest regards, Lori D.

Edited August 10, 2019 by Lori D.

[Lori D.]

18 hours ago, Slache said:

... At the end of it all she would have 3 history credits and one geography credit on the transcript, but nothing by year because .75 credits is a no-no.

It's only a "no-no" if colleges specifically require 1.0 credit in something (for example, 1.0 credit of American History or of World History are the 2 credits of history desired most frequently by colleges; and even then if doing 0.75 of world history in each of 2 years, that's a total of 1.50 credits of World History, so you'd be good, having over the required amount). You can absolutely grant partial credits in whatever amount was earned -- 0.25, 0.33, 0.5, 0.66, 0.75 credit. 😉

[Farrar]

Seconding many of these wise words.

I also have young for grade kids who also refused to reclassify themselves when starting high school and sometimes I cringe about it a bit. When they started kindy, our not-a-state had literally just changed the cutoff from December to September so it didn't even feel like they were that young. But it is what it is. Don't overthink it.

I would not give any credit for Duolingo by itself in any context. Duolingo with something else? Sure. Like, Duolingo and an online tutor? Okay. I'd call it Practical Spanish or something. Duolingo and a textbook? Sure. That would just be a basic credit and you could take the textbook slower. If she wants to do Spanish, I'd do Spanish as a real credit and drop the Latin. If you're set on Latin, I'd drop the Spanish and if she wants to do a few minutes of Duolingo every day, I'd set it aside in her schedule and not worry about it beyond that. If she later adds it as a class, she'll have a small head start, which is great.

I would drop the biology. That's not even a question in my mind. Like, why do that? Did I miss the reasoning?

I would then have her pick between her two electives... does she want to do the art stuff or the logic?

[Pen]

I’d drop the Latin and Geography and Logic aNd maybe the fine arts.  Duolingo could stay or go depending on her.

That would give

History

English

Biology

physics

math

PE 

And maybe something light like a little art or a little Duolingo...

5 serious hard academic classes 

plus PE - important for variety and health

maybe a light 7th subject  or a “study hall” spot

 

[MamaSprout]

I've never seen required geography. I have seen several colleges require "World History OR Geography PLUS US History AND Government".

That's not to say somewhere doesn't, but I think it would be unusual.

Edited August 11, 2019 by MamaSprout

[pgr]

14 hours ago, Farrar said:

Seconding many of these wise words.

I also have young for grade kids who also refused to reclassify themselves when starting high school and sometimes I cringe about it a bit. When they started kindy, our not-a-state had literally just changed the cutoff from December to September so it didn't even feel like they were that young. But it is what it is. Don't overthink it.

I would not give any credit for Duolingo by itself in any context. Duolingo with something else? Sure. Like, Duolingo and an online tutor? Okay. I'd call it Practical Spanish or something. Duolingo and a textbook? Sure. That would just be a basic credit and you could take the textbook slower. If she wants to do Spanish, I'd do Spanish as a real credit and drop the Latin. If you're set on Latin, I'd drop the Spanish and if she wants to do a few minutes of Duolingo every day, I'd set it aside in her schedule and not worry about it beyond that. If she later adds it as a class, she'll have a small head start, which is great.

I would drop the biology. That's not even a question in my mind. Like, why do that? Did I miss the reasoning?

I would then have her pick between her two electives... does she want to do the art stuff or the logic?

Thank you for weighing in! 

Re: Biology, yes, there's a bit of back information. Her interest in the subject was piqued at a homeschool science class last fall. This spring, she found my old AP Bio textbook and has been reading it with tremendous interest nightly before bed. She's super excited about starting biology, and it's the only thing that's making the thought of studying physics (which she's completely disinterested in) bearable. She enrolled in WHA Physics pretty early, and I think it makes sense to study physics at some point in HS, so that's how we ended up where we are with that.

Re: Foreign language - given the lack of grammar (which I somehow missed entirely....), I'm dropping Duolingo as a formal course. She can dabble in it if she likes. Regardless, she has a passion for Latin and excelled at Latin I through Schole Academy last year, so it makes sense to continue with that.

Re: electives, she dislikes anything related to art. My plan was to study artists and musicians according to the historical time period we're covering, mostly for exposure and to ultimately give her a fine arts credit should she need it for college admissions.

[pgr]

21 hours ago, Lori D. said:

current planned schedule:
1.0 = English: World Lit & Composition (Lit = Great Books / Writing = WWS3 + VCR)
1.0 = Math: Geometry (AOPS)
1.0 = Science: Physics, honors (WHA online)
1.0 = Science: Biology (Novare)
1.0 = Social Studies: World History & Geography (SWB + Cultural Landscape)
1.0 = Foreign Language: Latin II (SA online)
0.5 = Foreign Language: Spanish (Duolingo)
0.5 = Fine Arts: Music & Art Appreciation -- or Theater
0.5 = Elective: PE: Dance (local class)
0.5 = Elective: Logic (Discovery of Deduction)
8.0 credits total

Agreeing with previous posters -- that is esp. heavy for also having to transition into high school level work -- AND possibly transitioning into doing online courses for the first time. Also, you want to make sure that at least something in there is "lighter" and is a personal interest, otherwise school becomes an overwhelming burden and a fast track to burnout. Totally just my rambling thoughts. 😉 Here are some ideas:

Things that could be dropped (to lighten up the all-heavy credits):
- Vocabulary from Classical Roots -- you can get plenty of vocabulary out of the Great Books, and study words in context
- Geography -- if doing SWB's History of the Ancient World, it makes a very solid 1.0 of just History without also trying to cover Geography

Credits that could be dropped or postponed:
- Logic - could postpone and do as a summer school course or as an elective next year. Or could drop entirely.
- Spanish - that's fine to dabble with Duolingo, but there's no written work or grammar, so you would need a text to make that a solid 0.5 credit; perhaps drop entirely. Or postpone until after done with Latin (perhaps consider taking as dual enrollment in 11th/12th grades, when 1 semester college class = 1 credit of high school Spanish). Or switch from Latin to Spanish this year (Latin I would provide a solid base for Spanish).

Possible alternative schedule
Since Natural Sciences are DD's priority, I'd suggest the following as the "core", and only add on as DD can handle it:

1.0 = English: World Lit & Composition (Lit = Great Books / Writing = WWS3)
1.0 = Math: Geometry (AOPS)
1.0 = Science: Physics, honors (WHA online)
1.0 = Science: Biology (Novare)
1.0 = Social Studies: World History (SWB)
1.0 = Foreign Language: Latin II (SA online)
6.0 credits total

add 1 or 2 of the following:, for a total of 6.5 - 7.0 credits:
0.5 = Elective: Logic (Discovery of Deduction)
0.5 = Elective: PE: Dance (local class)
0.5 = Foreign Language: Spanish (Duolingo)
0.5 = Fine Arts: Music & Art Appreciation -- or Theater

BEST of luck as you plan, and have a great 9th grade year! Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

This all makes a lot of sense - thank you so much for helping me think through possibilities and taking the time to write it all out!!

I like the idea of making Logic a summer study course, that would free up time for the heavy courses. Your "Possible alternative schedule" is an awesome spine for me to kind of work around. Thank you!

[Farrar]

3 minutes ago, pgr said:

Thank you for weighing in! 

Re: Biology, yes, there's a bit of back information. Her interest in the subject was piqued at a homeschool science class last fall. This spring, she found my old AP Bio textbook and has been reading it with tremendous interest nightly before bed. She's super excited about starting biology, and it's the only thing that's making the thought of studying physics (which she's completely disinterested in) bearable. She enrolled in WHA Physics pretty early, and I think it makes sense to study physics at some point in HS, so that's how we ended up where we are with that.

Re: Foreign language - given the lack of grammar (which I somehow missed entirely....), I'm dropping Duolingo as a formal course. She can dabble in it if she likes. Regardless, she has a passion for Latin and excelled at Latin I through Schole Academy last year, so it makes sense to continue with that.

Re: electives, she dislikes anything related to art. My plan was to study artists and musicians according to the historical time period we're covering, mostly for exposure and to ultimately give her a fine arts credit should she need it for college admissions.

Given this, rather than do either of the electives that you suggested, what about giving her a biology elective that's more clearly an elective class. Like, a special topic... botany, human anatomy, brain development, genetics, zoology... even a special project in biology. If this is going to be a big focus for her, then putting something on the transcript that makes her stand out a bit seems like a win. Plus, giving her a more tailored, specific elective also seems like it'll excite her way more than art appreciation.

[pgr]

4 hours ago, MamaSprout said:

I've never seen required geography. I have seen several colleges require "World History OR Geography PLUS US History AND Government".

That's not to say somewhere doesn't, but I think it would be unusual.

 

Thank you...I think I saw it ONCE and it stuck in my mind as something I'd better not forget to include... Ah, how panic muddles the mind.😜

[pgr]

1 minute ago, Farrar said:

Given this, rather than do either of the electives that you suggested, what about giving her a biology elective that's more clearly an elective class. Like, a special topic... botany, human anatomy, brain development, genetics, zoology... even a special project in biology. If this is going to be a big focus for her, then putting something on the transcript that makes her stand out a bit seems like a win. Plus, giving her a more tailored, specific elective also seems like it'll excite her way more than art appreciation.

 

That is PERFECT! Thank you!

[Pen]

Is it impossible to drop the physics at this point? 

[pgr]

7 minutes ago, Pen said:

Is it impossible to drop the physics at this point? 

 

I, too, have considered that. There's a cancellation charge and 50% tuition is refunded/50% credited toward a future course, and we've purchased the book(s) and materials. Not impossible, but not painless. It's seems like dropping physics altogether from high school really wouldn't be ideal, and she's come to terms with having to get it over with this year, so I'm inclined to leave it be. Especially since workload will likely increase over the next couple years and it seems studying things she's interested in would make that load a bit easier.

 

[BusyMom5]

I would see if you can switch her into the Bio class first.  Doing 2 sciences seems unnecessary and not the best way to start high school.  DD1 did Bio in 9th, and I thought DD2 would do physics 1st, but she picked Bio for 9th as well.  I am not sure if we will even do physics in high school.  My concern with your plan is that you've got an outsourced science that shes not interested in right now, and you are adding another science at home.  You may not have the time to do both to their full potential.  Do you drop the one shes interested in and push the one bc you paid for it?  Or let her study Bio and drop the paid for physics?  My advice would be to not plan so far ahead- there are lots of 11th graders who switch to full time DE.  Depending on what shes thinking then, she may not even do the AP Bio you've got planned.  High school is a balance between planning enough in advance to get everything done, but not over planning bc kids change.  

As for 2 FL, unless shes very into languages I would let her pick 1.  

I like the idea of a Biology related elective and plan to do a botany unit at some point with my DD2.  

[Pen]

I think seeing if you can move her from outsourced physics to outsourced biology without a significant $ penalty seems like a great idea.