Last semester of Senior year (What would you do differently?)

[JessReplanted]

I am feeling a little panicked today. We started school again after taking a month off and for my oldest it will be his last semester.  Nothing about this year has been as I thought it would be. 
 

I am curious if anyone who has gone down this road already has suggestions on how to spend the time.  
He is college bound, eventually, but has never been super academic. He has plenty of credits.  The plan was to make this year a launching year - take the SAT, apply to school (Boyce), make a plan to spend a gap year in Indonesia and raise funds, get his license, get a paying job. Academically: he did a prep course for his time in Indonesia, SAT prep, writing course, Chemistry, and is reading a variety of books for growth & development. 
 

Thanks to covid, Indonesia is not happening (he’s now applying for a year in Scotland with 20Schemes) and every SAT we have registered for has been cancelled.  Driver’s Ed was incredibly backed up and is finally happening this week. 

I was planning on adding consumer math but now I’m not sure because he still hasn’t been able to take the stinking SAT.  Do we just keep prepping? 
 

I guess I wasn’t expecting this panicked feeling of “Has it been enough, and what else can I teach him before it’s too late?!”

It’s not just me, right? Thanks for reading!

[BakersDozen]

Is he learning about current events? I've tried to use the last 3 semesters (I count summer between 11th-12th as one) for anything that increases my dc's national/global understanding and awareness. So they do Environmental Science, World Religions, Comparative Gov't, etc. While credits may not be the goal a solid plan for reading/researching/discussing current events might be an option?

I would absolutely do a Consumer Math course! And if you haven't had him read the book "Scratch Beginnings..." I'd throw that in there - it's fantastic!

Not just you...it's a panic kind of feeling for sure.

[BlsdMama]

Generally speaking, the last semester doesn't add much, academically speaking.  The final grades support what is built, but a kiddo has usually been accepted by now, etc.

I would keep prepping on a daily but less intense plan, just for the sake of practice.
One of out daughters is also in her final semester.  We actually lightened her academic load a bit to focus on life skills, creating healthy routines, finally get that driving license, etc.

[mom31257]

I think parents will always wonder if they taught their kids enough no matter what the situation. And I believe there will always be something we didn't think of. And it's going to be okay. 

Ds is in his last semester, and he is the last one home of our two kids. He was able to take the SAT here in middle GA at my dh's school. I'm so sorry so many are having struggles with that. They give it again in March if you want to travel here. They even gave it the week the school was shut down for all virtual. I would continue some regular practice for it in case he can take it. 

I am thankful his is starting better than dd's did. My BIL committed suicide over Christmas break of her senior year. My sister lived in TN and had a special needs son, so I spent a lot of that semester going back and forth to support her. DD was thrown into managing her brother's school work, cooking, and more of the house than she ever had. So it was a hard semester for her. 

Ds is taking a couple of dual enrollment classes and finishing up some required credits, so his work load isn't lighter.  I do want to focus on life skills he'll need for going off to college in the fall. But I hope to find some ways to just enjoy him being home. I think I'll occasionally allow him to skip some work (for the classes at home) so we can go do something fun. 

[mom2scouts]

My DS is in the final semester of his senior year. We've had so many challenges this past year. DS has a nomination to a military academy, but we fear he won't get an appointment and it may be because he hasn't been able to raise his ACT (cancelled over and over and over), hasn't had access to the things he usually uses to stay in shape, hasn't been able to take his fitness test and with the deadline soon he'll have no chance to retake if he doesn't pass, and so many other smaller frustrations. He says if he doesn't get an appointment or prep school he'll just spend the next year taking some classes locally and working while getting in great shape, upping his ACT, and working on his weak areas so he can reapply next year. Academically, he's enjoying dual enrollment courses and we're intensely working on subjects that are weaker, but may be needed later. I'm not worried about a lighter load or learning life skills since I think he has a good life balance and probably has better life skills than many guys his age.

[mom31257]

13 hours ago, mom2scouts said:

My DS is in the final semester of his senior year. We've had so many challenges this past year. DS has a nomination to a military academy, but we fear he won't get an appointment and it may be because he hasn't been able to raise his ACT (cancelled over and over and over), hasn't had access to the things he usually uses to stay in shape, hasn't been able to take his fitness test and with the deadline soon he'll have no chance to retake if he doesn't pass, and so many other smaller frustrations. He says if he doesn't get an appointment or prep school he'll just spend the next year taking some classes locally and working while getting in great shape, upping his ACT, and working on his weak areas so he can reapply next year. Academically, he's enjoying dual enrollment courses and we're intensely working on subjects that are weaker, but may be needed later. I'm not worried about a lighter load or learning life skills since I think he has a good life balance and probably has better life skills than many guys his age.

Our ds hasn't taken the ACT yet, but when he took a timed practice test last winter, he didn't score relatively as high on it as he did the SAT he just took in December. You might look into him taking it if they will accept it as well. I think what made the difference for ds is that you have longer on the SAT for each question.  

[2_girls_mommy]

Covid hit last year just as the last semester of senior year hit for my odd. Luckily, she had finished taking her ACTs and was in the middle of applications and interviews for college.  She had gotten to take the college tours over the course of the year before and the first semester of senior year.  Everything got so crazy that last semester (no graduation, everything canceled, etc.) that I can't even imagine what it has been like for this year's seniors who didn't even get a first semester. 

Luckily for us, we had already decided she had taken most things, so she was just in a finishing up mode.  We actually decided not to do dual enrollment the 2nd semester, so that we had freedom for one last semester at home.  She worked part time, got her driver's license (we did home taught driver's ed,) and we had time as a family to take a trip, do some bird watching, watch documentaries to go with our studies, and for her to read a lot.  

A lot of scout clubs that she was in tried to go virtual or just canceled, but she stayed as active as was possible.  When COVID first hit, nobody knew what was happening, and for a couple of months, everything just went dead, then they tried to figure out how to do things virtually, but by then she was working her full time over the summer before college as planned anyway.   Things have a way of working out.  Mine was waitlisted at a top school across the country.  Last year I would have thought we might have been more disappointed if she didn't get in after all of her hard work.  This year, I am SO happy to have her closer to home in honors college not far with all of the virtual college and craziness going on.