Help me figure out a get it done, low stress 11th grade year

[Dmmetler]

M16 has been DX’d in the last year with POTS and dysautonomia. (I think likely Long COVID, but she was never officially diagnosed with COVID). In person school has been a failure, in part because she fatigues so easily. Online school in 9th was mixed-some classes she did great in, others she just didn’t do at all. Her mom has to work full time. I can probably actively homeschool 2-3 days a week, and she could possibly come to the center with me the other two, but would need to be mostly on her own. We do have WiFi, so she could do an online class or something. She does not have a driver’s license.
 

She, at this point, just wants to be done with high school, and maybe go to the CC. She feels like she can’t possibly make it, and that she only passed the classes she passed (mostly with C’s and D’s) due to the teachers being generous. She needs to graduate high school so she is eligible for the TN Promise.She only can really handle about 2 hours of focused book-type work a day, and then maybe a couple of hours, after a break, of something that doesn’t require the same focused attention. 

Being very generous, here’s what I feel she could get credit for-mostly A’s from 8th, B’s and C’s for 9th, and C’s and D’s for 10th. 

 

English 9 and 10 

Two years of Spanish, but only has transcript credit for Spanish 1 (8th via an Outschool class, 10th in school

Biology (online school, plus lab work at a vet’s office)

maybe Environmental science (middle school, but I could document labs, etc, or possibly add to it and “finish” it)

physical science (10th)

piano, church choir

PE (swim team in middle school, teaching swim and life guarding last summer)

Lifeguard training, CPR, first aid, etc

Algebra 1

One semester of geometry passed, one failed

Model UN/Government at a homeschool tutorial (middle school, but the tutorial lists it as 7-10th grade). 
 

US history

She cooks fairly often, so maybe we could add something to that?

 

used to draw and paint a lot.

 

If she goes back to the cover school she used to be with, she needs 

4 English

4 math

3 science

2 social science/history

US History

1/2 credit personal finance

1/2 credit health

1 credit PE

6 electives 

 

We can go independent and do a transcript/diploma ourselves, but I think that it’s probably best to have the third party records in place, due to various family issues.

 

Any suggestions? 

 

 

[City Mouse]

I know it is not a popular idea here, but I would be working toward high school equivalency testing for a kid like that. 

[Dmmetler]

7 minutes ago, City Mouse said:

I know it is not a popular idea here, but I would be working toward high school equivalency testing for a kid like that. 

She can’t do it until after her class would graduate from high school. So we would still have two years to fill before she could take the test.

[City Mouse]

1 minute ago, Dmmetler said:

She can’t do it until after her class would graduate from high school. So we would still have two years to fill before she could take the test.

Yeah, it is like that in my state now too. Students have to be 18 to test unless they have special approval from last attended school.

Honestly, I would still work toward that plan especially since she can’t tolerate a typical work load focusing on the basics she needs and removing all the “extras”. You could get the prep materials -workbooks, web based, etc., and just break it into chunks with her. You could do most of the work when you are together with small amounts of homework on the other days.

[Clemsondana]

I'd add a bit of basic anatomy and/or sex ed and/or basic mental health stuff and combine that with the CPR part and you're good for health. 

If you need another science, Earth Science can be done more easily than something like physics.  Or you could do a cooking chemistry - I seem to remember somebody offering it as a program...or you could turn the cooking into home ec or expand it a bit with some Alton Brown videos or cookbooks.  

Piano and choir could be a music elective, and she could do an art one, too.

Could she do psychology as a social science or as an elective?  Most kids seem to enjoy the content so it might not be too onerous.  

Find something basic for personal finance - a Dave Ramsey course or Life of Fred personal finance (some don't like it's perspective, but it's fairly quick to get through)

I don't know a lot of about the basic math programs, but I seem to remember struggling students having success with Math-U-See?  Is there a requirement for specific classes like algebra 2 or could she do something more consumer math or business math?

Is there anything that she likes to read?  Could she do a simple English with reading books of various genres and then writing/discussing?  Or reading books and then comparing them to movies of the book - the movies would be something that she could watch more passively. 

Could she do something like drivers ed as an elective?  A lot of less academically oriented students at my high school did basic accounting as an elective.  The language would knock out another 1-2 elective requirements.  

Would it help for her to work in blocks so that she doesn't lose time to having to refocus?  I've had a few students who do one subject per day.  Or could she do everything as mini-courses for a certain number of weeks?  Or something like math all the time and then other subjects in 6-10 week blocks?  That might help her to feel like she's accomplishing something. 

Edited to add...have you looked at critical thinking company workbooks?  World History Detective is pretty comprehensive.  Maybe combine some editing, vocabulary, and reading comprehension for English?  It might help to have things n small pieces where she can get something accomplished...

 

Edited June 14, 2022 by Clemsondana

[BusyMom5]

Attitude is everything,  so I'd focus on picking programs she can do easily. 

Math- its very hard to do well if you don't have a good foundation.  I think you need to redo Geometry for credit, refresh Algebra as you go along, and then Algebra 2.  MUS seems to be an easier program.   This will take a lot of your time, and hers too.

English- can she write well enough?  If so, make this credit a lighter one.  Short stories, movies,  and discussions, with a few bigger papers.  

Science- Anatomy?  Earth Science? Astronomy? I would not do Chemistry or Physics bc they are heavy in math.  

History/Social Studies- World History, I'd make this one full of videos with little output.  Crash Course?  

They key is going to be building courses she can complete with feeling like she's moving forward and making progress.  It sounds like she needs a lot if support figuring out high school and early adulthood- its too early to give up!  The last 2 years have been hard on so many students, let her know she's not alone and she has support.  She can do this!  

 

[Lilaclady]

Will she be interested in /

able

to take culinary classes at a community college? I

will look towards classes that she might be interested in and likely to finish while doing core classes 

[Aloha2U]

Off topic, but possibly a huge help with her health: 

https://www.treatlyme.net/

https://www.treatlyme.net/guide/pots-lyme-disease

[Dmmetler]

If we tick the “life choices” box, it lets us be very, very flexible in what is a class. So, technically, we could do the next two years of “consumer math” and it would meet that requirement. I’d like to keep her a little closer to the traditional path if possible, with an eye that since we have free CC tuition, she could at least go part time. I think she would enjoy culinary, although culinary school has a reputation for being high stress. 
 

Anatomy is a good choice, especially more focused on animals. I also could really easily put together zoology or something similar due to L’s interests. 

 

Before this, she was a competent writer (lousy at spelling, but if she has access to spellcheck/grammarly, she could probably handle college level writing if needed) and an avid reader. 
 

The sad thing is that in 8th grade, M was planning to be a vet, and was on an academic path and generally doing well. 

[MamaSprout]

Maybe some ideas in these kits? https://timberdoodle.com/collections/curriculum-kits

or here: https://pacworks.com/

I had a IRL friend who used Silicon Valley Online High School for some "let's just get done classes": https://svhs.co/

They weren't amazing, but not terrible, and really what they needed at the time. She did supplement a little (Spanish, I think).

[JazzyMom]

12 hours ago, Dmmetler said:

 

Being very generous, here’s what I feel she could get credit for-mostly A’s from 8th, B’s and C’s for 9th, and C’s and D’s for 10th. 

 

English 9 and 10 

Two years of Spanish, but only has transcript credit for Spanish 1 (8th via an Outschool class, 10th in school

Biology (online school, plus lab work at a vet’s office)

maybe Environmental science (middle school, but I could document labs, etc, or possibly add to it and “finish” it)

physical science (10th)

piano, church choir

PE (swim team in middle school, teaching swim and life guarding last summer)

Lifeguard training, CPR, first aid, etc

Algebra 1

One semester of geometry passed, one failed

Model UN/Government at a homeschool tutorial (middle school, but the tutorial lists it as 7-10th grade). 
 

US history

She cooks fairly often, so maybe we could add something to that?

 

used to draw and paint a lot.

 

If she goes back to the cover school she used to be with, she needs 

4 English

4 math

3 science

2 social science/history

US History

1/2 credit personal finance

1/2 credit health

1 credit PE

6 electives 

 

We can go independent and do a transcript/diploma ourselves, but I think that it’s probably best to have the third party records in place, due to various family issues.

 

Any suggestions? 

 

 

So it looks like she has:

2 of 4 English credits

1.5 of 4 math credits

All 3 science

1 of 2 social science (model un/gov)

All US History

0 personal finance

All health (counting first aid, water safety, etc.)

All PE (swim team)

2 of 6 electives (music, art)

 

So she needs 2 English, 3.5 math, 1 social science, personal finance, 4 electives.

What about spending her 2 productive hours on math and English?

Technical Writing (email, resume, cover letter, etc.) could be an easy English credit.  

Social science could be something like Current Events.

Dave Ramsey’s personal finance course is very light, IMO.

Electives could be whatever hobbies she is interested in, such as cooking.

I would focus on checking boxes for credits that she actually needs if the goal is graduating as quickly and painlessly as possible.  

[Farrar]

Will the cover school award the credits JazzyMom outlined?

Obviously she's struggling, but how's her motivation in general? Like, if you give her some low output, very achievable ways to accomplish some of these credits, will she do it, or is the overwhelmingness of the whole thing just making it impossible for her to do things? I can think of tons of options for all these credits that are pretty light - some outsourced, some with you, etc. But what's realistic for her to actually do in the first place?

[Roadrunner]

If she can handle normal high school classes, I would use SVHS as well and just get it done. 

[Dmmetler]

19 minutes ago, Roadrunner said:

If she can handle normal high school classes, I would use SVHS as well and just get it done. 

 

 

2 hours ago, Farrar said:

Will the cover school award the credits JazzyMom outlined?

Obviously she's struggling, but how's her motivation in general? Like, if you give her some low output, very achievable ways to accomplish some of these credits, will she do it, or is the overwhelmingness of the whole thing just making it impossible for her to do things? I can think of tons of options for all these credits that are pretty light - some outsourced, some with you, etc. But what's realistic for her to actually do in the first place?

I think they will as long as we enroll her under the "life choices" (IE, the "Heaven, not Harvard" path-it's the one that folks tend to pick for daughters they expect to marry, raise families, and never go to college). It doesn't require specific classes except for a couple required by the state. So, I'm thinking that maybe we could watch Shakespeare plays and maybe she could do a project comparing characters or something-something that could be artistic.  I think she could place into college English and humanities at the CC now as far as skills go, so if we can tick those boxes, I feel like she'd be OK there. 

 

As far as motivation, I think if she felt she was actually accomplishing something vs spinning her wheels it would be good. Especially if she has a cheerleader.  I think light online classes would be OK, but I want to avoid anything where she's going to end up with work piling up and feeling overwhelmed. 

 

I'm still hoping that either she recovers over time, or that they find a medication protocol that can make her closer to where she used to be. 

[Malam]

I think it's important to not confuse low energy with being behind conceptually. Were her low grades due to her not keeping up with homework, or doing poorly on tests?

For math, I would nix any (proof based) geometry (which might be why she failed-proofs are time consuming) and focus on things like areas, volume, and slightly more advanced problems involving negative shapes, angles, etc. but put the most time into getting algebra down (first reviewing distributing, factoring, exponents, roots, etc, then moving on to linear and quadratic functions and their solutions). You could call it integrated math II.  

I second making math and english your important subjects. See if you can figure out how her energy levels change throughout the day to schedule sibjects and breaks appropriately. 

Another idea would be a "positive psychology" elective. You could have her read a book on positive psychology/self help and work through a CBT/DBT workbook, possibly along with meditation. I'll see if I can recommend some specifics when I get back to my computer.

Edited June 17, 2022 by Malam

[Lawyer&Mom]

I’ve been dealing with Long Covid dysautonomia for over two years now.  Technically not POTs but very, very similar.  Like POTs, my autonomic system doesn’t react properly when I stand up.  You might be able to support her needs better than a school environment and perhaps improve her energy levels for learning.  I’m just going to assume she is dealing with LongCovid.  Here is my brain dump of ideas:

1) Help her stabilize her POTs symptoms.  Salts, fluids, compression clothing.  I’m sure her doctors have covered this, but she may need supports and a schedule to remember to drink all the fluids she is supposed to.  I’m not great at it. 

2) Consider a sensory diet.  I do better with low lights, low noise, less screens…. (Of course avoiding screens isn’t easy!)  Anything that helps the body relax and puts less stress on the autonomic system is good.

3) Schedule horizontal breaks.  Standing is tiring with POTs. So is sitting.  I need regular horizontal breaks.  Ideally 20 minutes, lights out, weighted blanket, every two hours, but of course that doesn’t always happen.  I also try to be horizontal during activities when I can.  Why play on your phone sitting when you could by lying on the couch?

4) Keep an eye out for other LongCovid issues.  New rashes or digestive issues?  Lots of LongCovid people have new histamine sensitivities.  I’m on a regime of H1 and H2 blockers that helps stabilize my histamine levels and has helped with my POTs-like symptoms.  Same with a low-histamine diet.

5) I’m in PT to help with my LongCovid fatigue, and my therapist has seen patients make great improvements.  I hope she can have optimism about her future.  Things might not always be as hard as they are right now.

6) Consider Mitochondria damage, not just autonomic damage.  LongCovid seems to have a lot of overlap with ME/CFS, which also features orthostatic intolerance.  Her fatigue might not be just from her autonomic dysfunction.  I’ve had good results with intentional pacing to prevent Post-Exertional Malaise.  Here is a good tutorial:  http://www.cfsselfhelp.org/pacing-tutorial

I also feed my mitochondria with CoQ10 and L-Carnitine.  This is pretty mainstream stuff that she should be able to ask her doctor about. 

I’m so glad you are able to help her. 

[Dmmetler]

On 6/17/2022 at 11:25 AM, Malam said:

I think it's important to not confuse low energy with being behind conceptually. Were her low grades due to her not keeping up with homework, or doing poorly on tests?

For math, I would nix any (proof based) geometry (which might be why she failed-proofs are time consuming) and focus on things like areas, volume, and slightly more advanced problems involving negative shapes, angles, etc. but put the most time into getting algebra down (first reviewing distributing, factoring, exponents, roots, etc, then moving on to linear and quadratic functions and their solutions). You could call it integrated math II.  

I second making math and english your important subjects. See if you can figure out how her energy levels change throughout the day to schedule sibjects and breaks appropriately. 

Another idea would be a "positive psychology" elective. You could have her read a book on positive psychology/self help and work through a CBT/DBT workbook, possibly along with meditation. I'll see if I can recommend some specifics when I get back to my computer.

I think some of both. She really struggles with reading when she’s at all tired, and she had the class late in the day. However, she’s also struggling with the credit recovery online class even doing it first thing in the morning. Her sister and younger brother both have diagnosed issues in math, so it’s entirely possible she has an undiagnosed LD there, too.

[kbutton]

If she likes art and science, maybe consider Mapping the Body with Art by Ellen McHenry. It’s probably harder than get ‘er done, but you draw and watch videos with minimal reading, and maybe art won’t feel as much like work. You can retake quizzes until you pass. My older son who needs more hands-on stuff did well with it.

It’s a workbook plus videos.

For electives, would she like some Professor Carol classes (art, music, history)? Again, lots of videos with that option.

For electives, I think I would do life stuff or independent study stuff where she can learn about something and do a PowerPoint, art, music, podcast, etc. to show what she learned. 

Maybe integrating history and literature would mean less work/output, and she could liberally use podcasts and documentaries. Stuff You Missed in History offers a lot. Another artsy option—Mapping the World with Art. Could be combined with exploration podcasts (tons on Stuff You Missed), documentaries, and some world lit selections—history, lit, and art in one.

I think a practical psychology class sounds good—it could be some basic information combined with books meant to support real life functioning (if there are LDs or ADHD, tips for that could be included). Maybe include the psychology of living with a chronic illness or participate in an online support group for chronic illness as part of the work.

MUS or teaching textbooks?

Maybe school year round to slow things down?

For the writing part of English, she could complete something like Style and Mechanics: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace and/or The Writer’s Options. Neither require essays but offer really good instruction to improve writing. Both are easy to find used. Lessons are short. 

[Bocky]

Building off JazzyMom’s breakdown

Has English 1 and 2, needs: English 3 (you are thinking Shakespeare), English 4 – Creative Writing? (Could use the Nanowrimo High School workbook). Or a genre-based course – mysteries, sf, dystopias…

Has 1 CR Algebra and 0.5 Geometry, needs 2.5 CR more. Recommend that you get a really good in-person math tutor and work through Lial’s or similar at M’s pace

Needs 0.5 CR Personal finance

Has all 3 science

Has PE and health

Has 1 social science (govt), needs 1 CR World Geography? Something super-simple like Simply Charlotte Mason’s Visits To…, or Cooking around the world, or pick a selection from the smorgasbord of Guesthollow’s World Geography and Cultures? Alternatively, Modern History – use Build Your Library’s World War 2 unit study. It’s scheduled for a whirlwind 9 weeks but has 3 read-alouds and 3 complex novels, could be spaced into a meaty but doable credit.

6 electives – has 1 or 2 Spanish, 1 or 2 music (are there enough hours to have a credit of piano and a credit of choir?), 1 or 2 credits art (again are there enough hours for a credit of drawing and a credit of painting?)

Possible other elective credits, if needed: Zoology, Culinary Arts, Photography. Could M be a teaching assistant for choir? My older student had 1 CR from being a teaching assistant in the ESL math class at her high school.

[happypamama]

Could use Study.com for some courses.  You can pick whatever level works for her, and they have the option to listen to/watch videos or to read a transcript.  Self-paced, but easy to assign a certain amount.

[Black-eyed Suzan]

On 6/18/2022 at 10:55 PM, Lawyer&Mom said:

I’ve been dealing with Long Covid dysautonomia for over two years now.  Technically not POTs but very, very similar.  

…

I’m so glad you are able to help her. 

Dmmetler, first of all, it breaks my heart that she is in this situation.  I also developed dysautonomia last year and have thought about how hard it would be to be a young person facing the same thing. 😔

I agree with Lawyer & Mom that taking charge of her health is going to be key. I found a lot of practical help at Dysautonomia International’s website, Vimeo account, blog, and Facebook groups.

Measures that help me tremendously:

3-4 L of water with electrolytes. LMNT is my favorite choice. Liquid IV is another good option. This blog post breaks down salt and sodium conversions.

https://dysautonomiainternational.org/blog/wordpress/pleasepassthesalt/

Swimming (or just being in the pool) feels amazing due to the increased compression. Pilates (the recumbent exercises in particular) has also been beneficial, taken at an extremely slow pace and being careful not to over-exert. There is a protocol (CHOPS) for increasing recumbent exercise slowly to build tolerance and increase blood volume that can also be found on the Dysautonomia International website.

Waist-high compression at 20-30mmHG has also given me more ability to stand. I also use an abdominal binder that makes a difference.

I am less fatigued sitting if I can prop my legs up or sit with my legs underneath me.

Credit ideas:

Dysautonomia:

I would count hours spent learning about her health condition as an elective. She could learn about legal protections for people with disabilities as well. Researching occupational ideas for people with POTS. Nutrition and cooking.  I felt like learning about the condition was a full-time job; she could get credit for it.

PE: counting time in the pool and any time building core and arm and leg strength training. 

Meditation/relaxation exercises could be rolled into the PE course, the dysautonomia course, or a psychology course.

Nature study/drawing/watercolor could be done by sitting and observing near her home.

Art history? Music appreciation? 

Right Start Geometry is a different approach - maybe that would work for math?

Poetry does not require sustained attention. She may do better with audiobooks for literature if reading is fatiguing.

I hope she can find joy and peace through these challenges.

 

[MJmom]

I have the same diagnoses and am sending hugs. I would really shift to unschooling at this point because her energy is wildly variable and the goal should be mostly focused on her well-being, so finding things that engage her are are flexible is key. 

[prairiewindmomma]

A few thoughts?

1. What does she need to get from point A to point B? If her goal is now cc, what does the cc want and need from her? Here, there are rolling open admissions, no high school diploma necessary but the kid needs functional writing and math at a calculus 1 level in order to not enroll in remedial coursework. 

Based on that, I would be using the focused work time on writing and math. If she's needing small bits of work because that's how long she can focus, I'd be pointing her at Math U See. It's a very limited problem set each day, there's not a lot of cross-topic work, and she can rewatch the videos as many times as she needs. There's also a full answer key.

For writing, I'd be focused on good 2-3 paragraph short answers.  She'll likely hit only a couple of long researched essays in her cc career, if any at all depending on her program. She does need to be able to express coherent ideas with decent grammar and style. I think short answers get you there as a start.

2. Based on the "get 'er done" track I've seen at high school, I'd be giving her credit for Study Skills to count as electives based on the time you work with her. I'd look at Food Science (working on functional cooking for people with chronic health issues). I'd give elective PE credits for whatever PT she needs to do (Strength Training, Lifelong Health, whatever). Crash course videos with a little reading also can fill a niche.

3. Science is going to be the hard one. I don't think YouTube video channels alone would get me to a place where I felt ethically ok about that. Looking above, she's close to three credits. I'd look to what your state requires and go from there.Three would be sufficient here.

[prairiewindmomma]

FWIW, here the public school would offer homebound coursework, and would likely be pushing a 5th senior year. I don't think it would be a good fit because the homebound instruction is likely not to be sufficient for getting through the material.  The online coursework that our district offers is not great for a chronically ill person either.  BUT---I do wonder about taking an online course where you could have a full calendar year to complete the work, at your own pacing. K12 maybe?