<p>starbright- the breakdown is a great feature. For example my D has a 89.8 overall grade in Spanish. She does all her HW and does well on the tests. Where she is not doing well is in participation. My D is uncomfortable raising her hand and in speaking the language out loud. But what is amazing is that by looking at the weekly participation grade you can see how much of a difference it makes just raising your hand a couple of times. Though it might not seem like a lot of points it is often what makes the difference between the B+ grade and the A-. And at our high school GPA is calculated without the + and -'s so it is a big difference between an A and a B.</p>
<p>^ Great example. I think it can be so highly motivating and so educational (beyond class content). I so wish I could get her teachers to get this. They are great teachers in so many ways, it’s a great school and kids do very well at college…but this feature is lacking. They actually downplay grades a LOT (kids don’t even know the class average on an exam), in the name of reducing stress and moving them away from a grade focus. Now granted the kids do tend to be very Type A and extremely concerned about doing well anyway (given who is attracted and who gets in), and so the school is right to concern itself about managing their stress level. But I think they do a disservice to them by not providing a lot of detailed feedback about how exactly they are doing (and also making the teacher’s more accountable to the final grade the students are given).</p>
<p>In our case, and with many of DD’s friends, the feedback actually relieves stress. They know exactly where they are and what they need to improve. Knowing how each component of the class contributes to the final grade helps them see the importance of things like class participation.</p>
<p>The PTO/Ed Fund Boosters (sort of an all school Booster group) funds Edline for the high school. The district offers a program called Aeries, but it lacks many of the Edline features. Since Edline is already in the Ed Fund budget, it’s continuing. It offers a lot more information for students and parents. The homework online is a great feature. Many of the teachers post the homework in advance, which helps the kids manage their time.</p>
<p>Today is a half day for my son AND the end of the first quarter. Instead of gearing down this has been a hell week for him with a minimum of 3 tests or quizes every day. His grades have been all over the place this quarter as he has grappled with many time management issues that he never had before. He is taking 7 academic classes (2 AP, 2 gifted/honors, 3 honors) and they are really challenging him in ways that he did not imagine. He never imagined that he would need to spend over 3 hours every night just on reading alone for his gifted English and AP World classes, this added to multiple hours for regular homework assignments make for very long evenings. Time management is a necessity which he must learn to conquer. Despite this, he still claims to be happy with his classes and his life and has told me that he fully plans to step it up even further next year (but we will see how he does at the end of the semester in January before he makes next year class choices). </p>
<p>I am still working on cutting the academic and emotional umbilical cord…and I am having a tough time. It is hard when it is your last child, your baby, to not step in a micromanage, especially when you have a kid who clearly is not that proficient yet at mapping out his study versus play times. But I know intellectually and emotionally it is better for him to figure it all out now, while he is safely living in our home than to have me organize him and then have him get to college and fall apart (as I have seen with friends who were too “on top” on the their kids in high school). It is a long tough process though. Sigh.</p>
<p>D2 just had a complete melt down last Sat. It started with her solo(s) for the Nutcracker performance. It’s not what she wanted. She then went on to her schoolwork - how hard it is, how terribly she is doing, how she dislikes her teachers. A lot of tears for over an hour.</p>
<p>I decided not to get into detail of her grades and schoolwork at that point, and told her that her part in the Nutcracker is not set until Nov, no point in worrying about it.</p>
<p>Three days later, a bit calmer, she told us that mid semester grades should be all As except Spanish (B). I asked her why all the anxiety. She said, “It could have gone either way. But I guess there are dumber kids in my class.”</p>
<p>I think what’s throwing D2 off is she is working harder than any other time, and she thought with her hard work she would be getting easy As, but that’s not the case as those courses get harder. I did end up giving her a pep talk about how it’s not easy for anyone, and I am proud of her for working so hard. Sometimes she just needs to let it go after she has done all she could. I am glad it’s happening now while she is still at home than when she is in college.</p>
<p>oldfort, this seems to be the age where the kids are learning that balancing school and ECs can really be a challange. Couple that with hormones! I’m thankful that DD feels free to expreess her feelings of stress and I’ve learned how to listen more, too. It’s no fun to be in a house of yellers! Through this, she’s learning how to manage time and deal with stress.</p>
<p>I remember when DD danced in the Nutcracker. Your D is also physically tired! I know that’s what sets my D off!</p>
<p>My 15 year old DD is right there with all of yours. Classes this year are more difficult and require more time than she is use to putting in. The ready for AP Euro is a couple of hours each night on top of other homework. Her “fun” class journalism, which she loves actually requires more time than she thought it would. </p>
<p>Like others I try to listen when she is in melt down mode and tell her that we are proud of her hard work. She is definitely getting better at time management, but still struggles. Her EC is riding and showing her horse in hunter/jumpers which takes a lot of time. Next week she has her year end show which she has always loved participating in. Normally she would miss both Thursday and Friday of school to be at the horseshow, but not this year. She will go in the afternoon on Thursday and go to her first 3 periods Friday before heading to the show.</p>
<p>I just caught up on the last 5 or so pages of this thread. I have to think to come in the cafe and check on this more often, because I do love chocolate, and wine, and all the other delicious things happening in here. Let me share a couple icons we have on the '10 thread, this started as a coffee mug [<em>]) and then morphed into a beer stein [</em>]} We also have a margarita glass Y for those who do not prefer beer.</p>
<p>Driving- my D will be eligible to start driving in the winter, we’ll see when we actually start taking her out depending on the weather, road conditions in the northeast. She will take driver’s ed next fall in school so we have quite a while before she will be out there on her own. Many of her friends are also on the young side of the grade, so I don’t anticipate many friends with licenses in the near future.</p>
<p>I think I already said in the forum thread that she didn’t do so well on a PSAT practice test from the booklet, we’ll see what the real results are in Dec. I mostly want to look for patterns were she can improve. She is not a strong standardized test taker. We will probably look at some test optional schools in the summer for the beginnings of the high level visits.</p>
<p>We had mid-term grades close this past week. Private school sounds very similar to oldfort’s in many respects. We get the grades plus a half page of comments from each teacher. Although the grades were not what she expected in some cases, the comments all talked about her preparedness and good participation in classes. She thinks she can improve a few by the end of the term. </p>
<p>She also has gone from “not liking science” to really enjoying her H Chem class and said she may wish to take AP Chem next year. She has always liked math, and the writing classes (English/History) have always been her weaker areas. </p>
<p>Homework has been containable so far. Her fall sport also ends this week which will give extra time.</p>
<p>ETA- we have also had meltdowns about who knows what recently. This D is much more extreme with her emotions than her older sis.</p>
<p>Good luck to everyone through the rest of the fall of soph year!</p>
<p>ttfn</p>
<p>Don’t even get me started with the hormonal stuff. I would just want to shoot myself.</p>
<p>It’s really interesting how different parenting my S is from parenting my D. There are so many variables that it is hard to know the reasons, however we are clearly not responsible for either the successes or the failures. 
</p>
<p>S is finishing up the 1st quarter as well and seems to be able to glide successfully along with only an occasional major output of effort. His AP Spanish class is the only one where he is skirting the borderline between an A and a B+. It will be interesting to see how his AP scores end up for him this year. I thought this would be the year where he would finally be more stressed by school, however he hasn’t broken a sweat as of yet. So different from his very successful, older sister who was much more emotional about it all. I just hope he isn’t in for a huge shock when he gets to college.</p>
<p>Oh Jackie, I like the Y, but make mine a martini (vodka, olives - no ice).</p>
<p>I am envious of those of you whose kids don’t have to put too much effort into schoolwork this year. I find watching my son toil away (for 6+ hours every night)very stressful…and more stressful when he should be working and he is procrastinating. I am really working on not letting it bug me either way. Here’s my glass, Y , please fill it with a Cosmopolitan please! </p>
<p>For those of you who had missed my other posts, he has so much work because HE chose an overloaded courseload. Crazy rabbit!</p>
<p>Seiclan, I wouldn’t wish 6+ hours of homework per night on anyone! The flip side is that your son is learning how to put sustained effort into achievement for his classes. </p>
<p>I suspect that my S is in for a rude surprise at some point where he’ll really have to work at something and it won’t come easily. He’s led a pretty charmed life so far and I hope he’ll be able to work hard when he needs to do so.</p>
<p>I make really good cosmo, with real lime and Cointreau, not with triple sec.</p>
<p>It’s almost 9:00 P.M. and DD is still at school. Gotta love those ECs. I wouldn’t mind but guess who has to pick her up??? Then, she’ll have to stay up to finish her homework and study for the test she missed today when she left school early for her sports match. Tomorrow morning is going to be interesting…</p>
<p>as long as you guys can keep this on the first page, I’ll pop in here more often. With Y Y Y all around :D</p>
<p>oldfort- What is the recipe for your cosmo? I also love my cosmos with cointreau instead of triple sec but have yet to find the right recipe to make them to my liking at home (although I have all the ingredients).</p>
<p>Equal parts of vodka, Cointreau, cranberry juice, half part of freshly squeezed lime juice. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, add all ingredients and shake vigorously. I like to use chipped smaller ice, so when you shake you’ll get some ice chips in the drink. Freshly squeezed lime juice gives it some pulp.</p>
<p>When cosmo is made like this, it has a light pink color with pulp floating on top. If it’s made with triple sec or bottled lime juice, it’s a darker red color. The recipe above is less sweet with tart taste. I could usually tell if it’s going to be a good cosmo just by looking at the color.</p>
<p>Which brand of vodka do you recommend? I had heard that it would make the difference.</p>
<p>I have seen Grey Goose and Absolute in my house. I can’t tell you that I could taste a difference.</p>