<p>My D’s school doesn’t accept the credit taken outside. They list on the transcript tho if it means anything. What makes it worse is that she put off the required art class till senior year. Instead of two advanced science courses she is taking now, she will be taking an art class and an elective. The rest remains about the same. It seems pretty light weight to me.</p>
<p>Iglooo - Your D’s overall courseload shows rigor. The schools she’s applying to will see what the hs offers and see what she has taken. I wouldn’t worry too much. I do like cherryhills’ idea of a self study. That would show good self initiative and her willingness to go beyond what her school offers.</p>
<p>Igloo - i agree with BUandBC. Your daughter has tough classes during high school, and should be fine as long as she has plenty of academic courses senior year - it doesn’t have to exceed the rigor of junior year. I don’t think having art and an elective along with core classes looks bad.</p>
<p>And speaking of sons who are bright and having trouble dotting all of their i’s and crossing all of their t’s in order to get good grades - someone send good vibes our way for the next three weeks. S has dug himself quite a hole for 2nd quarter grades. He thinks he can pull them up. i hope he’s right.</p>
<p>BCand BU, PN Thank you for reassuring me. I’ll check what self study she can do. </p>
<p>PN sending you good wishes for you son. Does he have to catch up in the quarter or in the year? If in the year, he’s got time.</p>
<p>Self study is a rewarding option, and it doesn’t have to be conducted alone. My D and two other girls have been studying ancient Greek together for two years. The Latin teacher is letting them borrow his books and has encouraged them to prepare for the Ntl. Greek Exams. Having a test in the spring motivates them to meet weekly (after school). This group-study will not be officially recognized on the transcript …but the kids are taking it seriously nonetheless. </p>
<p>Igloo --what would she like to study that’s not available at the school? Perhaps that’s the starting point.</p>
<p>Igloo - he has to salvage his 2nd quarter grades. His 1st quarter grades were OK, but this current grading period is not good at all. His 1st semester grades (that colleges will see 
) are 40% 1st quarter, 40% 2nd quarter, and 20% comprehensive final. Sigh.</p>
<p>PN… I will send positive thoughts your way because I can totally relate to how much anxiety these bright but lazy boys produce. They don’t seem to grasp the significance of how important EVERYTHING they turn in or study for is… especially this year. My DS for the first time in his academic HS career ended up with almost straight A’s his first quarter. Somehow I just can’t believe that he will be able to pull this off for the 2nd. He is always a first quarter kid. He tends to get overwhelmed at the end of the semester when everything is due at the same time. We do not have any kind of school loop thing where we can check grades and if I ask my DS about them he just shrugs and says, 'it’s all good mom, quit worrying". Unfortunately I have heard that before…sigh. It is going to be a LONG 3 weeks. His HS is also 40% second semester, 40% second… roughly and 25% comprehensive final…</p>
<p>OK 5boys - we are officially in this together! S didn’t have straight A’s 1st semester, but he had good enough grades for where he’s aiming. Let’s hope they both finish strong this semester! </p>
<p>And all the other 2012’s out there! i will say, I’m glad my son finished his semester right before Christmas break. My older son went to different high school, and they had two weeks of classes and a week of finals AFTER Christmas break. I didn’t really like that system.</p>
<p>Yes, PN… we will at least have each other to either congratulate or cry with. I also LOVE that my sons HS ends the 1st semester right before xmas break… It is so nice to have all your finals over with so you can just relax and start fresh in Jan… My DS is actually leaving second semester to go to school in Vermont… He doesn’t have to be there till Jan. 29th, so he has a LONG winter break… his brother is insanely jealous. He is going to apply for a job tomorrow at a local mountaineering store… I’m keeping my fingers crossed he gets it. It will at least keep him busy for those 6 weeks he is off.</p>
<p>5boys, PN, and (I think) seiclan - I will be with all of you in spirit as you urge your boys on this 2nd Q. This was my life 3 yrs ago with D1. Seiclan, I misspoke yesterday - it wasn’t until after junior yr that I decided to relax a little with D. Second Q was brutal and I do think it was our parental pressure that kept her on track. We have that 40/40/20 grading system as well, and D usually managed to pull her grade up with the final, due in part to the aforementioned pressure.</p>
<p>We are in the same boat PN and 5boys. The semester grades are calculated roughly the same way and unfortunately for us, midterms are January (the 21st is the end of the exam/quarter/semester). Christmas break will not really be so. There will be HW and papers due. We have 5 weeks left of the quarter…grades can go either way.</p>
<p>PRJ - that is good to hear. I am thinking that I will do the same. I am working on a bargain with DS for the SAT’s still (remember he refuses prep). If he gets below a certain score (more than 100 points less than his math score) then he will (hopefully) agree to a tutor for the June test. </p>
<p>I am most worried about the third quarter here, workload wise. AP English Lang gives a quarter long research paper…not my son’s forte (although a valuable skill to be able to do for college). This paper has quite the rep at our school so I am already worried about his getting it done and his not dropping the ball in his other classes while doing this.</p>
<p>5boys, PN and Seiclan - sending positive vibes your way. Believe me, I never thought I’d be on this side of the fence with a happy college freshman. It was a miserable junior year but we got through it. Things get better!</p>
<p>Hang in there, parents of boys. This too shall pass. When my son was a junior he seemed to think the shortest distance between 2 points is a zig-zag in reverse. But, he made it. I don’t have a magic spell, I will send you my moral support. :)</p>
<p>Count me in! My S got all A’s 1Q, but decided to drop from AP English 11 to Regents English 11 after the first quarter. I fully supported the decision. He will still have 3 AP classes + Enriched pre-calc + German 4 + Computer Science. The English would have been a thorn in his side all year and impacted his GPA (both that class and others given the work load). He will be much happier concentrating on the AP classes he is interested in. But it will be a long year…</p>
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<p>Thanks lilmom! I thought I WAS relaxed, but I think I’d need some Valium to be relaxed about the current grades. He swears they’ll come up over the next 3 weeks and that they aren’t really as bad as they look online. Uh-huh. And now (great timing) he has some awful flu and is in bed right now.</p>
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<p>I. Love. This. </p>
<p>No wait - I hate it because it’s so true!</p>
<p>I have to confess we haven’t been real effective at helping S get organized. We have operated very hands off 95% of the time with occasional peeks at the grades followed by lectures and a week of hand holding. Repeat ad nauseum. I think what I’m hoping to do for the next year is not micromanage actual assignments and studying for tests (I don’t know what assignments he has anyway), but schedule a weekly sit down to kind of make sure he’s paying attention and not ignoring things. </p>
<p>This is a kid who, last year when he dug himself a hole and had to really focus for 3 or 4 weeks, said, “I know what I need to do - I just need to stop doing so much math and actually pay attention in class.” Apparently he was sitting through classes he wasn’t very interested and doing math for fun that had nothing to do with his actual math class.</p>
<p>So, how many parents out there have had to say, “Johnny, you need to bring your grades up. I hope you aren’t sitting around doing math all day!”</p>
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<p>Funny! That’s my laugh of the day. thanks. :)</p>
<p>Yours are better than mine. Mine is, “You need to bring your grades up. I hope you are’t sitting arround chatting online all day! It is too late to cry next December(2011) and 2012 April.”</p>
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<p>PinotNoir, your S may be right. I know I’ve looked up grades online and found that not all assignments had been graded and posted. My D’s calc teacher hasn’t posted a grade since end end of Sept! (that’s another story) So, I’ve found it necessary to email the teacher for clarification. </p>
<p>I wish my S had done his math during class!! 
That was his least favorite subject!</p>
<p>My D is feeling the stress of school work once again. She’s been working hard to stay caught up and seems to be burning out. Yesterday, she just sighed, “When can I go to college already?” How different does she think things will be?</p>
<p>I wish she had a social connection in school. She gave up student government because of her sport and demanding classes. Many of her friends are just as busy as she is in other activities so they don’t see each other. High school should be a fun place. I know I enjoyed it even though I’d never go back!</p>