<p>^^Expecting the AP Language summer assignment tomorrow:(</p>
<p>AP Chem teacher gave the kids the Chem textbook and summer assignment immediately after the Chem honors exam on the last day of school. </p>
<p>The AP Language, and Precalc summer assignments were posted before the end of school. Looks like APUSH doesn’t have an assignment beyond obtaining a particular book before the first day of school. And the foreign language assignment seems to have disappeared.</p>
<p>All in all, they have scaled back the summer requirements. And none are due before the 3rd week of school; they’re presented as “a way to get ahead” before the year starts.</p>
<p>I don’t know if there are any Indiana parents on this forum but I am just irate at the directions that education is going in Indiana. Our current four year graduation rate from public colleges and universities is only 31% yet our state is funding our universities at the same rate as ten years ago so the only way colleges can improve services is by charging ever higher tuition and fees. Now our governor has encouraged the legislature to pass a bill that will give high school students a whopping 6K to 8K scholarship to an Indiana school if they graduate high school in 3 years to save the state money. Of course kids who manage to meet graduation requirements aren’t going to have time for many APs and dual credit courses that will really save them money. And 6-8K is going to go far when IU and Purdue’s tuition in the 12-13 year is going to be over 10K. I can’t imagine that students graduating in 3 years are going to win much merit aid. Our state is pennywise and pound foolish and we are going to end up paying for it.</p>
<p>Hi! D1 graduated last night and now I am going to focus on D2 Class of 2013. D1’s class had the highest Ivy acceptance rate than any other previous class at her school…but guess what? They aren’t all going. In fact, about 30% are choosing schools that gave them substantial merit money - for example, skipping Brown for Tulane. One was appointed to West Point and another to the Air Force Academy instead of Columbia and Cornell. I found this to be very interesting…</p>
<p>Tomorrow is D2’s last final so she will be done for the year - so far she is exiting sophmore year with a solid GPA and we have decided to forego APs next year in favor of dual-enrollment classes. Still shows that she is challenging herself but has a much better chance of receiving college credit.</p>
<p>D2 is going to “Save the Turtles” this summer - she is working on a conservation project to protect endangered species. She has finished the classroom portion of drivers ed but now she has to actually drive! She has quite a bit of summer reading and a summer reading project, a couple of weeks with grandma and her cousins, she has several days set up working in the soup kitchen and then she will be back in school!</p>
<p>momofboston, my D2 is also saving turtles this summer - I think I read about it from you many months ago and showed it to her. There certainly was a lot of paperwork!</p>
<p>She was happy with her SAT II US History score, not so happy with the math level II, but since she doesn’t even know where she will apply, it’s not worth stressing over now. She may want to pursue her favorite sport on a D III level, so we are trying to get a list together so she can have some coaches look at her this summer at several tournaments where she will be playing.</p>
<p>Even though she is my third, her college search will be very different than that of my first 2, who were relatively easy.</p>
<p>momofboston, congrats! are your daughters in public or private if you don’t mind my asking. When you say dual-enrollment classes are talking about doubling up on 2 languages or math, for example? We are not allowed to do that unless we give up electives. However, we are school-less as of now, and leaving private…too much politics and drama, and financially unaffordable, and in my opinion, not worth it. </p>
<p>If your D or mamabear1234’s D want to come and save turtles, they can start on our lawn! This is the worst year for HUGH snap turtles (?) I’ve ever seen and we live in the burbs where you never see them. We got the scare of our lives walking out the door to go to school the other morning. I did my 1 hr drive and when I came back they were gone (must be lurking somewhere in our backyard so I keep my doggy in all the time)…they left two huge holes in our mulch.</p>
<p>My D has been stricken with lyme for the 3rd time in 4 yrs and the dr told her she is in the fight of her life. That is why she has been so fatigued and can’t do much. She had a ruptured cyst on her ovary and was in the hospital after school 2 weeks ago but came home studied and went in for finals. Nothing stops her despite the fatigue; however, it’s time to go to NYC and get to the bottom of this. She doesn’t have a bullseye rash, never found a tick and is never in the grass. The dr prescribed 4 antibiotics and an antifungal and 50,000 un of Vit D3 as her d levels plummeted and so did her cholesterol (which in teens is very bad - but she eats fatty foods so dr is perplexed). This has made her hashimotos much worse. We have a huge lyme group in our state so I’m hoping they can give me a referral to Col-Presbyterian, as she will never be able to take that many antibiotics orally at these massive doses. She has also been given prescriptions for 3 different probiotics to take with them since the flora and fauna will be so disturbed with these meds. Haven’t started them since you can’t be out in the sun and they celebrated their last day of school at the beach yesterday.</p>
<p>I’m having a breakdown not knowing where we will be come fall for jr year - the most important year.</p>
<p>mamabear - D2 is leaving July 12, is yours in the same group?</p>
<p>Meda - D1 went to public school and it was a perfect fit for her. D2 goes to a Catholic School and it is a good fit for her. D1’s class this year was exceptional academically and socially. D2s class in the public school is a mess…very advanced socially with all the challenges that come with it. It is funny how classes in the same community can differ. We are fortunate because we live in an area where there are alot of good public and private schools and they compete among each other for the students.</p>
<p>We learned our lesson with D1 and AP courses. I know that on this board people are really into taking APs. But if your kid is sick on testing day or is just having a bad day on testing day, all their hard work is really for little gain. My D was sick (running a fever) for one of her AP tests and she bombed it. Her entire year came down to that one test…so she will not receive any credit for it next fall. Dual-enrollment classes are offered at D2’s school. She is taking a dual enrollment physics class next year which means she will get 8 college credits from Syracuse U that can be transferred to most other schools (95% of the kids that have taken them have received college credit). The class that is being offered at her school is Physics 101 and 102 with labis the same intro course that is offered at Syracuse. If she gets a B or better, it is likely she will get credit for it in college for a gen ed requirement, but not as a “major” requirement. What sold me on the dual-enrollment is the fact that the grade is cummulative throughout the year, it is not dependant on one test. Lesson learned from D1. She killed herself throughout the year and is not going to receve any credit for that one AP course. The good news is that if she needs to retake a similar course in college, it should be a GPA booster. At the end of the day, you just want to demonstrate that your kid has challenged themselves. Proof point - D1’s friend got into Harvard with 2200 on her SATs and two AP courses (although 14 were offered at our school.)</p>
<p>So excited that my son was done exams today. He called for a ride home and told me he still has some English blogs to fininsh. The kid stresses me! I have a meeting for his next years classes. He needs approval for >2 APs and given his downward spiral of grades this term, I don’t think he’ll get the schedule he wants.</p>
<p>It has been a rough week. DS13 and DS18 are firends with brothers whose Dad died suddenly of a heart attack last week. Much of the past week has been spent with the family and viewing/funeral. Both the mom and grandmom work at the school, so it has really rocked everyone quite a bit.</p>
<p>This is my first message on this thread. I’ve got a 2013 D, as well as a 2010 HS/2014 C son, and recognize some parents from the College Class of 2014 thread.</p>
<p>I just want to get through the next couple of weeks, until D is done with sophomore year. </p>
<p>When will be the first SAT attempt for the 2013ers on this thread? I’m tentatively planning to have D done some test prep this summer and take the SAT for the first time in October. Her sophomore PSAT score was lower than I would have liked, so I think she would benefit from some formal prep. I hate the thought of trying to squeeze in the test prep during the junior year, as she is so busy during the school year.</p>
<p>medavinci…wow…tough going for you and your daughter. I really hope that there is a break through/resolution to the lyme soon. There was a special on PBS about the failure of our medical profession to identify and address this public health issue in the early years. Hopefully, some of the recent gains in treatment will benefit her ASAP. One coworker also battled apparent “multiple” lyme disease infections and was very very ill with this sort of chronic infection. However, despite frustration over the fits and false starts, they did eventually find a cocktail of antibiotics that finally shook that bug for good. He said it was a bit like the newer treatment for HIV …a little bit of different drugs together was more successful than several sequential atom bombs of one antibiotics at a time. Hopefully, the lessons learned from other tough cases will benefit your daughter this summer and she can look forward to a healthy junior year. </p>
<p>I am sure it will be the same for your daughter but even more frightening for a child/teen who is dealing with everything else and wants to be at school and not having to deal with a medium term health issue. She will emerge a strong and emphathetic kid (and healthy) just have faith and keep your spirits up. </p>
<p>good luck!</p>
<p>Haven’t been here in a while. I find that the closer it gets to the real “college application time”, the more this site makes me anxious so I am avoiding it a little ;)</p>
<p>My heart really goes out to those who struggle with their kid’s health. This is truly THE most important thing - something we frequently don’t realize until we are faced with it.</p>
<p>Last day of school for DS. He has lost his perfect GPA this quarter, which is a curse and a blessing at the same time. Personally I think it makes him look more “normal” 
Happy with his SAT US History result, just one more to go.
He will be taking ACT this coming Saturday as he needs the score by mid July for his early college scholarship. Awaiting AP results - boy, it does take forever, doesn’t it?
As for the SAT - he is asking for my advice and I think he should take it right after PSAT, which I guess will be November?
He is about ready to go for a driver’s licence test, which makes me really, really nervous.
His summer will be busy with online courses and his filming stuff - no major trips planned this year, he really needs to take care of his graduation requirements so he will be able to graduate when the time comes.
Our school will run an ad it tomorrow’s paper - I will be able to see which colleges the seniors have chosen to attend. Should be interesting. So far I know about the top 3 - Stanford, MIT, Princeton respectively…</p>
<p><em>waving at sacchi</em></p>
<p>Ds will start home SAT prep next week. He’ll follow the plan we did for ds1, which is basically use SAT prep to help with the PSAT in October. Then he’ll take the SAT in January and see how it goes. If he needs to take it again, he’ll do so in May, then last two Subject Tests in June. I’m curious to see what his baseline SAT score will be next week. I’m hoping he’ll be in the running for NMSF.</p>
<p>Ds is loving his internship. He’s going to be working fewer hours than originally planned, so he’s signed up to do the volunteering gig he’s down for the past three years (and loves) one day a week. Meanwhile, by next Friday, he’ll be done with driving hours. Woohoo!</p>
<p>medavinci: so sorry to hear about your D’s Lyme! What a stressful time, what with the school change and all. My good friend has a saying: “it all works out OK in the end; if it’s not OK, then it’s not the end.” Not trying to be trite, but it will all work out.</p>
<p>Longhaul: so sorry to hear of the passing of your sons’ friends dad. </p>
<p>Hi Sacchi! Welcome :)</p>
<p>SAT’s: I think I’m going to suggest the October SAT to D2 to get it out of the way & to act as the PSAT prep. They have to take the ACT in school for a graduation requirement in March of their junior year, and she may have to take a few SAT IIs next May/June, so it would be good to spread the testing around. D1 was a “one and done” girl, and D2 tends to test as well if not just a hair better than her so I’m hoping she’ll be able to do the same.</p>
<p>Life is quiet here 
I’m trying to be very quiet about any junior year things, or the college search, so D2 can really just chill out and decompress. She’s gotten a little mail here and there and is quite taken right now with Oberlin.</p>
<p>I think the discussions about where the seniors are going has raised the college search visibility for the sophomores. My D seemed oblivious to the whole thing but recently has expressed some stress over this. She says there is a tendency for students to “claim” a university and resent it if another kid says they may apply. It is a bit weird and competitive. For example, D told a friend who has her heart set on going to school in california that she is doing a summer program in Berkeley and if she likes it out there may apply to one of the california schools. The friend became quite upset saying that she musn’t apply to Stanford or Berkeley because she may take “her” spot…the kid tried to joke about it but D said she could feel the tension and has decided that she had better not discuss her potential choices with friends. It is a bit sad…the kids feel that there is some type of “quota” to the best schools (particularly our instate schools–UVA, WandM, even James Madison)…where there is the sense that the schools try to spread out and not take too many from one school or even county. </p>
<p>I have tried to tell her that there are hundreds of great schools out there and she should definitely be prepared to consider schools that are not well known in our area…the counselors tend to push the schools they know and are nearby. As I see t he stress begin to start…I realize CC may be the perfect stress reliever…</p>
<p>CC is a great place to hear about schools outside of your local “box” and consider places that may be the perfect fit, provide good aid but are under the radar. I find, in that respect, CC is a good stress reliever for a parent…you can watch and read and learn and speculate and ask questions without stressing yourself or your kid. The key is not to compare your kid to the ones on CC but rather compare your kid to the stats on the school website to see if it is a reach/fit/safety. I take a lot of hte stuff on CC about stats and achievments with a grain of salt since it is a self selected group and not representative of the average student. </p>
<p>In my S (freshman in college now) college search, I found the most useful forums were the specialty forums for minority students and art students (how to navigate a very specialized application process). The art forum is also just a friendly place to learn about art and art schools. If you want to go to a super low stress cc forum (no body gives a hoot about test scores or grades) check out the art forum…very quirky and artsy and kind and lots of kids post their portfolios so you see some pretty neat art and photos.</p>
<p>Also, once a kid is in school, the CC school forum is a goldmine of information about quirks in the registration process, how to send packages, bedsheet sizes, best hotels for visiting parents, etc. </p>
<p>This group is helpful for just hearing about the little stuff of our rising juniorsbut I am sure will be a very supportive group as we start the college search process. I am hoping to hear how you and your kids organize your college visits, SAT prep, how to balance sports and IB programs, as well as the daily concerns about health/social/family well being etc…it is like a virtual airing of grievences and gripes and worries…</p>
<p>fineartsmajormom: thank you for putting things in perspective. I am literally physically getting ill and overwhelmed by this whole process since I only have one child. My family is all gone on to heaven, so it makes it tough. </p>
<p>She is leaving one school (with all the politics and drama) for where we don’t know as I mentioned. I want to do the best for her, and I never dreamed in a million years, with all the things she was involved in over the years, that we would feel paralyzed and so vulnerable right now.</p>
<p>I think it is important to keep it in perspective but when you hear and read things about kids who are discovering a cure, writing sonatas, penning novels, etc., it makes you feel like your kid is slacking! One of the reasons we are leaving school is that my d’s school hates the “B” word - as in B on the report card. What they don’t understand is that making the courses as tough as they do, does not help the kids in the end, it only discourages and demeans them. There are so many bright creative kids in my d’s school, but the school expects them all to be tops to boost their stats. It’s all teacher contingent and it’s all about the money. They really give special treatment to the rich as that is who feeds them. </p>
<p>Back to reality, and I just hope and pray we wind up where the universe wants us to be in the end. </p>
<p>Have a wonderful summer everyone - I will be online learning from everyone as well.</p>
<p>Rob D: thank you for your good wishes. I hope I can stay positive amidst the chaos and uncertainty. </p>
<p>I know each school is different, however, is your D taking SATs and PSATs in October? My d’s current school (which will not be our school next year) takes psats in oct and sats in jan and may. i don’t know what the local public schools do, and I’m sure each state is different.</p>
<p>Medavinci - You can register your daughter for whatever SAT date you want. Your daughter’s school might be a testing site for only Jan and May, but you select the test site when you register and you can select whatever site is available for that testing date. The PSAT is only offered in October.</p>
<p>Re: SAT prep. My son is one of those hardheaded kids who doesn’t believe the stove is hot until he burns himself on it…lol. I’ve already bought him the Blue Book which remains untouched. He read a few chapters of the SparkNotes SAT prep book the night before he took the SAT last month. After getting his scores back, he agrees that he needs to prepare. I hate that I had to “waste” a sitting to do it. But better now than next May. </p>
<p>Like I said before, NMSF is very unlikely for him. But he will start prepping this summer by reading the Direct Hits books and reviewing geometry which was a killer for him on the SAT. I think if those areas are covered well during the summer, he should be in a good place for overall prep with the Blue Book and the other prep available through the collegeboard during the year. I’m hoping that he’ll see about a 300 point increase.</p>
<p>Yup the PSAT is always in October and at our HS, but you can take the SAT anywhere; it’s not limited to your HS. You may have to travel and I don’t believe my older D ever took the SAT at our HS; that seems to be the county ACT site, and another HS hosts the SAT. </p>
<p>Having gone through the process with D1 I am much more “chill” with D2. Except I’m not, because I know a lot more this go around I looked at her college list over the weekend and had a brief “oh s*^t” moment, wondering where she’ll end up. Frankly, she couldn’t have a better transcript at this point, and she tests well (which I’m trying to be so casual about with regards to the PSAT: big sis was a NMF & D2 scored higher on her sophomore try; in theory she should make it, but I don’t want her to think she HAS to, KWIM?) but she’s looking at such niche creative writing programs; D1 had broader interests. </p>
<p>BUT at the end of the day, I don’t want her to be stressed for the next two years about stuff she can’t control. I want her to enjoy the passions she pursues, and not have them just be things she does because they look good on a resume. AND I want our relationship to stay healthy. 2 years from now, all of our kids will have a college acceptance in hand or will have decided to take a gap year, or join the military, etc. and it will all be fine.</p>
<p>@momofboston, nope, June and first part of July are busy tournament season weeks, so she is going end of July/beginning of August. We are a little apprehensive about sending youngest out of the country alone, but we will all survive!</p>
<p>We are starting our college tours this summer where ever we happen to be for tournaments. Like robD’s D she is a great test taker, and she has decided to e-mail some D III coaches to come see her play this summer. A whole new world for us, she always thought she would not try to play in college.</p>