<p>Mom24boys, I loved the grade one essay! My S12 read it too and thought it was a hoot!
Re summer plans: D13 will travel to 4 or 5 tournaments over the summer (on the mainland, so a lot of travel time involved), study math/calculus with her older brother, and intern with a local firm for some work experience in the area she thinks that she’d like to pursue. I’m hoping that she won’t be as busy as the last few summers when she has taken high school courses so that she can cram as much into the school year as possible! S12 will be coaching, traveling to tournaments and helping his sister, plus he hopes to get into a summer program at a university in the east for two weeks.</p>
<p>Glad so many people have NEU on the list - I tried to get DS to look without success. I went to grad school there (business) and there are a number of really top-notch professors (far better than my tippy-top undergrad alma mater, actually). </p>
<p>Count me in as a fan of the grade one essay!</p>
<p>“YDS – My niece is a frosh at American. She was rejected at GTown (or was it GW - can’t remember). She said if she had to do application over again, she would never have applied to anything outside of D.C. She is very much NOT an urban kid, but the proximity to internships, museums and Trick or Treating on Embassy Row is pure heaven for her.”</p>
<p>Longhaul, this is the dilemma for me. Since ds2 was 4, when he tied his first Windsor knot, I have envisioned him in DC. And so has he. We loved both the schools on our trip to California, and I know he could be happy there, but hearing about GW and the proximity to the White House and the Mall and just the idea of him being in the thick of it is like a siren’s song to me. I, of course, will keep my mouth shut in front of him and instead come here to unload.</p>
<p>Steve, thanks for the suggestion. Actually, dd is not a musician at all-she’s interested in the auxiliary portion of the band. </p>
<p>I also need to register her the SAT and ACT in June. </p>
<p>We’re trying to find time to see ASU and U of A this summer, but can’t seem to find a time yet. DD has 2 days off in October, but I’d like to get the visits done this summer.</p>
<p>VBCMom–by auxiliary do you mean percussion or do you mean sound booth production, etc.?</p>
<p>YDS–I would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE for one of the kids to go to school in DC simply because it would give me an excuse to visit there more often. We walked by GW on our way to Georgetown. It doesn’t have the “campus” feel, at least from the sidewalk, that other schools have had, but, being in DC, I’d give that up. I’m NOT an urban person either but I would convert to live in DC (actually I would live in Alexandria but same thing).</p>
<p>Thanks for tips above on questions to ask reps at college fairs. Along those lines:</p>
<p>–parents are invited to the one we are attending, but do they generally accompany kids during their chats with reps?</p>
<p>–what do boys wear?</p>
<p>–is it okay for the kid to admit that he doesn’t yet know what he wants to do? He may have ideas about possible majors, but that is as far as it goes right now. </p>
<p>Thanks for all your expertise!</p>
<p>MomofNEA–the college fairs we have attended are basically just a trade show for colleges. They have booths set up all over and piles of information. Yes, make your child take the lead, ask questions, and feel free to listen in but let your son do most of the talking. It is perfectly fine to say that you have an undecided major. They may ask what your favorite classes are or something so he should be prepared for that. If you have ever gone to a “home show” at an “arena” somewhere, this is pretty much what a college fair is. The largest one in our area, most parents attend with their child. As for what to wear, comfortable walking shoes first, then just look clean. A polo shirt and shorts (depending on the weather) is fine around here. Most kids had on jeans and a t-shirt or polo shirt though.</p>
<p>Steve,
I actually mean the colorguard and twirlers. DD has been involved since she was 6! She’s still competing, but now also coaches 2 little kids squads. She has wanted to be involved at the college level for years. Between that and her major (basically something else she’s wanted to do for at least 5 years), it’s more a matter of finding the right “fit” for her, being accepted with the auxiliaries and figuring the finances!</p>
<p>Quite a difference from my oldest…we had no idea about schools fall of his senior year!!</p>
<p>VBCMom–I get it now. We have marching band kids too. Auxiliary here is pit and percussion. Guard would be flags, riffles, etc.</p>
<p>Glad everyone liked the essay.</p>
<p>Summer plans - Basically, get drivers license - can’t fit drivers ed into the school year, so that is the primary goal for summer. Possible take a class at local CC and hopefully write Common Ap essay. It doesn’t sound like much, but I’m unsure if any of it will get done. All attempts to apply to summer programs failed.</p>
<p>PghMomof2 - I have also failed to get DS interested in NEU, will try a little longer and then give up.</p>
<p>VBCMom-if your DD is still thinking those same 3 majors, I know of the perfect school for her:D [Majors</a> and minors and programs, Admissions, UW-Eau Claire](<a href=“http://www.uwec.edu/Admissions/facts/index.htm]Majors”>http://www.uwec.edu/Admissions/facts/index.htm) . UG degrees in 2 and graduate degree in the 3rd. They have a 300 piece marching band with guard and twirlers. The band gets to travel every other year, I think. They were in Rome and a cruise around the Med this past winter. They have great connections to top high school bands around the area for potential jobs after graduation too. If you are anywhere in the Midwest Consortiaum, costs are very reasonable.</p>
<p>Only drawback, if it is a drawback, WI, winter=cold.</p>
<p>SteveMA, that is a nice boy! My pregame plan for the ACT is a quck stop at Dunkin Donuts for a flatbread sandwich, bagel w/cream cheese, and strawberry milk :)</p>
<p>Oh my goodness! You all have just been posting and posting! 
</p>
<p>Mom24boys- I too loved the 1st grade essay. Hilarious. Reminds me of some artwork hanging in my mom’s home office to this day on which I wrote “Oh beautiful for spaces skies”
;)</p>
<p>re: summer plans. Step-D is fully booked. Over Memorial Day weekend, she’s flying to CA to meet up with H (who will be out there for work) and to tour San Diego State, Loyola Marymount and Cal State Longbeach. Then, she’ll fly back to her mom’s. In early June she’s going to be a Junior Counselor at her camp in NC. Counselors at this particular camp are generally college kids so this is the “stepping-stone” to perhaps becoming a counselor later. This is going to be more stressful than it sounds because, due to scheduling of camp, etc, she will have to take the June ACT in North Carolina! sigh. There’s going to be a lot of running around involved, but it’s important and I’ve just got to make it work. </p>
<p>After camp, Step-D is doing an Athletic Training camp (in July) and then we are off on our 7 day college extravaganza. ha Schools we’re planning on. Pitt, Duquesne, Xavier (OH,) U of Cinci, Indiana, Marquette, U of Wisco, Coe College, U of Iowa, and Western Michigan. </p>
<p>At the end of July/beginning of August, she’s attending an international conference for Operation Smile that will be held at Georgetown. A few days after that’s concluded, her Senior year will begin. (her school starts very early.) </p>
<p>In case I don’t get on here tomorrow (although whom are we kidding, ha) GOOD LUCK to all of the ACT testers. Let’s hope they all get the results they are hoping for!!</p>
<p>Laurendog, I’ll be looking out for your Coe visit report. That was the first school that sent my son a long handwritten note from a student. That definitely caught my eye.</p>
<p>SteveMA: “clean”–LOL–you obviously have a boy! Thanks for the tips! This particular fair is small (it is at our HS) but good practice for bigger ones. I’m hoping someplace catches his eye!</p>
<p>reeinaz–we have some friends who’s DD is at Coe and absolutely LOVES it. We have driven by the college and from the freeway it looks pretty junky, however, if you get off the highway and go to campus, WOW, pretty campus. It’s pretty close to downtown Cedar Rapids, which was hit hard by flooding but is rebuilding. There are some fun shops, etc. downtown–keep in mind it’s “downtown” of a town of 150,000 or so. Cedar Rapids is a very pretty town if you venture off the highway.</p>
<p>MomofNEA–:D-yes, we have more than one boy.</p>
<p>D13 doesn’t have much scheduled this summer. We’re taking a trip to Italy though in July, which should be fun. She was considering a 2-3 week academic program but it would have conflicted with our trip.</p>
<p>Currently her list has 24 schools on it, and I don’t see that going down between now and application time. She’s been having difficulty ruling schools out based on fit, she could see herself at any of the 24 that are left. Her gameplan (last I checked) was to apply to all of the EA schools she is considering (Case Western, MIT, and UChicago), and choosing her RD schools based on those results. She was considering NEU, but decided that the coop program wasn’t for her.</p>
<p>She has a fun month ahead though, the teacher of her online class just scheduled their last test for the week before the May SAT which she’s taking. And starting the Monday after that SAT are the AP Tests! But then everything should drop off, with smooth sailing until Subject Tests in June.</p>
<p>I’m super duper excited. Class choices for senior year came out and he has some very cool and interesting choices. It looks like he’ll be able to study his 3 interests in depth which might help him narrow down his choice of majors. </p>
<p>SteveMA, thanks for the info about Coe. S does not want an environment like Philly, where we live. So a considerably less urban environment is right up his alley. You’d never guess he was a city kid born and raised. He’s not outdoorsy. He’s just looking for a slower, quieter pace.</p>
<p>Some of these summers sound pretty packed. Ds is something of a slacker. 
Besides the DC program, he’s been asked back to intern at the congressional office, but he hasn’t set that in place yet, I don’t think. Next week he’ll hear about one other program for which he’s applied, but it’s just another week.</p>
<p>I’d like for him to get a paying job! 
Oh, he did commit to pet-sit for a friend. She pays good money.</p>
<p>Summer plans still up in the air here. S’13 is still waiting to hear back from the one research program he applied to. Crazy hard to get in. I hear there have been over 300 apps for 12 slots. So odds are very good he’ll be home for the summer. My best guess is he will take a class at the local CC and teach tennis. The tennis pays well and he enjoys it. We’ll also get him going on the common app, etc. Tests are done and most visits are done. Probably take a drive to Tallahassee to look at FSU and that may be all (maybe Tulane just because I really like N.O.).</p>
<p>Other good stuff happening for S’13. His HS tennis team won the regional final today, so they go to the state championships next week in Orlando. Then prom is next weekend. A busy, fun week all around.</p>
<p>Good luck to the ACT takers out there.</p>