Parents of the HS Class of 2013

Parents of HS Class of 20xx
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<p>I am so jealous of those of you for whom school is over or almost over! We still have 3 more weeks, and lots of projects (one is a major project) in the AP classes, plus the sports team is into the post-season play, so still practice every night. And the club sport season stars this weekend too! I need a break, D needs a break, and none in sight.</p>

<p>wherenext, congrats on finding a school she likes and has a good chance of acceptance. We have one like that if all the other more selective ones don’t work out.</p>

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<p>wherenext, welcome back! Boulder is a really neat place. When I was in highschool, I wanted to go to UC Boulder and my mother wouldn’t hear of it! She said that I’d turn into a hippie and never come back! ha ha! (I think she knew a kid that had happened to.) If your D goes there, I can live vicariously through her.<br>
I ended up going to school in NYC btw, so I can definitely see the appeal of boulder for a kid who also loves the city.</p>

<p>Good luck on getting to the finish line this year - 3 weeks to go here too. The paper grade is a very good sign, and hopefully keeps your D going. :)</p>

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<p>I am not ready for the weekend to be over but then again, that much closer to the end of the school year. D is slammed with stupid, ‘make work’ projects for classes that for all intents and purposes, are over. She took a good deal of time off though this weekend with soccer and her boyfriend filling the time. Lost in the finals this morning. Bummer. S14 loved his yachting adventure, and used sunscreen! Channeling his inner pirate, perhaps? Hopefully he is on his homework now… He may have morphed directly into summer bum mode. Smallest son won his tournament, and I couldn’t be prouder of the way his team pulled together and fought for this one. They had 1 sub all weekend and half the team should have been sidelined with various bumps, pulls, and strains. Tryouts start tomorrow for them. I’m watching to see how well they can move by then… No studying for that child tonight, he and his buddies are online playing Fifa on xbox… Somehow he never has homework… 7th grade will be a distant memory soon and so will the days when he can good off like this.</p>

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<p>oh…I have an 8th grader…he doesnt know what is about to hit him next year… Hope everyone has a good start to the week!</p>

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<p>Well, I’m in the doghouse. We have somewhere we all have to be at 5 later in the week, the same day some of the friends have planned an out-of-town tubing trip. He SWEARS they’ll get back in time. He’s never been tubing and has no idea how long the whole thing takes – the lines, the tubing, waiting for the bus to take you and the tubes back to the rental place, packing up the car. He hates missing anything, but the day before they’re having a big pool party at one of the kid’s grandma’s house, this past weekend was volleyball one day, football the next, blah blah blah. Pace yourself, kids. Summer is three months long!</p>

<p>ETA: I love Colorado. If I were to move anywhere, it would be there.</p>

<p>where, how 'bout Rice in Houston? And I don’t know anything about CU-Boulder, but if she can get in and loves it, then you’re in great shape!</p>

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<p>I don’t believe I’ve ever written anything to the effect that any AP courses are sissy, though I join the majority who agree that some tests are generally much less challenging to prepare for than others. Environmental Science, Human Geography, and Psychology do seem to belong in that category of easier tests. </p>

<p>That label makes no mention of some important facts, however. Course difficulty may be very different from that of the AP exam, as teaching standards, styles, and exam preparation-driven prescription vary significantly; this distinction is particularly meaningful when the student is a senior, whose exam scores will not be reviewed by admissions officers. Additionally, any analysis on the perceived differential difficulty of courses means little when one would have a highly rigorous schedule overall either way. </p>

<p>In my opinion, three considerations should drive course selection: achievement of an ostensibly rigorous course load for college admissions, inspiration of confidence that the courses will challenge but not overwhelm, and perspective interest in the material. And on the topic of self-studying for AP exams, I agree with the practice only in cases in which the interest to do so is independent of others’ perceptions, admissions officers’ included.</p>

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<p>Hi parents of the HS Class of 2013! I’m a student of this class and I was a bit curious… Are your daughters or sons submitting any arts supplements to colleges this fall? :)</p>

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<p>Blue slipper and tsu-welcome, we definitely relate to both of you! </p>

<p>Wahoo and Mamabear…I am so with you on the school thing. We are juggling projects after AP finals and two tough finals. BTW Honors Anatomy is kicking my girls tail but she loves it even if it will cost her a few GPA points. It is not her strength and harder than her AP’s.</p>

<p>Annie, mamabear and YDS: Boulder is a great easy place to like! Annie your mom is right about the hippies! Still there in force and my D loved the whole thing. She doesn’t look like a hippie but she has a “Free Willy” spirit! I think for our D the mix of Greek kids, athletes, artsy types and hippie’s would entertain her. </p>

<p>So Annie where did you go? My D’s top locations for school are NYC and LA.</p>

<p>Finearts- thanks for the great link on moving in!</p>

<p>I saw a woman today that knows everything about this process. She used to stress me out. Her oldest is at UC Berkeley got turned down at all Ivy’s except Cornell with a 4.6/4.0 UW, 35ACT, ASB pres. etc… He was devastated when he was declined by Harvard. She said, “How can you not figure this out. How many kids are like you in the nation, and how many spots are available?” He smiled at her and said that he loves the weather in CA. Love the way kids bounce back!</p>

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<p>silverturtle: thanks for the post. Your point is well taken.</p>

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<p>okay…I had to make Iced Coffee and Tea this morning…it is too hot, already…! My DD is not out of bed, waited till last minute to do “all four projects” and is complaining she still has stuff to do…It’s too early for that drink…what a way to begin my morning! Luckily, my 8th grader is just a jolly-old kid…love it.</p>

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<p>Good morning Lucky 13’ers! </p>

<p>It’s a scorcher here today too. DD has the day off today - a “snow-day” give back since they didn’t use any. I have no idea why they give them a day off this close to the end of the year instead of shortening the year by a day, but I guess they can use the break.
DD has another softball game today though, so I doubt that I’ll see the homework/test prep getting done.
I hope today’s weather cools off, but it doesn’t look like it - at yesterday’s game, the girls were really feeling the heat. I hope the coach is rethinking the all-black uniforms!</p>

<p>Cant, no art supplements here, sorry.</p>

<p>Wherenext, I went to Fordham. I have family and friends who are there now, so if you have any questions… </p>

<p>wrldtravlr, the only thing I’d add about the physics - after reading “The Gatekeepers” about Wesleyan admissions, it seems that they really liked to see that students had the science triad -(bio, chem, physics.) If that’s the case, I might think on it a bit more.
Personally, I hated high school physics and switched to Bio 2 my senior year because I was failing. My physicist father was no help at all. Luckily my kids have fared better with the class than I did (I also think it isn’t as math-heavy as it was then?)</p>

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<p>CantConcentrate: I think some of my D’s friends are sending Videos of their performances. I don’t know about art, that I think you send a portfolio…best to call/email the school and ask the rep what is the usual format they like to see.</p>

<p>anniezz- I didn’t read the gatekeepers, but I’ve heard the same thing about the three sciences. I just remember having Mono during physics my Junior year of HS and in those days i was kept out of school for 2 weeks! Missed a whole bunch of information which I dont think I ever regained; however, I did end up taking physics in college and getting into medical school…so, no real harm done…–I just keep thinking, though, that for these kids, now in HS, it just seems more difficult…less flexible…but, maybe that is just me.</p>

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<p>Back from S’13’s voice competition in Chicago. He did not do as well as he had hoped, but after reading his judge’s comments, we think he just got a wacky judge. But S’13 wasn’t too upset - it is a very subjective business and he knew that he really didn’t do his best. But he received positive comments from several college reps and and now has a couple new schools on his list. </p>

<p>Despite the disappointing competition results, S’13 and I had a very fun weekend. He actually said that he enjoyed spending time with me!</p>

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<p>Annie- Fordham is one of the schools D really likes! They have been very good about sending things and we loved the tour! Were you at Rose HIll campus? Are your kids considering it?</p>

<p>Drmom, Hang in there! Isn’t having a middle schooler a nice balance?</p>

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<p>Morning all! I’m angsting and will probably start a thread in the Parents Forum but I figured I’d ask my 2013 peeps their opinions first. </p>

<p>I mentioned upthread that D2 decided to move from AP Stat to Honors Calc for next year. She had a miserable year in math this year due to a psychotic teacher (seriously, not just her. There were nights I’d go on facebook and there’d be a list of 10 posts ragging about the teacher & her ridiculous assignments. It was the topic of conversation whenever 2 or more parents and/or students in her class got together. Administration & GC’s were made aware; parents pulled kids out at Christmas, etc.) The word amongst anyone who’s already taken AP Stat is that the teacher is “bipolar” and that she doesn’t prepare them for the test, she just tells them which formulas to plug in their calculator. Honors Calc teacher is “normal,” a good teacher & with 4/5 other AP’s in the schedule, DH & I applauded D2’s decision.</p>

<p>But…when I emailed the GC about the change, I asked out of curiosity what would entail having the “most rigorous course load available” at our HS. Her response was “the most rigorous course load” means AP whenever it was an option." So D dropping to honors calc from AP Stat would mean that the GC couldn’t check the “most rigorous” box. Personally, I still think she should take Honors Calc but I want D to understand what that means to admission chances. </p>

<p>Does anyone know what schools really look at that “most rigorous courseload” box? If a humanities loving kid, top 5%, 98% test scores with 36 on ACT reading & english doesn’t have that box checked, even with 8 APs & strong ECs all clustered in the humanities, does that automatically make her chances null at Brown, Northwestern & Lafayette?</p>

<p>This is the kind of admissions $%#! that makes me nuts.</p>

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<p>wherenext, yes, at Rose Hill. It is a gorgeous campus - and will certainly evoke a “college feeling” since it’s been used in many movies!
I loved it, and managed to find my “hippie niche” amongst a fairly conservative, but very very nice, student body. I think students get a great education there. If your D is a NMF, they have a great scholarship. What does she want to study?</p>

<p>My S thought about it for a few minutes, but he is a math/comp sci kid, and the comp sci program just didn’t hold up for him.
My D is considering it and may apply, more because it’s a family tradition - both her parents, her grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins all went there! They don’t have her sport though, so it isn’t a big contender - but that may change.
Let me know if you have any questions - my neice recently graduated and I have very good friends(both alum) with a current student there now, and one starting in the fall. </p>

<p>megpmom, sorry that the competition didn’t go as well as you’d hoped, but I’m glad that you had a good weekend. I’m sure it was a good experience.</p>

<p>RobD, I think it’s ridiculous that taking honors calc over AP stats should make such a difference! Is there an AP calc? If not, wouldn’t the honors calc still be the most rigorous? Can you get the GC to provide an explanation? I’d talk to the ad reps as well.</p>

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<p>RobD: what I know from cc and a glance through the AP STAT curriculum and teh general conscience among math teachers is that it is not a regurous course. It comes from college board and it has an AP label attached to it- that is all. It doesn’t cover a lot of topic that is taught in first year of college STAT class. Most students take AP stat as an elective- it is offered as an elective in my S’s school. STAT is a course that will be a very useful tool whatever they stick to learning in future. </p>

<p>Now, which class does she take as a junior? If she was in an honors pre- calc class, the natural progression would be honors calc. right? Does your school offer AP calc AB? What are her other options? I will leave it to the kid to decide. I completely understand what you are saying about the admission! and it is tough to go to a class knowing the teacher is BAD. I would think that your D will be fine doing what she likes.</p>

<p>YDS: Thanks for the great advice for the first timers here. </p>

<p>txthome: Congratulations on your D1’s graduation. </p>

<p>anniez: i have added gatekeepers to my reading list.</p>

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<p>RobD -In my opinion Honors Calc will probably be a harder class than AP Stats. I would definitely talk to the GC about that - most colleges want to see Calc for the top students and if no AP is offered than it is the most “rigourous” - shame on the school for making it seem like AP Stats is a higher level than Honors Calc. The common data sets of each school will tell you how important the “rigour” is.</p>

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<p>megpmom: yay…for a wonderful weekend…It is nice that he could find few more colleges to add to his list. Such trips are always a great experience.</p>

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<p>Hi RobD- Wow, your daughter has great stats! It looks like we are in the same boat trying to figure out these class schedules. I agree with the above posters, If I were you I would further investigate if there are any set rules on what makes ‘most rigorous courseload’ at your school. I would think this designation would be for the students who take the most rigorous courses in their school compared to their peers, maybe top 10% or something, not necessarily for the very few who take all AP’s all the time. Could you set up an appointment? If it was me would like to know if it is at the discretion of the GC, or if there are concrete parameters that have been set, how many students do get that designation, and if all of them who have received it in the past have taken the AP’s throughout. It wouldn’t be fair if a student didn’t take AP’s earlier in high school, but then took all senior year and got that designation. I wonder if they keep stats on this? If you don’t get any real answers, I would try an administrator next.</p>

<p>This question always seemed to be asked at any of the selective schools we visited, and the only one that said they would look at it was Pomona. The Ivies all seemed to be ‘like, whatever, dude’. The admissions rep at Pomona said that they realized students were taking many more AP’s than in the past, and that you didn’t need to take AP’s in every subject, but they would certainly like to see that you challenged yourself in an area that was not your strong suit. I wanted to slap her. I did talk to her about this afterward, saying in a ‘professional’ way that she was talking out of both sides of her mouth making comments like that, and it was just making students more neurotic and sleep-deprived. </p>

<p>I have heard mentioned in other posts about strong math/science students who only took regular or honors English classes throughout high school and still got accepted to Ivies, etc., but it seems like its the Wild West out there in knowing what is the best solution. </p>

<p>I feel so badly for these high achieving students; it is so difficult personality-wise for them to take a step back and say, yes, it would be good for me to take a less stressful class, one that is better for my interest and abilities in this area, and such a healthy thing to do, but then when they do it, they then have to worry about it impacting their college choices. </p>

<p>As to replies about DS having to take 3 years of different sciences, he has taken honors bio, honors chem, and honors physical science, which is just another way of saying physics. </p>

<p>megpmom- glad you had a great time in Chicago, nice to get some love from new schools.</p>

<p>wherenext- Anatomy and physiology is hard, hard, hard. I ended up taking it twice in college, for a prerequisite, and then in OT school, along with neuroanatomy, which I loved. Glad that your D loves it, also. Does she have an interest in any type of health career?</p>