<p>@herandhis, That sounds very nice. Hope it’ll work out. We’re having some scheduling problems too. I wish the counselor would let us know earlier.</p>
<p>Schedule arrived in the mail today. No mistakes and she got the teachers she wanted!!</p>
<p>Went to orientation today, which is required to get schedule. Only a couple of holes, which were easy to resolve. My kid is taking a class at the local university. There’s an organized program where a number of kids do this. You have to get a B. if you get a single B- you’re off the island. Can’t take another one. So the uni is holding measly high school kids to a higher standard than their own students. But it’s their playground, and the tuition is free. One poor girl got a B+ followed by a B- and she was off the island even though her GC argued that’s a B average. </p>
<p>While we were waiting on the long line the new principal came over to schmooze the crowd–a nice change from the previous one who my kid said spent all her time “hiding in her cave.” I even forgave her saying nails-across-the-blackboard “should have went…” And it wasn’t her fault one of the docs we received had the word “recieve.”</p>
<p>New problem of the day ( when one leaves another takes it’s place): she is in IB English and LOVES the teacher. Sophomore year she was in 11 H English and had a choice for this year: AP Lang, AP LIt, or IB. She chose IB because her 9 th grade teacher told her back then that she would be great for IB - she loved the teacher and has her again for IB this year. She has since found out that she has already learned the material that the teacher will be covering at the beginning of the year, and realizes that several of the kids in the class are simply not her speed for various reasons. She is thinking about switching to AP ( there is a class at the same time as IB) but does not want to do new summer reading. IB is weighted the same as AP so now she is thinking of staying because the class will be easy for her ( she is a much stronger student than the kids in the class- we have a weird IB program that accepts everyone) and she will have more time to devote to AP Spanish and AP Physics. The down side of course is that the IB class teaches material ( at least initially) that she already learned. For now she is staying. I told her that if she changes her mind please email guidance. If she wants to take AP lit or Lang senior year she can, if she chooses to stay in IB this year. Thanks for listening to me vent!! Honestly I feel as though if she stays in IB she will learn new material and will love the class- the teacher is great and already knows her, and she will have somebody who will write her a fantastic letter of rec.</p>
<p>Our IB program is fairly new- about 7 years old. They are trying to develop it and although they are marketing it to the stronger students, they allow anybody to join. I suspect that some of these kids will drop or not do well because the class is not easy. This is what is frustrating my daughter ( something is always frustrating her LOL).</p>
<p>Problem solved. She is officially staying in her IB English class. Although she does not want to be with some of the kids, she really wants to take the class and LOVES the teacher. She recognizes that the material taught at the beginning is stuff that she has already learned, but now she says it is fine because it will give her more time for her AP classes and SAT studying. Thanks for listening to me vent.</p>
<p>Glad it worked out!</p>
<p>@twogirls, glad your D’s problem is solved. We’re still waiting, which means she will spend her first day in school with a messy schedule.</p>
<p>Twogirls, glad it worked out for your D. Herandhis, it will all work out for your D too! </p>
<p>Mine has given up on orchestra for this year because there is no way to switch the conflicting class occupying that slot. Oh well. The first two days have gone well enough and the classes are good. The dreaded history teacher turns out to be good! D reports that he is smart and insightful and that the other kids in her class aren’t very strong students (sounds like the situation with twogirls’ D). This may explain why he is said to be so daunting. My eldest loved AP US History because it was literally the first time she was in a class with other smart, engaged peers and a smart, engaged teacher. I’m not sure about the peers in this class for youngest D but it sounds like the teacher might be just what she needs. I’m cautiously optimistic. </p>
<p>She is ahead in AP Comp Sci and likes the teacher and the class. It isn’t the same as what she did over the summer but I’m thinking that was a good complement to this class. She taught herself java after all and I don’t suppose she would have done that before the summer experience. Math is as difficult as advertised. Another parent warned me that in this school, they “beat the advanced kids up in math for a couple of years” and only when they get to the AP level do they actually learn math again. Her son’s experience was that his friends in public school found the honors math level to be manageable while he, a very advanced mathy kid, struggled. It’s a little chilling because her son is far more able than my D! I think the key here will be the willingness of the teacher to provide extra help after school. No comments yet on the other classes.</p>
<p>Sports and violin start next week. I am not sure I am ready.</p>
<p>Herandhis - hoping things work out quickly!!
3girls- I agree that the teacher has a bad rep because the kids may not have been as strong. That’s why I always remind my daughter to make her own decisions and not listen to others. Last year my daughter had honors chem and did very well- she also worked hard because there was a lot of work- but she maintained an amazing average all year. Many of the kids did not do well- they did not work very hard and they blamed the teacher. Some did not belong in the class ( it was an honors class but the dept chair stated that it was taught above the level of honors which is really not fair to those kids who really just wanted honors) and these kids blamed the teacher for their poor grades. The teacher was a bit sarcastic but she was an excellent teacher- always prepared with detailed handouts etc and always willing to come in at 6:30 am for extra help etc. so… Sometimes we just have to ignore what others say and make our own judgements. Last year my daughter took honors global and was always frustrated in the class, but this year she is taking honors US- does not want to take AP even though she knows that she would enjoy it more. I am not fighting her on this because her schedule is pretty rigorous. 3girls if your daughter’s math teacher is willing to stay after for extra help then your daughter should be fine.
We are leaving in 3 hours to take my daughter to college. Just waiting for my junior to finish with practice. She is freaking out now about teams- they are not sure if there will be one team with cuts or two teams, which is kind of obnoxious considering last night they had a team bonding party. Why have a bonding party if you are making cuts? Ugh- always something!!</p>
<p>For our IB program, students are required to join as a freshman, and have to have taken specific math courses in Jr High, maintained a certain GPA and have over a certain score on their standardized tests. Then they take two years of pre IB classes (a mix of AP and classes actually designated at pre IB). Those two years do tend to weed out a lot of kids. So far, junior year seems more promising. It’s only been 2 weeks, but the teachers so seem to be more in ‘teach’ mode, than ‘weed out’ mode.</p>
<p>shobomom - that’s how my D’s IB program works. The only significant difference is rather than weeding after pre-IB years, kids have to apply, tested, and accepted after middle school. Once kids are accepted, most of them survive all four years. </p>
<p>D’s school starts Monday and she is all set to go. She is nervous but excited.</p>
<p>Whew, just caught up on a month’s worth of postings! </p>
<p>BunHeadGirl returns to school the Wednesday after Labor Day. After a 2-week vacation, we’re rushing to fill in a few holes in D’s uniforms and pick up school supplies for the year. I literally choked when D informed me she needed around 3 pair of pointe shoes every 6-8 weeks vs 1 pair for the same time frame. </p>
<p>School schedule is set with 14 slots over 2 semesters. D has 7th hour study hall due to dance, and not too happy with class options due to having to have the study period during 7th period. She had to double up on science both semesters and sacrifice a literature and a writing class she really wanted to take this year. I’m a little concerned about D’s course load with calculus, advanced chemistry (AP level) and genetics (college level course), not to mention AP level content in history, English, and Latin. </p>
<p>BunHeadGirl states she can handle the heavy load along with 20 -30 hours of dance each week. We shall see.</p>
<p>^ wow that is a very intense dance schedule!! We are in the middle of the boondocks , or as my 2015er calls it - " the one horse town" taking my now college sophomore back to school. It’s not quite as bad as my younger daughter makes it out to be. Anyway we moved half her stuff in yesterday- she has a beautiful suite- we were pleasantly surprised. We do the rest today. Every time we move in her sister, my HS junior announces that she needs an urban campus. We shall see…
The next issue is field hockey. They are announcing the teams Monday or Tuesday- either one team with cuts or two teams with no cuts ( JV and V). This is her new source of stress and now she is not even sure if she wants to play anymore. She has a lot of ECs that she plays a major role in - it’s a lot so she will have some big decisions to make. She also wants to take the SAT and ACT in December- not willing to push it back for sports. Sports is a big time commitment but nothing like Bunheads dance schedule!
We are in upstate NY- there must be 25 or more colleges up here, but yet there is more land than I have ever seen before- go figure.</p>
<p>Bunheadmom,
My D would love to opt out of literature for a genetics course! Our school just doesn’t have those options. In literature they are back to reading depressing stuff, like last year, but maybe not quite so much of it. Madam Bovary is coming up, then some Russian poetry.
I imagine those pointe shoes are expensive! I have seen on documentaries about dance, how they can get worn out quickly.</p>
<p>Bunhead I just took a second look at your daughter’s courses combined with 20-30 hours of dance. That is a very heavy load! I am also envious of the genetics course that your school allows.</p>
<p>Bunheadmom, that schedule sounds wonderful albeit challenging! I think my D would have been in a serious quandary between genetics and a literature/writing course but the level of humanities instruction here, even at the AP level, just isn’t that compelling. My friend with two ballet daughters was commiserating with me over the cost of my D’s violin and the strings she has to replace on a semi-regular basis by pointing out the cost of pointe shoes that demand such constant replacement. It sounds like she’s doing a lot of dancing! </p>
<p>Twogirls, lol about the urban campus. Nothing like being in the middle of nowhere to clarify that! I take it your older daughter likes being in the middle of nowhere? My eldest loved her urban campus but also longed for the ability to ski everyday. My middle girl didn’t want an urban campus but by the end of 4 years, was tired of her suburban campus that was about 20 minutes outside a city. It’s never perfect. My own feeling is that no matter what they choose it’s probably a good idea to mix it up by spending semesters or junior years away.</p>
<p>My older one is the type that can be happy anyplace. My 2015- not so much LOL!! Funny her first choice school was not in the middle of nowhere- it was in a suburb and not far from a city, but at the very last minute she just fell in love with her current school and has been happy ever since. We just got home from the " one horse town" and am very excited to report that it’s much easier to leave them when they are sophomores. Freshmen year was rough for me- but not for her!! Now I can get myself focused again on my hs junior- the past few days we were in the shopping for college/packing mindset. We have two more weeks until my junior comes home from school and sits at the kitchen table for 8 hours a night, refusing to leave the house unless its necessary. Oh boy… Today she asked me the date and time of her first SAT and ACT so she can put it on her calendar.</p>
<p>Can I vent? I am in the midst of reading Cal Newport’s How to Be a High School Superstar and I’m having a real problem with it. Or should I say a series of problems. To put it very simply, his guidance seems to be that a high school student should pare down his academic and extra-curricular commitments and focus instead on a concentrated area of interest that sets him apart from all others and attain an extraordinary, adult-level record of accomplishment in this area. He calls this being a “relaxed superstar” presumably because the student is devoting much less time to school and much more to the singular area of interest. </p>
<p>I have no issue with the approach per se. I think overscheduling and chasing APs is silly and a recipe for misery. Following an interest and developing it is wonderful. The advice seems too pat though and I have a host of other problems with it. I acknowledge that some my problems are with the process itself and not with this author’s advice on how to manipulate an already corrupt process. But–eww, since he wrote this book in 2009, his approach has been adopted by too many desperate kids and it’s further corrupted the process! If it were just the uber elite schools, I guess I’d roll my eyes and let those so inclined to have at it. The problem is that the group of schools affected by this sort of desperation grows each year. </p>
<p>So here are my issues:</p>
<ol>
<li> These are KIDS and they are STUDENTS. They should not be held to adult standards and even if they succeed in meeting or exceeding them, it’s not necessarily impressive. There’s plenty of time for kids to lose their sweetness and ideology as they become actual adults and there are really beautiful aspects of their humbler, kid-level achievements. I love the sense of potential and broad ability that I see when I watch a high school play or recital or listen to a panel discussion about a school issue or attend a school game or watch student activism as they take their turns at trying to change the world. These are pursuits that many of these kids won’t ever enjoy again. I love that they get the chance to immerse themselves in these clubs and activities while they are still young and I think they inspire the rest of us. I find it frankly nauseating when I see more and more kids trying their best to follow this sort of path purely to gain admissions advantages.</li>
</ol>
<p>As a subset to this, I see again and again in this book that there’s almost always an adult poised in the wings to launch the impressive interest. Not so impressive after all when it flows from parental intervention.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>SOME KIDS LOVE TO LEARN. As I said above, these are, after all, students whose primary job is to learn. I repeat, I hate watching kids chase APs and I agree with this author’s advice not to do this. But his approach also suggests that it’s best to learn how to work less and all but skate by. For some kids this may be apt advice. But for kids like mine, it’s misplaced and dismissive of who she is and what she offers. She works hard. She takes things seriously and thinks deeply. She writes well beyond her years and consistently turns in work that surprises her teachers in its maturity. I guess Cal would tell her to forget that and find a book deal or start a successful blog that will draw attention to her. The problem is, she’s still learning. She’s immersed in subjects she’s never learned and she loves this. Too bad that’s not enough on its own for a greater and greater list of schools but it’s enriching for her and she will continue to follow the path of learning during the very brief period it’s available to her. I don’t know how she’s supposed to light on the specific area of interest that she’s supposed to develop without first having broad foundational knowledge. He suggests that it just comes to her.</p></li>
<li><p>THIS APPROACH IGNORES THE INTROVERT. Literally every kid featured in this book (up through page 163 anyway, that’s as far as I could take in one sitting) is an extrovert who has already developed networking skills…and in many cases entrepreneurial and management skills as well. I’m not saying that those skills shouldn’t be rewarded. They are important life skills that some master early and will use to their advantage throughout their lives. But others will develop them in time and they can be learned. I do think and have said before that the college admissions bias toward extroverts misses many an exceptional candidate and breeds a group of people who have difficulty listening to each other. My specific objection here is that if Cal is going to put forth a methodology for becoming a “superstar” it might be helpful for him to include a recipe for the quieter, introverted student. </p></li>
<li><p>FAILURE IS IMPORTANT. Ok he’s not all bad here and I acknowledge that I’m overreacting a bit. He has one successful case study who failed at an important business venture in her freshman year of high school and learned from it. But, in 3 short years, she ended up an amazing success. Three years of high school, that’s all you get to triumph over challenge. Yeesh! Kids have become so brittle and so risk-averse that even young adults are increasingly unwilling and unable to deal with setbacks. I would love to see him talk about how to deal honestly with a true failure. But to be fair, he’s working with a process that doesn’t tolerate anything but a happy ending. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks for listening. I’m going back to the book to see if there’s anything I can take from it. :)</p>
<p>AMEN 3g3c! Seriously, I feel like kids are pushed to “specialize” so early - that whole “find your passion” stuff that you are describing is sort of maddening. I want my kid to explore ALL of her interests.</p>