<p>We start after labor day which is just a bear for AP/IB classes. D said her chem teacher was constantly appologizing for needing to go so fast. I guess it will be good college prep, though. DS is not thrilled about getting his bio book for next year with several chapters and homework over the summer so as not to be too far behind for May testing.</p>
<p>saintfan–we are going through finals too. S is still figuring out the best way to study. </p>
<p>Thank goodness all of the auditioning is over. This weekend, S was offered his first gig based on reputation only to play bass for a catholic mass this Sunday and next (for money!). He had to say no though because things are just too hectic with bass camp coming up. A friend’s cello teacher recommended him.</p>
<p>^^ it is tough for a kid who has always coasted - I guess it’s better he learn now rather than later</p>
<p>I never even thought about the impact of a “late” start on AP testing. Yikes! That stinks that the teachers end up having to cram the instruction in to fit the AP schedule. </p>
<p>My D has always coasted as well. I told her that if she works to her potential sophomore year, then I’ll get the air conditioning fixed in the very old Jeep that she will get to drive next year. Now I’m just crossing my fingers that it makes it to next year - it’s got 180K miles on it. :)</p>
<p>Yes, the whole AP testing thing is a bit of a bummer. The kids have less time for the material before the test, and then, in our case, and entire month of school after the test!</p>
<p>Some of you may be familiar with College Boards <em>Big Future</em> web site, but for parents & students going thru a college search for the first time, its definitely worth checking out. Since DS15 is (rightly) more focused on HS than college at this point, Ive been the one looking through the site. However, Im going to ask him to view my handiwork sometime this summer, when he has a chance ;-)</p>
<p>The great thing about Big Future is that you can establish a list of criteria thats important to your student and then select colleges to see how they compare. Ive built a first-pass list for DS to check out, comprised of schools weve learned about through various sources. Theres a lot of info to digest, so its something that can be visited & revisited and updated as the HS years progress and your student becomes clearer about whats important to him/her.</p>
<p>Worth looking into if your family is starting from scratch, and especially if your HS GC services are limited. If your DS/DD doesn’t already have a College Board user ID & password, you might have to establish one before you can save info.</p>
<p>suzy100: Alas, I have no car to dangle but I may be able to use the athletic “carrot”. DS doesnt’ know yet if he wants to try to do his sport in college - he goes back and forth - but to do it right he needs to pass academic muster as they mostly only row seriously at schools that are harder to get in to.</p>
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<p>We start around Aug 12 (usually midweek) and have 2 weeks off in the winter, then head get done at the end of may. </p>
<p>My oldest son started later (different high school) and had finals two weeks after getting back post-Christmas, and although he didn’t study for finals anyway, he had projects and papers and homework over break. Much better to finish before break! We have a loud contingent of parents in our district who want to push it back to start after labor day and finish half way through June because going back to school early cuts in to family vacation time??? Same number of weeks of school per year, shifted one or the other, does not add up to more or less vacation time (shaking head…). I noticed that all of the parents who spoke for starting later at eth school board meeting identified as parents of elementary and middle school kids, so they don’t know how important it is to avoid finals and projects over Christmas break (and apparently have no interest in listening to us older wiser parents! ;)). Beside having semesters finish before break, I’d much rather have a family vacation in the beginning of June and have the kids sitting in air conditioned classrooms during the heat of late August. My heart really goes out to the kids with un-air conditioned schools in other districts - i can see them wanting to be out of school until the second week of September. </p>
<p>As far as getting up in the morning - my oldest leaves for college in about 10 weeks, and we’re trying to get him used to getting himself up. Ugh. He has a full time job all summer, so we’ve all agreed that we’re not helping him get up for work. You should hear his alarm clock - it’s a siren AND it vibrates his bed. And he still sleeps through it!</p>
<p>“Beside having semesters finish before break, I’d much rather have a family vacation in the beginning of June and have the kids sitting in air conditioned classrooms during the heat of late August. My heart really goes out to the kids with un-air conditioned schools in other districts - i can see them wanting to be out of school until the second week of September.”</p>
<p>Maybe this is it - summer weather doesn’t start her until July 5th 
We would have to storm the school district offices with pitchforks if they tried to send kids back to school once the weather FINALLY gets nice.</p>
<p>Hey PN, maybe try this: [Amazon.com:</a> Clocky Alarm Clock on Wheels in Black: Home & Kitchen](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Clocky-Alarm-Clock-Wheels-Black/dp/B004MSMUGI/ref=pd_sim_hg_1]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Clocky-Alarm-Clock-Wheels-Black/dp/B004MSMUGI/ref=pd_sim_hg_1)</p>
<p>Got it for my SS at Christmas, but it doesn’t work so great if there are piles of clothes on the floor. It gets stuck.</p>
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<p>We have a different concern in our part of the world. Along parts of the So.CA coast, we never get particularly hot, but instead we get heavy “marine layer” overcast all day, every day, during the spring months. This weather pattern usually starts in earnest in April or May, and June can be downright gloomy. (The weather forecast for this week is overcast mornings with partial clearing in the afternoon and a high of mid-sixties to lower seventies. I plan to bring a sweater to D2012’s mid-afternoon outdoor graduation ceremony. For the concert-in-the-park the HS orchestra held last week I needed a sweater, jacket shell, and lap blanket.) It usually clears up by the 4th of July, and we then have warm glorious sunshine through October. </p>
<p>If the schools followed the usual mid-August through mid-May academic calendar, our kids would get out of school and face six weeks of gloomy overcast, then they’d be in school during most of the sunny season.</p>
<p>Our schools, by state law, can’t open before the 1st Tuesday after Labor day (some schools get exemptions).</p>
<p>D should be finished with her last final by now.</p>
<p>Her summer plans are
1 week of being a counselor in training
1 week of Church Work Trip
1 week of camp
3 weeks at CTY
1 week of being a counselor in training</p>
<p>After that she will hang out until we take the road trip to get D12 to college.</p>
<p>Let the finals begin! S has only one today in Honors Biology. They have an orchestra breakfast this morning–I hope it isn’t all sugar. Hopefully there won’t be a sugar crash during the final.</p>
<p>Last night while S and I were at a rehearsal, DH got a call from one of the kids in the vocal jazz group saying that it is custom that the old members kidnap the newbies for a night and would it be ok with us. Of course, and what a hoot. That will happen Thursday evening. This sort of thing will be really good for my S. He is a sociable person at school but isn’t the type of kid who hangs out with others away from school. A little socialization will be great.</p>
<p>momsings - that kidnapping sounds like fun for your DS. And it’s great that the older students called you first! Our DS15 sounds a bit like yours - social at school, but more of a homebody, espc during the Summer. I fret about his narrow-ish social circle sometimes, and he does need to branch out, but then I hear what’s going on among some of the other kids & I’m glad DS is home. At least he seems to have buddies during the school year, mainly via sports, so he has lunchmates. Honestly, my greatest social concern for him is that he will have kids to sit with at lunch. It seems silly, but lunch is a big social time at his HS.</p>
<p>Awhile back, I posted about our Cello Shopping. We may have found one for DS and it’s within budget! Now comes the bow-shopping and the case-shopping. Argh. But we plan to purchase at the same place as we buy the cello in order to get a discount on the bow. DS has tried some amazing bows at this (very small) store, so he has his eye on one already. And we plan to invest in a better, lightweight hardshell case. Like some of you, this is a big investment for us! DH’s car is as old as DS15 (bought a week after he was born), so we need a new (likely used) car, but we wanted to get the cello purchased first. Then, we’ll see what’s left for the car…</p>
<p>GoAskDad–it is so interesting to hear about your lunchtime worries. I had the same concerns. We went from a very small middle school with an 8th grade class of 56 to a high school with a freshman class of 350. S was not particularly close to anyone from middle school. At first he sat with kids he knew from his middle school and then occasionally sat with his older brother’s friends which was a bit awkward for one and all. We strategized a bit about sitting with new friends and he did try this a few times. He always liked his new friends but didn’t necessarily like their friends, if that makes sense. He is a bit of a stickler when it comes to what he views as immature behavior. My boy just is who he is. Finally, as he has become more involved and known in the music department he found the lunch solution. He was invited to sit with the drumline kids in the drumline room. So he gets to be with musicians and have lunch in a special place. It is perfect for him and it is such a relief for me.</p>
<p>I am glad to hear you have found a cello fit–and within budget too! It is amazing the costs that go with these string instruments. Then there are the maintenance issues–getting the bows rehaired and new strings and more, depending. Today I took S’s bass to a luthier to fix a bridge issue and do some touch up…it never ends. It is all good though.</p>
<p>Yes, instruments (especially strings) are expensive. But when amortized over the time the kid spends playing (15 hrs/wk * 50 wks/yr * 4 years – and maybe more, as she’s planning to audition for her college symphony orchestra!) then it’s actually cheap entertainment. ;)</p>
<p>^^^^That’s a great way to look at it, michal! Hey, are you still in the middle of finals? We are. S has 2 today and 1 tomorrow. </p>
<p>We actually have SUN this morning!</p>
<p>It is really heartening to see how well S is doing this week at school without older S. He seems really happy. I am so glad he has found his niche and is settling in. I feel so positive about his upcoming high school years, which is so great, as I have had many a worry about this guy.</p>
<p>Daughter’s new clarinet costs around $3500. It’s cheep compared to many other instruments. It’s a good one and it makes a world of difference! OMG I can’t believe it. She also plays the oboe. so far she’s been using her school’s oboe.</p>
<p>GoAskDad,</p>
<p>Shar or Southwest Strings has a super cheap cello case for $199 (I’ve forgotten which, probably SW Strings) with free shipping. It’s halfway decent. :-)</p>
<p>sbjdorlo - Thanks for the suggestion & we’ll check it out. DS’s cello instructor suggested BAM (sp?) or Eastman, due to the value of the cello, but we haven’t even started down the “cases” path yet. The luthier who’s selling us the cello is giving us a 30% discount on a bow (he has a great one that DS is considering + several others) and then he will sell us the case at cost. Plus, he will loan us a hard case until the ordered case comes in. But his shop is an hour from our house, so this whole process is taking a long time. Better now than during the school year, I suppose.</p>
<p>Anybody out there with thoughts/experience/advice on St. Olaf? A co-worker’s daughter is looking into it & the co-worker told me about it, so I looked it up and wow, does it sound like a good place to take DS for a visit. As in, “Here’s a school you might someday consider…and what do you think of it?..and see, isn’t it neat to visit different places & get an idea of the possibilities that are out there if you keep applying yourself.” So I’m thinking about a late-July visit for DS - very informal - and maybe our whole family would come along to make it a pseudo vacay. Thoughts welcomed!</p>