PE at S’s school is required for 2 years, but is pass/fail. ^:)^
We haven’t had to take PE in HS yet but I assume it’s graded. 3 semesters are required. S17 was able to get 2 waived by doing school sports and S19 should be able to do the same. Others do online over the summer or marching band.
Too late to edit…but PE for all four quarters/two semesters for all four years.
QOTD: Has anyone asked for and seen your School Profile?
Someone had mentioned that the school profile shows GPA ranges with percent ranking from which one can infer C’s ranking.
Nope, not ours.
I asked our GC and she sent me a glossy 1-pager. It looked pretty useless looking more like a new restaurant ad flyer.
1 this, #3 that and %% graduating, $$$ dollars earned in scholarships by grads.
It did have graduation requirements, # of AP classes offered, and average school ACT score vs state average.
It did not have the number of students per grade nor how GPAs are calculated and weighted. The transcript (I got) does not show that either. It just lists unweighted and weighted GPAs. [-(
QOTD: Our school puts the school profile on the website, so I can look at the one from last year. Obviously, it changes a little from year to year but not much.
Ours has a short description of the school with numbers of students and minority % followed by graduation requirements, description of grading scale and how they calculate weighted GPA, list of classes, and then a testing profile. The profile shows SAT and ACT averages along with AP exam scores and numbers of NM commended and seminfinalists/finalists.
It seems fairly thorough and I really appreciated seeing “we do not rank students” in writing!
I mentioned school profiles. Ours does explain the weighting process for the school. It is three pages long and pretty decent. It gets sent to the schools through Naviance or whatever system the school use when the transcripts are submitted. No ranking however because the school doesn’t rank.
@payn4ward Our school profile does not supply enough detail to infer ranking or deciles even. I think schools may rely on counselor LORs to fill in some of the blanks when necessary, or if the school asks.
Yes, our inner-city school (60 percent on free or reduced school lunch) handed out the school profile at freshman and sophomore parent nights. Unfortunately, the BACK THEN very experienced GC had to retire due to health issues. No information sessions since then (none in the past 18 months). I am glad I went to the one in 9th grade and one in early 10th grade. No more offered since then. Unfortunately, this school snap-shot has not been updated since then, as I found out by submitting (via PDF) a certified, current junior-year transcript for summer camp before senior year. The GC who quit 18 month ago still figures prominently ;-(
My DC is on the fifth guidance counselor since starting high school … other LAST NAME letters have been luckier and are on number II.
No matter what, even our HS averages 3 or 4 NMFs per year and sends kids to reasonably selective colleges. It’s not the norm, but it happens. No Naviance either - no district or PTO funding, no interest due to lack of OOS interest and amazing in-state scholarships.
Luckily, our Assistant Principal in Guidance seems to be knowledgeable and to take pride in students who go OOS. But who knew?
DS is on his 4th GC who started a few months ago. :-S The other counselors have been around maybe for a decade. Yes, unlucky LAST NAME letter :-S [-(
I think DS17 is just unluckiest boy in the world/school. Most of his teachers did not get contracts renewed for valid reasons. One exception was the one good teacher he had left to return to his home state to become a principal. DS19 had only the good teachers in the same school. For DS17, good teachers had to miss school and substitutes teach due to broken bone, emergency maternity leave, and having a twin! Even substitute teacher was good one for DS19. The school hired him replacing former DS17’s teacher!
Class of 2017 may have all these changes due to my DS’s bad luck. XX XX X_X
Gym grades: My D19’s gym grade both semesters last year (different classes each time, though) were based on improvement. She barely eked out an A first semester, because she’s a competitive sort and went all out on the initial assessment, giving her less room for improvement at the end as opposed to kids who gamed it and held back a bit at the beginning. Then she dislocated her shoulder badly enough to require surgery over winter break, though, and so had an accommodation for gym the beginning of second semester that exempted her from the initial assessment—meaning that her improvement over that semester was (at least as I recall limit theory from calculus) infinite. I’m thinking they should have invented a new alphabet for her or something.
Early decision: Interesting datapoint: At Penn’s info session, we were told that being a legacy was a thumb on the scale ED, but not RD.
QOTD/school profile: No, I haven’t seen it, but now I’m interested. I suspect it’s just the flyer all schools in the district are required to distribute to the community each year, though, now that I think about it, which is just test results, student body makeup by ethnicity, names of administrators, and a brief paragraph describing the school’s focus.
@mtrosemom, the computer info was actually really helpful. I think we will get a PC, although Mac’s are more hipster according to D.
I’m so relieved to hear that kids don’t have to be involved in making the list at this point, I have a list, but D doesn’t. I plan to force involvement next week after the ACT, but I’m expecting a battle to keep the free tuition schools on the list.
Leadership, one position this year and starting 2 more next year.
No ED schools for us simply because none are high on the list.
D started her on-line aerobic walking PE class today. It’s shaping up to be an excellent summer for our walk-loving dog!
Grad parties
I doubt D will want one. I’m sure we’ll do some sort of family celebration with grandparents, etc. who fly in.
Leadership positions
Nope.
Gift
She’ll get a new laptop, but that won’t be a gift. She still uses her laptop from 6th or 7th grade and has a Chromebook. As an engineering student she’ll need a pretty good laptop, so I see it as a necessity. She’ll definitely get a charm of some sort (she generally favors the ones from thinkgeek) for her charm bracelet. I don’t think I can top her 18th birthday (yeah, she’s the old lady here) gift: we took her to Denver under false pretenses to see her favorite stand-up comedian. The line went around the corner so she couldn’t see the marquis. H and I kept making up silly and horrible shows/events that were taking place inside until the marquis came into view and the surprise unveiled. After the show she hugged us and said “Best birthday gift ever!”
Life skills
She’s probably about average for her age. She can do laundry and basic cooking and sewing. She’s a natural hard worker and money saver (no idea where those genes came from!)
List and app fees
Her list is at 14. She added three Canadian schools, but I don’t have the energy right now to look into a whole different enchilada (or maybe that should be a “whole different slice of bacon” since it’s Canada??), so I’m not counting them for now. After reading your other folks potential app fees I don’t have the bravery to look into that anytime soon either
Not sure, but you may be referring to my post about schools sharing Naviance data. From the Naviance website:
D’s school definitely does this. I understand the reasoning, but I think they should put a note next to the data when it includes shared data. At least one of the schools with which D’s school shares data is a very different animal from D’s school.
OMG, I get swamped with work and come back while waiting for document reviews and have 300+ posts to read! The only way to catch up is to read when the rest of you are sleeping! I-)
Re: Insurance and fender benders:
Yipe, all these car accidents. Glad they haven’t been too serious! I got in little parking lot accident about a year ago. Not enough damage for either one of us to contact insurance. The next time I got my car serviced, I asked about the cost of installing a backup camera. I was expecting $1000 (the cost of adding it when you buy the car), but it was only $200. I love having it for myself, and now there is one on both our cars for DS when he occasionally drives.
Our auto insurance more than doubled when I added DS a couple months ago. And, he hardly drives at all. I’m not getting my money’s worth there. We don’t have an extra car for him, though.
Re: Dorm talk
You guys, it’s too early for this discussion!! It triggers my “oh no, I’m going to miss him so much” reaction. I do know that DS wants a memory foam topper. He said the mattresses at UNLV were like concrete. Other than that, he probably doesn’t care. Boys… My dorm had a bathroom in every two-person room and was fairly large. I guess I was spoiled. The dorm rooms we’ve seen are dinky.
Re: Gifts
I was going to get him an electronic keyboard for his dorm, since he plays piano for relaxation. But, then I saw the size of dorm rooms and anyway we inherited one from my parents’ house. So, I don’t know, new electronic devices, I guess. His laptop is currently about a year old, and he paid for 1/2.
Re: Departmental visits, ~post #6563
Love your list of questions @2muchquan – I’m saving those. So far, DS has met with departmental secretaries (they run the whole thing anyway) and professors. No meetings with Department Heads or Deans.
Re: Other LoRs
DS will ask his research professor at the UC to do a LoR. He did one for the summer programs DS got into, so it seems to have been good. I don’t know whether the summer program he’s going to provides LoRs. There must be a way for people not on Naviance to submit LoRs, because it must be a really common situation.
Re: laptops
@nw2this Yes, some engineering types use Apple computers. DS says they are fairly easy to configure as dual-boot systems with Linux. Linux or some form of UNIX is important to CS folks, at least. Some of the scientists/engineers who I have speak at monthly meetings bring Mac laptops to give their talks. But, most have PC laptops.
Re: independence
@eandesmom Great list! I have a lot of trouble with insurance forms. Mostly with understanding why they pay so little. DS is a pretty good cook and baker. Much better than I am. Dad is the chef in the family and the kids help with some fairly complex stuff. DS and DH took a couple Wilton cake decorating classes, and DS can still make pretty good frosting roses. Both my kids have done their own laundry since sometime in elementary school – putting laundry away is still a weak point, though.
Re: ED
@dfbdfb I also think its unfair and unrealistic to choose a favorite and try to game that whole system at the beginning of senior year. DS will be applying to 2 EA schools I think, but no ED.
Re: Slides
Sometime this summer I have to go through these boxes of photos and old slides from my parents house. I guess I need to find a service that will scan them to digital. They are mostly from the 1950s. DH used punch cards in high school, but I started out with tape drives on a Commodore PET. I lost programs to bad tapes.
Re: PE grading
@picklesarenice Hugs for your DD. So unfair!
Here’s our Stephen Hawking story:
My husband was a grad student in physics at our local UC about 25 years ago, and Stephen Hawking was coming to speak at a physics department colloquium. He visited our UC several times because of its theoretical physics institute. Like any grad student, DH always hoped that there would be free food at the colloquia. On the way to this particular colloquium he saw a cart being wheeled toward the building. He told his friends, “Hey, it looks like they are providing doughnuts this week.” When they got closer, they discovered it was not doughnuts but Stephen Hawking.
So, my husband is “The man who mistook Stephen Hawking for a doughnut cart.”
I have managed to skim the 100+ posts. I’m going to steal @ynotgo’s format to respond to some of the topics.
Gifts/parties: none and none. Dd will get recognized by our church as a graduate (they have a special Mass for graduates), but I doubt she will want a party. She won’t get a special graduation gift from us, though necessity has resulted in all of our grads getting their own luggage. (Her laptop is only a yr old.)
Laptops: Ds dual boots his Windows laptop. He works with Linux for his research all the time.
Independence: Dd could run our household if she had to. She’d hate it, but she could do it. Life skills in our household are called chores and everyone does them from a young age. (They know how to dig ditches, weed, mow, build fences and decks, stain, clean pools, etc., too. :). Power tools 101, a basic life skill. ;))
Dd does not have her driver’s license, yet, though. I blame her dad. He took her out on theinterstate after only having her permit for a few weeks and told her to change lanes and then he didn’t help her. She almost side-swiped a car. Terrified her so much it took months for her to get enough courage to drive again.She has no choice but to get it this summer.
Obviously no ED bc we cannot afford it.
Leadership roles: None.
Dept visits: Every single one of my kids has done dept visits. They are incredibly revealing, especially for small depts. They make or break my kids’ lists. Here are some examples as to why (I think I shared this 300 pages ago!! 
).
- Ds always asked how he would fit into their program entering with so many UG physics classes completed and what coursework they would suggest he take. One dept mocked him. (So not joking!) The dean and the UG advisor both started grilling him about what textbooks he used, etc. Then the UG advisor went in full blown rant, basically yelling at him that he needed to slow down and actually learn something. That their school was full of 4.0 NMS valedictorians who didn’t know how to think. He said he had kids crying in his classrooms bc they couldn’t understand anything and they entered thinking they knew everything. (I am not exaggerating at all. That is the toned down version.)
At other schools, he had people excited about the possibilities of what he could do. After ds described how his professors where he DE constantly shared books from their personal libraries with him, one UG advisor told him that he reminded him of himself when he was that age. He went on to share with ds his UG, grad, and post-doc path and offered his insights into different options.
Dd’s visits have gone in equal extremes. One dept scoffed at her description of her level and told her all students start in 101. Another dept told her she was on par with their advanced level students and that language acquisition could not be her focus in their dept, but culture and literature instead. *
Anyway, dept visits, even if just to ask about how their students interact (do they collaborate, hang out in the dept lounge/study area, form study groups), and ask about recent grads, etc. can reveal a ton about the dept culture. (Nothing is more revealing than blank stares and hesitation when asking about recent grads. Same dept as the horror story…the dean and the UG advisor looked at each other and started asking if the other knew. They could only give info about 1 student.)
No interesting stories. I had thought I was probably the oldest person on this thread, but in reading some of the recent responses, I guessing a lot of us are closer in age than I thought.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek Wow, just wow! Is that any way to treat prospective guests to your department? Guess those got crossed off the list pretty quickly.
Can I send my kids to your house to learn some life skills, please? They have basic cooking, cleaning, laundry, but not power tools 101!
@Ynotgo That is a great story!
On a side note, I visited with my oldest sister yesterday and we were talking about colleges, degrees, and our kids. Her youngest Dd is a top exec with her company in NYC. Sister was describing my niece’s office: huge, all glass windows, high floor,looking over the Statue of Liberty. All with an art degree from UNC-G.
(Fly on the wall version–I was talking about the CC perspective which I obviously don’t agree with it bc it doesn’t match any reality I know. My sister started talking about poise, communication skills, personality, image, etc. It is what we see in our family. The driven go-getters with top goals are well-groomed, personable, and full of self-confidence and sell their skill set well.)
My sister just walked in and showed me this Ted Talk parody…hilarious bc I was typing the above.
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/thisisthat/thought-leader-gives-talk-about-thought-leadership-that-will-inspire-your-thoughts-1.3615385
Speaking of PE, due to IB schedule DS has to do 1 yr of PE in summer. 7:30AM-2:30 PM, Monday-Thursday for 3 weeks is considered one semester. Imagine spending that much time outdoors in 90+ degrees weather and he can’t handle hot weather. One summer, DS continued it against our recommendation. Within couple of days he had high fever and took 2 days off (max allowed). He survived on bottles of ice cold coconut water (from Costco). He completed his second semester last year and luckily that school has indoor facilities.
Ok, I’m jumping in on BOTH the PE talk and the Leadership talk. I just remembered, my daughter was able to opt out of regular PE junior year for a class in “junior leadership” 
where she actually ‘teaches’ PE classes to Frosh/Soph, among other things. I can’t believe I forgot about that. She will be taking “senior leadership” next year. Hopefully colleges won’t see through the farce.
I’ve seen where some schools count marching band as PE. Wish ours did that. Kid hasn’t had a real lunch period in 3 years. It’s a regular class (Band/Orchestra), which counts as an elective. I think she’ll have taken 1 or 2 ‘real’ electives her whole time in HS, which would be OK but the band director is a jerk.
There was talk of power tools. I love power tools. D and I head to Kentucky a week from tomorrow to work on homes in some of the more impoverished areas for a week. We get to use all sorts of power tools and hand tools. We frequently have to dig in the clay and rock to put in foundations and deck posts. There is a competition to wear the same pair of pants every day, and they get pretty grimy. Really looking forward to it!
On PE: Our school requires PE every other day for all four years, and it’s graded. I know that the PE grade takes a hit if the student is unprepared (i.e., no gym shoes or swimsuit) but I’m not sure how much of it is performance based. My two athletic children ran 98-100 most of the time, while my not-athletically-gifted-but-very-enthusiastic child got 93s and up. The most vocal parent I ever heard on this issue was the dad of a very athletically gifted kid who got a 90…presumably he wasn’t showing up or wasn’t bringing his gym clothes.