@homerdog, daughter has no list, we have not met Guidance office so far. Should we reach out to GC or let daughter visit on her own. Need to think about it as do not want to take precious time from rep if daughter is not interested in the school? Is this a good criterion?
School doesnât start until tomorrow for my kids! We are enjoying our last day of summer.
@me29034 We have the same problem with Chemistry right now. Dâs choices were honors Chem or AP Chem and AICE Chem as a 2 period block class - the school said she could not get into the AO Chem class as a single period as it was saved for kids with good âexcusesâ (I think kids who are in other electives like student govt so donât have time for 2 sciences.) She did 2 period block science 9th & 10th grades and did not want to do it again. The is not a STEM kid and she wanted to use the second period for a different class. Here we are now three weeks into school and she canât stand honors Chem - says it is way too easy. Then she found out thy let a few extra kids into the stand alone AP Chem class last week off the wait list which we were never told about. I told her exactly what you guys are saying - just enjoy the chance for an easier A and use any extra time to study for her harder classes. I also said no college is going to turn her down just for not having AP Chem (she will still have about 10 AP classes by the time she graduates) and they donât know how easy or hard the honors class is.
Tonight is meet the teacher night for my D21, tomorrow night for D19. In the meantime we are in FL getting ready for this hurricane. We are stocked up on water, snacks, dog food, etc., just trying to decide if we should stay or get out of here. If we didnât have the dog I would be out of here tomorrow, but since I wonât fly with her it means we would have to figure out somewhere we could drive that we could bring a 75 pound dog!
I agree with @sdl0625 My D14 got a well fought for B- in chemisty, but a solid A in physics. She absolutely loved physics and had a ball with all of the projects.
So Iâve been considering whether or not S19 should take the Dec. SAT. He will be taking the Oct. 7th one, and his school makes all Jrs take it again in April. I really want his highest score before jr year ends so that he can focus on admissions/scholarship apps/enrichment activities. I also donât want him to lose the benefits of all the studying and practice by taking a long break. Which is why Iâm thinking the Dec. administration may be a good idea. Decisions, decisionsâŠ
Unsure decisions on our end as well. Kids took the Aug SAT and dabbled with the idea of registering for the Oct SAT. S wants to wait to see his Aug scores (hoping no doubt that he met his score goal and thus, no longer required to take it). D will probably take again because sheâs the type that leaves no stone unturned, but is opting for the Nov date to give herself time to acclimate to the new school year and then work in some practice tests during the weekends before the test. They start school this weekâŠhoping for a repeat of last year (pray, hope, then execute).
Just spent 20 minutes on the phone with Collegeboard to change DSâs canceled August test to October. :)]
I also called last week, but the system thought he already took the test. This morning I checked his Collegeboard account and saw his status was changed to âmakeupâ from âcomplete.â The change happened before the October registration deadline. :!!
They did not charge anything for the change due to hurricane, but it took 40 minutes of my life :)] and some headache. 
Wish we had signed him up for ACT.
@infinityprep1234 at my Dâs school they encourage the juniors to meet with the college reps. Most Seniors have their minds already made up by this point since college apps are due mostly in November and they should already be working on their applications.
D19 had her first day of ârealâ (i.e., not miniclasses) school yesterday. She ended up enrolled for two different English classes, got that straightened out so that now sheâs one of four juniors taking dual enrollment composition and an advanced biology class instead. Sheâs already stressed out about AP world history, but she also thinks thatâs because the teacher may have been trying to get the slackers to switch to a different class.
She also told me that sheâs like to take the ACT and SAT February-ish, but that first (to my surprise, since Iâd never brought up the idea with her, having never even thought of the possibility) she wants to take a test prep class. Her reasoning is that she (unlike my D17) has a fair amount of test anxiety, and so wants to learn specific strategies to avoid her tendency to freeze up.
So: Whatâs a good test prep provider. Weâre somewhat limited in out options here (and theyâre overpriced, relative to the rest of the country), so Iâm particularly wondering about online test-prep optionsâare any of them at all worth the price?
@dfbdfb My friend recommended Prepscholar.
@dfbdfb - if sheâs as motivated as she seems, try Khan Academy - itâs free and you set goals and they send daily reminders and encouraging emails and then you take practice tests and there are videos to teach skills, etc.
My D has never been motivated enough; otherwise I wouldâve saved a ton of money.
@dfbdfb â my D (the one with ADHD and not-so-great time management skills) prepped on her own, using Khan Academy for some math work and test prep books we had purchased for her. She made her own schedule and stuck with it. I guess the proof will be when she takes the ACT this Saturday. 
Like @carolinamom2boys, a friend has rave reviews for PrepScholar. We opted to go with the low-cost approach for now. Also, my D will not take the SAT.
@dfbdfb I sent you a PM about SAT test prep. S19 studied on his own this summer.
@dfbdfb I second Khan Academyâs SAT prep. Not only is it directly connected with College Board, provides instruction that adapts constantly with how your child performs within the program and on CB practice tests, but it has been researched and proven to increase scores. Plus it is free.
The Khan Academy test prep seems good for reviewing material, but Iâm not sure it would be helpful for a kid who knows the material, but has test anxiety issues. A class might go into more specific detail about specific strategies for the different types of questions, how to best use your time, etc. Khan is a convenient place to access all 8 College Board practice tests online - probably worth signing up just for that.
I canât recommend anything else because my S19 (with ADHD and not so great time management skills) will barely do Khan Academy with the October SAT coming up! He did enough to get all of the different subject icons to show him at the highest level, so he considers himself finished, lol. I purchased a couple of decorative prep books that havenât been touched.
For the December ACT, Iâll probably just try to get him to do the practice questions on the ACT website and maybe one practice test to get a feel for the timing. The ACT seems more straightforward and my older kid did well enough on it with no specific prep at all (much better than she did on the SAT). I only pushed S19 towards the SAT because his PSAT was pretty good and I thought he could do really well with some prep. I have no idea how either test will turn out at this point. Really hoping that one or the other will be good enough and he doesnât end up applying to a school that requires the writing part.
@eh1234 âdecorative prep booksâ :))
S19 used a few timing tips but didnât focus on those until about a week before the test when he knew he might need them. One good one was to do each math sectionâs multiple choice but jump over the last five multiple choice to do the grid in questions. Then, go back to the last five multiple choice. The reason you do this this is because the first three grid in questions are considered easy and you canât guess on grid in questions. The last five multiple choice questions are the hardest on the test along with the very last grid in. If youâre trying to gather points in a set amount of time, you want to make sure you finish the easier questions.
On the real test, he felt like it really worked. Itâs way more stressful to be doing the grid in questions at the end if youâre rushing since you cannot guess. Youâd rather be working on the last few multiple choice at the end of the test and then you can guess if you need to.
Also, he would circle the answers in the book for two pages and then move those answers to the scantron sheet. I donât know how much time that saves but we read that it helps you focus on the task at hand if you do a bunch of problems at one time and then fill in the circles instead of looking at the scantron and filling it in each time.
@eh1234 I use Khan Academy with both of my kidsâŠ1 has severe test anxiety. Khan provides timed mini quizzes after the student completes 3 sections. These mini quizzes make my kids hustle and become more familiar with the feeling of being rushed. Add this to me giving them timed practice tests ( I print them from Khan) plus using the additional materials provided to coachesâŠmy anxious daughter & son have steadily increased their scores.
I do not believe that Khan, or any test prep program/book is a one size fits all model. Itâs important to know your kid, their learning style, and their gaps . Then plug away with whatever method/material that works for them. I have supplemented with PWN, Metzer Grammar & Metzer ReadingâŠwhere necessary.
I also think âdecorative prep booksâ is the quote of the year.
DS19 attends a SAT prep test class given by a local company . DS16 used this same company. The class focuses on test taking strategies and time management which hopefully will helping a good bit
I think it depends on the child. Some of ours did well with self study and Kahn. Others needed accountability and feet held to the fire. So far weâve done a different test prep scenario for each child (3 down and one to go). Online only (pre Kahn via Kaplan) a group option with Sylvan plus a lot of Kahn, a private company mostly 1:1.
S19 will likely do a modified version of what S17 did. Same company but the group option plus Kahn.
Iâm always so fascinated by the various science options!
I do NOT agree that one needs Chem or Physics to get into college. We have kids that prove otherwise. Depends on the major, if one wants engineering then yes, definitely and for the pre med, prudent. Depends on the college too.
At our HS there are very few honors classes, generally mainstream or AP. Most AP are self selecting with no pre reqs.
I do think having precalc prior to AP physics helps. S17 has them concurrently his junior year and was learning the math sometimes later than it was needed on Physics. He managed but the seniors had an easier time of it, especially early.
S19 is on a higher math track so he should be ok this year in the class but it is the one teacher he is unsure of.
FWIW S17, not the strongest student, did just fine in APES with zero Chem.
Hello.
Iâve just joined this board. My kid is just starting junior year. Is this the proper place for introductions, or should I make a new thread with all of our details on the main Parents board?