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Here is a nice little “pick-me-up” video on how you can be sure you can homeschool high school.
We are so excited about our newsletter, which (as always) comes out on the 1st of the month. It will be waiting for you when you wake up on Monday morning! You can sign up here.
There are ways to speed up readers that are slow but competent.
You can use books on audio, which can speed them along – even if they are reading along with the audio, it’s a good way for them to practice reading faster.
You can read plays WHILE watching plays. We did that with Shakespeare for my dawdling reading. We got the BBC version of the Shakespeare plays, which are word for word, and then followed along with a good translation in book form. (I recommend the Folger Library edition.
Just between you and me, the biggest speed reading technique is just sitting at a table and running your fingers along the words as you read them.
There are lots of great things about learning slowly and even reading slowly. But if you want ways to make them read faster, these are some methods you can try.
You can subscribe to my blog so it comes to your inbox. It’s a daily dose of high school wisdom! Sign up here!
How do you begin making a lifestyle change? Whether it’s dieting or high school record keeping, the answer is the same. Start by Starting! All the thinking and talking and learning in the world isn’t going to change your behavior. You have to take the first step IN ACTION. You have to put your first foot forward when you start walking, and you have to start record keeping by STARTING.
If you are ready to start record keeping by starting, the grab your closest box or rubbermade tub, and set it beside you right now. That is the container for all your records. You are going to keep records in that bin. You are keeping high school records. You have now started record keeping!
If you aren’t ready to start record keeping, but you WANT to be ready to start record keeping, then you may get some motivation from my homeschool record keeping website . When you’re reading, just remember that all the knowledge and wisdom in the world won’t actually help you until you start record keeping by starting your own process.
Just start by STARTING. Don’t over-think it, don’t stress out, and don’t try to be perfect from the beginning. Just begin today!
If you need any extra help, you will really appreciate my Gold Care Club, as well as lots of templates and tools that will help you along. We are currently featuring an hour long video training session on how to keep homeschool records. You need to hurry, though. That video training won’t be there forever!
Hello again! I am wondering how you designed the diplomas and what wording you used on them? Thanks for all the valuable and helpful info!
~ Brenda
Hi Brenda!
I used homeschooldiploma.com to purchase my diploma. I just *love* their business. Our state homeschool organization uses them as well – they are very easy to deal with. They have a variety of suggestions for the wording. You can get all your graduation things there; cap & gown, invitations, and the works.
I love their things. When I speak, I love to show everyone my diploma, and tell them that my children graduated “with honors.” LOL! That always gets a good laugh from homeschoolers. We got our cap and gown, and diploma from them. Some large homeschool organizations will order the whole package from each of their graduates. I’ve seen a LOT of different products from them, and I’ve been very happy with them all!
Thank you for the question.
WOW!! What a Great site – Thanks so much – just what I was looking for!!
Brenda
Every once in awhile when I meet with clients, they get so excited about the new things they learn that they have to share with others. This is a blog post from someone I met at Starbucks. I had a wonderful time and, apparently, she did too! I bolded the fun part.
I have made known that our oldest is going to be homeschooled high school. I love getting the reactions from my homeschooling friends. They are just as supportive now as they were when I told them that I was putting them in school. Sometimes I think that must drive them absolutely crazy with my back and forth nonsense. They put up with me, though, and I love them for that.
My husband and I really thought that we wanted to homeschool high school, but it seemed like such an overwhelming task. I hear that homeschoolers get into college, but I was convinced that if I homeschooled my son I would ruin him forever. I am just very unsure of myself and need a lot of reassurance. I found Lee Binz, The HomeScholar, one night while I was searching the internet. I stayed up late into the night reading her blog and other articles that she has on her website. And she is in Washington!
My husband and I were able to set up an appointment with her for her high school crash course. Talk about hand holding! It was just what I needed to push me across the threshold of the final decision. I am not going to ruin my son. He is going to be able to go to college. I can make a transcript just like the public high school down the street. She answered all my questions about SAT, ACT, CLEP, AP, and PSAT testing. She helped me set up a plan for the next four years. It was wonderful. I still need to put it together, but the backbone is there. It was definitely three hours well spent.
The best part? My husband and I left the meeting as a team. We discussed what we were going to do together and with a feeling that this is attainable. Of course, I already knew that from friends that have been there-done that, but I needed someone to tell me how to do it for my child. That is what Lee did for me.
Even today I still feel 100% better about all of this. Maybe now I can get past all of this waffling and be commited to our decision without hesitation. With God’s help, I am in it for the long haul. It is going to be a wild ride.
Are you ready to get serious about homeschooling high school? Send me an email and let’s talk!
Spring. When a young man’s thoughts turn to thoughts of love, and when a homeschool mom starts thinking about next year. Wouldn’t it be nice to just STOP, and hit the fast forward button to next fall? New and fresh curriculum, new strategies, and best of all, new books! But if you still need to get through this year, you need something to keep you strong in this time of trouble. I have a suggestions:
Psalm 9:9
The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
Right now is the perfect time to focus on a quiet time with the Lord. Spring is beautiful, and summer is grand, but you don’t have to hit the ground running each morning, just because it’s getting lighter early in the day. If you need help, and strength to get through the last few weeks of the year, your quiet time with God will see you through.
Are scholarships available for students in their twenties? How long are SAT and ACT scores considered valid for scholarships and college admission?
~ Kim
Dear Kim,
Scholarships ARE available for students in their twenties! There are two kinds of scholarships, merit scholarships based on some characteristic of your students (high grades, or a particular skill or gift.) There are also need-based scholarships, based on income. Some students may be considered independent adults, even though we still view them as “children” and when that is the case, their need-based scholarships may be quite substantial. If they base their financial aid on the STUDENTS income rather than the PARENTS income, you could get a LOT of financial aid. To research need-based scholarships, use the FAFSA Forecaster here: http://www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov/
You can also search for private scholarships while you are waiting to enter college. On my Gold Care Club site, I have a video called “College Scholarships for High School Credit” where I talk about how to find scholarships, write scholarship essays, and use those essays for English credit in high school. There are private scholarships available for every age, and there are quite a few scholarship search engines around. That video course will help you through the process of finding them, because it’s a little more complicated than just googling “Scholarships.”
SAT and ACT scores are used to help determine scholarships for high school seniors when they apply to college. After they have been out of high school for a while, they may not be considered a freshman admit anymore. At that point, college policies vary widely! Although SAT and ACT scores may still be available to colleges, they may or may not choose to use them. Your best bet is to check with the college you want to apply to. Ask them some direct questions. Is my child considered a freshman applicant? Can he take a “gap year” before applying? What will happen to his SAT scores? To be quite honest, colleges are trying to sell you their college. They LIKE to talk to you about these things, because they want to talk you into buying their product – a college degree! So really, they want to talk to you about it, and it’s not an inconvenience usually.
Thank you for your newsletter and all the information I’ve learned from reading it. In the current issue you have a reminder on your calendar to freshmen asking if they need to take SAT Subject tests. What are SAT subject tests and where can I find out if my 9th grader should be taking them?
Thank you,
Leslie
Hi Leslie!
The SAT Subject tests are also called “SAT 2″ tests. They measure a high school amount of learning in one subject area at a time, like French, economics, or chemistry. They are similar to an AP exam, but an AP measures a college amount of learning, so they are much more difficult.
Usually subject tests should be given after you complete each subject. Not everyone needs them – it depends on the college you want to go to. Some selective colleges like to see 3 to 5 subject tests, but other colleges don’t need any. So the answer to “Should we take them?” probably has more to do with the colleges you think your child will apply to in the future.
Many classes taken as a freshman do not require a SAT Subject test. It’s pretty easy to get subject tests as a sophomore, junior, or senior if you need them, and many freshman don’t take classes that would require taking a subject test. If you are going to be taking another class in the same topic, for example, then you wouldn’t need a subject test. In other words, you wouldn’t give a subject test after French 1, if you are planning to take French 2 next year, right? So freshman usually do NOT need to take a SAT subject test.
Have you ever wondered what the “Social Sciences” really are? What does it even mean? Most of the time students will take US History, World History, Economics, and American Government. But there is a whole world of other social sciences you can explore!
My brother in law is a teacher at a public high school. He taught “The History of Baseball” as a social studies class. (He also taught “Sport Communications” as an English course.) When I was in public high school, I took a social science class called “Polynesian History.” My teacher loved going to Hawaii, so he developed a course about Hawaii and Polynesia.
Some of the social sciences that I have seen include all the different kinds of history:
World History
US History
Russian History
(Any other country or people History)
All kinds of government courses:
Comparative Government
US Government
Civics
All the different kinds of Economics courses:
Economics (the regular stuff)
Microeconomics
Macroeconomics
Marketing
Business Economics
Geography:
Political Geography
Physical Geography
Human behavior courses including:
Psychology
Sociology
Women’s Studies
Comparative Cultures
Anthropology
With social sciences that are a bit “off the beaten track” you can also put them in the electives category. You don’t have to list specialized classes in their major topic, you can call them electives instead. That makes it easier if you don’t know exactly what category a course should be under.
Do you have a homeschooling high school question? Send me an email!
My friend Tricia sent out an informational letter the other day, and I thought it might encourage others. Tricia is committed to helping other homeschoolers, and she provides a wonderful resource for all of us!
I talk about the “process” of taking CLEP exams on my webpage devoted to Homeschooling College. Tricia provide the resources on “how” to take CLEP exams.
I hope this helps someone!
Dear Support Group Leader,
We would like to share with you a link to our website which contains FREE lesson plans for earning college credits using the CLEP examination program. Again, all the plans on our site are FREE and we would like to share this information with the wider homeschool community. If you feel led, would you please share this information with your local support group?
Some homeschooling parents find formulating a plan for homeschooling through high school a challenge. Should our focus be on achieving a high school diploma? What about facing the college recruiters?
These concerns drive some parents to plan hours of unnecessary course work that would hopefully lead to a diploma. Others choose educational paths that attempt to satisfy nagging doubts about future college entrance. CLEP solved BOTH these concerns for our family by allowing us to chart an independent course that will ultimately show college recruiters that our student is ready for the next step.
What is CLEP?
CLEP is the “College-Level Examination Program” and is also known by terms such as “testing out” or “credit by examination.” Simply put, you use independent study to prepare for a specific college course and then go to a local college to take the computerized multiple choice exam. If you pass, you are issued the credits, as if you had taken the class at the college.
CLEP exams can be used to:
-accumulate dual credit, showing credits that will count toward high school requirements AND, at the same time, count towards a college degree
-shorten the years of study required to attain a college degree, since you are starting in the teen years
-save you money in earning a college degree, as CLEP exams are MUCH cheaper than registering for a college class on campus
-show ANY “brick and mortar” college that your child is capable of performing at a college level, and you’ll have the credits to PROVE it!
-avoid “basic skills” classes when entering college by CLEPing college math and freshman english
-give your child the chance to delve into the subject being studied while moving at a comfortable pace for optimum learning
-sharpen your child’s independent study skills, which are a MUST in the college environment
-continue to share your “world view” with your child when studying controversial topics contained in many social science classes
-tackle tough subjects ONCE and get the credit the FIRST time around. Why do high school biology and then retake it again for college credit?
SOUNDS GOOD, BUT WHERE DO I START?
A normal college course includes classroom instruction, followed by testing and then the granting of credits earned. Through our FREE lesson plans you will be able to use your child’s independent study skills, replacing the instructional phase of the college class process with the appropriate books and videos we’ve selected as study tools. Your child will prepare for the exam and the college board will issue them credits for passing the test. These credits can be “banked” with the college board and then transferred to the college of your choice in the future.
DO ALL COLLEGES ACCEPT CLEP CREDITS?
CLEP credits are accepted by more than 2,900 schools. The exams are 90 minute, multiple choice format. There are other widely accepted credit-by-examination programs as well, such as DANTES. It’s important to check with the colleges on your “wish list” to see how many credits they allow to be “transferred in” from any one testing source. The colleges we have listed are VERY “credit by examination” friendly, some even allowing you to “test out” of your ENTIRE four year degree! Remember too that colleges that have enrollment requirements, such as SAT scores and basic skills tests, often waive them when college credits have already been accumulated by the student.
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