I was watching a bunny run across my back yard. Now, bunnies always catch my attention – but it was the reason for running that KEPT my attention. Apparently, Mr Bunny did NOT want to mess with a family of raccoons. One mommy raccoon and four baby kits we slowly making their way toward our neighbor’s house. I’ve never seen a raccoon with four babies before!
When they came to the gate, mommy and three babies went through single file. The fourth kit balked. Perhaps he had a previous negative experience with a gate, but he just couldn’t go through. Instead this unusual little raccoon decided to climb over the 6 foot metal chain link fence instead of go through the gate. Apparently raccoon kits are pretty coordinated, because he had no trouble getting up half way. Did you know that when they climb down, they actually go head first? Yikes! Anyway, the poor kit got half way up and then wanted to come down, but he also wanted to be on the other side of the fence with his mommy. He ended up climbing sideways for a while before giving up. Mommy raccoon walked all the way back, with the three other siblings in tow, and waited for him to finish doing it the hard way; avoiding the gate that was open wide enough for anyone to pass through.
Three kits walk through the gate, and one decides to take the “road less traveled.”
He certainly learned differently than his siblings. Same parental unit, same environment, and yet a very different outcome. This Kit learns differently!
Just like all raccoon kits learn differently, all kids learn differently, too! If your three children learn a certain way, it can be very upsetting if the fourth can’t use the same curriculum or learn the same way as well. It’s especially frustrating when money is involved! But our kids don’t all learn the same either, and sometimes you do have to re-trace your steps and try to figure out the unique learning style of your unique learner.
I’ve recently been connecting with friends on LinkedIn. I invite you to send me an invitation if you want to connect with my business.
Colleges want four years of high school English. You’ve done it all and you have one more year of high school to go. What to do about English?
Hey Lee,
I am a high school senior, and I was wondering what you would recommend me to take for English class this fall. I don’t actually “need” another English credit so this is mostly going to be something that I’m doing just to make my transcript look better. I’m would prefer something that would be “fun”, and I would like to avoid Shakespeare and stuff like that like. I know I sound picky, but if it’s something that I don’t have to do, I’d rather not put myself through the pain. I like reading, it’s just that I don’t like old English. If you can help me, that would be great. Thanks!
~ Heather
Dear Heather,
If you have already covered the basics of English and you don’t need anything specific, then you can cover your last English credit with “Delight-Directed Learning.” That means that your goal is to do at least an hour of reading and writing every day, in some way that is enjoyable for you. There are a LOT of options! You can write a novel, or take a year of speech and debate. You could start a blog, become an “Examiner” author, or get a writing internship. You can choose a variety of literature supplements, or design a course on “Popular Fiction” for your reading and writing.
You do need a whole credit of English during senior year, but that doesn’t mean you have to use English Curriculum. You can pull something together that is interesting to you, and then count hours you spend reading and writing to determine the credit value. 120-180 hours is a high school credit.
I hope that helps!
Updates to the Gold Care Club and Silver Training Club tomorrow
I recently read an article that said according to www.pahomeschoolers.com, homeschoolers in Pennsylvania may receive high school credit if they do any ONE of the following in a course:
1. Complete two-thirds of a textbook
2. Have 120 daily logged entries
3. Have 120 hours of logged study
4. Complete a 10 page research paper
5. Complete a college course
6. Pass an AP exam
Homeschoolers in Pennsylvania
I’m no genius, but by my calculations only 1/50th of the states may have these requirements. When you read things like that, remember that state laws vary, and it may not apply to you at all.
Do any ONE of the following
You don’t have to do ALL of these things. You don’t have to do a textbook AND write a 10 page paper AND pass an AP exam. In Pennsylvania, you only have to do one of these things to get high school credit. In other states, you may have the freedom to choose other ways of determining credit. Homeschoolers may read the list and think they have to do them ALL, but you don’t – even in Pennsylvania.
Complete two-thirds of a textbook
Wow. That’s not at ALL like finishing the whole book. I try to tell parents that sometimes it’s OK to lighten up, and not finish every last chapter. Most public schools say 75% of the book means you are “done.” Teachers in public schools plan ahead for which chapters they will skip. I always liked to finish things in my homeschool, but that didn’t ALWAYS happen. Even if you don’t live in Pennsylvania, don’t feel bad if you don’t finish a textbook.
Have 120 daily logged entries
Some experts require 120 hours, some require 150, and some require 180. Instead of being regimented, just guess. Unless your state requires daily logged entries, you don’t have to keep a log of hours and attendance.
Have 120 hours of logged study
Unless your state requires daily logged entries, you don’t have to keep a journal with the number of hours you have studies. I read one expert who said homeschoolers couldn’t count “homework.” Excuse me? Isn’t all homeschool done at home, and is therefore homework? Unless this is a state requirement, you don’t have to keep a log with hours checked off – you can estimate.
Complete a 10 page research paper
In other states, you may decide to award credit for an 8 page paper, or 9 page paper. I liked assigning a written paper for each course because I liked having something to document every class. By 10 pages? Wow! I’m glad that doesn’t apply to the other states.
Complete a college course
Yup. If you know enough to pass a college course, you know enough to pass the course in high school, right? Dual enrollment means you get credit for high school and credit for college at the same time for the same class.
Pass an AP exam
This is the same idea as the one above. AP test measure a college amount of knowledge. So does a CLEP Exam. If you pass either, you can give a high school credit.
I don’t want you to think I’m picking on Pennsylvania. I don’t know PA homeschool law, and I’m not familiar with the Pahomeschoolers.com website. I just want to encourage others to learn what they can, even from this difficult list. And remember, not every article will have information that you have to remember for your homeschool. Some things may not apply to you at all!
Do you like getting this sort of help for homeschooling high school? Gold Care Club members get extended answers to their most challenging high school issues.
It’s that time of year again! The new school year is just around the corner and that means CURRICULUM SALES! If you haven’t already, visit Christianbook.c0m today for the latest deals and news about upcoming sales from all of our homeschool publishers.
This August, CBD is featuring Apologia Curriculum products at 35% off through the end of the month.
We found this tool extremely useful in the run up to our son’s wedding. I somehow think others might be able to use it to take the edge off some of the more dramatic moments of homeschooling teens.
How do you choose between Online Classes, Community College, AP, and CLEP?
Hi, Lee! Your blog is amazing and has already helped me so much (as well as your ebook, DVD, and gifted kids CD!). Just wondering if, knowing what you know now about community colleges, would you recommend on-line college courses or AP courses or just seeing if your child can pass some CLEP Exams to minimize the number of classes he would have to take in college. I’m starting to go in circles about this!
Thanks,
Elise
Dear Elise,
Thank you SO much for the positive feedback! Choosing between community college, AP courses , CLEP exams , CollegePlus and other options depends on your child. From time to time I have recommended each different method, so I can’t really say which one is right for you. I do remember what it felt like to worry around in circles, though!
Recently I gave a one hour webinar for my Gold Care Club Members on “What’s Next” and I talked for a long time about the pros and cons of each option. If you are a member, let me know and I can send you a link to the audio recording of that webinar. (It’s a membership site, so the link won’t work for non-members, sorry!)
When you’re making the decision for your family, take a step back and think about what your goals are for your child. Some really need to save money on college more than anything – consider CLEP or AP. Other families are mostly concerned about providing college in an environment that supports their world view – consider CollegePlus. Some families have fallen far behind in school and need to quickly get foreign language or math or science into their 18 year old – consider community college. You can see how each family might get a difference answer.
To help you answer for yourself, it can help to think about your goals for college. Decide what college your child wants to go to. Contact them and ask about their policy on CLEP, AP, Community College, and Distance Learning. That can tell you a lot! If all methods are acceptable to the college you want, then look into the college major. It’s difficult to use distance learning for science and engineering classes, but easier to use it for liberal arts and introductory classes. Students considering graduate degrees (law and medicine for example) will need to find out if their application to law or medical school will be affected by their choices. In general, engineering degrees are not shorted by CLEP or AP, but they can be made slightly easier if you can eliminate the core freshman courses with CLEP or AP. Engineering classes may be available to high school students through community college, however. Students interested in law school or medical school may need to complete their undergraduate degee on a college campus, rather than online, particularly to go to a competitive university. And in general, if a student wants to go to a highly selective or Ivy league school, going the traditional high school to college route is preferable.
Always check with your college choices, though. Their policies vary significantly.
Math and science may scare some people, but I was intimidated by English. Math and science are wonderful, because there is always a right answer and a wrong answer. Unfortunately, English isn’t that way. English has “voice” which is very difficult to teach and difficult to correct. How do you know writing is “right” or “wrong” when it could be just the voice of the writer?
I finally decided that my job as a homeschool parent was to simply help my children become better writers. Not perfect, and not “right” just better than they were yesterday. That’s when I decided that writing was more about practice than anything else. Practice and feedback, more practice and more feedback.
I have been collecting some ideas for writing that may encourage you as you think about English for your own homeschool.
Even though I am listing some courses, remember that most homeschoolers teach English and writing at home using tools they have around the house (mainly paper and pencil.) You don’t need to have online resources, and you don’t need a teacher to grade papers for you. You can choose a writing curriculum you do at home, or choose writing assignments independently and be completely successful. However, I’m aware that some parents are serious about wanting additional help in this area, so I wanted to make sure to list a bunch of ideas. I have heard great reports about Brave Writer and Write at Home in particular.
Here is an article about English that may help you with the grading.
Read to what others are saying about The HomeScholar Gold Care Club!
Panicky parents are asking for appointments. With so many requests for a consultation, my calendar is filling up months in advance. If you need an appointment my fee is $125 per hour. You can get more information here.
A much cheaper and much quicker option is to join the Gold Care Club. As long as you can remember to call me on Wednesdays, you’ll get help quickly, and it’s only $47 per month for 20 minutes a week. You can ask me 20 minutes per week of questions until you run out of questions, and still get all your answers before we could get an appointment months from now. Here is a link to read more about the Gold Care Club.
If you decide the join the Gold Care Club, make your purchase and log in with your username and password, then click on this link: Weekly Private One-On-One Call-In with Lee. That will point to the phone number that you use, and gives complete instructions for your call. It’s easy, though. I have a toll-free number that you can call on Wednesdays from 9am to 3pm, and if you don’t reach me, I’ll call you right back.
Help is on the way!
Gold Care Club members get extended answers to their most challenging high school issues.
Thinking about an umbrella school next year? The grass may not be greener on the other side, as one mother so clearly demonstrates in her blog question.
I just read about your transcript help. I am so overwhelmed. Last year my son applied for and got into a very competitive performing arts public high school. The problem? They refused to “count” his 9th grade work and insisted he redo the 9th grade!
He begged me to enroll him in an umbrella school so he would have a “real” transcript so he could feel some sense of assurance he’d get into a good college. He is interested in Rice University. I actually had called Rice before I re-enrolled at Clonlara. I mainly was asking them how important an “official transcript” was as oppose to my making one and creating a portfolio for him. I know they focus on standardized test results too, so the transcript feels like a formality to me. He said it was, but anything that made it easier for them (an official transcript) was better. So I paid the money (to Clonlara) to do a “review” transcript for his 9th grade year and I paid for his last year. And I just signed up for this year (actually for he and his brother). But I am NOT happy with it. They are making changes this year and the paperwork is horrible.
I dread, dread, dread dealing with all of that. I keep telling myself, “well it keeps me organized” but really, I slacked off last year because I figured their “official” transcript was what was going to count anyway. But I feel like I am just paying a diploma mill. I don’t even know what Clonlara’s reputation is among colleges, or if they even have one. My frustration is that I have very high standards for their education and I am not happy with Clonlara’s standards. My frustration is that I am still bound by stupid policies and paperwork that take up time that I could be spending doing other things (like homeschooling…).
And I’m embarrassed to say that I hadn’t even looked at their graduation requirements until a couple of weeks ago! How did I miss that? They only require 22 hours and only 2 of these in math and NO foreign language credits. Of course we are doing much more than that – much more. We are aiming for 4 years of math, science, English, and social studies and 3 years of foreign language. I just need the assurance for my son that my homemade transcript will carry MORE weight than Clonlara’s. Do you honestly think that could be the case?
I know you are busy but I desperately need to make a decision soon. I hate the thought of losing the money I’ve already paid to Clonlara, but I would love to have my homeschool freedom back.
Many thanks,
~ Ann
Dear Ann,
I think the real problem is the word “official.” YOU provide an official transcript. Clonlara provides an accredited transcript.
A homeschool transcript can say “official transcript” and be official – just like mine did. It just wasn’t accredited. When they talk about not having an official transcript, they mean you’ll provide a portfolio of work for them to review, with no homeschool transcript at all. What he was asking for was for you to make a homeschool transcript – not asking for an accredited transcript. At least that’s how it sounds to me. Here is a blog post, different issue but same concept: The Difference Between Accredited and Official Transcripts.
The fastest and easiest way to solve this problem is to call Rice University. Go to their website, try to find their homeschool admission policy, and then call to speak to a admission representative. Explain that you can either get a poor education using an accredited program, or homeschool independently and provide a superior education. Find out their policy. That may be the assurance that your son needs and give you the freedom to do what you want to do to educate him well.
Then you can read together this article: Homeschool Accreditation: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
Your transcript may not carry MORE weight than Clonlara’s. However, a better quality education WILL carry more weight than a lower quality of education. Focus on helping your children learn in important and meaningful ways, then you can be more successful.
If you want encouragement along the way, and more detailed help, then consider the Gold Care Club. If you need help with your transcript, then the Total Transcript Solution will help.
I have captured the wonderful events of this weekend onto this blog post for your viewing pleasure. We are delighted to welcome our latest Binz family addition, Liz! We are so blessed and so overjoyed to have you as part of our family. God is indeed so very good to us – all the time!
Kevin and Liz – a Love Story
The Video Presentation for the Rehearsal Dinner
Rehearsal Day – August 5, 2010
Wedding Day – August 6, 2010
This video covers the morning of the wedding through all the preparations and the photos.
The Ceremony
The guests arrive and the vows take place. Perfect.
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