So here's my dillema.
Son wants to go to SCAD Atlanta (Savannah College of Art and Design in Atlanta). He has for a couple years now. He is willing to look at other schools to apply to as a back-up, but he wants to go to SCAD so won't actively look for other options. He as asked me to spearhead the search for backup colleges, and I have. There is one other smaller, less expensive Christian college that he likes and beyond that, there is a big party college, where he can get a decent arts education, and the main campus of the state college (UGA) also has what looks like a very good art school. The last two he would only apply to for giggles and grins, just for the sake of saying he applied to more than one or two colleges.
Here's the thing, we are not worried about him getting into SCAD. We are only worried about paying for it. We are also not worried about getting into the second choice as they love homeschoolers. But the State college... they want us as homeschoolers to jump through an ungodly number of hoops to get in... A 3.7 GPA or close to it. 25-30 average ACT score. Extra exams (SATII) or multiple AP tests.
That would add alot of extra work to my son's senior year, when his personal goal is to work on his portfolio and to get out a little more into the world.
Is it even worth it to spend the extra time studying for SATII's (when he has already passed CLEP exams). Is to worth it to keep taking the ACT every test date to push for the highest score when he already has a Score that will get him a scholarship at another college?
Is this state college really THAT elite? or are they shooting themselves in the foot by making it difficult for homeschoolers to get in?
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Ready for a New School Year
It is July, and it is time to get going with the new school year.
Daughter is getting a jump on Geometry to have enough of it under her belt in time for the PSAT.
Son is finishing his art portfolio to get his college applications out.
I have posted and updated our book and program choices for the year.
For daughter, I decided to assign her reading. Normally, I choose every other book for her to make sure she gets a good dose of classics. However, I looked at a 100 books list that you should read before college and realized that she's only read about half with 2 years to go. Then I realized that I owned Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces and it contained many of the books that I wanted her to read, so that's that. She must read the full anthology, and since she can put away 100 pages a day normally, she will be finished with it by Christmas. Then she can read whatever she ants.
For son, I am waiting to hear from the college who is waiting for his last ACT test scores... they are held up for some reason. If they don't accept him (GA state schools hold homeschoolers to a higher standard) then we he can take the dual enrollment classes online at a private college.
I am hoping to have everything finalized soon.
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Daughter is getting a jump on Geometry to have enough of it under her belt in time for the PSAT.
Son is finishing his art portfolio to get his college applications out.
I have posted and updated our book and program choices for the year.
For daughter, I decided to assign her reading. Normally, I choose every other book for her to make sure she gets a good dose of classics. However, I looked at a 100 books list that you should read before college and realized that she's only read about half with 2 years to go. Then I realized that I owned Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces and it contained many of the books that I wanted her to read, so that's that. She must read the full anthology, and since she can put away 100 pages a day normally, she will be finished with it by Christmas. Then she can read whatever she ants.
For son, I am waiting to hear from the college who is waiting for his last ACT test scores... they are held up for some reason. If they don't accept him (GA state schools hold homeschoolers to a higher standard) then we he can take the dual enrollment classes online at a private college.
I am hoping to have everything finalized soon.
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Encouragement to struggling homeschoolers
I am sure you know the stats by now. Homeschoolers test better than public school students. Homeschoolers are highly sought by colleges, especially Christian Colleges, and also Ivy League. Homeschoolers seem to excel across the board.
But this is the average. If there's a high, there's got to be a low. What about in the case where the child HAD to homeschool because there was no way she was going to keep up in school. What about the kid who left high school on an IEP that had him destined for hard labor at best. These kids may not come out at the top of the Standardized Test scale, but they still have redeeming value that makes them college material and successful business people thereafter.
This is a story of a young man in particular who had such an experience. He went to public school through middle school, then had no choice but to homeschool for high school. He started off behind the ball, so to speak. In four years, he had to re-learn everything he'd not learned in his formative years, while getting up to standard enough to prepare for college. Ideally, he probably should have homeschooled for six years to be a strong college candidate, but that would have made him 20 by graduation. So he did his best and submitted his applications, playing up his strengths to the best of his abilities. Rejection letter, after rejection letter came, but ultimately, he found a match that was good for him and an asset for the school. (Being an Eagle Scout and doing lots of mission work is what probably won them over).
So I guess what I am saying is that your homeschooler does not have to be a rocket scientist to get into a good college. Your child does need to have strong interests and passions and show that they are leadership material. Even if college is not the goal for your child, it is important remember that leaders don't necessary hold the knowledge to do the job. Instead they know how to put the right people in the right places to get the job done.
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But this is the average. If there's a high, there's got to be a low. What about in the case where the child HAD to homeschool because there was no way she was going to keep up in school. What about the kid who left high school on an IEP that had him destined for hard labor at best. These kids may not come out at the top of the Standardized Test scale, but they still have redeeming value that makes them college material and successful business people thereafter.
This is a story of a young man in particular who had such an experience. He went to public school through middle school, then had no choice but to homeschool for high school. He started off behind the ball, so to speak. In four years, he had to re-learn everything he'd not learned in his formative years, while getting up to standard enough to prepare for college. Ideally, he probably should have homeschooled for six years to be a strong college candidate, but that would have made him 20 by graduation. So he did his best and submitted his applications, playing up his strengths to the best of his abilities. Rejection letter, after rejection letter came, but ultimately, he found a match that was good for him and an asset for the school. (Being an Eagle Scout and doing lots of mission work is what probably won them over).
So I guess what I am saying is that your homeschooler does not have to be a rocket scientist to get into a good college. Your child does need to have strong interests and passions and show that they are leadership material. Even if college is not the goal for your child, it is important remember that leaders don't necessary hold the knowledge to do the job. Instead they know how to put the right people in the right places to get the job done.
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Dear undocumented alien students:
I feel bad for you, the undocumented alien students who want to go to college, but is it really fair to demand entry into colleges without first taking steps to becoming legal residents?
About 200 protesters rallied inside the Capitol to protest the state's new immigration reform law scheduled to go into effect on Friday. Many of the demonstrators said they were undocumented students at metro Atlanta high schools... "It is not OK for all these students to sit at home with all this talent and not be able to go to college," Guerrero said. "I'm not OK with knowing there are 74,000 undocumented students in the state of Georgia."
Full story here
My problem is not with these kids wanting a college education, but that they are undocumented.
Yes, your parents brought you into the country when you were young and you could not do anything about it.
Yes, you finished high school, and want to go to college.
Yes, recent rules are preventing you to do so.
But... why not take a year or two and go through the process of getting legal? You are an adult now. Make it right. As the wife of a documented alien who became an American Citizen a couple of years ago, I know that there are many issues dealing with being an alien resident... and that's even for the people who are legal. I can't imagine the stress that an undocumented alien goes through.
However, to demand entry into colleges and using public money to do so without becoming legal is unfair to all of the kids who were born in the country or whose families took the legal route and had them documented. There are only so many spaces. There is only so much financial aid.
If anything needs to be changed, there needs to be an easy process for 18 year old's who have been in the country for 4 or more years to go through the process of becoming a citizen. It may take a year off of your education timeline while becoming legal resident aliens, and possibly citizens, but it is better than looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life.
The cost of educating legal and illegal aliens
Financial aid Ok'd for illegal students in Califorina
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About 200 protesters rallied inside the Capitol to protest the state's new immigration reform law scheduled to go into effect on Friday. Many of the demonstrators said they were undocumented students at metro Atlanta high schools... "It is not OK for all these students to sit at home with all this talent and not be able to go to college," Guerrero said. "I'm not OK with knowing there are 74,000 undocumented students in the state of Georgia."
Full story here
My problem is not with these kids wanting a college education, but that they are undocumented.
Yes, your parents brought you into the country when you were young and you could not do anything about it.
Yes, you finished high school, and want to go to college.
Yes, recent rules are preventing you to do so.
But... why not take a year or two and go through the process of getting legal? You are an adult now. Make it right. As the wife of a documented alien who became an American Citizen a couple of years ago, I know that there are many issues dealing with being an alien resident... and that's even for the people who are legal. I can't imagine the stress that an undocumented alien goes through.
However, to demand entry into colleges and using public money to do so without becoming legal is unfair to all of the kids who were born in the country or whose families took the legal route and had them documented. There are only so many spaces. There is only so much financial aid.
If anything needs to be changed, there needs to be an easy process for 18 year old's who have been in the country for 4 or more years to go through the process of becoming a citizen. It may take a year off of your education timeline while becoming legal resident aliens, and possibly citizens, but it is better than looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life.
The cost of educating legal and illegal aliens
Financial aid Ok'd for illegal students in Califorina
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Gnawing away at the umbilical cord
My son is spending the week at the SCAD Atlanta Summer Seminar program and living on campus. He is only 20 minutes away, but to me if feels like he's on the other side of the country. As he is a naturally quiet and shy person, I thought the transition would be rough. Normally when he's away from home it is with people he knows, but this time, not a single person he has ever met before it with him.
I know he is doing well because he won't call and he won't write. The most I am getting is one word text messages.
I text to ask "is everything cool?" He answers "yes".
I text "are you having fun?" He answers "yes".
I guess that's good.... probably very good. I'll take that.
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I know he is doing well because he won't call and he won't write. The most I am getting is one word text messages.
I text to ask "is everything cool?" He answers "yes".
I text "are you having fun?" He answers "yes".
I guess that's good.... probably very good. I'll take that.
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People Don't Want Teachers (part 2)
My last post on People Don't Want Teachers, I mentioned how in my area, there aren't a lot of parent run homeschool co-ops but instead hybrid schools so parents can essentially check out for a few hours or even for a full day. I am not saying there is anything wrong with that, (especially since I live my child-free Mondays) it is just an observation that parents like to take advantage of the time the kids are with teachers, meaning these teachers also become babysitters.
In public schools, this is multiplied exponentially. I remember standing at the school bus stop back when my kids went to public school. Mom's started debating year round schooling. One mom insisted that it was necessary because parent's didn't get summers off and had to PAY for childcare during that time of the year. She felt that if school was year round, then parents would be able to save money and not need childcare. I was kinda floored. When I replied that childcare was not the purpose of school, learning was, she got annoyed.
I think of parents, we must learn to differentiate between education and childcare for our kids. While the two things can and do overlap, we musn't fool ourselves that when our kids are not in our care, that someone else isn't parenting them. We also musn't fool ourselves that all the time spent in school or in classrooms are spent actively learning.
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In public schools, this is multiplied exponentially. I remember standing at the school bus stop back when my kids went to public school. Mom's started debating year round schooling. One mom insisted that it was necessary because parent's didn't get summers off and had to PAY for childcare during that time of the year. She felt that if school was year round, then parents would be able to save money and not need childcare. I was kinda floored. When I replied that childcare was not the purpose of school, learning was, she got annoyed.
I think of parents, we must learn to differentiate between education and childcare for our kids. While the two things can and do overlap, we musn't fool ourselves that when our kids are not in our care, that someone else isn't parenting them. We also musn't fool ourselves that all the time spent in school or in classrooms are spent actively learning.
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People don't want teachers
People don't want teachers... they want babysitters.
My husband and I were just having a conversation about SKYPE. He was telling me about someone he knows who got an online certificate to marry people and now he is not only marrying people, but he is doing it without ever leaving his home!... He just fires up his iPad, and he marries them virtually!
I know Skype is awesome I say, while the virtual officiant thing is stupid (IMOP). Too bad that would never work for homeschool teachers, is the next thing I realize. Too many parents want to be able to leave and go take a break when their children are taking classes and tutoring. They don't just want to person to impart knowledge to their kids... they want them to take full charge of them...to babysit them as well.
I think this is why homeschool co-ops aren't working in my area. We had a great co-op once, but none of the parents wanted to teach or supervise. Now, instead we are all paying private school prices for our kids to be in a homeschool-school one or two days a week, and taking a spa day for ourselves.
I can't condemn it is a horrible thing if I am doing it myself... but it is an interesting realization.
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My husband and I were just having a conversation about SKYPE. He was telling me about someone he knows who got an online certificate to marry people and now he is not only marrying people, but he is doing it without ever leaving his home!... He just fires up his iPad, and he marries them virtually!
I know Skype is awesome I say, while the virtual officiant thing is stupid (IMOP). Too bad that would never work for homeschool teachers, is the next thing I realize. Too many parents want to be able to leave and go take a break when their children are taking classes and tutoring. They don't just want to person to impart knowledge to their kids... they want them to take full charge of them...to babysit them as well.
I think this is why homeschool co-ops aren't working in my area. We had a great co-op once, but none of the parents wanted to teach or supervise. Now, instead we are all paying private school prices for our kids to be in a homeschool-school one or two days a week, and taking a spa day for ourselves.
I can't condemn it is a horrible thing if I am doing it myself... but it is an interesting realization.
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12 grade year of homeschooling, Finishing Strong
We are almost done with my college prep series. There will still be a video on completing the transcript. Stay tuned... meanwhile, ...
