<p>I don't mean to belittle the OP's question at all it's just that these threads often take a tongue in cheek turn.</p>
<p>How many of you were around last spring when Harriet M Welsh had us all spewing our morning tea or coffee on our keyboards with references to her S2, the kindergartner, whose hooks varied from cuteness to a life long interest in pirates. This could take a similar turn :D</p>
<p>Along with learning to be kind and wise and caring, open minded, fair, inquisitive, and honest...sports. Pick one or two and get really good understanding that sports at the Ivy League are not the same as say USC football, UNC basketball, or Duke golf. At our local high school 2 years ago, I don't have any kids there anymore so I don't have the most recent numbers, 8 of the 10 who went to Ivy's or Little Ivy's were athletes. You can't learn height and you can't learn speed so pick something that is suitable. Tennis, golf, crew and some others can be learned to a large degree without god given gifts.</p>
<p>"mini LOL re post #6"</p>
<p>It may make you LOL, but bulking up to 280 is a serious strategy. As above, you can't control your height or speed, but you sure can your weight. And it is far more effective admissions strategy than trying to win a Westinghouse or playing tuba with the NY Phil. With the tuba or with science, you have to be pretty good at them, whereas 280 is simply 280. ;)</p>
<p>(I'd be willing to bet that Princeton hasn't rejected an offensive lineman weighing 280+ in a decade.)</p>
<p>My 9 yo has already decided that Harvard is not for her, but her best friend and she are already planning their assault on Cornell. ;)</p>
<p>Reminds me of a story:
When DD's friend was 10 or 11, she used to tell people she wanted to be an endocronologist. She saw it on TV, looked it up, and loved the reaction she got from adults when she said it.</p>
<p>Fast-forward 7 years: she's now focused on boys and soccer.</p>
<p>With a little effort and chocolate cake, I can be a Princeton lineman!</p>
<p>Good advice MSUDad- and be prepared for your child to ignore your attempts, also. I feel sorry for the obsessed students who are so grade and goal focused they can't relax and enjoy HS. It would have been nice if my son had gotten the grades that reflected his knowledge, but there was that intangible maturity factor- is he better off for not being a perfectionist or immature for not playing the game... I unfortunately know of kids who died with perfect records, and I know that if my son died now he would have had a good life to date (and I know he is unlikely to take his own life due to too much pressure to achieve). Here's to the good life outside of the IVY League- still full of intellectualism and challenges.</p>
<p>"With a little effort and chocolate cake, I can be a Princeton lineman!"</p>
<p>Start early, eat often. :)</p>
<p>And to think I was getting ready to work out!</p>
<p>Now, where did I put that brownie mix ...</p>
<p>Mini -- You're dating yourself. No more Westinghouse competition. It's now the Intel/Science Talent Search. </p>
<p>Siemens (took over Westinghouse) has a science competition....just uses the name "Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology".</p>
<p>I much prefer when this type of thread takes a humerous tone.....</p>
<p>"It's now the Intel/Science Talent Search." </p>
<p>Talent is a lot different than 280. If the 280 was accompanied by talent in the field, he'd be at Florida State or USC, not Princeton.</p>
<p>My son wasn't thinking about college at 11. However, as I have noted many times on this forum, my son was not a model child. Perhpas we didn't raise him properly. Perhaps no one could have! He got to "depart" from several schools, starting with preschool. He was a difficult teenager. He was not a kind, respectful person. He did straighten out to some extent in that regard. He was always a strong student but not one to follow rules. He had an athletic passion and he was good at it. He attended challenging schools with peers who pushed him. He was not interested in preparing for standardized tests and attained scores that would not be considered "top" on this forum, but they were fine. He is at an Ivy.</p>
<p>MSU Dad, excellent post.</p>
<p>recycle98, where did your son get the impression that Ivy League colleges were the "best" colleges? Was that from you, or did he come up with that on his own? </p>
<p>It's wonderful to have high aspirations. To limit them to Ivies is stupid at any age. The Ivies are just 8 of many fabulous schools out there.</p>
<p>Mini -- great advice, my youngest will be happy to know that he just might be in the running for an ivy! (230# in 9th grade, lineman and doing crew -- and still growing). I will tell him to keep lifting weights and eating cake!!</p>
<p>Serious suggestion for the op -- at 11, your son is young and there are several things that I highly suggest: keep all doors open, explore, learn organization and study skills, be happy.</p>
<p>Keep all doors open means to make sure that classes taken (or not taken), activities participated in (or not) don't close any doors. For instance -- most middle schools offer a variety of levels of math. The kid that doesn't take Algebra I until 9th grade -- or has a poor math background -- may have tougher time at college admission time. Another example -- it may be hard (if not impossible) to get into honors classes in high school if you haven't been in honors classes in middle school. Try and find out how your school "works" and make sure that your son doesn't make any decisions that close doors later on.</p>
<p>By "explore", I mean that now is the time to try out new things -- a musical instrument (or 2 or 3), sports, clubs, speech/debate, community service, languages, etc. In high school, students usually try to focus in on certain activities that they enjoy or are passionate about -- but how will they know they like something unless they have tried out many different things. I always wonder about the kid who is "passionate" about baseball, but who has never played any other sport and has been playing baseball since 1st grade. Who knows -- maybe they would be even more passionate at fencing. I did alot of research on CC, reading the different activities and extracurriculars that students have done -- I would then mention them to my sons. They tried many, enjoy some more than others, and have a broad base of experience.</p>
<p>Study and organizational skills are basic -- middle school is the time to learn, practice, make mistakes, etc -- before the grades count in high school. A student learns these skills will be ahead of just about every other freshman in high school -- and will be alot less stressed out.</p>
<p>The most important -- your son should make choices based on what he is interested in, what sounds fun, exciting, etc -- choices that will make him happy. Making choices based on what you/he think others want you to pick will invariably backfire. Passion and interest can only be invented for just so long -- your son's natural interests will be most important in the long run.</p>
<p>Honestly -- at 11 both D & S hardly knew what "college" was -- they just knew they would be going. As for thinking about how to get into an Ivy -- not even close to being on the radar for them, or for H & me. They were kids, doing things kids should be doing.</p>
<p>Back in 2nd grade, one of D's acquaintances started telling everyone she would be going to Princeton. (Both parents went there.) Smart child, athletic, lots of EC's, etc --but no Princeton. Yes, she's at another Ivy, but not the one she spent years telling everyone she would be going to. After all those years of hearing about Princeton, whenever her name comes up now, invariably "but she didn't get into Princeton" is said in the next breath.</p>
<p>Oh, and we don't distinguish between S & D -- we're doing our best to raise both of them to be "good" people. :) Ivies are not the be all and the end all.</p>
<p>treestreestreestreestreestreestrees
treestresstreesforesttreestreestreestrees
treestreestreestreestreestreestreestrees</p>
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<blockquote> <p>Someone should post a poll here on CC to see how many of the students who are currently at Ivys expressed an interest in middle school.<<</p> </blockquote>
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<p>My daughter, a recent Ivy grad, always sort of knew she would be going to college somewhere someday. But it wasn't until midway through her junior year of high school when we got the SAT scores back that <em>I</em> suggested to her that if she applied to her eventual school that her stats were good enough to put her in the running.</p>
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<p>Certainly. Weight knows no gender (or in my case upper "limit"). I shudder to think about my D at 280 :eek: but if she was, rough as she is at sports....she'd start for P. "No bout adoubt it."</p>
<p>recycle: you threw the bomb into the middle of the room. I'm wondering your take on the flurry of advice/opinions you've rec'd.</p>
<p>For the record, my D1 wants to attend my HYP alma mater because she had a great time there at my 15th year college reunion: the school was cool and "pretty". Frankly, she's smart as a whip and has a great personality. I'm going to pick her up from sixth-grade touch football practice in about 10 minutes. The boys love her (the nice girl who loves sports). Will she make it to be "competent" in your understanding? </p>
<p>Not a huge concern of mine or her mother's. We want a young woman with character and concern for her fellow human -- our family's measures of success. Her college degree or earning potential is tertiary, at best.</p>
<p>BTW: I didn't consider APPLYING to my college until early December of my senior year of HS. I was already admitted to my huge & prestigious state school and they were throwing tons of $ at me. It was just serendipity that I happened to attend an info session given by current undergrads home for Thanksgiving Break.</p>
<p>My son, who is 16, first mentioned Ivy League when he was in the sixth grade, because his math teacher said that he had the drive and talent to go to Cornell. The teacher was looking to build his confidence, and he did. He is an excellent student, with excellent scores and ECs. Whether or not he decides to apply to an Ivy remains to be seen. The thing that I am most proud of is that he is a great role model for his younger brother, who, at age 11, has embraced some of his brother's traits. </p>
<p>The most important thing to my husband and I is that my sons are good people. No Ivy League degree can replace that.</p>