Hello! Before I start I just wanted to say sorry if I put this under the wrong forum; I couldn’t seem to find the right one.
Anyways, here is the issue. I knew that the local high school I was going to was not the right choice for me after I heard about boarding school in December, however I couldn’t find the specific school for me. I then learned that I really liked the other high school in town, and decided to tell my parents about there. My parents are now nearly sold on the idea of me going there. However boarding school recently popped back into my head. It was then that I finally found the school I had been looking for. Midland School seems like a lot of fun, and I really want to join. “Recently popped back into my head” means when 7th grade ended, so last week. I have all A’s, am in AP english, hold a perfect citizenship record, am writing a book that I’m going to be publishing, and take part in a youth group and plan on joining cross country, so I feel trying to get into the school wouldn’t be a waste of time.
However the real issue lies in trying to have my parents let me go Midland. I don’t want them to think that I’m simply hopping between schools and that I can’t make the decision, because I can, and I realize that Midland would finally provide the right learning environment for me. I feel as if going there would boost my confidence and provide me many more memories than any local public school would.
So enough of my rant, basically I just need some help convincing my mom and dad. Thank you!
Can they and are they willing to pay the private/boarding school tuition? Is it against their values to let their kid be away from home for high school? If either of the answers is no, there’s no point of trying to convince them. In other words, you need to do your homework and find out WHY they are not supporting you before trying to come up with “strategies” to convince them.
Most parents have kids because they want to raise them and enjoy time together. I’m not opposed to boarding schools in general. They can be a perfect solution for some difficulties, especially if there is conflict in the family or there is no other way to access a decent education. But I will admit that I would have been very sad if one of my kids decided that h/she wanted to attend boarding school. Parents and kids often have too little time together as it is and childhood goes by too fast. If your parents don’t want you to attend boarding school, then consider that a sign of how much they value your presence in the family.
Thanks everyone, I have recently figured out reasons why they wouldn’t want me to go, and have come up with solutions for them. Hopefully that will help! 
@lostaccount Nothing you said here is news because what you have expressed is as natural and unextraordinary as basic human needs. Don’t think for a minute what you are saying will cause any lost sleep because parents here have developed a pretty thick skin through real life vetting. Check this thread out: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-parents/1124520-negative-reactions-regarding-child-attending-bs.html#latest
@lostaccount, don’t worry. Over the four months or so of my research, I have considered before what you are saying by asking my parents if I could go to a month-long camp. They actually said yes, just as long as I called a lot. So I am not too worried about that, but I will of course keep that under consideration.
@panpacific Thank you so much for the advice. I have considered multiple schools and found that Midland has the best financial aid solutions out of all the schools I liked, so I am not too concerned about money. So now to parent beliefs! While my parents would miss me, they know that I am responsible enough to take care of myself and are currently teaching me how to do laundry, etc. They wouldn’t want to have to constantly be paying for plane tickets or driving for 14 hours, so I made sure to look within a 7 hours of driving range. I just think the only thing that they would be deeply worried about is if I’m safe, which is why I’ll be stressing how certified the schools and staff are. Also that link to that forum was great, it gave me hope that my parents would agree to letting me go after seeing how in so many families it was the kid’s choice. :-bd
Oh, they also think that boarding is only for rich, snobby families, but I’ll teach them that it’s for everyone that’s smart quickly. B-)
It’s not only for the rich @TheLemurLady. You sound like you are on a mission so go for it! Boarding school, while not for everyone, is a good option for curious, bright, and independent kids and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Heading this one off at the pass. As I’ve stated many times, College Confidential is not a debate society. Feel free to make your opinion known or to politely disagree with another poster’s opinion. Recognize, however, that opinions will not be changed, so don’t keep banging the same drum. Additionally, under no circumstances is it OK to be rude to another poster, so let’s desist with calling another user’s opinions “XXX.” Please remember the purpose of this thread. Just because a situation does not apply to your family does not mean that your solution will apply to other families.
@TheLemurLady None of us here know your parents (we don’t know you either for that matter). As such, its tough to know what would sway them. More importantly, its tough to know the real reasons behind their views. May well be the case that the reasons they give you are only part of the basis and that they will not tell you other reasons (they may not even know those reasons themselves or may be unable to explain them to you). So you may be trying to reason them through an incomplete list of issues which makes the end goal likely unreachable.
Some things to consider:
You say you aren’t worried about money. How much do you know about your parents’ financial situation? Most kids in my experience don’t know a lot about financials of their parents. Some know some info but not all. May not be a clear cut as you make it sound in terms of affording boarding school.
Being comfortable with a month away at camp is very much different than being away at boarding school for 4 years. and 7 hour drive is better than a 14 hour drive. But its still a long drive. And weekend visits may well mean seeing you for a day or a day and 1/2. Long time in the car for that length visit.
Your parents may be testing your commitment. No offense, but kids your age change your mind a lot. And that is totally nature (I change my mind too and I am in my 40s). Still trying to figure out who you are and where you are going. Along the way, you likely will change directions many times. All good. But I noticed you were posting about 2 different schools here about a month ago. Now a third. And a different public school was on your list according to your OP here. Again, nothing wrong with that. But before they commit to 4 years of boarding school, your parents may want comfort that you are committed to it as well rather than just one possible direction on a list of changing possible directions in a kid’s path of life.
May be emotional issues involved here. Your parents had it in their minds that you would be leaving home in 5 years (I think you are going into 8th grade, right?). As a parent I can tell you that time flies by way too fast and there are times when you just wish that life came with a brake to slow things down a little. But now you say you want to accelerate that train even faster and leave in just a year. For many parents that would be very difficult to accept (for some time to process/accept may work; others may not get there emotionally).
You seem like a very bright and driven young person. World needs more people like that (at any age). But its even less common at your age. Follow your dreams and your passions.
But keep in mind, there are multiple different paths to success in life. Particularly for people with drive and passion. So no matter what path you take for your secondary education, I expect you will do very well.
All the best luck to you.
Thanks so much for the advice everyone! You all have given me some knowledge that I will definitely keep in mind. 
My mom thinks that the idea of boarding school is part of some “rebellious phase”. They way I got my mom tools into it was by breaking it down to three points that help her see it my way.
- It is a great program, usually with better teachers and classes.
- Can look good on college applications. And finally one that is more situational.
- I've been having a hard time at home (my parents are divorced and I've never really felt like I belonged in the household I've grown up in--my mother has primary custody) and it will be easier to focus on school in a place where I'm away from family.
Instead of trying to convince my parents why BS offers a superior education in general, I focused my efforts on convincing them why BS offered a superior education in the context of my individual interests and aspirations (clubs, sports teams, organizations etc).
I respectfully disagree with @Imartzi’s reasoning. If you are applying to boarding school just to put it on a college app or get ahead in the admissions process, your thought process is flawed. Also, you cannot assume that BS has “better” classes or teachers than the LPS. There is a broad range of boarding schools and teachers within said institutions.
I hope my comment provided some insight. If you have any remaining questions feel free to DM me. Good luck!
@LaxPrep I do agree with you in that it should not be for college apps, but some schools will take boarding school in consideration, so it’s just good to think about. Also I probably should’ve specified that boarding schools are not superior, but that often times teachers they higher will have better experience. For me, my mom wouldn’t let me go unless there was an advantage in the actual structure of the school which is why I brought the better teachers and classes.
Where I live there is no high schools that have things like exchange programs for US students, the harkness method in classes, and teachers with good experience-usually its students right out of college.
I would just be careful in saying that BS teachers are more “experienced” as many public schools require all faculty to have advanced degrees while most BS don’t require them. Otherwise I agree with your points.
Have you visited Midland and spent time with the kids who go there? It’s programming and ethos are very different from all the other schools we visited. Extremely rustic (chopping wood to heat water for evening showers), rugged, and isolated in terms of geography and access to the outer world (I.e. No internet). It’s beautiful and the kids we encountered seemed chill and happy, but you need to be very certain that it is the right type of environment for yourself because it is so unique. If you have spent time there and know that it is what you want, then good luck with your quest. As in all things, I think it best to be specific with your parents about the things that draw you to the school that you can’t get anywhere else and that would have a positive impact on you. Simply saying that it seems like it would be “fun”, might make it hard for your parents to understand why they should spend such a large amount of money and limit their time with you.