Parents of the HS Class of 2017 (Part 1)

Parents Forum Class of 20xx Community
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No, our spring break won’t be till the first week of April. D has a new baby cousin, so she’s going to help out the mom by playing with the 6 yo for a couple of days, and on M,W, and F she’ll be helping out at the preschool in the building where I work. She’ll also be packing for a black college tour that leaves the following week. This is all places on the east coast like Howard and Hampton, that we did not see on our family tour last summer. They’ll be doing some sight seeing in DC as well.

Speech season is over, finally, after a killer state tournament that ran 16 hours. D had to dance the next day and could barely mange. The schedule is so grueling, she’s considering not being on the team next year. As far as she’s concerned, just having school and dance now IS relaxing.

We’re waiting on a summer program she really wants to do-research in child development. She had applied to another, highly selective one, but wasn’t chosen. We should hear in early April, then start saving up for the airfare if she gets it.

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S had a nice relaxing spring break. He mainly played on the computer, worked on some badge requirements for Boy Scouts, and worked with his robotics team. Did I mentioned he played on the computer?

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@sseamom‌ Your D is always doing such interesting things. I like your updates.
@mtrosemom‌ My S played video games too. I think he would now be classified as a collector since he has all of the Nintendo systems from the NES to the Wii U. The funny thing is that he is usually so busy that he only plays on Saturdays. For him, it is more about finding a pristine condition hard to find game.

School starts tomorrow so it is back to the grind. I can’t believe they are 3/4 of the way done. It is going too fast!

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Thanks jedwards! She has to write a resume for her trip and tonight we were making a list of all the things she’s done-she was surprised it added up to so much!

Also, my son, who is 30, also collects the game systems. He’s a huge fan of the original NES, and has found a download of many of the original games that he plays on his computer but using his big screen TV as the monitor. He also bought an old PS 1 and did some upgrades to it using parts from an old computer so it will play some of the newer games. I think he had more fun doing that than he does playing the games. Funny how his interest in the games hasn’t dimmed since he was a kid.

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Neither has my brothers, who started playing D&D in HS and has morphed through the years to becoming a game designer. My S aspires to that.

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5 more days until spring break for us. We are going to Washington DC to be tourists. My thread about how to attempt to keep my 6th grader somewhat happy on the trip is here: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/1744424-washington-dc-with-a-grumpy-tween.html – I got lots of great suggestions from folks, and we’ll see how it goes.

I expect DS17 will have a lot of fun on the trip. He’s mainly excited to see both Air & Space Museums and the Enigma machines in the NSA museum outside of DC. My grumpy DD21 (6th grader) is happy that we are seeing Wicked the last night of the trip, so hopefully that will help with the rest of the trip.

We currently only have two game consoles, though I have had to purchase Kirby Air Ride on Ebay a couple of times to replace well-worn disks. It’s been his favorite since he was 5. Most of the games he plays now are Steam games (don’t ask me, I don’t really know) on the PC and helping DD21 with Minecraft things. He would have also been happy to stay home for the week and play games over the internet with friends.

DS did finally finish the online drivers ed class, so the next step is to take the written test for the permit and then the professional driving class. The earliest appointment I could get for the written test that doesn’t involve skipping school is April 29, and that’s in the next town over. He is not excited about driving, but my husband is pushing it.

@sseamom‌, Hope your DD has fun on her trip and with the DC sightseeing! Your daughter is so busy, but all her activities sound fun! It’s hard to give one up.

DS did give up volleyball, but because he didn’t make the team. :frowning: But, he actually seemed quite relieved not to have that time commitment, probably about 15 hours a week on average. He contacted the professor whose lab he is going to work in this summer, and was able to start early. So, he’s going over there two days a week after school, and is happy about that. I’m actually more bummed than he is, because I liked hanging out with the volleyball parents at the games last year, and a lot of the incoming families were parent friends from his elementary school.

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@Ynotgo‌ DC is so much fun! I bet your D will get over her grumpiness once you see all the cool stuff at the museums. My S loved the air and space museum. We also really like the Mount Vernon tour we did because we felt like it was a nice change of pace. Also, sorry to hear about the volleyball team. It is hard to lose those connections to parents you’ve known a long time. We had a similar situation when my son switched studios a couple of years ago. It sounds like your S has lots of interests though and will find other groups to join. It’s interesting how much a parent’s social life revolves around the people you meet because of your kids.

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I was wondering if I can get other parents input. My 2017er is considering applying to 1 week almost free summer science program on a prestigious college campus. DK emailed the director of the program to ask if it’s worth to apply i.e. if he is a good fit for the program since the application asks to list EC especially math and science related but my kid has very limited ones in that area (because it’s a new area of interest) - just one summer programming course. Since application asks for it, DK attached impeccable high school transcript and SAT scores from 8th grade Johns Hopkins Talent search which qualified him for Grand Ceremony (but Math score was lower than CR). The response was: I’m unable to answer with such limited information, if you’re interested - apply. At this point, it’s only that recommendations and essays are missing. Not sure how to take this response. The question was “am I a good candidate to apply provided my test scores and transcript and lack of science ECs”… Am I right to feel that response is discouraging and it’s not worth applying (which would involve asking teachers for recommendations, writing multiple essays, etc.)?

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@mozika Is there a cost involved with applying to the program? If not and he is interested, why not just apply? I think he should go for it and see what happens. I’m sure the administrators of the program can’t tell you much until all the applications are submitted.

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@mozika I’m sure they don’t want to be in a position where they have told you he looks qualified or is a good fit and then end up not admitting him. Some parents might look at that as a guarantee. So, I wouldn’t take the response as intentionally discouraging. It is probably more of a “don’t promise too much” situation. Is the deadline soon? We’ve found that it can be difficult to get teachers to write recommendations on short notice.

Also, welcome to our little corner of CC!

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Thanks!

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mozika, go ahead and have him apply. My D applied to two elective but free summer programs, knowing that there was a chance she’d not get in. One has in fact turned her down, but it was VERY selective. We should hear on the other in a couple of weeks. We figured that since they are free, she might as well go for it. I think the director has to be somewhat impartial-why have an application process if you’re going to indicate ahead of time if someone will get in? I’d give it a shot-you never know.

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That is true, but he didn’t ask if he would get in but rather if he is a good candidate to apply that’s why the answer seemed discouraging to me. Although it might be just semantics… DK didn’t want to ask teachers for recommendations if he didn’t stand a chance but maybe it’s a good practice for future anyway :slight_smile:

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Happy Easter all. We just returned from spring break in Washington DC.
DH, DS, and I enjoyed it; my grumpy tween not as much. The kids go back to school tomorrow, and I need to catch up on work.

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Happy Easter to you too! D’s spring break begins tomorrow. I mentioned above what D is doing on her break, which begins tomorrow. The college tour got moved by a few days and she’ll miss 5 instead of 3 days of school-we’re not happy about that, but all the kids kids are in a different district, which has that week off. We’re still waiting on the summer program decision-ugh-waiting on colleges is going to drive me crazy!

Is it getting warmer and snow-free for any of you in the northeast? I’ve never been so glad to have moved away as I was this winter.

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Do your kids’ schools have a dual credit system where your kids can take a community college class on their high school campus? My S has the option of dual credit for English and US History next year and S is leaning toward that option so he won’t have to take the AP test at the end of the year and the credits will definitely apply to in-state universities. Is AP considered better or just different? I know so many colleges don’t even take AP credit anymore that I thought this might be a better option. Also, his high school weights the dual credit and AP classes the same so it isn’t a hit on his weighted GPA which will be important for in-state auto admit. I feel like this is such a game at a big high school. I was trying to think ahead to the fact that he also has to take ACT and/or SAT next spring and didn’t want to pile a bunch of AP tests on top of it. I’d love to hear what your kids are doing next year.

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@jedwards70‌, I think it depends upon the schools that you child applies to. My kids are able to take university classes as part of their HS curriculum and they have dual transcripts. However, some of the colleges my D15 applied to said that they would not count those college credits if she also got HS credit for the classes. Some of the schools said they would honor all of the college credits. Now that she has made her college choice, she will have to talk to a counselor to see how those credits will be accepted. If they take them (which I don’t think this college will) she would almost have a minor in one subject!

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jedwards-our district and the one where D goes to school have such a program. It’s called “Running Start” and I believe classes are free for HS students. You can take ALL of your classes at a community college with the principal’s permission and space available. You’re considered a student at your “home HS” and grades count for both. D has many friends who do this. Here, at least, it’s considered to be an option for advanced students and it’s very popular.

I have a friend whose two kids did this in her state and graduated community college with an AA degree even before they finished HS. One began college as a junior the following year and 8is working on her Ph. D. as a 20 yo. No AP tests, and the public U, quite well regarded, accepted all of her credits.

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@jedwards70‌ Kids here can take dual enrollment classes on the high school campus (through the community college), at the community college, and a few kids take courses at the local UC campus. All of the following are weighted the same for us (+1 on a 4.0 scale): honors, AP, IB, community college no matter where taken, and UC.

I would say that the 2 community college classes DS17 has taken on the CC campus were easier than the corresponding AP courses. Some of that is that they are 1 semester instead of 2, so less material is covered. Some of it is that the homework load (note taking, etc) in college is less of a focus than the exams. He took the CC Intro to Biology a couple summers ago and plans to take AP Biology next year; some will be review, but not all. He took the CC World History (1550 to present) class, which counted the same as a whole year of AP World History. That was a lot less work than the AP class would be, and let him fit a science into his schedule. He plans to take APUSH next year; partly to show he’s not a history slacker and partly because his Debate Club advisor teaches it.

The calculus class he is currently taking is a dual-enrollment class taught on the HS campus. It seems quite rigorous. The school teaches AP Calc AB as a high school class, and the BC equivalent is dual enrollment.

For English, his options for next year are AP Language, IB English, and a dual-enrollment class. The difficulty of each of these is reported to depend mainly on who is teaching it that year. So, I don’t have a good read on which is “better”.

Credits at our CC transfer to Cal States and UCs. However, we won’t count on them being accepted by any privates. For math credits, I’d expect whatever college he chooses to just give him a placement test.

@mtrosemom‌ Congrats to your DD15 for making her college choice! I know Class of 2015 parents still have a lot to do, what with the decision due May 1, finances, orientation, class selection, shopping, moving, etc. Feel free to invite those on the 2015 Parents board who also have a 2017er to join us here sometime.

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@mtrosemom‌ @Ynotgo‌ @sseamom‌ he’s just trying to have as much possible credit before he goes to college in case he goes in-state public. If he goes elsewhere, he knows if probably won’t count. At this point, I don’t even know which colleges we’ll visit next year. I’m a planner so it makes me a little crazy not having a plan with his busy schedule. He will probably also get an early release to have more time for dance next year so that will take a big bite out of his schedule.

@mtrosemom‌ Congrats to your D 15. I love reading that thread and seeing the great results the kids are having.