Grades aren’t in yet but D19 thinks she did real well. She’s seeing the fruits of her older sister’s (D16) labor in HS with getting into her dream school in the ED round, so she knows what she has to do over the next couple of years.
I warned D19 though that there’s plenty of time to screw this up and reminded her to not take her good fortune for granted so she needs to continue what she’s been doing with her academics, sports, volunteer work, etc. Most importantly though, she’s having a lot of fun right now.
I know D19 will miss her big sister when she goes to college next fall.
@ChicagoSportsFn I do think it helps when an older sibling blazes the trail. He also has learned how to play the “GPA game” of strategically taking the right combination of honors and AP classes to have a successful year. He’s struggling with geometry Honors , but it is getting better.
My husband started a “Hope Family Commitment to Excellence” reward system in 7th grade. I used an app that was meant for tracking potty training milestones. I obviously reformatted it - but it was very fun to hear the Vegas slot machine sounds for every daily grade and test grade. We set up a point system that could be used to towards things she wanted. I had a few things that measured “Did homework without complaining”. She could get lots of points for working hard, not just getting results. We switched to the dollar bill method this year but I’m tempted to go back to the rewards app. It wasembarrassing to ask for 50 $1 bills at the bank…
Absolutely, @carolinamom2boys and @ChicagoSportsFn, nothing better than an older sib to reinforce the things that parents say about grades and choices. We feel very lucky that DS13 and DD16 did not get into alcohol, marijuana, etc. My observation of my older kids’ classmates is that (at our school at least) many of those who do experiment and use in high school begin some time around now–late freshman to early sophomore year. Those who don’t start then usually don’t start at all. Anyone have anything to compare/contrast?
I’m not going to lie. DS19 may very well benefit from older brother’s multiple merit offers to colleges if his grades don’t measure up, and for that I’m very thankful.
My s19 doesn’t seem to be much influenced by his older sister. They are just so different and will end up on such different paths. She is serious and studious, not brilliant but makes up for it with hard work. He, on the other hand, believes in doing the minimum that is required so that he can be done and get back to what he really thinks is important - basketball. We had a late night talk last week where he admitted that he thinks he is smarter than his older sis (probably true) but that he just has no interest in school work at all. I’ve been trying to suggest careers that may interest him, thinking that if he has a goal he may may work to actually get there but nothing so far has grabbed him.
School started yesterday here. Its hard for them to get back into the swing of things. My son has a very long day today and I’m sure he will be exhausted tonight. The kids are out the door at 6:45 in the morning and today he won’t get back until after 8:00 due to a distant basketball game.
Ouch, @me29034! That is a long day. It was torture getting back into the routine. Lots of cake tonight, @cakeisgreat DS19 was a little grumpy. I think high school feels like such a long journey that they can’t even see the light at the end…and it doesn’t help that it is literally dark in the mornings, too!
I posted in this thread early on but haven’t been super active in awhile. My D19 got her sea legs about half way through the fall. She’s pretty steady and doing well with freshman year. Slightly stressed about choosing next year’s classes and upcoming midterms, but it’s manageable. Grades are good, friendships are good and enjoying Science Olympiad still. She is completely bored with band and considering dropping it next year. She very much dislikes honors Spanish, even though her grades are great in it, and will be dropping to regular Spanish next year. Is everyone else’s kids choosing next year’s courses yet?
Hi. I’ve been away for a while, but wanted to check in. My one and only D19 had a decent first quarter, one C in English (her toughest subject), but looks like the semester grade will be much better. She is doing well in Honors Spanish 1 (I think she was placed way too low, but we are living with it) and Algebra, but Biology is not going great. It seems that we take one step forward and another step back. She’s begging to quit cello, but she knows that’s not going to happen. She wants to switch from cheerleading to track or basketball (no known skills in either sport!). I’ve decided she can do whatever she wants on the sports side, as long as she doing something active and sticks with whatever she chooses. I was very “prepared” for a college-prep high school experience, but this is really hard for me!
I absolutely agree on sticking with whatever choice a child makes. I told my kids that they don’t need a large number of activities but to pick 2-3 that they will stick with and be passionate about.
They are having the AP information night tomorrow. The kids then have to decide which AP classes to take or apply for if they don’t auto admit for next year. I’m not sure how they are going to handle the fact the kids don’t have their PSAT scores yet. The scores are used so the teachers can see if they are “ready” for some of the English & History classes. While some of the kids will go online to get them others will need their access codes…
@MichiganGeorgia I’m surprised there are any freshmen with PSAT scores. Here they don’t take it until junior year. We don’t do course registration until February but our school only opens two APs to sophomores: US History and Gov. Admission is based on how well the kids are doing in their freshman US History class. I don’t expect my S to take either one.