<p>Exie, the last day of the Fall term is the 23rd, right before the leave for break, and they have an exam schedule the last three days. Isn’t that normal for schools on a trimester system?</p>
<p>See, all of this is making me a little more wary to send her to boarding school. I figured that there would be a lot of homesickness for her, and I would be worried about her all the time.</p>
<p>Exactly how involved are you with your children? How involved are you with making decisions?</p>
<p>And a admissions question: Are you expected to reapply each year, or is it just assumed that you will be coming back to school the next year?</p>
<p>Sunny-</p>
<p>To answer your second question, families are sent a re-enrollment contract in the late winter and asked to return it on some date before March 10th. If your child were going to be “not invited back” aka kicked out you would normally know it well before the contracts are put in the mail. Usually this happens when a student has academic or other needs the school can’t handle or, more rarely, when there is a serious mismatch between the school and family, for instance a family that insists that the science teaching be bible based at a non-sectarian school where this is not the norm.</p>
<p>Sunny,</p>
<p>In response to your first question, we haven’t experienced any “Stockholm Syndrome” here, at least not yet (we’ve only been at this since September). We talk briefly every day on the phone and chat off and on on the internet in the evenings (his choice, not something we initiate)–all without the parent-teenager angst that physical presence sometimes brings (Nagging from me/sarcasm from him are greatly moderated by emoticons 
) </p>
<p>We miss going to his athletic events, concerts, etc.–but other parents who live closer are kind and post photos for us, which we can then share with him, so we still feel involved there–and he always calls to let us know how he’s done, just as he did when he was at home. We’ve developed a great relationship with his adviser, whom we can contact if we sense that he needs an in-person adult to talk to–iand, really, t’s great having another “parent” in the mix. </p>
<p>Because we’re in touch daily, we’re still in on all the highs and lows that come with good grades and bad. For me, as a homeschooling parent, it’s been nice to relinquish the stuff that tended to cause strife between us–getting schoolwork/chores/practicing done–and just focus on cheerleading and advising from the side. </p>
<p>You know how people say they always have their best conversations with their teenagers while they’re driving? That’s sort of how this feels–without the day-to-day, in your face stuff, we all really enjoy each other and treasure our time together. </p>
<p>There are many other kids who stay in close contact with their parents; others who don’t. I suspect ours may call less as time goes on, but that seems like a fairly normal move in adolescence. </p>
<p>Anyway, just another perspective.</p>
<p>Sunny, it’s hard to predict which children will experience homesickness. If your daughter raised the issue with you, it’s less likely that she will be homesick, in my opinion. Had it been your idea, and she were going along with it to please you, then it would be more likely IMO.</p>
<p>Our eldest child is a local boarder. She is very happy. She can come home on most weekends, but elects to stay at school during term. The school organizes activities on the weekends. As it’s about 80% boarders, the campus doesn’t “empty out” over the weekend. (If you do decide to allow your daughter to attend a boarding school, I’d recommend looking for schools which offer a “critical mass” of boarding students. ) If she were to become seriously ill, i.e. pneumonia or such, she could come home.</p>
<p>We are involved in the large decisions, such as which courses to take. We are not involved in the small decisions, such as which extracurriculars she’ll choose, or how she structures her time at school. We never have been “helicopter parents,” trying to protect our children from mistakes. I appreciate that boarding school students, on the whole, have greater freedom in academic and EC decisions than students who stay at home. They have the freedom to make mistakes, and suffer the consequences. </p>
<p>We have the advantage of close relatives and friends who experienced boarding school. I don’t think any of them would say that boarding is the right decision for every child. Some of our relatives chose to send their children to boarding school because they were living overseas. </p>
<p>The U.S. is not the only country with boarding schools. The UK has quite a few. If your professional careers will be likely to keep you in Europe in the next 5 years, you might consider British boarding schools, rather than American boarding schools. If you have family in the states who live near boarding schools, you might investigate schools in the immediate area.</p>
<p>In any case, your daughter is only 5 years away from the Ultimate Boarding School, i.e., college. I suggest you work backwards from 2016. What academic courses will she need on her transcript to prepare her for her freshman year in college? Will the schools she would otherwise attend prepare her well? This seems to be a good place to start: [Archived:Preparing</a> Your Child for College – Preparing for College](<a href=“http://www2.ed.gov/pubs/Prepare/pt2.html]Archived:Preparing”>http://www2.ed.gov/pubs/Prepare/pt2.html). If you choose to educate her outside of the US, she may be considered an exception to many requirements. Some public colleges and universities are reportedly fairly rigid about the high school courses (or equivalent) they require for admission. The Home Schooling and College forum on CC might be able to provide some guidance: [Home</a> Schooling and College - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/home-schooling-college/]Home”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/home-schooling-college/).</p>
<p>Our son was in 7th grade when we started to consider the possibility of boarding school. Some schools allowed me and my son to visit in the Spring. There is window after contract signing (around April 10th) and perhaps 2 weeks before graduation. Even very competitive schools are still conducting tours and interviewing during this time. Some schools allowed my son and me to tour without interviewing. This gave us, but especially him, the opportunity to see schools in action, ask questions of the tour guides, see the facilities. After touring, we were both sold. </p>
<p>If you can do this, I think it will help you and your daughter decide whether or not this is a good option for her.</p>