Got a letter yesterday saying my oldest (5th grade) qualified for Math and Reading Honors classes. My son wants to do it. School office is closed today but I plan on talking to them on Monday when I turn in the permission slip. I'm just wondering the pros/cons.

Last year, my son's teacher said he was bored in class because he'd finish his work quickly and then have to wait for the others to finish. He wasn't being challenged enough and that the Honors classes would help keep him motivated. Somebody (not the teacher) told me that the first half of the year, students learn what they need for their grade level and then the second half of the year, they learn stuff that's taught the following year (6th grade). Is this correct?

I have a feeling that the desk we are planning on getting him for Christmas will be well-used. :biggrin: Last year, he sat at the kitchen table when he got home and did his homework in 5-10 minutes and then was out the door to play. I think he will be spending more time with homework (at least Math and Reading) this year which is a good thing.

don't "let" him...make him!. Set up a culture of expectations and let him befriend other people who are achievers. And do it now before he gets it into his head that being smart isn't "cool". he can make friends now while it is still exciting.

I don't see a con. Every honors/ap/cm class I took taught basically the same things as the reg class, but in a dif way with a little bit tougher work. In english, we did always read dif books than the other classes...wrote more. Its not like the classes work far ahead of the grade level or anything, it just expects more and lets them communicate and discuss things in an environment where everyone is on the same wavelength.


:yay:

don't "let" him...make him!. Set up a culture of expectations and let him befriend other people who are achievers. And do it now before he gets it into his head that being smart isn't "cool". he can make friends now while it is still exciting.

I don't see a con. Every honors/ap/cm class I took taught basically the same things as the reg class, but in a dif way with a little bit tougher work. In english, we did always read dif books than the other classes...wrote more. Its not like the classes work far ahead of the grade level or anything, it just expects more and lets them communicate and discuss things in an environment where everyone is on the same wavelength.


:yay:

Trust me, he knows that we expect a lot out of him (and his younger brother). Maybe I didn't convey that in my post. Also, he has several friends who are just as smart, if not smarter, than him. They challenge eachother which keeps him on track. He knows that being smart is never a down-fall and if people think/say bad things to him about being smart, he just laughs at them.

I don't see any "cons" either. Putting yourself in a situation where you can thrive is never a bad thing. I have no doubt he will enjoy himself and enjoy the challenge.

Trust me, he knows that we expect a lot out of him (and his younger brother). Maybe I didn't convey that in my post. Also, he has several friends who are just as smart, if not smarter, than him. They challenge eachother which keeps him on track. He knows that being smart is never a down-fall and if people think/say bad things to him about being smart, he just laughs at them.

I don't see any "cons" either. Putting yourself in a situation where you can thrive is never a bad thing. I have no doubt he will enjoy himself and enjoy the challenge.

well 5th grade its still ok to be smart..but middle school..NO MORE. Esp boys..they get told that being smart is "gay" or some other horrifying term to preteen boys. It can be very, very tough. Girls not as much, but I have seen some very smart boys try to dumb themselves down in middle/high so they look "cool." reading becomes uncool, asking/answering questions in class becomes uncool, getting good grades..I would keep him with the smart kids at any cost :lmao:

enjoy this year before the HELL that is middle school. worst three years ever. EVER.:cds:

well 5th grade its still ok to be smart..but middle school..NO MORE. Esp boys..they get told that being smart is "gay" or some other horrifying term to preteen boys. It can be very, very tough. Girls not as much, but I have seen some very smart boys try to dumb themselves down in middle/high so they look "cool." reading becomes uncool, asking/answering questions in class becomes uncool, getting good grades..I would keep him with the smart kids at any cost :lmao:

enjoy this year before the HELL that is middle school. worst three years ever. EVER.:cds:

Hopefully his self-esteem won't suffer too much in Middle school. Right now, I think it would be pretty hard to convince him that he wasn't cool. :lol: For a 10 year old, he's pretty focused on what he wants out of life and knows that slacking won't get you it. But he balances that with sports and having fun with friends. With proper guidance, he'll stay on track or else...:smack:

Hopefully his self-esteem won't suffer too much in Middle school. Right now, I think it would be pretty hard to convince him that he wasn't cool. :lol: For a 10 year old, he's pretty focused on what he wants out of life and knows that slacking won't get you it. But he balances that with sports and having fun with friends. With proper guidance, he'll stay on track or else...:smack:

I think it's great that he has the oppurtunity to excel in 2 classes. Good on him!

One word of advise. In my opinion, please keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't begin to struggle. A friend had a child that was placed in these classes and she began to really struggle. It took a major hit on her self esteem. Where she once excelled, so became intimiated of the work and started to slide backwards afraid to try. Not saying your son will do that, just keep an eye out. In my opinion of course.

Congrats to him. :yahoo:

I think it's great that he has the oppurtunity to excel in 2 classes. Good on him!

One word of advise. In my opinion, please keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't begin to struggle. A friend had a child that was placed in these classes and she began to really struggle. It took a major hit on her self esteem. Where she once excelled, so became intimiated of the work and started to slide backwards afraid to try. Not saying your son will do that, just keep an eye out. In my opinion of course.

Congrats to him. :yahoo:

We will keep an eye on him. Thanks. Luckily, we seem to have managed to keep a good line of communication going. I'm sure that will change as he gets older but hopefully he'll know he can come to us. Also, he sometimes wears his emotions on his sleeve and it's pretty easy to see when he's stressed or nervous about something. He's not one of those kids that keeps everything buried until it explodes one day.

I saw on the school calendar that 5th graders takes an assessment test in Science too so hopefully in 6th grade (provided he does well this year) he can add Science to his Honor class list. :fingerscrossed:

Depending on which county you are in, they may not have honors science or social studies in middle school. Students of all levels are mixed together in those classes. This is the case in St. Mary's.

Depending on which county you are in, they may not have honors science or social studies in middle school. Students of all levels are mixed together in those classes. This is the case in St. Mary's.

We're in Calvert and they do have Honors Science. :yay:

Our son was in honors classes in 5th grade at Mutual and did very well - still w/out much effort. Now going into middle school at Calvert ALL of his classes will be honors. We're proud, expecting much more effort, and God willing he'll do well & stick with it - cool or not. I've got plans for him to go to the Naval Academy!!

Wirelessly posted

Our son was in honors classes in 5th grade at Mutual and did very well - still w/out much effort. Now going into middle school at Calvert ALL of his classes will be honors. We're proud, expecting much more effort, and God willing he'll do well & stick with it - cool or not. I've got plans for him to go to the Naval Academy!!

Does HE have plans...?

Our son was in honors classes in 5th grade at Mutual and did very well - still w/out much effort. Now going into middle school at Calvert ALL of his classes will be honors. We're proud, expecting much more effort, and God willing he'll do well & stick with it - cool or not. I've got plans for him to go to the Naval Academy!!

I'm glad he's doing well. Good on him.

Shame on you for living your dreams through him. Let him choose to do what makes him happy. YOUR plans of him attending the Naval Academy are YOUR plans. Why push him to do something because you want him to or guilt him into going? In my opinion of course.

If this is HIS dream, I hope he enjoys every moment of the Naval Academy if/when he is old enough.

RELAX for God's sake Mothers. It's our hope & wish for him to attend the Academy, so far even at his young age the interest/excitement is there, but of course only time will tell. It's after noon...maybe ya'll should start the weekend now.

encourage the higher end classes. His teachers know he can do it, now you need to expect it too. I raised 3 daughters, all were in the AP/Honors programs throughout school, and did very well. The caliber of students in those classes are much better and the teachers can really get teaching across. In the standard classes, you're lucky if the teacher gets to complete one lesson at a time! Just walk into a standard class in any middle school and you will be amazed at how loud and unproductive it is. You won't regret putting your child in the better classes. Plus if you start with the expectations of achievements early, they will continue to impress you.

We will keep an eye on him. Thanks. Luckily, we seem to have managed to keep a good line of communication going. I'm sure that will change as he gets older but hopefully he'll know he can come to us. Also, he sometimes wears his emotions on his sleeve and it's pretty easy to see when he's stressed or nervous about something. He's not one of those kids that keeps everything buried until it explodes one day.

I saw on the school calendar that 5th graders takes an assessment test in Science too so hopefully in 6th grade (provided he does well this year) he can add Science to his Honor class list. :fingerscrossed:


:high5: Sounds like he'll do well. Thing2 has been in honors classes since 4th grade. (math & english were the ones they offered, I believe) He was in all honors classes in MS and now going into 10th grade he's still in honors classes AND is taking an AP class. (only 1 is offered) He never had a problem with being in the honors classes, as many of his friends were students in those classes. They went from MS to HS together & are still in a lot of the same classes, as well as the same activities. It'll be fine, you'll see.

And HIS dream since he was in 5th grade was to join ROTC, which he did, and to go to the Naval Academy - which remains to be seen. He's working hard at it. However, he's never had a bit of trouble from other students for being in honors classes. But I was/am vigilant about what he does, with whom he does it, etc. Kids will be kids, after all. :biggrin:

Third quarter ended this week and my son is doing great in his Honors classes. He has never gotten less than a "B" on his report cards. He brought home a letter saying his teacher recommended he take all Honors classes next year in Middle School. Of course, he was excited about this (as were we!). I hope he continues to excel in these classes like he has this year. He is having no difficulties with the work and usually comes home from school with his homework already done.

Third quarter ended this week and my son is doing great in his Honors classes. He has never gotten less than a "B" on his report cards. He brought home a letter saying his teacher recommended he take all Honors classes next year in Middle School. Of course, he was excited about this (as were we!). I hope he continues to excel in these classes like he has this year. He is having no difficulties with the work and usually comes home from school with his homework already done.

Strange that I wrote this because I was baffled when my son's schedule came out and he wasn't enrolled in Honors Math. I figured the teacher changed her mind and maybe felt he wasn't ready for it (although he excelled in Honors Math in 5th grade and never had any issues).

My son has been in school a week now and I had already started to notice that he wasn't being challenged in regular math and he was done with homework in 5 minutes. Same as what happened in 4th grade. I guess his teacher noticed it too because I got a call from his school about 0830 asking me why he wasn't enrolled in Honors Math. I told them I had no idea and that I was surprised he wasn't because he did so well last year. The school told me that on his preliminary test that they took last week to see how much they knew already to pass 6th grade math, my son already knew 75% of the material and that he was blowing past his classmates in class on assignments and homework.

His teacher must have talked to an administrator because they decided to move him up to Honors Math. :yahoo: Good thing this changed happened so early on in the school year. Hopefully the new class won't mess up his schedule too much because he was so proud of himself for memorizing his schedule after only a few days. I wonder how they will grade him on what he has missed so far in the Honors class. He had already done three assignments in the other class and who knows how many he missed the first week of school for the Honors class. Oh well, they will figure it out and I'm so happy they made the switch. I think he will be too.

the PRO is.. even if he gets Ds in the Honors classs he will learn more than if he got As or Bs in the "regular" classes..

I pushed for my kids to be in the Academics and Honors classes if the faculty suggested it or not.. but I had to be ready for the report cards too (and normally they rose the occasion and still pulled good grades).


THink of it this way.. Is it more important to make the honor roll, and not really learn anything, or is it more important to struggle to pass, never get an honorable mention but learn 10x what the honor roll student learned?

I agree. He took Honors in 5th grade and excelled and is taking Honors again in 6th grade. I only up-dated this thread because he wasn't put into Honors Math this year and apparently the school noticed the over-sight and called me this morning to say it was changed. Now he's in Honors Math, Social Studies, Language Arts/Reading, and Science. :yahoo:

Hmm.. what happened to itsbob's post? It's gone. That's weird.

I agree. He took Honors in 5th grade and excelled and is taking Honors again in 6th grade. I only up-dated this thread because he wasn't put into Honors Math this year and apparently the school noticed the over-sight and called me this morning to say it was changed. Now he's in Honors Math, Social Studies, Language Arts/Reading, and Science. :yahoo:

Hmm.. what happened to itsbob's post? It's gone. That's weird.

Noticed what I was replying to was over a year old.. that's all.

THink of it this way.. Is it more important to make the honor roll, and not really learn anything, or is it more important to struggle to pass, never get an honorable mention but learn 10x what the honor roll student learned?

I've struggled with this question, as all my children are or have been in honors classes. For one them, his GPA dropped because of it -- not because he didn't know the material but because he didn't want to do the work, i.e. lazy.

Since I don't know, I'll ask. Which looks better on university applications and resumes? The overall GPA or the fact someone took honors courses?

Anyone have a kid who changed classes after the beginning of school? What happens to the grades they earned in the other class.

Since I don't know, I'll ask. Which looks better on university applications and resumes? The overall GPA or the fact someone took honors courses?

Irrelevant question to the scenario..

My opinion is someone taking honors classes and not getting good grades LEARNS more..

To some your question may be more important, to me learning more was more important regardless of the "high school resume".

Who cares about what school they get in after High School (and I'm sure MOST parents do, but can't tell you why).

Who cares about what school they get in after High School (and I'm sure MOST parents do, but can't tell you why).
You are joking, right?

You are joking, right?

Actually I'm not..

Actually I'm not..

My daughter wants a Forensics Chemistry major. There are limited colleges that offer that specialized major. We've visited several and can tell you that not all colleges were related equal. It does matter to her greatly that she get accepted into her first choice college.

My daughter wants a Forensics Chemistry major. There are limited colleges that offer that specialized major. We've visited several and can tell you that not all colleges were related equal. It does matter to her greatly that she get accepted into her first choice college.

Understand..

But meeting your daughter, and knowing how smart she is, none of the above scenarios would relate to her.

That being said.. MY OPINION!! WARNING OPINION!! I think "Forensics Chemistry" is too exacting a major for any college. I would think a Chemistry degree would be more fulfilling and have many more opportunities after the fact TO INCLUDE forensics. Forensic Chemistry locks you into a single career path, a limited career path.. AGAIN MY OPINION, I'm NOT a chemist.. I'd think a person would be better off going to any of a 1000 schools and getting great grades on the way to a BS in Chemistry.. than the "Best Forensic Chemistry" school.

Either way, HARD majors, a LOT of work... and any parent should be proud of her accomplishments and willingness to take a very tough major.

My daughter wants a Forensics Chemistry major. There are limited colleges that offer that specialized major. We've visited several and can tell you that not all colleges were related equal. It does matter to her greatly that she get accepted into her first choice college.

so if she doesnt does that make her a failure doomed for the rest of her life?

so if she doesnt does that make her a failure doomed for the rest of her life?It will surely close some windows, but she would make the best of it with whatever she has to work with.

Wirelessly posted (Samsung Galaxy S III )

I disagree but understand that thought process

Wirelessly posted (Samsung Galaxy S III )

I disagree but understand that thought process

You are wrong to disagree, but I see you've missed a period so that could be why your brain is cloudy.

You are wrong to disagree, but I see you've missed a period so that could be why your brain is cloudy.

:o)

Understand..

But meeting your daughter, and knowing how smart she is, none of the above scenarios would relate to her.

That being said.. MY OPINION!! WARNING OPINION!! I think "Forensics Chemistry" is too exacting a major for any college. I would think a Chemistry degree would be more fulfilling and have many more opportunities after the fact TO INCLUDE forensics. Forensic Chemistry locks you into a single career path, a limited career path.. AGAIN MY OPINION, I'm NOT a chemist.. I'd think a person would be better off going to any of a 1000 schools and getting great grades on the way to a BS in Chemistry.. than the "Best Forensic Chemistry" school.

Either way, HARD majors, a LOT of work... and any parent should be proud of her accomplishments and willingness to take a very tough major.


got to agree with my pop

got to agree with my pop

:suckup: He's wrong often too.

:suckup: He's wrong often too.

I disagree but understand that thought process.

I disagree but understand that thought process.
In my daughter's field choice labs and technology are not equal, trained instructors are not equal, the school's science certifications are not equal, available internships are not equal and recruiter interest in graduating students are not equal. Based on those factors alone, missing out on her first choice would most certainly stunt her options.

Irrelevant question to the scenario..

My opinion is someone taking honors classes and not getting good grades LEARNS more..

To some your question may be more important, to me learning more was more important regardless of the "high school resume".

Who cares about what school they get in after High School (and I'm sure MOST parents do, but can't tell you why).

A high-school resume means something regarding college choice. I suspect most parents care for the same reason you encouraged your kids to honors courses; they learn more.

My question still stands for anyone familiar with college admissions. Which looks better on university applications and resumes, the overall GPA or the fact someone took honors courses?

My son starts the Honors math class (Pre-Algebra) today. He had to turn in his other math textbook and get the Pre-Algebra one and also did the homework assignment that's due today. They had to rearrange some of his classes so hopefully he will get used to the new schedule after just learning the old one.

I hate to admit it, but I didn't sleep well last night, worrying about this. Not that he won't do well. I'm sure he'll do fine. More about the schedule changes, coming into a class two weeks into the school year, etc. I just know how I'd feel and I guess I'm doing the worrying for my son. He's perfectly fine with the whole thing. :lol: Hopefully today after I get the day's report from him, it will ease my worry and I'll get some sleep tonight.

Strange that I wrote this because I was baffled when my son's schedule came out and he wasn't enrolled in Honors Math. I figured the teacher changed her mind and maybe felt he wasn't ready for it (although he excelled in Honors Math in 5th grade and never had any issues).

My son has been in school a week now and I had already started to notice that he wasn't being challenged in regular math and he was done with homework in 5 minutes. Same as what happened in 4th grade. I guess his teacher noticed it too because I got a call from his school about 0830 asking me why he wasn't enrolled in Honors Math. I told them I had no idea and that I was surprised he wasn't because he did so well last year. The school told me that on his preliminary test that they took last week to see how much they knew already to pass 6th grade math, my son already knew 75% of the material and that he was blowing past his classmates in class on assignments and homework.

His teacher must have talked to an administrator because they decided to move him up to Honors Math. :yahoo: Good thing this changed happened so early on in the school year. Hopefully the new class won't mess up his schedule too much because he was so proud of himself for memorizing his schedule after only a few days. I wonder how they will grade him on what he has missed so far in the Honors class. He had already done three assignments in the other class and who knows how many he missed the first week of school for the Honors class. Oh well, they will figure it out and I'm so happy they made the switch. I think he will be too.

Can you email the teacher and ask?

Can you email the teacher and ask?

They actually have his new class listed on the online grading site now and it looks like both math classes did the same two assignments plus my son did the new class's homework last night so he's only one assignment behind. I might email the teacher to see if his grades on the two similar assignments will carry over.

A high-school resume means something regarding college choice. I suspect most parents care for the same reason you encouraged your kids to honors courses; they learn more.

My question still stands for anyone familiar with college admissions. Which looks better on university applications and resumes, the overall GPA or the fact someone took honors courses?

What is a Weighted GPA? Learn What a Weighted GPA is in the College Admissions Process (http://collegeapps.about.com/od/theartofgettingaccepted/f/weighted-gpa.htm)

But it all depends on the schools scale

A high-school resume means something regarding college choice. I suspect most parents care for the same reason you encouraged your kids to honors courses; they learn more.

My question still stands for anyone familiar with college admissions. Which looks better on university applications and resumes, the overall GPA or the fact someone took honors courses?

I just seen a high school seniors class standing list with GPA scores. It seems unfair to me that students taking AP classes are ranked with the students taking just A level classes. The message is; if you want it easy - don't challenge yourself take the low level class get straight A's and you will be in the top of your class standings upon graduating high school. I believe a guidance counselor advised a student this path, sadly.
I noticed this in the newspaper listings for honor roll and principals honors - the students with the easy classes are placed equally with the honor/AP students.
I believe the college application process knows which is the better student. But the middle/high school process does not appear statistically correct to me. I believe they want to allow lower level students to feel good by placing with the students who are working hard and challenging themselves.
The GPA did provide for a weighted scale to increase the score based on taking AP classes. I'm not clear why weighted GPA's are not used for graduating class standings and I hope that the college will view the GPA and the level of the classes concurrently.

What is a Weighted GPA? Learn What a Weighted GPA is in the College Admissions Process (http://collegeapps.about.com/od/theartofgettingaccepted/f/weighted-gpa.htm)

But it all depends on the schools scale


Thank you! :love:

Colleges, however, usually aren't going to use these artificially inflated grades. Yes, they want to see that a student has taken challenging courses, but they need to compare all applicants using the same 4-point grade scale. Most high schools that use weighted GPAs will also include unweighted grades on a student's transcript, and colleges will usually use the unweighted number.

Basically it looks as if universities don't bother with whether one took honors courses or not but rather the basic non-weighted GPA.

So unless a kid and parents are really gung ho on learning more for the sake of learning more, there is absolutely no incentive for a kid to take honors courses. Imo, that is an injustice. :ohwell:

A high-school resume means something regarding college choice. I suspect most parents care for the same reason you encouraged your kids to honors courses; they learn more.

My question still stands for anyone familiar with college admissions. Which looks better on university applications and resumes, the overall GPA or the fact someone took honors courses?

My point is.. WHY should anyone care about "college choice"?

The only connection to school of choice I see is cost.. apparently everyone feels the more you pay, the better the education? That's pure :bs:...

And of course there's the argument "IF I go to an IV league school, I'll get a better starting salary!!"? Of course you can't major in basket weaving in an IV league school too, so maybe it has more to do with what major they choose moreso than the school they choose?

It makes no sense to me to pay 50,000 a year to go to a "first choice school" unless you can guarantee me I'm going to be making 250k a year to start.

Other than that, you'd be MUCH better off going to a state school, being MAYBE 20 - 30k in student debt, and starting at a reasonalbe and acceptable 50k a year job.

But when a high school student comes to you with a list of "preferred colleges" where the tuition is $25,000 a year of more, and they want to major in English, Humanites or History, I would say the guidance counselors at the school, and the parents at home have failed.

My point is.. WHY should anyone care about "college choice"?

The only connection to school of choice I see is cost.. apparently everyone feels the more you pay, the better the education? That's pure :bs:...

And of course there's the argument "IF I go to an IV league school, I'll get a better starting salary!!"? Of course you can't major in basket weaving in an IV league school too, so maybe it has more to do with what major they choose moreso than the school they choose?

It makes no sense to me to pay 50,000 a year to go to a "first choice school" unless you can guarantee me I'm going to be making 250k a year to start.

Other than that, you'd be MUCH better off going to a state school, being MAYBE 20 - 30k in student debt, and starting at a reasonalbe and acceptable 50k a year job.

But when a high school student comes to you with a list of "preferred colleges" where the tuition is $25,000 a year of more, and they want to major in English, Humanites or History, I would say the guidance counselors at the school, and the parents at home have failed.

agreed! i have a bachelors and mba and no debt. working on another masters now and still no debt. there is a lot to be said about leaving school without debt.

My point is.. WHY should anyone care about "college choice"?

The only connection to school of choice I see is cost.. apparently everyone feels the more you pay, the better the education? That's pure :bs:...

And of course there's the argument "IF I go to an IV league school, I'll get a better starting salary!!"? Of course you can't major in basket weaving in an IV league school too, so maybe it has more to do with what major they choose moreso than the school they choose?

It makes no sense to me to pay 50,000 a year to go to a "first choice school" unless you can guarantee me I'm going to be making 250k a year to start.

Other than that, you'd be MUCH better off going to a state school, being MAYBE 20 - 30k in student debt, and starting at a reasonalbe and acceptable 50k a year job.

But when a high school student comes to you with a list of "preferred colleges" where the tuition is $25,000 a year of more, and they want to major in English, Humanites or History, I would say the guidance counselors at the school, and the parents at home have failed.

My oldest son is going to SMC for his masters degree in English education without the use of student loans and no debt. I KNEW I should have told my kid to enroll in that cheaper non-accredited online school instead! I have obviously failed him as a parent. :frown:

My oldest son is going to SMC for his masters degree in English education without the use of student loans and no debt. I KNEW I should have told my kid to enroll in that cheaper non-accredited online school instead! I have obviously failed him as a parent. :frown:

Stretch what I said much?

NOWHERE did I suggest unaccredited schools, nor did I even suggest online ed..

SMC is Saint Mary's College.. Not sure what their tuition is, but I'm assuming not cheap..

Stretch what I said much?

NOWHERE did I suggest unaccredited schools, nor did I even suggest online ed..

SMC is Saint Mary's College.. Not sure what their tuition is, but I'm assuming not cheap..

:lol:

Not cheap but could be worse. :shrug: Maybe I just should have packed him off to U of MD, Towson, or Frostburg instead; after all, he won't even be making 50K a year as a teacher. :frown:

:yahoo: Oldest will be taking all Honors classes again next year (7th grade)!!

:yahoo: Oldest will be taking all Honors classes again next year (7th grade)!!Proof once again that the schooling is there... it is all about whether or not the child choses to take advantage of the opportunities to educate and better themselves...:yay:

:yahoo: Oldest will be taking all Honors classes again next year (7th grade)!!

Proof once again that the schooling is there... it is all about whether or not the child choses to take advantage of the opportunities to educate and better themselves...:yay:

Another plus is as they get older the credits earned in HS can count towards college credits as well. Both my daughters are in HS and they both will start college with credits earned in math and maybe English... not positive on the English credit but the local schools have a dual enrollment program with CSM and many other colleges will accept the credits as well.

My daughter will be starting high school next year with three graduation credits already under her belt due to honors classes in middle school (2 math, 1 foreign language). She can and plans to graduate in her Junior year. :yay:

My daughter will be starting high school next year with three graduation credits already under her belt due to honors classes in middle school (2 math, 1 foreign language). She can and plans to graduate in her Junior year. :yay:

WOW!! Good for her!!

My daughter will be starting high school next year with three graduation credits already under her belt due to honors classes in middle school (2 math, 1 foreign language). She can and plans to graduate in her Junior year. :yay:

Awesome!! That's my daughter's plan as well, which will be next year for her. I told her that she'll miss her friends but she insists that's what she wants.

Oldest is starting highschool next year, he's already in STEM but has become interested as well with the Global and International Studies program they offer. Anyone have any kiddos in that program? Thoughts?

My oldest son is going to SMC for his masters degree in English education without the use of student loans and no debt. I KNEW I should have told my kid to enroll in that cheaper non-accredited online school instead! I have obviously failed him as a parent. :frown:

SMC isn't cheap but it's not like your paying for Yale or Princeton, and it IS a state school.

My oldest son is going to SMC for his masters degree in English education without the use of student loans and no debt.

Knowing that SMC is a particularly expensive institution to attend, I suppose there are A LOT of parents here that would be interested in exactly HOW this happened?

Full-ride scholarship?
Parents paying?
Lottery?

Do share...

Knowing that SMC is a particularly expensive institution to attend, I suppose there are A LOT of parents here that would be interested in exactly HOW this happened?

Full-ride scholarship?
Parents paying?
Lottery?

Do share...

Cash. It was cheaper to send him to St. Mary's as a commuter than it was to ship him off and pay tuition as well as room/board at UofM, Towson, etc.

Awesome!! That's my daughter's plan as well, which will be next year for her. I told her that she'll miss her friends but she insists that's what she wants.

Back 21 years ago when CSM (well then it was still CCCC) just was starting to let seniors do their freshman year/ Senior year at CCCC. One of my classmates took advantage of that opp (since the only class she would have taken her senior year was AP English and she had her other credits). Some of the students who did not know her thought she was crazy for doing it and said stuff like, "Your going to miss the prom (homecoming, etc)." She was not into that stuff 9th-11th grade, why would it make a difference for 12th grade?!-)

In reality (this of course was waaaay before Facebook, etc) it really did not make a difference with her social life. She made new friends and still kept track of her old friends (since she was still living at home while going to CCCC), worked, and time for study.

Cash. It was cheaper to send him to St. Mary's as a commuter than it was to ship him off and pay tuition as well as room/board at UofM, Towson, etc.

I applaud you!

Still... no loans... no debt at all? I know I don't have the spare cash laying around to pay FULL tuition to SMC! :faint: