The Money GPA

For public, private and home school students who plan to attend a two year or four year institution of higher learning, the fact of the matter is this:  GPA is crucial!!  If your student desires to compete for merit scholarships, then their SAT, ACT scores and GPA are extremely important. For the purpose of this post, I'm discussing the type of scholarship that a student qualifies for because of their grades in high school courses.  There are need based scholarships, but I'm only discussing merit scholarships  In my experience(my disclaimer that you need to do your own research:  don't depend on mine) merit scholarships come in two forms:  institutional and third party.

We'll talk institutional in this post.  Each school  has there own set of guidelines as to how they disburse their merit scholarships.  The key is to know what each school requires and when everything is due.  Many  schools require the student to apply separately to their scholarship program with reference letters, an application and essays. Based on these applications, some schools invite students to scholarship interview days in January/February. Other schools don't have interviews, but base scholarships on SAT, ACT scores,   GPA, and application information. Students usually find out in late March to mid-April if they've been awarded scholarship money. 

With all that said........all these applications, scores, GPA, etc. must be in the hands of the schools by mid-December of the students' Senior Year.  Let that soak in~  Your students' eligibility for scholarships is based on their GPA at the end of their Junior Year.....yes, that's Money GPA~~  Many institutions generously reward students who are ranked 1st or 2nd in their class.....again, based on their Junior Year.  Also, your student needs to have taken their final SAT or ACT by the first of December in order for schools to receive scores to determine eligibility for scholarships.

The moral of this blog is that you have to be thinking about GPA, SAT and ACT long before Senior Year.  It all starts when your student starts taking high school credits. 

Until Next Time,
Johnna

Just Beginning~~~

Maybe you’ve decided to take your child out of a traditional educational setting or maybe this will be the first time you’re trying to have some “structured” educational time.  If you have a preschooler or elementary age child that you’ve decided to home school, let me give you just one phrase to consider—“Enjoy your time together.”   

News flash~~   You don’t have to mimic the traditional school setting, time schedule or curriculum.  I think that we feel like we have to in order to validate our home school.  When my girls were little, we did have a “school room.”  I started out having them “do their work” at the table we had set up in a bedroom.  I had some wire storage racks that housed books and supplies because I was trying to “contain” it all in one room.  Notice that I didn’t call it a spare bedroom because it wasn’t spare…..all three girls slept in one room.  Thank goodness for 2 sets of bunk beds!

We did work out of that room, but it didn't take long before we spilled out into the living space….kitchen table, living room floor, island in the kitchen, etc.  The reality was that I found it difficult to work with them while I was cooking or completing tasks around the house.

We didn’t have a strict time frame for school work.   We got up, ate breakfast, got dressed and started their activities.  We finished the school day when they finished with their work.  Some days were longer than others.   

As far as curriculum, you can get overwhelmed very easily because there are so many options available.  Everyone’s curriculum style is going to be very different.  When it comes to curriculum, there are no rights and wrongs, as long as you choose something that best fits your child.   There are some who like a “one size fits all” curriculum.  For example, private schools will use a particular curriculum across the board. Many times when parents take their child out of a private school, they will continue to use the curriculum because the student is familiar with it.  Also, you can use a computer based curriculum.  I chose the eclectic style…using all kinds of different curriculum.  When my girls were preschool and elementary aged, we used unit studies in order that we could sit down and learn together.  We learned so much together…..the key word being “together.”  If you were to ask any of my girls what there favorite part of home schooling was, they would invariably tell you “Sitting on the couch and reading a story together.”  I used a unit study,   http://fiveinarow.com/. that focused on reading a book and then you would study science, social studies, math, art, history, etc based on the book.   Math was my only supplement in terms of a textbook subject until middle school.

When choosing a curriculum, do your research.  Ask other home school parents what they use and why.  Check out:  http://www.rainbowresource.com/   They have a 1300 page catalog that has detailed descriptions of all the home school material they sell.   You can download the catalog or request one via mail.  Prepare to be overwhelmed though because it’s 2-3 inches thick, but a great resource to have.  Christian Book Distributors, http://www.christianbook.com/  , has a tab dedicated to home schooling products.

Finally, I would have been lost without a friend who shared with me about the curriculum she used and why…among many other home school matters.  She made such an impact in my life as a friend and a fellow home school mom.  Find someone and talk to them.  Life isn’t meant to be lived as the Lone Range.

Until Next Time,

Johnna

For the First Time ~~~ It's Not Back to School For Me~~

All over Face Book I'm seeing pictures and posts from parents and students of their very first day of school, their Senior Year, their first day of their last year of college, their first day of their last semester, etc.  You get the point~  My name is Johnna Carter Legendre.  For the first time in 16 years, I'm not teaching any students.

On May 25, 2013 we graduated our last daughter from our home school:  Grace Academy.   It was a bittersweet day.  I had accomplished the goal of graduating all three daughters from high school.  Another goal I had was that they would be prepared for college.  All three are currently attending four year institutions on scholarships. Now, I'm facing the reality that I don't have anyone to teach.

I was sharing with a friend about some of the things that I had learned and was still learning even as our last daughter was graduating high school.  My friend, who is a public school teacher, told me, "You should write a book.  I'd buy it."  Well, I don't know about anyone buying it....except for my friend, but I've decided that I can share about what I've learned over these past 16+ years.  Some things I wouldn't change...some things I would tweak....and some things I wish that I had done differently.

My goal for this blog is to share my experiences in order that home school parents might benefit from my journey.  As my three daughters began to enter college, I learned so much about the admissions and scholarship process that could be beneficial to all students:  public, private and home school.  So even if you don't home school, you may find helpful information for your student. 

Until the Next Time,
Johnna