But now that ds1 is high school age, and ds2 is middle-school age, I can’t help but panic that I’m woefully unprepared to play school counselor. What are they supposed to have in order to apply to college, or heck, what do they need in order to graduate period? Luckily I have a couple of friends who’ve homeschooled kids through to college, and a homeschool e-list, that I can consult, though I don’t want to bug them every other hour with my freaked-out questions.
One of the things I learned is that taking the PSAT in grade 11 will allow the kids to qualify for National Merit scholarship if they score high enough. So, I thought I’d sign ds1 up to take it for fun and for practice. Yes, while other moms take their kids to Disneyworld for fun, I make mine take tests for fun!
While I’ve had the kids do the CAT/5 (California Achievement Test) at home before, neither of them has ever taken an “official” standardized test. All public school kids in Indiana take the IStep starting in grade 2? 3? 4? I don’t even know, but by the time grade 10 rolls around, they’ve taken standardized tests many times already. So, I was pleasantly surprised that ds1 was not nervous about doing the PSAT.
And, apparently, according to people who know (like hubby), he did all right: 210.
Now, the solicitations start arriving, but…what’s a good college? To my Canadian mind, if it has the word “university,” it’s a good one. If it says “college,” then it’s lower tier. Not so in the U.S., and fortunately, hubby knows which are the good ones so he can steer ds1 in the right direction.
I hope…because I’m still confused.
"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams
