Review of College Prep Genius

Ethan is entering the last few years of school and is beginning to prepare for college, exploring his options. It's a bit scary, in all honesty. I planned out the rest of his school career so carefully, but these last few years terrify me more than teaching him to read ever did. Multiplication tables? That's nothing. With those basics, you always have a reassurance that at some point, they will get it. They will potty train before they go to college. But will they be ready for college before they go to college? Will they take the right classes and pass the right tests to get into the college that is the best fit for them? How do we find out which college is the best fit for him? How do we pay for it? These questions aren't as easy to deal with.

I've been blessed this last year with access to some great vendors, who understand this pressure and have helped me navigate my way through the many options. Recently, I've had the opportunity to review the book "High School Prep Genius" It is an "Academic Guide to Excellence" provided by College Prep Genius. 

The book is designed to be read by a parent and student, working through it together. It is written toward students with a section written to parents at the end of each chapter. But it's helpful to just read it all. There are homework assignments for both parents and students. The reading portions and the activities include everything from preparing a transcript to essay writing techniques and study tips. It is an excellent resource for fully preparing for those last years of high school.

There are 18 chapters in the book, plus a very necessary introduction section. It is a good fit to work through a chapter per week, which takes about an hour per week, reading and discussing together. Another option might be to double up on that schedule and work through it during the summer months.

I wish I had heard of this book before we hit the high school years. It is still extremely helpful, but it would have been a natural and easy process had I started when my son was in the 7th grade. Thankfully, I will be able to start it with his younger siblings and will be ahead of the game.

The 18 chapters and the intro are are divided into 4 sections. Section I is the introduction, which is imperative and sets the foundation for the rest of the process. The other sections are:

II. Foundation for Personal Success
This section equips students very personally, from financial decisions to healthy eating to healthy friendships. I love that the book emphasizes that the goal is not just to get into college, but it is to develop into an effective member of society. This section helps students stand back and examine their own personal development and integrity and to see how their choices affect what kind of person they become and how they live.

III. Foundation for Academic Success
This section prepares the student for effective study skills and test taking. It helps them find an organization routine that can see them through to the end. This helps them map out the high school years and, as the title of chapter 12 says, helps them excel in "Going Beyond the Basics". \

IV. Foundation for Future Success
This section gets into the nitty gritty of college choices. It walks students through choosing a school, preparing for ACT/SAT, maneuvering through college applications, and how to pay for school. Chapter 18 walks them through college, beginning with the summer before and choosing housing and classes, living with a roommate, handling homesickness. It covers internships, professors, what to pack...everything.

The Appendix includes detailed information how to build a transcript, with sample forms. I also includes lots of information on talent searches, which was completely new to me. It has an excellent "Great Books" list for planning literature courses, relaxation techniques for students that get anxious about tests (or parents who get anxious about students....), and an admissions terminology list to help you translate the lingo.

The book has been a weight off of my shoulders. Working through it with your child will have you well-armed and ready to tackle the high school to college path.  The book can be purchased for $29.95. For other reviews and thoughts from other crew members, be sure to visit the Schoolhouse Review Crew linked below:

Spring!

 

• I peeked outside my window
• When I heard a robin sing
• His chirp was sure a sign
• Of the coming of the spring.
• 
  

—Trina Henry

Review of Spanish for You

Learning a foreign language in those early years is so much easier than learning it as an adult. I'm amazed at how quickly those little minds can fill with so much information. Experts have shown that children who begin listening to foreign languages at a young age are much more likely to be able to imitate a proper accent. But most families don't have an opportunity to listen to native accents very often.

My girls have been asking to learn Spanish and we had a fun opportunity to review a program called Spanish For You!, which includes audio of a native Spanish speaker reading the lessons. They have truly enjoyed it! Spanish For You offers two programs, Estaciones and Fiestas. A third program, Viajes, will be available in June. We opted to study Estaciones.

Even though I took 3 years of Spanish in school, I have no memory of it and didn't know until we started that Estaciones means Seasons. My girls have had a lot of fun tracking the weather in Spanish as they also learned the days of the week and the months. The book includes 5 lessons which are divided into 30 weeks for their grade level. These lessons are:

Snuggle Bug

We had a fabulous Mother's Day weekend. One stop was at a Mother's Day Ceremony with my Grandma. During the worship service, Sarah Grace made her way around the table snuggling with all available snugglers, be they willing or no. But who can resist that cuteness?

Review of Papa's Pearls

We received a nifty little book, called Papa's Pearls which we've been reading after lunch lately. The full title is Papa’s Pearls: A Father’s Gift of Love and Wisdom To His Children and Grandchildren. In the book, Diane Flynn Keith shares stories about her father, Carol J. Flynn, and words and examples of wisdom that he shared throughout his life.

As you would imagine, growing up with the name Carol shaped him into a tough guy. This led to some poor choices, but even what he thought was the worst that could happen to him became a lesson in his life. From that lesson, he went on to teach his children to "push through the fear and make the best of any situation or opportunity that comes along." That's good advice. Carol was a man who learned from his mistakes and kept on on plugging along. He was a man of character and I would like to have known him.

The book is a breath of fresh air, much different than the thin platitudes that have been so popular lately as Pinterest posters. It is full of real examples of real life and helps readers learn real lessons.

It is full of great parenting lessons as well. Diane wrote the book, hoping parents would glean wisdom from it to teach to their own children. I was impressed with a statement Diane's brother said when recalling the time he was caught smoking with friends near a gas meter. He said, "I never feared Papa's reprisal for bad behavior because I always knew the punishment would be fair." That's the kind of consistent parenting I want to impart to my kids. The punishment turned out to be working in the plumbing shop with dad. "If you're old enough to smoke, you're old enough to work." From that punishment, he "learned a lot about plumbing, as well as how to plan his time and activities and how to follow through."

Papa (Carol) left all of his children and grandchildren knowing they were loved, that they were valuable, and that they could do great things. He believed in them and he made sure they knew it. Story after story illustrates his encouragement and his care. He left indelible memories in the lives of his family. I've never met him, of course, but he's left quite an impression on me as well. I've been inspired to slow down and pay attention to the memories I'm leaving with my children. I am so proud of my children and I've worked hard to raise them well. In parenting, 'raising well' includes plenty of correction, done in love. I know my children realize that discipline is born of love, but I don't want them remembering the corrections more than the encouragements. I want to be sure they know that I believe in them. Papa's Pearls has encouraged me to make sure they are secure in that fact.

I've enjoyed Diane's writings for years, via e-newsletters. She is an alternative education specialist and you might want to consider subscribing to her newsletters.

Papa's Pearls is fairly short, just over 100 pages in 17 chapters. I recommend sharing it with the family, a chapter per day as a read-aloud. Skipping weekends, this takes 4 weeks...unless you give in when the kids ask for another chapter. And they will. There were a few small portions that might require some skimming, or some discussion. At one point, a white lie is told over a glass of wine. In another, some unsavory language is used during the collection of a debt. It wasn't intended to be a read-aloud for younger children, but with some supervision, it can be.


You can purchase a copy, autographed by the author for $14.97. Or you can purchase the book at a lower rate through amazon as a paperback or in Kindle format.