Frequently Asked Questions
| Can more than one
sibling take the same class at the same time? What software or hardware do I need for my children to take the classes? Do I need to make any adjustments to my computer to access the classes? How much time should we plan for the work for the classes? Do you grade the students' work? When should I register my student for his or her first session? Should I register my student for all sessions right away in order to hold a spot in future sessions? Can I register to begin my student in any session during the year? How many students are in a class? I'm not sure of the proper placement for my child. Can I send you a writing sample for you to evaluate? How do I enroll my student in the Honors High School English classes? Is any Instant Messenger required to be able to participate in the classes? What if my student is older than the recommended age range shown at the Description of Classes page? What if we are going to be gone for an online class meeting or a week? |
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| Can more than one sibling take the same class at the same time? | ||
| Yes, we have many siblings who sit together at the computer to take the class. | ||
| What software or hardware do I need for my children to take the classes? | ||
| You will need either a PC or a Mac
computer with Microsoft Word or Microsoft Works. If you have neither of
these, you can download a free Microsoft Word equivalent (and
compatible with Word) called OpenOffice from www.openoffice.org.
You cannot use WordPad.
You will need internet access. High speed internet is, of course, the best way to go, however, dial-up works fine (just a little slower). You will also need to update two programs that are probably already on your computer. The first is Java. Go to www.java.com and download and install the latest version (free). You will need this to be able to access the online classroom. The second is Adobe Acrobat Reader. The lessons and many handouts are in PDF format (so that everyone can read them, no matter what wordprocessing program you have), and you need the latest Reader to open these. You can download and install this from: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html Other
than that, you, of course need an e-mail program (any e-mail program is
fine). |
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| Do I need to make any adjustments to my computer to access the classes? | ||
| The only thing you may have to do is to adjust your firewall program on your computer to allow the use of Java. | ||
| How much time should we plan for the work for the classes? | ||
| All classes have assignments due
each day. A Daily Schedule is provided to assist the student in
planning and organizing his or her workload.
The Elementary 1 and Elementary 2 classes require about 2-3 hours a week, in addition to the 1 hour weekly online meeting. This may be more or less, depending on how quickly your student works, and how many edits are required. The Beginning Creative Writing, Narrative, and y Report Writing classes require about 3-4 hours a week, in addition to the 1 hour weekly online meeting. This may be more or less, depending on how quickly your student works, and how many edits are required. The Paragraph Writing, Writing About Books, Creative Writing, Expository, and Literature Analysis Classes require about 4-5 hours a week, in addition to the 1 hour weekly online meeting. This may be more or less, depending on how quickly your student works, and how many edits are required. |
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| Do you grade the students' work? | ||
| The goal and philosophy of these classes is mastery. A student will almost always have at least one round of edits, and often will have two or more. Instead of providing a grade, which shows the student has mastered a certain percentage of what he or she has learned, students must revise until it is as close to mastery as possible. | ||
| When should I register my student for his or her first session? | ||
| Classes usually fill 1-2 months in advance, so register as early as possible to avoid disappointment. We often have waiting lists, especially for the Elementary 1 class and the Paragraph class. | ||
| Should I register my student for all sessions right away in order to hold a spot in future sessions? | ||
| No. You will register your student for the first class. After that, towards the end of each session, we provide a recommendation for the next class. This may be a repeat of the same class (6 weeks is not a long time to completely master every element), or a recommendation to take an earlier level of class, or to take the next level. Parents need to focus on the goal of the classes, which is to build a strong foundation and mastery of the elements of writing. It is not a race to move ahead. Current students will always have priority registration and a guaranteed spot in the next session, as long as you meet the registration deadline that is sent to you. | ||
| Can I register to begin my student in any session during the year? | ||
| Yes, the material covered in each class each session is the same. | ||
| How many students are in a class? | ||
| The Narrative, Report Writing, and Paragraph class may each have up to 15 or 16 students (many times less). We try to keep the limit for the younger classes at about 10-12 students. | ||
| I'm not sure of the proper placement for my child. Can I send a writing sample for you to evaluate? | ||
| Yes, especially for the Paragraph and higher classes. The writing sample must be something the student has written with absolutely no input, suggestions, help, revisions or edits from the parent or any other adult. In other words, this must be the student's own draft. This is the only way we can accurately evaluate the STUDENT's level of writing. The sample needs to be a minimum of one paragraph of at least 10 lines. It needs to be typed in Word and sent as an attachment to e-mail. | ||
| How do I enroll my student in the Honors High School English classes? | ||
| Students for the honors English classes must be exceptional writers. We usually only accept fewer than eight students for each of those classes each year. The honors high school English classes require about 5-7 hours a week, constant writing, constant reading. Students must have very strong writing, punctuation, grammar, and expression. In addition, the prerequisite for the HS-9 class is that the student mus have completed at least one research essay, using MLA format, which requires a specific note taking format, planning, thesis statement, parenthetical references, incorporation of quotes, and properly formatted Works Cited page. Prerequisite for HS-10 is completion of at least three research essays in the proper format, and at least two essays of literature analysis (not reports). Please email for further requirements. | ||
| Is any Instant Messenger program required to be able to participate in the classes? | ||
| No. We have our own online
classroom. |
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| What if my student is older than the recommended age range shown at the Description of Classes page? | ||
| The age ranges are general guidelines. If you have an older student who needs work on building a strong writing foundation, we will recommend the lower level classes. Students must have achieved mastery to work above any class level. Mastery means that he or she can apply these on his or her own (no help) in all of his or her writing - not just "in theory" or on worksheets. Many students have learned these elements, but cannot apply them consistently in writing, which means they have not really achieved mastery. | ||
| What if we are going to be gone for an online class meeting or a week? | ||
| The classes move rapidly, and have assignments that are due daily. Students cannot get behind in their work. If your student will miss an online class meeting, he or she will need to carefully read the transcript from the online class (which is sent to everyone each week), as well as the lesson, and do the assignments. If you plan to be gone for a week or more, you should wait to enroll your child in a session that will not have interruptions. Students have extreme difficulty in catching up with missing assignments. It is unfair to the student and to the teacher to have a student rush through assignments. | ||
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Still have a question? Email us!
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