Class ranking guidelines  (Senior and Junior Class)

Graduation Requirements (What Colleges are Expecting)
        Track I and II  (College and Technical Preparatory)
        Track III  (Special Needs Students)
        
South Carolina College List  (website links)

IOE High School Code:  410-881   (SAT: www.collegeboard.com  |  ACT: www.act.org) 

  





(from 'Continuing the Journey' High School Seminar...)

Home Schooling during the high school years is much different than the elementary years, but can be just as rewarding. It would be in your best interest to speak to other families that have taught during the high school years and get advise on subjects and issues you might have. If you need, get a tutor to assist in areas you may need help with and seek out other means of help for supplemental curriculum. Biology is easily taught by a book, but hands on labs are key to tying it all together. Many educational centers have labs for your child to work in as do co-ops and science centers. Foreign language and other subjects can be taught from CD ROM w/workbooks. Prices may vary depending on supplier or brand, so do your homework and see what is going to best met your child's educational needs. Co-op's offer a great outlet for your child to get labs and PE when you may not be in a position to offer it from home. Science kits can be purchased from most teacher supply stores or online directly from curriculum suppliers.

A newer option is school by computer, or virtual school.  Depending on the 'virtual school' you choose, it may not cost as much as you think.  Some virtual schools offer full-year courses while others offer condensed courses. Meaning, you take a semester long course in a nine week period. Ensure your child is capable of working in this type of format, should you choose the condensed courses. As well, many virtual schools are enlisting full-time students only. So if you wanted to use this method to cover the harder courses only, you may need to rethink this option.  You may find using DVD's for one or two courses a better option.  Students will need to take the exit exams to fulfill their graduation requirements. Again, each virtual school differs so gather information from all of interest to you and decide which is the best option for your children.

Once you have chosen the material from which to teach from, then plan your years carefully. During the summer, take time to plan your lessons and familiarize yourself with the content. As you have ideas for a particular section, make a note of it. For example, if you are going to be covering US Constitution this year, you may wish to have your child your child take a tour of the State Senate during session. Pencil that idea in your monthly lesson plan book and start coordinating that trip now. SC sessions run from Jan - Jun, so you won't be able to take a fall trip and see our SC Senate in action. You may wish to get supplemental videos from your local library that cover certain sections. Work on that now so they can be reserved for the time in which you need it. If a support group is planning a trip to Washington D.C., this planning ahead will allow you time to save for your trip and to schedule class time around your outing.

High School courses (classes) are all given percentage grades and credits. 1.0 credit is issued for a course that is one year long (ex. Algebra I) and .5 credits are issued for a course that is only 1/2 year long (ex. Government or Economics). The SC Dept. of Education public school system requires 24.0 credits for graduation. This means that your child will need 6 credits per high school year to reach 24 total by the end of the senior year. Be sure to contact your college of choice to see what is expected of your child so you can better plan your high school years. NOTE:  while homeschool students are bound to follow the public school system, colleges are expecting specific requirements being met. So using their guidelines for graduation is key for ensuring your child is prepared for college and that they will be considered for admission.

If your child is in middle school and is able to take high school courses for credit, ensure that your record keeping is accurate so credits can be issued. When they get to the 11th and 12th grade year they can take college courses at your local tech school for college credit. Seek more information from your local tech school before starting this process so you will know what they will be able to take and what you will need to teach them early in order to reach the 24 credit limit ahead of schedule. It is not advised that all children get the 24 credits ahead of schedule, but if your child is a position to achieve that, then they have another educational outlet during their high school years. Typically, a middle-schooler would take on high school courses in a addition to their normal school courses or work at higher levels earlier. It is not a way to get out of taking required courses in the middle school years - sorry kids! 



(read more from the High School: continuing the journey on the Seminars page above)