Academic advice for high school dancers at year round programs

[Gracegirlz]

How do families handle their high school student's schooling while attending a daytime year round /residency pre-pro program (living far away from home)? We know there are many choices for online/virtual academies. But can they fit everything in after training from 8 to 4 or 5 pm? Just living on their own at this age (14-18) is challenging. Any advice for doing this for the long haul? And still have your dancer be prepared for college? Any advice on preparing them for the ACT/SAT tests while away? The full day training is absolutely wonderful; we just don't want to sacrifice a solid education in the process,

 

We would love to hear any advice and suggestions! Thanks so much!

[peamom]

We have done this and it is a challenge to say the least, particularly for those who are academically inclined. It is possible to do, but may take a bit longer, and lots of discipline for the dancer! We were able to do it through our virtual public high school, which was free and good quality, but had it's limitations as far as flexibility in hours and when assignments were posted. That being said, we were able to take AP English and US history, in addition to 2 other honors classes. 4 classes of that nature were too many for the hours available - Id say no more than 3 would have been the right number, allowing for sleep at night! We had no trouble finding a location for the SAT (the PSAT was a bit more challenging, but totally doable), and took AP tests at a location near the studio. Just know that it is unlikely they will get any school work in during the day, and that performance schedules require them to really work ahead and communicate with teachers (Nutcracker is a bear), but it is doable, and leaves many college options open!

[dbratdancer]

My daughter is in 9th grade and she has just completely her first semester doing online public high school. She lives away from home and is in a full time ballet program. The free public school program doesn't have quite as much flexibility as we would like however she is was able to take AP and Honors classes and complete her coursework on time. She just completed her first semester studying English, Geometry, French, Biology, Art History and Physical Education.

 

Because of the issue with flexibility we are looking into a private online school for next year. As the previous poster noted issues come at the end of the semester when Nutcracker raises it's head and all their testing and assignments are due. This may happen again in the spring if they have a pre-professional end of year showcase. I can't confirm this but according to my daughter the private online schools allow the students to take class and get ahead during the summer.

 

The other students who board at the school mainly use private online schools.

[GTLS Designs]

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[Gracegirlz]

Has anyone tried modified home schooling via long distance, while your dancer is away? I am just wondering what colleges would think of that?

[pinktights24]

I could not do our state's virtual public school for the exact reasons everyone else has stated. I need a very flexible schedule, and the virtual school's wanted me to check in every day and stay on a schedule. With Nutcracker and other performances, this just isn't possible. I do an online high school associated with a major university where I can plan out my academic schedule around my dance schedule. Yes, it will take longer, but I don't have the stress of trying to meet deadlines.

[Nittany]

My DD is in a residence situation, and most of the kids there do online schooling of one sort of another. Some are private schools, and some associated with public boards. There is at least one who does "home"schooling from a distance. I know that for my DD, having flexible due dates and test dates has been extremely important. Some schools require kids to be online at specific times for class, but others can be done anytime that is convenient. The one my daughter does has no absolute deadlines except that each course needs to be completely done within 12 months. It is hard for her to keep up, with the number of hours that they spend in dance class, but the flexibility makes it possible.

[KrystaMarie]

Are we allowed to name online schools? Moderators, please delete this if it isn't allowed. Landry Academy is great, and very flexible!

[Gracegirlz]

Sounds like most students are doing online schooling. Seems to be a theme of flexibility here. We are looking for some advice on how parents handle the accountability aspect and what they expect (or receive) from their dancer and from their full time dance program. Do the parents usually assume all the accountability for their student staying on task, completing assignments and meeting deadlines? Or, do some full time programs/residences offer assistance in this? It seems like some onsite assistance would be very helpful?(We realize there are many different degrees of responsibility for all parties.)

[emidrew]

As a long-time homeschooler, I strongly recommend that you find out the laws in your state before choosing a program. Homeschooling is legal in every state, but the requirements for notification, testing and reporting vary widely across the nation.

 

Keep in mind that your student will not be dealing with changing classes, taking roll, other students, etc... if you boil down the actual time spent on academics in the average school day, you will see it does not take 6-8 hours. A focused student with 2-3 hours a day in the schedule for academics should have no problem. (DD does school when it fits in the schedule. Some days that means no academic work, some days it means 8 hours. December? Forget it.)

 

As for the question about accountability - I would respectfully submit that a student who cannot be relied upon to stay on task, complete assignments and meet deadlines is not ready to go away to a full-time residency program. I understand that everyone veers off task now and then, but it should be the exception.

[abunchofbunheads]

Hi, I am trying to find a good online school that is flexible, accredited, affordable and has good colleges counseling, teacher support and SAT/ACT prep.

Any school suggestions? Thank you!

[dancemaven]

There have been a number of threads over the years, so a Search would probably bring you the most working information versus starting from scratch.

[Toitoi43]

Has anyone had the experience of having their dk go to residence school abroad? Did they do both the international academic school and their online schooling for the US? It seems like a lot, so I'm wondering how it's usually handled. The dk gets a foreign high school diploma?

[learningdance]

This is helpful. We are thinking about residency.

 

I guess my feeling is that you need at least 4 hours per day to give school honest attention. And that time has to come from somewhere. 6-10 pm?

Is this too much time?

[Picturesinthefirelight]

My daughter is at a residential school in the UK where we live. There are children there from abroad.

 

Everyone studies for the British school qualifications GCSE which are taken at 16 & then they choose to do A Levels (the qualification needed for university) or a diploma.

 

I don't know if anyone who studies their own countries qualification alongside. There just wouldn't be time. Bedtime varies between 9pm for 11/12 year olds & 10pm for 15/16 year olds.