The final K-12 summer

Collegiate Success Institute

This is HSS's last City Schools summer. I'm expecting/hoping that summer internships will happen through her college years, but this summer it's about prepping for college.

UMBC has a pre-college orientation-type program that includes taking two courses that are required for graduation, called CSI. So, for the first 6 weeks of the 12 weeks that is summer vacation, HSS will be living in the dorms, figuring out the logistics of college life, making friends, doing service projects, being a tourist...all sorts of fun stuff.

After that, besides the family vacation at the cabin, HSS will have to figure it out. Yet another step towards Independence and adulthood.

Summer plans continued



American Pie cty-style, from http://www.realcty.org/

 So the middle child, soon to be my only high school student also has a busy summer ahead. It's going to be her last year at CTY, where she's spent 3 weeks every summer since 2007:

I won't miss shelling out what has slowly gone from $3K to almost $4K per kid, but I know this has been a good investment for both my high schoolers. As much as I realize that msk needs to be flappy sometimes, I know my other kids need to be geeky. What other summer camps have a wiki explaining the lexicon and culture?

Also on the agenda is getting in the 60 hours of road time required to get a driver's license these days. Plus a week of camp in West Virginia repairing houses for elderly low-income folks. And there's summer reading assignments. Plus a family vacation in the woods.

I used to worry about what my kids would miss when the school system moved to year 'round. It seemed logical for it to change, expecially in a city like Baltimore where so few kids have any sort of enrichment activities over the summer. I'm holding my breath no longer. This kid has only one more high school summer left and msk does ESY and really would do better with full year schooling.

Two weeks off

I was shocked when I looked at the date of my last post and I realized I hadn't posted for two weeks. Sorry.

This summer marks a first for msk. He's going to camp, a sleep-away camp for seven days at that.

League Pioneers: Experience cooking over a fire, canoeing, and camping in a tent! Since 2003, Pioneers learn and take part in activities in four areas: pioneering, outdoor living skills, astronomy and adventure skills. Located ½ mile down the road from Camp Greentop, League Pioneers takes place at Walnut Springs. Participants will also explore the rest of the National Park and nearby Cunningham State Park. All League Pioneers should be able to navigate uneven terrain and be successful in a 3:1 participant to counselor ratio. So roll up your sleeping bags, fill your canteen and prepare for a fun and adventurous primitive camping experience as a League Pioneer!

I'm nervous, because he's never been away from both home and his parents at the same time.

On the other hand, I had a long conversation with the camp director and I really think this is a good fit. It's time for a change of pace. Msk loves being outdoors and doing all the things listed above. I'm hoping that he'll be able to work on socializing. It's been hard to find a way for him to make friends. Very few neurotypical kids his age have the patience or interest to get to make any real bonds. The inclusion setting he's been in for the last 3 1/2 years hasn't given him a chance to try to relate to other autistic kids, beyond hockey, and so far he hasn't seen any of his hockey friends outside of practices and tournaments. Not to say he doesn't have hockey friends.

I'd just like for him to have the time to figure out his own style of making, and bonding with, friends.

So that, along with ESY (unless it sucks, which is a distinct possibility) and a family trip to the cabin, is msk's  summer plans.

Everybody is busy this summer. Plenty of blog fodder, I suppose.