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totally up to speed on the clothing styles, the talk, every facet of life in Orange County.
Having lived in other parts of the country I can say this isn't true. The fashions are different in different areas. Fashions in this country generally start in California or NYC, but they don't always move across the country.
I think you people are not understanding that, in today's modern world with the inner net, U-tube, cable TV, etc, that the "Barbie Doll" OC girl image is not restricted to Orange County, but is everywhere in the country.
There may be more examples in OC, because there is a much greater population, but be assured young girls all over the nation are watching MTV, U-tube, etc, and are emulating what they see. It doesn't matter if the girls are raised in Anaheim, or stuck away on a farm in the middle of nowhere, they are emulating everything they are exposed to in our vast electronic world.
I'm going to put my money on the ladies 16 year old daughter fitting in immediately, totally up to speed on the clothing styles, the talk, every facet of life in Orange County. There isn't a fence at the border keeping the rest of the country in the dark ages. Styles are the same everywhere. If the girl is friendly and outgoing, she will fit in perfectly in no time.
Not really. We moved from OC to Micghian and there are very few Barbie wannabes around - mostly girls with emotional and eating disorders who are in counseling. They are not the elite "popular" girls here. It is certainly not the prevelant high school "code" the way it was in many OC schools. (Last year's homecoming queen was about 60 pounds or more overweight, but a really sweet girl - no barbies on the court at all)
Even though we live in one of the wealthier communities, most girls wear blue jeans, sneakers, and T-shirts, or turtle necks and sweaters to school. If there are five girls of the 700 kids in the HS who wear Gucci, or YSL or other fancy brands I have not seen them. No one drives Mercedes, BMWs, or Porshes to high school (maybe a convertable mustang here and there).
However within OC it varies from town to town. You see barbieism much more in Cotoa De Caza, Ivine, Newport Beach, and to a lesser extent Mission Veijo, Aliso Veijo, Laguna Nigel, etc. Huntington and Laguna are both a mix from what I have seen (some Barie wannabes, some normal girls). I do not know what SJC and San Clemente are like. You see it a lot less in places like Orange (except maybe OPA and Villa Park), somewhat less in Tustin (for girls, Tustin is all abut softball), Yorba Linda. You do not see Barbieism at all in Santa Ana, Westminister, Garden Grove but that is because the vast majority of students there are genetically unable to be barbies and do not have the money for fancy clothing, special diets, plastic surgury, etc.
Kentucky has it's good things - where we live is a decent city, but it is a college town and that helps alot. It is a fairly poor state overall, and there are alot of rednecks and closed minded people here. The part of Kentucky we live in is more a mid west mentality than a southern mentality.
However, I lived in the deep south in Mississippi for a few years and there is something to be said for that good ol' Southern Hospitality. I think that it has been good my girls, but I want to expose them to more than red mud, kudsu, collard greens and biscuits!
I absolutely loved Cali 15 years ago - I lived in NV and traveled nearly every weekend to Santa Ana/Costa Mesa and HB (for a boy none the less). Through this process I am disappointed to read from all of you that some of the areas I used to frequent have gotten so bad - it makes me rather sad actually, because I have such great memories!
So...sorry to babble, but thanks for all of the advice.
California is most likely going to shock your child right now, I know jobs can be a great lure to CA but at her age you may want to just ride out the last 2 years of HS there, then send her off to college and then make your move to CA.
You need to consider that there are many things out here for a kid to do, the beach, mountains, malls...that can be a good thing. However, it can also make a good kid, bad as it can derail her education.
Now if she has thick skin, motivated in school, can handle the bullish kids and their attitudes then it might be good for her. However, if it were my child I would stay and finish out HS there, especially if she is already devastated you are moving, expect a major whiplash IMO.
I wish I had taken this advice.
Be sure to check on transfer procedures/requirements.
Our child had a 4.2 GPA in our previous location, and I have no doubt with the course load that was mapped out for the last two years of high school, it would have been even higher had we not moved.
The OC school district we moved to does not accept any weighted AP or honors grades unless they offer a like course.
Result: that 4.2 GPA dropped to a 3.8 overnight.
We were hesitant to overload on advanced classes since we had no idea how coursework here compared to where we were before. We also had to consider the stress of moving to a new location and fitting in. So no advanced courses the first year. As it turns out, several classes; which should have been a progression from previous coursework, have been nothing but repeats and we're approaching the end of the year.
Also because graduation requirements are different we're left trying to fit some really silly freshman level classes into a senior course load.
If we had it to do over again... we would have postponed the move, maintained seperate households for awhile, let our child stay behind with friends/relatives, or a combination of the above.
Moving when we did was a bad choice in our case, I hope it works out better for you!
Be sure to check on transfer procedures/requirements.
Our child had a 4.2 GPA in our previous location, and I have no doubt with the course load that was mapped out for the last two years of high school, it would have been even higher had we not moved.
The OC school district we moved to does not accept any weighted AP or honors grades unless they offer a like course.
Result: that 4.2 GPA dropped to a 3.8 overnight.
We were hesitant to overload on advanced classes since we had no idea how coursework here compared to where we were before. We also had to consider the stress of moving to a new location and fitting in. So no advanced courses the first year. As it turns out, several classes; which should have been a progression from previous coursework, have been nothing but repeats and we're approaching the end of the year.
Also because graduation requirements are different we're left trying to fit some really silly freshman level classes into a senior course load.
If we had it to do over again... we would have postponed the move, maintained separate households for awhile, let our child stay behind with friends/relatives, or a combination of the above.
Moving when we did was a bad choice in our case, I hope it works out better for you!
Many (most?) schools are on a 4.0 scale. Thus a 4.2 is impossible. The grade would have to be adjusted almost anywhere.
It is a hard choice though. Splitting up the family can be as or more traumatic than changing schools.
It may be a good idea to see if your daughter can take tests to make certain that she gets into the right classes. You may find out that a class called "advanced algebra" is really comparatively basic compared to classes that she had in Kentucky. They seem to try to give classes more advanced sounding names. I think it is part of that "building self-esteem is more important than learning" concept. Who knows.
[quote=Coldjensens;3876185]Many (most?) schools are on a 4.0 scale. Thus a 4.2 is impossible. The grade would have to be adjusted almost anywhere. QUOTE]
I wouldn't say impossible. I know Capistrano Unified and Saddleback Valley Unified do weighted grades for AP and IB classes. For example, if you get an A in AP Biology then you get a 5. If you get a B you get a 4, etc... Univiersities know some schools don't do weighted grades and many universities will only look at the 4.0 scale GPA. Cornell is one university that will only look at your 4.0 scale GPA, while UCLA does look at your weighted GPA, which is why the average of admitted freshman at UCLA is a 4.17. Enough high schools must do weighted grades for a school the size of UCLA to have a above 4.0 average GPA for admitted students. So, that is 10 OC high schools that I know do weighted grades and I am sure there are more. It isn't impossible.
Many (most?) schools are on a 4.0 scale. Thus a 4.2 is impossible. The grade would have to be adjusted almost anywhere. QUOTE]
I wouldn't say impossible. I know Capistrano Unified and Saddleback Valley Unified do weighted grades for AP and IB classes. For example, if you get an A in AP Biology then you get a 5. If you get a B you get a 4, etc... Univiersities know some schools don't do weighted grades and many universities will only look at the 4.0 scale GPA. Cornell is one university that will only look at your 4.0 scale GPA, while UCLA does look at your weighted GPA, which is why the average of admitted freshman at UCLA is a 4.17. Enough high schools must do weighted grades for a school the size of UCLA to have a above 4.0 average GPA for admitted students. So, that is 10 OC high schools that I know do weighted grades and I am sure there are more. It isn't impossible.
What you are describing is not a 4.0 scale. It is a 5.0 scale. A 4.0 scale means 4.0 is the top. The higest grade. You cannot get higher. Thus, it is impossoble at a 4.0 school to get above a 4.0. In a 4.0 scale, If you get an A in AP bio, you get a 4. Not a 5.
Now if you move a student with a 4.8 GPA to a school where 4.0 is the higest grate that can be achieved, then they cannot have a 4.8, thay can only have a 4.0
^^^
True, I totally agree with you. I should have clarified that I meant there are schools out there that have a 5.0 scale that make a 4.2 possible. At a 4.0 scale school, that AP Bio grade is not weighted, but at a 5.0 scale school, it is. Because they moved to a school with a 4.0 scale and nonweighted grades, the grades had to be slashed down to a 4.0 scale. But there are 5.0 scale schools in OC, CUSD and SVUSD are just two examples. If they had moved into those districts for example, her grades probably would have transfered over and she would have kept the weighted grade since they use the same scale as her old school. Something to think about for other people moving to the county, is look for a school with the same scale.
Nee Nee in Cali,
I think the most important thing we need to know, is where in Orange County you are planning on moving. It is not fair to generalize this entire county's high schools and culture. This county has 3 million people, more people than eighteen states. Your daughter will have a vastly different experience at San Clemente High School, where the kids love surfing, the beach, and are more relaxed, compared to Irvine High School, where there is a huge emphasis on getting perfect grades and getting into a prestigious college, then compared to Santa Ana Valley High School where many students are poor and 45% are English learners, then compared to Corona del Mar High School where many of the students come from affluent neighborhoods llike Newport Coast and the homes cost 2 million and up and they really can afford that BMW. The only thing that links OC teens is the universal teenage culture. I know a lot of people are saying all OC girls try to look like barbie dolls. These people are falling back on stereotypes and probably generalizing due to a few schools. My husband graduated from La Habra High School way back when, and we went to a alumni night football game in the fall. After being there, I assure you this isn't a "Barbie Doll" school.
The most important thing for identifying how to prepare your daughter is where are you moving to or what high school will she attend????
If you can answer this, I think your thread will make progress. Until then, the best we can do is generalize, but there isn't a single high school that has the same culture as another high school.
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