In newer versions of Photoshop, it will ask about updating layers. This is fine, so click whatever means “okay.” Click to see the Layers window so you can edit each segment to suit your your own wording and graphics.

It reads:

A to Z Home’s Cool

This Certifies That

First Initial Last Name

Has completed a Course of Study meeting the Standards of our Homeschool

and is therefore Awarded this

High School Diploma

On the Third day of June in the year Two Thousand Twenty Three

I created it to nestle in the center of some bordered certificate paper that I bought at the office supply store.

You will need to have Photoshop installed on your computer, Mac or Windows, in order to make use of and edit this document.

You will need to have named your homeschool.

To edit to suit your purposes, download the DIPLOMA.TTF font here first, expand the .zip file, and install in your system’s font directory. Works with both Windows and Mac. You will also need the Photoshop template for a homeschool diploma.

See below on how to install the font, if you need the help.

You may want to create a seal for your diploma or look for reasonable clipart on the internet.

State Seals in Color
Select your state from the list of states.

Parents need to sign the diploma, remember!

Shop for Certificate Paper, Diploma Frame

Put “certificate” in the search engines in an office supply site. Select “acid free” paper. Search for an 8-1/2 x 11″ diploma frame, too.

Installing the Diploma Font on different Systems

How to install a font under Windows

• • All fonts are stored in the C:\Windows\Fonts folder. You can also add fonts by simply dragging font files from the extracted files folder into this folder. Windows will automatically install them. If you want to see what a font looks like, open the Fonts folder, right-click the font file, and then click Preview.

  • Another way to see your installed fonts is through Control Panel. In Windows 7 and Windows 10, go to Control Panel > Fonts. In Windows 8.1, go to Control Panel > Appearance and Personalization > Fonts.

  Note that with the internal unzip tool of Windows you must first drag and drop the font file to a location on your computer (for example on the desktop), then into the C:\Windows\Fonts folder. With Winzip, you can simply install a font using a simple drag and drop of the .ttf from the zip window to the C:\Windows\Fonts folder.

  • If you want to try it a different way, browse to your fonts folder. Then click on File > Install a New Font… in the Fonts folder menu then browse to locate your font in the window. Although this method is laborious, it would seem that it functions better in some cases.

  How to install a font under Mac OS

  On your Mac, do any of the following:

  • In the Font Book app , choose File > Add Fonts to Current User. In the window that appears, double-click the font file.
  • Drag the font file to the Font Book app icon in the Dock.
  • Drag the font file to the Font Book window.
  • Double-click the font file in the Finder, then click Install in the dialog that appears.

  When you install a font, Font Book automatically validates or checks the font you’re installing for errors. Font Book also checks for duplicate fonts.

  Fonts you install are available only to you, or to anyone who uses your computer, depending on the default location you set for installed fonts. See Change Font Book settings.

  How to install a font under Linux

  • Installing for a single user has the most straightforward method. Simply click on the font file; this will open the file using your system font-viewer, and click install.

The post Homeschool Diploma Photoshop Template appeared first on A2Z Homeschool – THE A-to-Z of Homeschooling.

Homeschooling a High School Student: I’m a bit confused with how to keep track of attendance and figure credits for a high school transcript?

I don’t see too many questions regarding homeschooling high schoolers. I’m a bit confused with how to keep track of attendance and figure credits. We do not do conventional school hours. Sometimes we put in weekends or longer days. If I feel my daughter has mastered a subject I may move on a bit early. Because of this her grade level this past year was 10/11 and we took two weeks off in the summer and picked right up again with 11/12. She will end up graduating early. I have all the mandatory courses that are required by the state. I live in a pretty lenient state. We really only have to report attendance but I’m concerned for college. Can I figure a “credit” to be when I feel she has mastered the subject or do I need to figure out the exact number of hours and make sure she puts them in? I don’t want it to seem like we are skimming through because we will be finishing up early; quite the contrary – she puts in long days and weekends to meet these goals.

Most colleges and universities understand that homeschoolers spend their months differently than those in a school. They will not be expecting exact hours spent in each subject area. If your teen spent about 18 hours a month for 10 months doing something, anything in a typical course, then that would be 1 unit for the year. Give them 1/2 unit for anything they did for about half that time. If something was just dabbled at, try to include it in a larger subject area’s time.

Shirley Minster wrote an excellent article for me called Course Numbers and Transcript Details. In it she explains what college admissions officers expect to read, and the vocabulary they understand. For example, if your teen was into reading Shakespeare, you would call the course “English,” not “Shakespeare” on the transcript. If the college wanted to see a portfolio, and your teen had done a whole lot more with Shakespeare, such as performing in plays, you would go into detail there.

If your daughter is working at the college level, you might call a course an “AP course”. Lab work, if done, should be listed along with the science class name, for example: Biology with Labs.

Colleges are greatly impressed if a teen shows focus on some subject, even if not traditional. I learned of a girl who studied everything Norwegian: the culture and the language. She even spent a year in Norway. While she was away her home burned to the ground, along with all her homeschool records. She applied to a University with a “Scandinavian Studies” department. She wrote her college essay in Norwegian, explaining her story. They were thrilled to admit her.

Think of a college like an orchestra. They only need so many violinists. They need to have a complete complement of instrumentalists to fill each chair. Each department in a college must also fill its seats with the best applicants they can manage to attract. Your daughter might be wise to take a year and focus on what may become her major field of interest, and eventually a career. Somewhere there is a college department that is desperately looking for a student just like her. She may find a job opportunity by beginning college right away, or she might be better off working with a mentor for a year.

Sincerely,

Ann Zeise

The post How do I assign high school credits? appeared first on A2Z Homeschool – THE A-to-Z of Homeschooling.

Help interpreting your homeschoolhigh school-level work and using transcript templates for college applications.

Diploma, report card and certificate templates, too. Help and advice links from your homeschool guide.

• Advisors to Create Homeschool Transcripts
• Edu-speak – Teacher Lingo
• Sample Homeschool Transcripts
• Templates for Homeschool Transcripts

Advisors

Beach High School
This private alternative school was run by Wes Beach, offered a legal umbrella, guidance, documentation, college admission planning, and transcripts based on concise portfolios. He now has referred students to some other advisory services linked on this page.

Course Numbers and Transcript Details
There are some important pieces that should always be included when preparing a transcript for a college. By Shirley Minster.

Edu-speak

Elective Course Descriptions
To help you prepare your child’s high school transcript, here is a list of elective course descriptions used by a local public school. Generally, public schools and colleges will not accept these courses as meeting the requirements of high school math, science, history, and English but they can be used as credits for electives.

Sample Homeschool Transcripts

Cover Letter and Transcript for Army Enlistment
Each branch of the military has their own rules and requirements, but the Army appears to be the most homeschool-friendly branch.

High School Transcript
This sample includes courses in religious subjects.

High School Transcripts
Donna Young has several transcript templates in WORD format on her site.

Homeschool transcript with Blanks
Most of Houghton’s homeschooled applicants come from homes which utilize an eclectic approach, drawing curricular materials from a variety of sources. For these families we can, based on the experience of our admission committee, offer a template which you may find useful in preparing your records for college admission officers.

Transcripts
How to prepare a transcript. A couple of templates, and an explanation of credit hours and grading. From Oklahoma Homeschool.

Templates for Homeschool Transcripts

Basic High School Transcript
Donna Young’s page offers a simple transcript file to get you started. Some families have donated samples of more complicated transcripts.

Download: Homeschool High School Transcript Template
Download a copy of the Transcript Template in Microsoft Word format. (if you don’t have Microsoft Word, you may also choose to upload the file to Google Drive and convert to Google Docs format to edit for free) Courses grouped by subject area rather than by grade.

Homeschool High School Transcript Template
Courses by school year transcript. Use our homeschool transcript template to easily create your own professional transcripts for your high school students.

Home-school Transcripts-look under Homeschool Resources
Covenant College provides its applicants with templates in Word and Acrobat (pdf) formats.

The Homeschool Transcript
In general, here are some guidelines for preparing the homeschool transcript. There are many homeschool transcript templates available on-line as well as some very good record-keeping options that prepare transcripts for you for a small fee. Includes tips on how to send in a transcript.

High School Transcript
Bright Kids at Home – Shown in HTML format. Download transcript in pdf format. You will need an website software to add your teen’s information, or software that can turn pdf files into WORD files.

How to Create a Homeschool Transcript (FREE Editable Transcript)
With something as important and official as a high school transcript, it can feel overwhelming or intimidating to create your own, but it doesn’t have to be. If your child is nearing or entering high school, use this guide and download our free templates to create a transcript made to impress!

More on Academic Record Keeping

• Course Numbers and Transcript Details
• Diplomas – Make Your Own
• Records and Reports
• Templates for Homeschool Report Cards or Progress Reports

The post Homeschool Transcript Templates appeared first on A2Z Homeschool – THE A-to-Z of Homeschooling.