Any experience w/ astronomy through Potter's School or Scholar's Online?

[LynnG in Arizona]

My daughter (a rising senior) is interested in taking astronomy through either the Potter's School or Scholars Online. Both teachers look great on paper, but I was hoping for some personal feedback/input.

 

Thanks in advance for any help you can give! :)

[Gratia271]

I would be interested in this info. too!

[Mostlyamom]

I really like the two year experience my child had with Dr. Criste's Natural Science I and II classes, and I see that she is the teacher for the Astronomy class, too. She was well-organized, very knowledgeable, and has encouraged a great interest in science. I cannot say enough about how this class and teacher fostered my child's developing interests in a very useful way. The lectures were well written and the use of Internet resources was a wonderful introduction into the plethora of sources available to a student, plus encouraging the skill of reducing the quantity of information to a usable level. She is a great teacher, and the whole organization was set up well for running online classes.

 

If you have other questions about our experience, please let me know. Hope this helps.

 

Oh, and I have no connection with the school other than that of a satisfied homeschool parent.

 

Pat

Edited March 23, 2010 by Mostlyamom

[LynnG in Arizona]

Thank you Pat. That's good to know! :)

[MommyThrice]

I've been looking at this, too. How do the labs work? Do you get an assignment that you are to complete at home? Are the labs covered in the online lecture class? Are the labs even necessary - I mean - astronomy isn't usually listed as a "lab science" on a transcript, is it?

 

Thanks,

Tracie

[Mostlyamom]

We did not use the labs for the courses that my child took from Scholarsonline.org, so I can't answer your questions. I remember looking at the lab instructions and they would have been manageable, but we chose not to do them.

 

And I spelled Dr. Criste's name wrong in my last title, but this is the correct spelling.

 

Pat

[LaJuana]

Tracie, the astronomy labs in the Scholars Online Astronomy class are optional. The student can do them if he or she wants to list the course as a lab course, or not do them if a lab science credit is not necessary. Dr. Christe leaves the due date for labs open through the summer to allow time for the different planets, etc. to become visible.

 

One of the students in my local high school science classes took Dr. Christe's Astronomy class in her senior year and loved it. I can't remember if she did the class as a lab class or not. While my dc have not taken that class (no time in the schedule!), they really learned a lot from Dr. Christe's AP Physics and Chemistry courses.

 

I'm sure Dr. Christe would be willing to answer any specific questions about the labs or the course. The first time I met her was when my then-high-school kids who were taking classes through Scholars Online hosted a gathering of SO students and teachers from around the country at our house. Dr. Christe arrived with a portable telescope strapped over her shoulder which we set up for a private star gazing party just after dusk. The students were entranced by the impromptu lesson!

[MommyThrice]

Thanks. Hmmm... A LaJuana has answered my emails (very promtly & thoroughly) from SO. Could that be you? I am already planning to have my son take Latin from SO. We originally planned to use RCA, but I could never get answers to my emails from them, so we changed our plans.

 

Tracie

[LaJuana]

Tracie, I am she. I'm glad you asked because it gives me the chance to explain what I do for SO. All of my children have taken classes through Scholars Online throughout their high school years to supplement what I was able to teach them myself at home. Four of them went on to college and/or graduate school with excellent scholarships, a circumstance for which I give much credit to the education they received in SO classes. My youngest child is still taking classes as he works his way toward graduation.

 

A few years ago I volunteered to help other parents like myself determine whether a SO class was a good fit for their needs since I was familiar with so many of the courses. I am not an employee or a beneficiary of any kind, but simply a parent who has seen five kids and numerous other friends and acquaintances work their way through a variety of Scholars Online classes and who volunteered to give my time to answer other parents' questions as they make decisions about how to meet their own children's specific needs. I answer emails on my own time and without remuneration.

 

I remember the agonizing decision-making process I went through the summer before my oldest began high school when I had so little time and several younger children to educate, too, and I wanted to be available to help others from my own experience. So, yes, I answer questions by email and phone, but I am merely a very satisfied parent with lots of experience with SO classes who has a little more time to help others now that my own children have almost all graduated from our lifelong home school. Being a nearly-retired homeschool mom, I did not want to retire from the homeschooling community; I believe in what we are doing!

 

(I'm glad you have found my email answers prompt. I try to set aside a time to answer questions once a day. I fit answering mail into my busy life which involves teaching small homeschool classes in my own neighborhood. I'm just as busy now that I'm almost 'retired' as I was when my children were little!)