SOS math, history, science

[MilkMaid]

As I have whined about several times, I have LITTLE time to devote to individual subjects.

In my desperation to find curriculum that requires little of me for my dds going ino 6th grade,11yo & going ionto 8th grade, 12yo.

Anyone inside info on SOS for math, history, & science. All three or just one. I have been leaning toward MUS, which is still where my heart is for sure.

What about history & science? Is SOS easy to follow? Is it entertaining? Is it a trustworthy curriculum? Never saw any SOS except for demo on website. Don't know anyone who uses it.

Feeling overwhelmed & desperate to find stuff that requires little of my time because this year I am in too deep with lesson planning & assisting my dd11.

I was told that SOS would provide her good, plain directions for her work. She needs things to be explained very plain, no frills, yet paint a picture.

Tough one, huh?

Blessings!;)

[Momma2Many66]

I use SOS with my 6th grade 12 year old son for Bible, Science and History/Geography.

 

I don't use it for English Lit or Math, for those subjects I use Rod & Staff Grammar & Spelling and Saxon Math 7/6 with Art Reed Dvd's.

 

I like that my son can complete his Bible, Science and History/Geography with very little help from me because I am also schooling 3 younger children in various grades with more "hands on" material.

 

He enjoys doing the work independently on his computer and they do have a lot of "bells and whistles" that he likes a lot and keeps him interested in the subjects.

 

SOS gives him independence in these subjects and he does very well on his tests and quizzes. For Bible, Science and History/Geography I think SOS does a good job of keeping him up to par. He does however do Science experiments with my other 3 children who use Sonlight Science, so that I can do all the experiments with just one program at the same time. And he sits in with my other children for Stories of The World, so he gets both Ancient History (from SOTW) and American History from SOS at the same time.

 

I wouldn't use SOS for math or english (just my own opinion) because I don't think they are very "strong" in that department and we like a strong english and math program. I did use them in the past for english and math from 3rd grade to 5th grade and my son had a lot of gaps in his english and math developmental learning. So we switched to R&S and Saxon to fill in the gaps and to encourage a stronger learning program for him in those subjects.

 

He does very well now in Math using Saxon 7/6 with the Art Reed Instructional Dvd's and has done very well on all his tests and quizzes. However, we do the 7/6 Saxon Math together as a team approach because I also want to be more math savvy for when I have to use the curriculum with my younger 3 children in the future and also when we approach the "higher" maths like Algebra, Geometry, Trig and Calculus in the future. For this reason, he does not do his math "independently" and we do all the problems together until we master them before moving on.

 

All in all, I find SOS a nice alternative for moms who need their children to be more independent in some subjects while they are busy schooling a houseful of children in various grades. It works for our family and even though I hate to shell out the extra cost of the SOS individual subjects every year (since they can no longer be re-sold due to copywrite law to compensate for the constantly expanding cost that goes up yearly) I do it because it "gets the job done".

Edited April 6, 2011 by Momma2Many66

[MilkMaid]

Thanks so much, very helpful. I may go with SOS for dd12 for history & science. I think she will do well with it. I'm not so sure about dd11.

Thanks again sounds like the info I was looking for.

[lovetobehome]

Question on this: If one buys this used, is it usable?

[saja1029]

:bigear: