Total Health High School by Susan Boe

[A.J. at J.A.]

Has anybody used Total Health (high school) by Susan Boe? http://www.exodusbooks.com/category.aspx?id=3492

 

If so, what did you think? I'm thinking of using it when my son is 9th grade. He is currently 7th grade but shows no interest in girls so I think the dating/sex parts would be better suited for in a couple years.

 

Do I really need the teacher book? It is so expensive! Also, there is a packet available for purchase here: http://www.basicskills.net/Health_Packet.html, but I don't know exactly if it is worth it - maybe in lieu of the teacher book?

 

Thanks for any input,

Angela

[HollyDay]

I'm using it for my 10th grade dd but I'm not using it in sequence. I'm skipping parts and adding parts. I do not have the TM and see no need for it with the way we are using it.

[Brenda in MA]

I used it with a 9th grader successfully without the teacher book. Neither of us liked Total Health. My son thought that a lot of the advice was "too obvious", and we thought a lot of the test questions were too open-ended.

 

I used Abeka with my older son, and we liked that better, but we still didn't care for it that much.

 

Brenda

[bugs]

I have the TE. It is geared toward a classroom teacher with vocab exercises, suggested projects, schedules and other enhancements. I don't think you need it. I just use the vocab exercises for my daughter (if she wants them) for additional review. I use the Test and Quiz book because I am feeling rather lazy with this program and have decided to use hers. HTH.

[A.J. at J.A.]

Thanks everyone! I feel great now about saving that $90.

 

Blessings,

Angela

[4kids4me]

In hindsight I wish I hadn't bought it. DD said that a lot of it was actually covered in Apologia's science programs but it was more interesting...and like the other poster said, there's a lot of obvious stuff in it.

[klmama]

I bought Total Health after reading here that many people use it, but I was disappointed. It is very, very light. I think high school students should know quite a bit more about how to maintain good health and about how their bodies work than is covered in this text. FWIW, the A Beka 8th grade health book is much more thorough; I haven't seen the high school level.

[A.J. at J.A.]

Has anyone had experience with either the MFW lesson plans http://www.mfwbooks.com/products/M50/50/25/0/1#health or the Exodus packet http://www.exodusbooks.com/details.aspx?id=8793 or http://www.basicskills.net/Health_Packet.html?

 

It looks like if you opt for the packet you still need to purchase the tests masters so I'm not sure exactly what it adds.

 

If you didn't use a lesson plan "kit", can you tell me how you calculated a grade for the transcript?

 

Reviving this thread b/c believe it or not, my son is now 9th grade!  WOW how time flies!

 

THanks,

Angela

[happygrrl]

We preferred Oak Meadow for health. Dd loved it, and we found the syllabus and an older version of the text book used for around $25. 

[A.J. at J.A.]

Just in case this might help anyone else...Here are the responses I got from MFW & Exodus:

 

Exodus:

Angela,

The high school Total Health textbook includes questions at the end of each chapter. The answers for those questions are in the teacher edition, which also includes chapter-by-chapter outlines, reproducible student workpages, supplemental information, and a long introduction explaining the author’s philosophy of education. There’s a lot of good stuff there, but it’s an expensive book, so many people won’t pick it up.

Basic Skills produced the packet to provide a less expensive way to make the Total Health course more complete. There are three small booklets in the packet. One is called Testing Targets, a test-prep book, giving the kids a good idea of what is on the tests so they can study more effectively. The second is a “study guide,†basically a series of questions for each chapter in the book; there aren’t very many questions, sometimes only one, but up to four per chapter, but these are questions that typically require small essay-length answers. The third booklet is the answer key for the study guide.

The packet does include some ideas for credit/grading for transcripts, and outlines two approaches to the course—test-based and non-test-based. You’ll need the Test Master book only if you’re doing the test-based approach.

We don’t have any used Total Health Packets and have stopped buying them since we never get them complete. Other Total Health products come in used.

Does that answer your questions? Thanks!

Exodus Books

 

MFW:

 

The lesson plans schedule what to complete each day for a one-semester credit, a suggested grading plan, and answers for the chapter review questions.  We do not include the tests as a part of this program.  In our experience completing the review questions, chapter activities, and implementing an exercise program outlined in the text best fulfill the goals of the program.

 

If you have other questions, please let us know.

 

My Father's World

[cbollin]

Has anyone had experience with either the MFW lesson plans http://www.mfwbooks.com/products/M50/50/25/0/1#health or the Exodus packet http://www.exodusbooks.com/details.aspx?id=8793 or http://www.basicskills.net/Health_Packet.html?

 

It looks like if you opt for the packet you still need to purchase the tests masters so I'm not sure exactly what it adds.

 

If you didn't use a lesson plan "kit", can you tell me how you calculated a grade for the transcript?

 

Reviving this thread b/c believe it or not, my son is now 9th grade!  WOW how time flies!

 

THanks,

Angela

 

I've used the mfw lesson plans for it.  It's pretty much what they told you in email.  They focus more on the chapter activities, and exercise plans to be part of daily life.  They give a quick grading scale.    And we added a bit more on CPR (let her learn compression only CPR via video) and a little more on first aid.  We added in a topic of interest to us - medical myths. Since we added in a medical myths video, I changed mfw's scale a little bit. 

I didn't feel it was missing much without the tests and quizzes as long as I was using narration with my student to talk about what she was learning. 

 

So why not the tests with mfw???  this is what I know. I was one of the few people who bought Total Health from MFW during the few months they were piloting it with the tests/quizzes... and we tried a few chapters with them, and reported back that it wasn't helping as much.   Several families were saying they were doing open book on quizzes to be more of study guide, and then..  I guess based on feedback like that, MFW revised the program and plans.   They sent me new plans and we liked the revised way better. the new plans include the chapter review answers, which really did seem like plenty to my family to do since it was one on one tutoring and discussion. 

 

MFW adds the Josh Harris book.  Total Health gives one perspective on Christian dating and "social health".   Harris books gives another.  That way parents have 2 authors' perspectives to discuss and share their own opinions on that topic. 

 

I was fine with the mfw version of it.

[J-rap]

Actually, we used the middle school version of Total Health in 9th grade, but then I supplemented it and called it a semester high school course. We talk about healthy lifestyles a lot at home, so I wasn't looking for something that was overkill with a lot of busywork, just a basic structure. The teachers' edition was definitely not necessary.

 

For a few of my other children we used Switched on Schoolhouse high school health (computer course). You can tweak the program and take out extra assignments, which we did. I liked it. Again, I got it mostly just to have something to show on transcripts. I felt like 80% of it we had covered already in day-to-day life.