Jump to content

Menu
Giving You and Your Child a Road Map to the Best Possible Education
The Well-Trained Mind Community

Kevin Rhoads

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    20

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Posts posted by Kevin Rhoads

    Online College Calculus or Counselor-for-hire who could help me find one

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Can anyone suggest a good, accredited online college Calculus course and Physics course?

    The most important issue is that I be able to check out the teachers ahead of time. I don't want nameless courses or courses where you sign up and then you find out who your teacher is.

    It would be nice if you can start any time, but this is of secondary importance.

    Alternatively, if anyone could suggest a counselor-for-hire who could help me find the course I'm looking for, that would also be great.

     

    Thanks!

    How to Get a Transcript that Colleges Will Accept

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    You should read the pinned links on the high school forum.  I create a document in Excel.  I write course descriptions.  I write a counselor letter.  I create a school profile.  Done.  My kids have had zero problems being accepted with my Excel transcript printed off our home printer.

    Thank you. I knew it was out there somewhere. I tried searching for "transcript", but sifting through the results gave me nothing I could go on. And thank you, everyone else, for your input.

     

    This is what blows my mind: "My kids have had zero problems being accepted with my Excel transcript printed off our home printer."  It surprises me that they will accept grades that I have assigned to my own children. I have this nagging fear that we'll get to her senior year in high school and she has learned a lot, but colleges won't look at her because she didn't attend an institution.

     

    Has no one had a problem with colleges accepting transcripts with grades that parents have assigned? 

    How to Get a Transcript that Colleges Will Accept

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    How do I go about getting a transcript that I can send to colleges?

     

    Other than a science co-op, we have no grades created by an outside entity. It's all us. How do I put our work in a document that colleges will accept?

     

    I apologize for posting this, because I'm sure it's covered somewhere, but I spent a good bit of time looking and couldn't find it. Also, I'm not sure if I should have posted here or the College Board.

     

    Thank you.

    Cultural Geography

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Can anyone suggest a good Cultural Geography textbook? I'm looking for a book that shows how land features, culture, religion, political situations, and economic systems all influence each other in each region of the world. (I had an amazing Cultural Geography textbook in college, but can't remember the name of it.) If there's a video to accompany the book that would be a bonus.

     

    Also, if anyone is aware of a video series for Cultural Geography that would also be appreciated.

     

    I noticed that The Great Courses has a geography course ("Understanding Human and Cultural Geography"; http://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/understanding-cultural-and-human-geography.html).Has anyone tried it?

     

    Thanks

    • Like 1

    Online Spanish and Overall Approach to Spanish

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Background: My girls are 12 and 13. We've gone through some Spanish but not made much progress.

     

    I'm looking for a good Onilne Spanish program. Hopefully one with a tutor. 

     

    The Oklahoma State program mentioned on a pinned posting on the Bilingual Forum was shut down in 2014.

     

    Currently, I'm leaning towards following the sequence set up by the MIT Open Course. It uses Destinos, specifically this textbook and workbook:

     

        -VanPatten, Marks, and Teschner. "DESTINOS." Text. McGraw Hill, 2002.

        -"DESTINOS." Workbook/Study Guide I. McGraw Hill, 2002, Lecciones 1-26.

     

    Does anyone have experience with Destinos? Does anyone have a program/book that they're really happy with?

     

    Thanks.

    • Like 1

    Thinking of Switching to Rod and Staff from Shurley Grammar

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    If your dc has had pretty significant grammar and composition instruction, I don't think you need to go back to Progressing With Courage. The writing picks up significantly in the previous boo, Building Securely. Have you seen the scope and sequence? That might help you decide. You can request it from the publisher by calling (606) 522-4348.

    Thank you.  I'm looking at the scope and sequence, and I called them up.  They go in a spiral, like Saxon Math.  So, it's hard to tell the difference between grades.  

     

    So, you think we'd probably be OK starting out at the 7th grade level ("Building Securely")?

    Thinking of Switching to Rod and Staff from Shurley Grammar

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    My version of Well Trained Mind says that if you're thinking of switching to Rod and Staff in the 7th or 8th grade, you should "start with the 5th grade book, 'Progressing with Courage'" (p. 343 of Well Trained Mind).  However, "Progressing with Courage" is the 6th grade book.  So can anyone tell me which it is?  If I switch my 8th grader from Shurley grammar, should we start with the 5th grade book ("Following the Plan") or the 6th grade book ("Progressing with Courage")?  I'm hoping for 6th grade, but I don't want her to miss out on anything.

     

    Also, can anyone tell me if they'd prefer Rod and Staff or MCT (which I believe stands for Michael Clay Thompson).  Does MCT have a comparable grammar to Rod and Staff?  If so, which is better?

     

    Thanks.

    Paul Johnson's History of the American People?

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    I can't find a reasonably priced DVD set [of The Great Courses U.S. History], so I hope the audio will be sufficient.  

     

    I've had many AP kids read the transcript of the course (not watch it or listen to it) and they did very well.  As far back as I can remember, everyone who actually read the whole thing got at least a 3 and many got 4s and 5s (this was on the old APUSH).  Obviously there was more going on than just The Great Courses, but I think it was key in helping them put the info. together in manageable chunks.  

     

    If you can't find it at a library, it's available in audio on Amazon for about $50 and $19 in paperback (which I think means the transcripts--but I'm not sure the transcripts include all of the volumes):

     

    https://www.amazon.com/History-United-States-2nd/dp/1565857615/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1469914339&sr=8-1&keywords=great+courses+u.s.+history

    • Like 1

    "Vocabulary from Classical Roots" vs. "The Word within the Word"

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    I recently got a vocab lecture series from the Teaching Company.  

     

    Thanks.  I love the Teaching Company.  I'm definitely interested in this.

     

    There's an Audible version (by the Teaching Co.) for $28 and a version from the Teaching Co. for $330.  Do mind if I ask which one you used and if you know the difference, other than one being audio and the other being available in video?

    "Vocabulary from Classical Roots" vs. "The Word within the Word"

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Someone posted this question a while ago, but it looks like no one responded.  

     

    1) Can anyone tell me if we should go w/ "Vocabulary from Classical Roots" or "The Word within the Word"?  

     

    2) Also, we've only got about 3 more years to devote to vocabulary.  Will we be leaving gaps in our vocab. if we only do the last few years of either series?  It seems that we're more likely to leave gaps if we do the last few years of "Vocabulary from Classical Roots" since it spreads out all of its roots over 8 years.  Whereas, it looks like "The Word within the Word" could cover everything we need in 3 years and therefore leave fewer gaps.

     

    Thanks

    Paul Johnson's History of the American People?

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

     I am hoping that TGC's History of the United States lectures will cover all the main points. 

     

    If TGC refers to The Great Courses (what used to be called "The Teaching Company"), their U.S. History is fantastic (the most recent version; there was an earlier version that was done several years back).  It does a great job of pulling together the main ideas.

     

    I once had a homeschooler read the transcript of the course, read an AP textbook, and study a bunch of terms.  She got a 5.  I can't give all the credit to TGC, but my guess is it helped.

     

    The only major problem I have with it is its flawed take on The Great Depression and The New Deal.  In a book that the professor later wrote ("I'm the Teacher, and You're the Student"), he admitted that he didn't know much about the Great Depression and once had an undergrad Econ. major take him to task for it after class.  If I remember correctly, he perpetuates the idea that The New Deal saved us from the Great Depression.  I don't think many economists hold to that today.  Even Keynesians think it was flawed.

    • Like 2

    Paul Johnson's History of the American People?

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Schweikert's "A Patriot's History" is conservative but more academic.  Schweikert is a history professor.  I love Paul Johnson (I'm conservative), but he's a journalist.  

     

    If you wanted to balance it out with a leftist, you might want to consider Eric Foner.  Many people think he's a centrist, but he's not--he's a Marxist.  However, he's not as unhinged as Zinn.  I admit that I haven't been able to bring my self to read Zinn's textbook, but the bits of Zinn that I've read and reading other historians talking about him leave me in no doubt that he's not doing good history.  Even Foner (who, as I mentioned, is a Marxist)  brings Zinn to task for not being academic.  

     

    But, you're right.  That would be a lot of reading.  I would not make my kids read 2 textbooks.  

     

    If you wanted to stick with what's in the course, maybe you could read Johnson and talk about what you disagree with with your child.  Or if your main goal is balance and rigor, you could read Schweikert.  If you're a little to the left and he's to the right, you could balance each other out.

    • Like 2

    Debate in Atlanta Area and Summer Debate Class/Camp in Georgia?

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    Can anyone suggest a debate club/association in the Atlanta Area?  Hopefully the northwest (We're in Paulding County).  I have not been able to decide which debate club/association is best.

     

    Also, if anyone knows of a good Summer Debate Class/Camp in Georgia, I'd appreciate advice.

     

    By the way, is there a place where all of the acronyms used on these forums are defined?  For example, "Dd" appears to mean some type of daughter.

     

    Thanks.

×
×
  • Create New...