Dd tried to use A Noble Experiment, but due to the lecturer's way of speaking, she just could not complete it. I really wanted the curriculum to work. It is an organized DVD program that looked fantastic. Some are able to use it, so I'm not trying to dissuade you necessarily. However, it is an expensive curriculum that you'll want to fully investigate before spending the money. I purchased Notgrass Governmnet to replace it, and dd is really enjoying it.

My oldest in 11th grade this year is studying early American history with TTC's History of the US 2nd edition. She is pairing that with Notgrass Exploring Government. Next year, she will finish American history with the TTC course and use several resources for economics: Economics for Dummies, The Cartoon Guide to Economics: Macro and Micro (2 volumes), John Stossel Economics, and Penny Candy. She has really enjoyed pairing early American history with American government. I'm hoping the second half of history with economics is equally enjoyable. As an aside, she'll also have a personal finance credit. She'll be using NEFE, The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, and Why Didn't They Teach Me This in School?: 99 Personal Money Management Principles to Live By.

Can I sidestep just a little? At least it will bump the thread back up. I'm watching BP to see when/if it will go on sale. Particularly the Medieval Family Guide (lesson plan book). Have any of you been with BP long enough to know when they have sales?

We used a Teaching Company lecture with Dr. John Renton about geology. Excellent!!! My son also used BJU Earth Science with this, but the text is meant for 8th grade. You wouldn't use it for high school. Not sure of a high school text or resources at the moment.

:001_smile: No worries! I just got the feeling that you might be faced with a loss of continuity by doing some of several programs. One thing I really appreciate about CLE is the constant review and long-term continuity.

Just making a quick comment for what it's worth... We've used CLE for several years and love it. There is a lot of math after the 500 series. Ds is in 6th grade this year, and he will finish CLE 700 Book 5 by the end of this year. Next year, I'm planning for him to switch to the Lial's Pre-Algebra book with Jann Perkins. I just about signed him up for her BCM class because ds makes some careless mistakes. After the 700 Book 5, I think BCM would be fairly easy and the Pre-Algebra will be closer to a lateral move with more challenge. I felt like you were sort of giving up on CLE, and I wanted to let you know that CLE is quite meaty especially if you continue on into the 700 and 800 series books. (Although we have not done the 800 series.)

This may be more than you're asking for, but we are part of our local NCFCA speech/debate club this year. This is a national club, so you may find one close to you. The students involved write and deliver speeches and debates. There are around 12 different catagories of speeches and two kinds of debates... Lincoln Douglas and Team Policy. The student can compete with a max of 5 speeches and has to choose one kind of debate. There are tournaments held both regionally and nationally. You don't have to compete. We are only competing in our local tournament. The experience gained from both writing and delivering the speeches is tremendous! The students practice their speeches weekly in front of clubmates and parents, so there is a LOT of feedback. https://www.ncfca.org/

Cosmos, I never intended to sound hurtful. Your second paragraph better describes my intent.

I can't believe I missed that. I found that sample, but I thought it was a summary of sorts.... I never looked at the beginning where the title clearly indicates "Syllabus"! I was looking all too fast and missed the very thing I was looking for.

Thanks, Debbie! Just clarifying... Currently, the Glenco text they use is $110. This is driving me to consider other health texts. You did say that the text is assigned by page numbers, but what about by topics too? For example, if the syllabus says read pages 10-20 on cardiovascular health, then I could probably use another text (that I could buy cheaper than $110.) I wish they had a sample of the syllabus available to view. That would make it easier for me to know what to buy.

...uses Glencoe's Health: Making Life Choices in their Integrated Health and Fitness course. It's $110, and I would like to find it on sale or used. I realize that specific book is scheduled in their syllabus, but is there any way I could substitute another health book that I could get for a more reasonable price? Does the syllabus list a chapter's name or topic or does it just say, "Read pages 1-10"? Also, if you've used this course, please review it for me. I want to focus on the positive aspects of health and minimize mental health and behavior disorder issues. Dd loves fitness and health. She's preparing to run in a half-marathon soon. She is the perfect picture of health, and she will thrive on a well-planned health course. I also have TTC Physiology & Fitness as well as TTC Nutrition Made Clear as supplements. What did you like about OM Integrated Health and Fitness? What did you dislike about it? PS... I plan on buying the syllabus in May when it goes on sale, and I will buy the individual books used/on sale from Amazon so that I can avoid their high $180 price tag for the whole package.

Dd would really LOVE a well-planned health class. We own TTC Nutrition Made Clear and Physiology & Fitness. I also plan for her to complete the physiology chapters from Science Shepherd Biology that we won't get to this year. I would like a resource that explains medicine... why you take a certain med for a particular condition. I hope to find a CPR/first aid class for her to take this summer. *I want to avoid the issues of teen depression and other mental disorders.* I want to focus on positive aspects of health. This dc is training for a half-marathon. She is fit and enjoys being healthy and strong. Would you all help me build this health course? I have not attempted to schedule the resources I already have. I need other resources to bring out the medicines/medical side. What else would round out this class? Thanks for any help!

Thank you, Mims. If not for the $200 price tag, I would try Economics in a Box. Does EIAB ever go on sale anywhere??? I emailed and heard back from the Stossel people. They said that there is enough meat in their curriuculum package for a high school half credit for econ. I would just like something to pair with it. I sort of feel like it needs to be the supplement with a more well known spine so that it looks more credible? That sounds so harsh, and I don't mean that at all.

Bumping

Thank you, mims! I forgot Stossel's material is in EiaB. Although, I'm not sure if it includes the same DVDs. Can you verify? I looked at EiaB a few weeks ago. It's kind of expensive. I'll take another look at it.

Is it a stand-alone program or does it need to be supplemented with something? Is it a credit-worthy high school half-credit for ecoomics? We've watched the snippits from the free DVDs that I ordered. Dd wants to use Stossel's DVD program for her economics credit. I just want to be sure colleges would deem this a credible economics course. ETA: http://stosselintheclassroom.org/economics/

Summer, We're using SS this year. Dd really does not like it. We're getting through it, but I'm not sure if we'll do it again with the next kids. We have two primary problems: first, wording taken from the text is sometimes reworded differently in the Parent Companion. This is very relevant when dd and I are studying with the Parent Companion, and it drives dd crazy. Many times I'll ask her a question and she'll use the text to find the answer, but the answer she gives is worded differently in the Companion... it makes it difficult to understand if she got the question right or not. Second, some information between the text and the Companion are simply downright opposite from each other. For example, if the text says that the mushroom is brown, the Companion might say the mushroom is pink. It just makes you wonder how much information is wrong. Now, I'm not a biology person, so there is no way for me to know how much is right/wrong. We have used the internet to check questionable questions/answers when something has looked fishy. If I were picking a biology again knowing what I do now, I might choose BJU Biology for the "ease" of having a DVD teacher (they also do online teaching), maybe Kolbe plans with the Miller-Levine book, or possibly Campbell's Concepts and Connections.... but I have no idea how we would "do" this. (Maybe look a syllabus up on the internet?) The Christian vs. secular thing is important to me, yet I would find some way to bring out the balance if we were to try a secular text. Dd would want to know the secular point of view if she had to take a biology course, so I'm fine with that. I really wanted to like SS.... really! It's just that there have been too many questionable things that make me unsure. ETA: If you click on the big biology thread posted at the top of the page, type "Shepherd" in the search window. You'll pull up a couple of other posts about SS... one is mine.

I think I asked the right question! :) Thank, ladies. Any others?

Ds in 6th grade this year is doing chemistry with a mixture of Ellen McHenry's Elements, Christian Kids Explore, and Tiner's Chemistry. He did biology in 5th grade last year. I've been counting on him using BJUs 7th grade Life Science with Mrs. Vick next year (and probably a physical science in 8th grade), but I'm beginning to open up to other possibilities. Is there a good reason NOT to consider Rainbow for 7th/8th grade? I'm planning on Pre-Algebra in 7th, and if all goes well, Algebra I in 8th. Our school covering offers Apologia General and Physical Science for middle schoolers, but I'm not really sold on the General Science text (unless the teacher brings the text to life.) Maybe the Physical Science text would be better.... But for now, please tell me if Rainbow throws up red flags for you all. Thanks!

Thanks, ladies! I looked at Guest Hollow last night.... haven't checked the yahoo site yet... and I started incorporating the books I have into a chart on Paula's Archives. The chart I'm using correlates Mystery of History, Story of the World, Kingfisher, and UILE. I will integrate Drive Through History, Trial and Triumph, and reading books. I think it will be fine. I really appreciate everyone's help! Please don't hesitate to add other ideas! :)

Thank you so much, Ewe Mama! I checked at Guest Hollow. They used MoH for Ancients, but they do not have a medieval history. Bummer! I also checked Easy Classical, but they don't have anything for middle school yet. I really appreciate your response! Maybe I'll just have to make up my own schedule. Anyone else?

I'm trying to plan 7th grade history, and what I really want is a combination of Mystery of History and Pandia Press History Odyssey. I own several resourses that will plan nicely in medieval history: Diana Warring CDs, Drive Through History, Trial and Triumph, Story of the World 2 with AG, KingFisher, UILE, and several wonderful books he can read. (Oh, and I don't want to use Illuminations.... way too expensive!) I like the way Pandia Press is scheduled, but since I own Mystery of History vol 2, I want to use it and not their Story of Mankind. It's just that we would skip so much of MoH! I like Biblioplan, but for all the books planned, we would only use MoH and Story of the World, and it is not planned out in a Day 1, Day 2, Day 3 way. I need something a bit more condenced for logic stage medieval history. (I have several of the books they call spines, but they warn not to use many at the same time because that would be too much reading.) I could make my own schedule, actually. I just don't want to take the time if someone out there has already done it. Lame, I know. Bottom line, I want MoH to be planned out just like Pandia Press. (A daily schedule of what to do combining MoH with maps/TL, and readers on a logic level.) Does anyone do that? Oh, and still incorporating the notebook organization. We prefer history from a Christian perspective, but as long as I can integrate MoH, a secular source would probably be ok. Thanks!!! Oh, if anyone doesn't know about Paula's Archives, she has plans that incorporate MoH, SotW, and others. Worth glancing at... http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/SOTWmenu.htm

Well, Elizabeth, why? :) Honestly, I haven't looked closely at anything except the high school version. I briefly read the key points for the college version, but disregarded it for some reason.

Elizabeth, I haven't bought the course yet. I looked at the workbook online, and I listened to some of his material on YouTube. As for it's depth, I think it depends. Several on WTM mentioned that they have lived out personal finances in front of their kids. The DR material would not be new at all in this case. For other kids without this kind of long-term modeling, the DR course is probably quite meaty. The course is on sale at HomeSchool Buyer's Co-op for March.

Elizabeth, whatever I might add would be cheap!😂 DR is expensive. Since i'll be able to get it through the Co-op, the price is better. Many here have used it as part of their economics credit and not so much as a stand-alone credit. I really think it could stand alone especially if the student was balancing a checkbook and budgeting money from a part time job. Just a clearly written book or the two AOP workbooks would be a good supplement...something to bridge DR's material to personal application. Maybe this is not necessary, but I'm thinking this extra bit would give the course a little more credibility.