Sweet Home Alabama
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Posts posted by Sweet Home Alabama
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Hi Sweet Home - we have often done very similar curriculums and been at similar places. My oldest did MFW AHL and WHL for what ended up being 8th and 9th. We have liked it, but I just honestly can't afford the US 1 & 2. It's just too much - although I'm sure it's totally worth it. Anyway, I have decided on Notgrass for the same reasons you posted and we have truly loved AtB for my other two this last two years.
My boys are using AtB this year (grades 4 and 7)... we had to adjust how we used it. In first semester, I had the two of them read the chapters together and work on the map/tl books. I thought this would work... at least once a week, I would read with the 4th grader. By Christmas, we all realized that we could not continue this way in 2nd semester. Text book reading was not engaging. My boys were not retaining anything. They were not loving American history, and I wanted them to!
So.... now we use the text to keep us on topic. Instead of just reading the text, each looks the chapter topic up on a computer. They take 10-15 minutes and read, link to bunny trails, etc... After gathering information, we discuss it. I have the text and read it while they work on computers. I can ask appropriate questions based on the information. We discuss the ideas that were either important or interesting in their reading. This works! Then they complete the map and timeline books. This way they are retaining the history, and I'm learning right along with them.
If we used Exploring America for high school, I would think that we might have to take the same kind of approach. Which isn't such a bad idea, but I think dd wants history to be more independent.... Some kind of balance between the two might be just right.
I am going to add 2 PP guides to it for Mockingbird and Uncle Tom's Cabin. Maybe a 3rd and 4th - I love that they are PDF's and interactive. I am also going to have him join his brothers and maybe our co-op and do Mapping the World with Art and Missionary studies that I am still planning. Then, he's going to do some SAT Vocab - haven't decided on program yet. Also, grammar, I think - but need to look and see if these others already cover it enough - he definitely needs a refresher, but did CLE LA through 9th. Might get the 10th grade ones.
My dd would take an outsourced English Comp class that focuses on American lit. It's a tough English class with a fantastic teacher. I'll have to see about the vocabulary. She won't be doing any kind of vocabulary program... Although much vocabulary is picked up within excellent books.
And, adding IEW - probably Windows to the World and one of the Essay ones. This is his strong suit, but for him ONLY - the MFW English has been very light - I know others would disagree, but that's been our experience for him. He needs to be challenged in this area for sure. He used to write a TON, but hasn't done even close to as much with MFW. I will also use some of the worldview/Bible courses that MFW suggests...Thinking Like a Christian, etc.
One thing I love about MFW is their lesson plans (of course). Plans are written, and the student is good to go. I hate trying to piece a course together. MFW incorporates Christian worldview into their history. I'm keeping this in mind as well. I would like to use a worldview curriculum along with completing the first semester of American history while completing government in second semester..... just like MFW. We'll have to see how it all works out.
This will all be spread out over 10th and 11th - only counted as one credit for each, but I don't want to cram it in. 1 for American History, 1 for Geography (with all the MFW that he did, Notgrass' and MtWwA), 1 for English each year as I add in to Notgrass, so 2. Then, he can still do Gov't and Economics... probably adding Gov't to the 11th grade year - again spread out! I think I can do both years for considerably less than what it would have cost. Not trying to re-invent the wheel, but also it allows for some flexibility on some things I wanted to work in!! Geography being so important to me and definitely the writing.
I have no idea what we would use for geography. She will already have some geography credit from WHL. I looked at MtWwA, but we would end up only doing the United States part. Seems like a waste...? I haven't really thought a lot about geography yet. Something effective but inexpensive would be great! :001_smile:
Thanks so much for sharing your plans. I recall as well how we've used similar curricula! I've found comfort thinking I'm on the right track in my thinking because of that!
Looking forward to it for him!!!
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I found my best notebooking ideas from Heart of Wisdom. I can't quite find the pages that were on their website back in the day, but here are a couple of samples. I did end up purchasing some books from her just because her materials were so helpful to me and she was so generous with her free online resources.
If you scroll down this page, second-to-last sample page, just above where the comments begin, the page that says "portfolio sample pages" at the bottom:
http://homeschool.co...g-Approach.html
If you scroll down this sample from their website, look at page 9 of the sample (page 317 of the book):
http://www.google.co....45107431,d.dmg
I do think you can use a notebooking method with any program you use. If I were teaching my dd using MFW, I would probably have her notebook history and fine arts. She did very well with that method. However, my youngest son has notebooked throughout the elementary and middle years, and after considering continuing, in the end we aren't notebooking in high school. However, my dd's notebooks inspired another local family to notebook through high school with their son, who created some amazing pages, so it isn't just a girl/boy thing.
I should also add that I felt notebooking required a lot of input from me. It probably depends on the child, but my children tend to need adult guidance if they are to realize what is important or amazing, or even just what delving deeper into a topic of interest should look like. I guess they tend to have their minds on other things :)
HTH,
Julie
Julie,
Thank you so much for the links!
One thought.... Notebooking makes a lot of sense for a younger student. Everything I looked at on Heart of Wisdom was written for grades 3-8.
If we were to notebook American history, I know we'd need to "kick it up...another notch"! I'm not quite sure how to do that.
I'm also aware that notebooking takes time. If it takes too much time, this won't work for us. I don't want the notebooking to be cutesy but appropriately illustrative/descriptive of the kind of material a high schooler should know. (Maybe like how Trisms is organized? Or the way TWTM method breaks subjects down into a notebook?) We've never used Trisms or TWTM method, so I'm simply brainstorming.
I definitely want there to be (at least) short writing assignments so that she has to demonstrate understanding on topics important in American history...She would be taking the outsourced English Comp class focusing on American lit that I've mentioned before, so history wouldn't also need lengthy writing assignments.
Ideas for how to make notebooking high school level........anyone???
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My dd is outsourcing Spanish at our local home school cover school. They are using Life Packs. She's had a great year... no complaints about them. This cover school has used AO Spanish Life Packs for several years.
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I answered a question on this post but then didn't want to hijack the OP. See http://forums.welltr...e/#entry4888248
I copied my post here to share some American history ideas:
This is what I've been looking at for American history.... taken from many suggestions from posters:
I'll share what I'm thinking, but I don't have a plan yet. We have been using MFW- love it- yet dd has the opportunity to take an outsourced English class that uses American lit. If dd takes this class, we need to find new history, Bible, and worldview courses.
MFW uses BJU's United States History. I would consider this if we were only to take MFW's 11th grade US History to 1877 off and return for their US History 1877 to Present. I'm concerned, however, that this history may be too fact-filled and seem boring to dd. I would want to make whatever adjustments to make textbook history as engaging as possible. If not BJU...
NROC looks promising. It is all planned: reading schedule, maps, key terms, writing assignments, and chapter test. Only the chapter test has an answer key. The maps do not get great reviews... May have to do something else if we want a geography credit.
TWTM Method gets excellent reviews. I think this is probably the simplest and least expensive route. They even suggest one of the texts that is used on NROC. A combination of NROC with WTM method may be interesting.
Oak Meadow is appealing. I really don't know much about OM... Their US history is planned out, and there are answers for the teacher. The student reads the selection, and answers questions. The student then chooses a project from a list of several options. They use Glencoe's American Vision
A Patriot's History was mentioned on a different thread on the forum. I like the look of it. There are teaching materials here: http://www.patriotsh...hing-materials/
Notgrass Exploring American History looks like an easy way to get American History done. I truly love programs that are open and go. http://www.notgrass....ool-curriculum/
Also on a different thread, a poster was using Digital History... Looked interesting:
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/
The following suggestions come from a thread I started several weeks ago. See: http://forums.welltr...ms-to-research/
There were some very interesting possibilities mentioned there. I'll share some below:
This lecture series from Univ. of Oklahoma could work: http://freedom.ou.edu/ Rufus Fears seems to have a passion for American history. He is an older gentleman. I can see this being worked into American history.
Along with Rufus Fears, there were these suggestions:
William Bennett America - The Last best hope. has companion web resources
http://www.roadmapto...thope.com/about
Lecture series from University of Oklahoma. Rufus Fears in Story of Freedom
(has other lectures as well)
Hillsdale College Constitution 101 (have not used this myself): https://online.hillsdale.edu/101/info
TC: Turning points in American History
PBS: American Experience http://www.pbs.org/w...perience/films/
One poster wrote:
For American history, I don't have a complete listing, but we did watch the Yale lectures "Revolutionary War" series with Joann Freeman and thought they were very good. She is a very good lecturer, not boring even for my then-13 year old. I also think that the John Adams BOOK, not movie, is a very good overview of that period. I'm considering adding the Ken Burns documentaries on the Civil War and WWII, but I find his style a little emotive for my taste and it's much faster to read a book than watch one of his documentaries; but it might be a good choice for a kid who doesn't like to read and could use a reading break or one who doesn't really connect with the historical period.
I think she was referring to these lectures: http://www.youtube.c...A2BC5E785D495AB
And as for writing, this suggestion was made using the resources listed:
I've also had the boys start writing essays in response to the document based essay questions from old AP history exams. I give them the packet of documents and about a week to do any necessary research and writing. (So they aren't timed like they would be on an actual AP exam.) The documents and question give them a specific framework to work within, while the additional time gives them the opportunity to look up details they may have forgotten or that we didn't emphasize.
AP European History free response http://apcentral.col...ation/2085.html
AP American History http://www.collegebo...ry_us/samp.html
AP World History http://apcentral.col...ion/216943.html
Revised Continuity and Change World History Essay Questions http://apcentral.col...ied_essay_Q.pdf
Along with all of these suggestions, you could add movies:
http://www.redshift....najo/movies.htm
There is a certain curriculum that uses movies and has the student analyze them. I can't seem to find it right now...Ahh! I remembered! It's called Movies as Literature: http://www.amazon.co...t/dp/1891975099
Actually, this is the one I wanted to remember- American History on the Screen: http://www.amazon.co...e/dp/0825144515
It would be interesting to bring in American art and music somehow.
Honestly, I've been wondering how dd could create a notebook for American history... a la WTM method or something like the way Trisms is organized. Trisms does not have anything for American history. I remember an old post where someone created her own version of American history using the Trisms method. I would LOVE to see that plan now. Anyone have that link?????
So, these are the suggestions I have been looking at. There is a lot to consider. I want American history to be engaging for dd, and I would really like her to practice some writing. My goal (of course) is that she would be able to write and speak intelligently about issues in American history. I'm not interested in AP credit, but using the AP writing suggestions would be an excellent way for her to do this. Like I said, I really prefer something that is open and go, but I have a year to think this thing out. I don't want American history to be a boring fact-only filled experience. She would have no retention with a course like this. If we don't take the local outsourced English class, we'll use MFW's history. She is completing AHL and will do WHL next year.
That's all I can think of for now. If I run across other American history possibilities or ideas, I'll add them onto this list of ideas.
I really would be interested in hearing about notebooking ideas for American history. I think this would make studying American history engaging. The notebooking ideas I've seen are more geared for younger students, but I bet this method could be used on a high school level.
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I'd be interested in both your plans.
I wrote a lengthy reply but didn't want to appear to hijack the OP. These are the American history ideas I've been considering:
http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/467820-sharing-some-ideas-for-american-history/
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Hi... I'm planning American history as well. In one of my threads, this was suggested. Hope it may help...
http://forums.welltr...h/#entry4679024
If you don't mind, I would love to know what resources you have chosen.
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We are using it this year, the ap version because I wanted ap test style writing assignments, though Ds will not take the test.
I own several of the spines, but Ds also has Hakims history of us books, and loves those, so we used those with the multiple choice quizzes for a spine. Its easy to match them to NROC chapters. He normally does one writing assignment, e maps, and watches the videos each week. We don't do the vocabulary, and the discussion questions may be a writing assignment, or we don't do them.
I have sonlights us core (100?) but hate it. We've used some of the literature but most wasn't what we were looking for. I found a list of literature for ap us history somewhere on the Internet and he reads some off that list, some so light, some I found and liked.
As a non traditional learner, Ds finds the videos very helpful. I wish they offered more in this style, like world history!
Thanks, Sisyphus! A few clarifying questions:
What other spines do you have? Could you explain pros/cons of them?
You use Hakim's history of US with the multiple choice on NROC....right?
Are the e-maps the ones on NROC?
Have you had any trouble evaluating assignments?
I appreciate your reply!
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I've never used NROC, but I am researching for American history when my oldest will be in 11th grade. NROC looks promising. The current plan is that we will outsource English with our local homeschool covering; it will be an American lit/comp class.
I know of these programs: WTM history/lit where you read lit and write about it, IEW American lit, The Great Courses: Books that shaped America, and Beautiful Feet US and World History parts 1-4. There are more choices for lit, no doubt, but maybe this short list will give you something to research.
We have been using and loving My Father's World. Dd is finishing up AHL this year and will do WHL next year. We're changing only because I want her to take this outsourced English class. I love the way MFW integrates Bible, history, and lit. It has been hard to walk away from using MFW. Trying to put together something equivalent isn't easy.
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Thank you both, Kanga and Debbie!
If you had to choose U.S. history over again, would you still use NROC? Or would you supplement/do anything differently?
How much time did your dc take to get reading done and complete assignments?
Could you make recommendations for a map curriculum that will give a credit for geography since NROC maps are not up to appropriate credit worthiness?
I prefer a curriculum that is planned out for me and easy do implement with answer keys to take guess work out of the evaluation process. The answer keys seem to be the biggest thing missing from NROC. It looks fairly good- makes me wonder why it isn't more popular than it seems.
I've got a year to research U.S. history.
Would love to hear more about NROC, but also open to suggestions for out-of-the-box U.S. history options.
Thanks again!
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We are using this course currently. The Hippocampus regular US History is the same course as the AP course, just without the exam practice assignments. I don't see the Glencoe book you mentioned on Hippocampus's syllabus. I believe that all the Hippocampus books are college level, while Oak Meadow's are high school level textbooks.
To choose a textbook, over the summer, I checked out from the library the different texts recommended and had dd compare them side-by-side. Dd ultimately chose The American Pageant because she preferred the style of writing, which I can best describe as narrative with tones of sarcasm here and there. While I found the book interesting to read, I don't think I would choose this text again for a regular high school course. Often, my dd didn't pick up on pertinent details because the narrative sometimes assumes the reader has a lot of background knowledge and mentions things without fully explaining.
Although none of the writing assignments are lengthy, I find them to be useful and evaluate them based on how well dd uses supporting text and/or given passages to support her thesis. The map activities are simplistic, IMO, and didn't add much to the studies.
I don't think there would be any problem with you splitting the course up into 2 years. In fact, Hippocampus splits them up into U.S. History 1 and U.S. History 2.
Thank you, Kanga!
The Glencoe book I was referring to is the 12th book down, but I've just looked up the ISBN and found out there is a difference in editions with it and the Oak Meadow book....
I emailed NROC yesterday to ask them similar questions. The rep replied that the texts are appropriate for high school students. Now, I would imagine that some may be more appropriate than others for high school students. That is what I would like to find out.
Kanga, in order to evaluate your dd's papers, how much research do you do to check her work? If her supporting details as written support her thesis but are not completely accurate, do you pick up on that? I am not a history buff. I wouldn't catch historical inaccuracies in my dd's writing.
Also, do you grade your dd's maps since there is not a key?
Since the maps seem simplistic, maybe we should use something else for maps- something for a geography credit.
Hoping to hear from others! Anyone???
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Dd will need American history for 11th grade, and I'm interested in the US History from NROC's Hippocampus- probably just the regular version. If you use Hippocampus courses, how do you grade/evaluate the assignments? For history, there are maps and papers. Only the chapter test has a key.
It looks like Oak Meadow uses one of the texts from Hippocampus: The American Vision by Glencoe. How does this book compare with others? If we used OakMeadow, they offer answers in their TM. Yet, I think this curriculum is expensive.
Brown's book: America: A Narrative History seems popular. If we followed TWTM suggestions with this book, dd could just read the text and answer the questions at the end of each chapter.
I've read that The American Pageant is quite wordy. I would want to stay clear of that.
Which of the texts offered is the clearest (least wordy) most understandable text for high school?
Finally, what I would like to do is the first part of American history followed by a government course in 11th grade (not sure yet which one). In 12th, I would have dd finish American history and an economics course. Is there any reason this plan would not work with Hippocampus?
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Derek Owens Physical Science
http://www.derekowen...cal_science.php
You can also purchase his physical science:
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One more question Sweet...since you've been so helpful! The boys are finishing up 5th grade now, so they will be 6th grade. Should i do Jr Analytical Mechanics first in the fall and then begin AG? I'm pretty sure I won't do both AG and CLE that just seems like too much for my boys.
We never used AG Mechanics, so I just can't tell you about that. As far as AG is concerned, just follow the schedule they suggest on their web page. You'll just have to decide if you think they need punctuation and other language arts usage skills practice. Keep AG balanced with whatever else you may add.
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Ok... You might benefit from reading "How It Works" from AG's web page:
http://www.analyticalgrammar.com/ag-explained
I remember asking myself the same question you are asking when we were using Jr. AG. With my first child, I think we just followed AG's plan. That was several years ago, and honestly, I don't remember the details of what we did right off.
Because of my experience with my first child, however, I changed my approach to AG slightly adding in the CLE. That worked beautifully because the grammar and diagramming were taught in context together. We could have just continued with CLE, but AG puts grammar into an outline form that makes sense. The goal is to learn every part of speech and kind of phrase so that a student will really know how to use correct punctuation. I LOVE the resource book that is left after all of the exercises are completed. AG just makes sense to me.
If your child did Jr. AG in 5th and is going into 6th, just start AG. If Season 1 goes very smoothly, you could just move on into Season 2. If your student struggles in Season 1, then don't move on. Work through the Review and Reinforcement book, and start Season 2 in 7th grade. You may be able to finish Season 2 in the 1st semester and go onto Season 3 in the second semester. If not, go back to the Review and Reinforcement book. AG shows a couple of possible schedules here: http://www.analyticalgrammar.com/analytical-grammar
When I used AG with my first child, they had not yet written the Jr. AG Mechanics book. Truly, that was what was missing and why I supplemented with CLE. Using that book may balance the program for you in a simpler way. CLE is more affordable though.
You could use both AG and CLE in 6th grade, but I would be cautions. My first child had tears with AG at times- especially toward the end when the diagrams became more complicated. There was NO way we could have added in anything. With my second child, CLE was a more gentle approach, and after using it for about 3 years, he knew everything in Season 1- but remember, we started CLE in about 4th grade. We were able to review Season 1 at the beginning of 7th grade and then move straight into Season 2. He had No problems at all. Season 3 is a bit "easier" in a way: There are no diagrams, but the lessons can be tricky.
Bottom line: I got an earlier start with Jr. AG and had time to do several years of CLE. Starting in 6th grade, you won't have that luxury, but you may be able to carefully work both in if necessary and if your student seems to need something to supplement AG.
As far as what CLE? This is their elementary scope and sequence. Language Arts for 6th grade (the 600 series) is on page 20. They also have a diagnostic test that will help you place your student. If you decide to use CLE, I would give your student the placement test first before deciding what grade level to use. We also used their Basics of Diagramming some just for extra help.
Scope and Sequence:
http://www.clp.org/documents/4314/original/Elementary_Scope_and_Sequence_2012-2013.pdf
Placement test: Wow... they used to be free from the web site if I remember correctly. Now they are $2.00/test and $2.00 for the TM.
http://www.clp.org/search/results?utf8=%E2%9C%93&query=placement+tests&x=-970&y=-115
Basics of Diagramming:
http://www.clp.org/search/results?utf8=%E2%9C%93&query=diagramming&x=-970&y=-115
Hope the rambling here helps. :001_smile:
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Jensens Format Writing is like this.
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My boys will be 6th grade next year. So, are you saying that I should use CLE 6 next year?
It would be helpful to know what they have already done. Have they finished AG Jr?
AG recommends using Season 1 in 6th. Season 1 won't take the entire year, so the student uses the reinforcement for the rest of the year. A similar plan applies to Season 2.
Since your students are already in 6th grade, you wouldn't have time to use CLE As much as I did. You could use it after the work in Season 1
Hope some of that made sense. My eyes are closing, and I' m falling to sleep. I 'll check back in the morning.
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I've used AG with two of my kids and plan to use it with my youngest as well. I would make this suggestion: Use Jr. AG as recommended in about 3rd??? (I think that is what we did.) Then start CLE (Christian Light Education) in 4th. (Or whatever elementary grade your student is in.) Then in 7th grade, your student will be more than ready for AG. CLE taught my ds everything in Season 1 (there were just a couple of things we had to go over- prepositions for one.) This kind of exposure made the feeling of success real when we reviewed Season 1. In 7th grade ,after I reviewed Season 1 with him, we moved onto Season 2. Season 2 was covered in 1st semester, and we're doing Season 3 in 2nd semester. This worked beautifully. It's just a bit more expensive, but really CLE is cheap, AND ds got a more complete exposure to language arts this way.
For writing during this time, we used IEW Themed History since we were studying early American history that particular year. We worked on WTM writing the next year with outlines and good paragraphs. Then the next year we used WWS. This year, we're back to a combo of doing our own writing with a flare of IEW/WWS thrown in together. He'll take an outsourced writing class next year in 8th grade if all goes well for the rest of 7th.
Just thought it would be helpful to see what we did with both grammar and writing since these two flow together.
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I just wanted to add in our experience with Zumdahl. Dd and I had been struggling with PH Chemistry for half the year, when we stumbled upon World of Chemistry. Like the above poster, I was so impressed with how clearly written it is, and how it takes the student step-by-step through example problems. We switched; it was a breath of fresh air, and made the rest of the year so much more enjoyable. I haven't used the syllabus linked above, but I have seen World of Chemistry used TE at Amazon.
Thanks, again, Kanga!
I'm curious why there are two texts so similar: Introductory Chemistry and World Chemistry both by Zumdahl. There must be a reason...I'm glad that you and Kai both had the same response.
One question though... were the longer sections in Intro *too* long compared to World?
Oh, and would you tell me what you used for labs?
Thanks!
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Thank you Kai and Kanga!
Well, maybe this is one more chemistry possibility for us for next year.
Anyone else??? I'd love to know if anyone here has used this syllabus.
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JoAnn,
My oldest is almost finished with her 9th grade year, so I still feel VERY new at high school- and without a great deal of experience.
We've used My Father's World high school for ancient history, and we'll go with them for world history as well. In her 11th grade year, we will probably change from MFW so that she can take an outsourced class for English/composition, so I'm just browsing around for the near future because I'll need to have something planned out for American history, government, and economics.
All that to say... have you seen Hippocampus? I don't know if it would be a consideration for you or not. For history, they offer American history as well as government and economics..... not world history apparently.
You can choose a primary text from their list of options.... be sure you click on the tab: Launch a Course. Then explore from there. You can also use other supplementary books they recommend as well. They tell you what to read for each lesson...it's all planned out. They also offer maps and essay suggestions. They have a course for regular as well as AP American history. They have a chapter test and an answer key, but I don't see any kind of key for the map activities or discussion questions/essays. I'm really not sure how to "grade" those. I've thought about asking about this, but have not done that yet. All of these readings are linked with a video presentation which seems fairly interesting. Check it out and see what you think.
Hope you find what you're looking for. I'm interested in hearing answers to your question as well.
ETA... Forgot to add in the link! :001_smile: http://www.hippocampus.org/HippoCampus/History%20%26%20Government;jsessionid=6782528EF541C40A834172D437433145?view=Courses
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We're using a more recent edition of the text, but it's probably pretty much the same. I am extremely impressed with Zumdahl Chemistry. It is interesting (really!), clear, and coherent. The format makes it easy to teach from, with examples and then exercises for the student to try right after the examples. The end of chapter problems are tied specifically to each section. There are review problems every three chapters or so. And you can get a student solution manual that has solutions (not just answers) to the even problems. It is truly the best science text I've used in 10 years of homeschooling.
Wow, Kai. This sounds wonderful. I hear the name Zumdahl here quite a bit. I appreciate the positive review! I'm at a loss when it comes to science. I need something with a plan (something spelled out for both me and my students) which is one reason this chemistry course caught my eye.
I've heard that Zumdahl's World of Chemistry is a standard high school chemistry course with more math than Conceptual Chemistry. What is the math like in Introductory Chemistry? We need a basic beginner course.
For reference... http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/432810-chemistry-in-10th-for-one-who-isnt-very-strong-in-science/#entry4403339
Would you be able to make any comparisons with Intro Chemistry to Spectrum or Apologia?
The lesson plans I linked to use Intro Chemistry with Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry. What are you using for labs? Seems like I've read that posters generally like the Illustrated Guide lab books. i would love to hear opinions on the Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry if anyone cares to share.
Thank you for responding to my question!
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Introductory Chemistry, 5th edition (Steven Zumdahl)
Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments (Robert Bruce Thompson)
https://sites.google...ved-assignments
What is the difficulty level of this chemistry course? How does Introductory Chemistry compare to The World of Chemistry by Zumdahl? Spectrum Chemistry? Apologia Chemistry?
I do need something for a beginner's high school chemistry course, and I'm leaning toward Spectrum or Apologia. These plans just caught my eye, and I'm hoping to get some feedback on them.
My student has finished Alg. I and will finish geometry this year. She'll be doing Alg. II concurrently with chemistry. She is not really looking forward to chemistry and needs the course to be engaging and written for ease in understanding. She is an average student making low As and high Bs.
Thanks!
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We're using Science Shepherd. It is reasonably priced, and very straightforward. It is written by a Christian doctor, BUT... he simply teaches the science without focusing (or mentioning- best I can remember) any Christian perspective. You can read about this in his FAQ section: "How are creation and evolution handled". If I had to choose a con, it would be the lack of a strong lab. He uses a standard lab book that he incorporates into his Life Science program. It could really be that WE have been too lazy to do the labs this year, so I can't truly call his method of labs a con. SS Life Science has been great this year for my 7th grader. Clear and challenging.
You asked about biology, but his middle school version is Life Science just fyi.
Here's a link:
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I understand your concerns about the lack grammar practice while doing AG. My oldest student completed AG in 2 years. While she was going through that time, I had the same concerns. I think we used Daily Grams at the same time, and that was just ok.... not hugely impressive.
I much prefer what I did with my second child. He used Christian Light Education during 4th-6th grades. CLE includes diagramming plus grammar. This year in 7th grade, we quickly reviewed Season 1 because CLE covered everything in Season 1 with only a few minor differences. We got Season 2 done in 1st semester of 7th grade and are getting through Season 3 in second semester.
Using CLE combined grammar and diagramming. I could probably have continued with CLE, but I really love AG and wanted him to do that.
I'll use this same combination with my youngest child.
Just a side note...
For high school, I bought AG's High School Reinforcement for my oldest. Now, she had been away from AG for a whole year, and concepts were a bit fuzzy when she returned to do the reinforcement book. In hindsight, I think I would have gotten CLE's English I course for a review. They sell it as 5 books to be done in 9th grade and 5 books to be done for 10th grade. I think we would have used them all in 9th grade for our review.
Sharing some ideas for American history...
in High School and Self-Education Board
Posted
Julie,
Thanks. This is very helpful.... just "talking" these ideas out. It's like what I said a few weeks ago on a different thread where you helped.... to let ideas "cook".
I like the bolded... especially about owning knowledge in the method. I don't think notebooking has to be totally artsy/creative. That would have to be balanced with mini-essay type writing. Then I think dd would "own" her history.
Lots of good thinking going on.... probably too much! Here is the tangled web that's rolling around in my head for the moment (of course, it will probably morph several times):
I'm picturing an overall organization like TWTM/Trisms framework using NROC videos/writing suggestions, BJU text with student book using Hewitt syllabus, BJU geography? (haven't looked at this yet). And something for Christian world view and government. I'm just now looking at the Hewitt syllabus. Haven't figured out the details. If we were to incorporate BJU, I could have answer keys for some of the work. This is important to me. It will allow me to have some objective tests that are easily evaluated. I'm not entirely comfortable with ALL subjective grading.
Now what does all of this incorporation for me for a reasonable price??? Bennett's Roadmap? A Patriot's History? I have more reading/thinking to do obviously.
I still like the idea of using the MFW plan of 1/2 history followed by govenment in 11th grade. Then 1/2 history followed by economics.
If, if, if we return to MFW for 12th grade, it would make sense to have their plan somewhat in place for 11th grade. Just can't afford it easily even if we use everything except their lit.....
We can't just use a boring text though. Dd would not learn well that way. That's why I've got to make history engaging so that it will somewhat come to life for her.
For someone who doesn't like to plan out a course, I am definitely going that direction.
Thanks so much for helping!!!