Does anyone have experience with Live Online Math? They use Glencoe for Geometry, which is what my student should be taking next year. I'm intrigued because they meet 3 days/week, which will help my 15 yr old son stay on track.

I am still unsure about my 10th grade son's course of study next year, because new opportunities keep appearing! I think your plan looks good. You mentioned Latin, and I noticed that your child is taking a couple classes with Potter's. I will tell you that my son had HS Latin I this year with Potter's School as a 9th grader. There were no prerequisites for the class and my son had never taken Latin. The pace was quite frustrating for someone who had never been exposed to the language. Yet, even my son's friend (who is brilliant) had Latin for several years before enrolling in this class, and he was receiving F's on some of his tests late in the year. The instructor recommends 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours five days a week for study in addition to the class, and this time is needed once you get a few weeks into the course. I have no idea if you are considering Potter's for Latin, but I wanted to give you our take on it.

Does anyone have any experience with WriteGuide.com, formerly Ludwig Education Services? This is an on-line writing course with individualized assignments tailored to your student. It almost sounds too good to be true. Students can work with their highly degreed instructors each day Monday through Friday, and the cost for 9 months is about $600.

What I have learned this year from my 9th grade son is that he does much better with the Veritas Press classes, and I think some of the reason is that they are held twice a week. This seems to keep him on a better pace and he feels more connected with the class and the teacher. I would check the individual class expectations for TPS. For instance, my son took HS Latin I and was expected to do 90 minutes of homework for five days per week in addition to the weekly class.

Just a thought -- why don't you call Customer Service or Cindy Nightingale at Veritas and ask if Tom Vierra's approach is similar to the teacher your daughter currently has for her other class? Or, you could ask them who would be most similar to Joost. Either way, I think they'll tell you if they know.

Regarding The Potter's School website, if you go to "Courses", then choose "All Courses", you will see that at most course explanations there is a "Sample Class" prompt, and then you would click on "View." Hope that helps.

Any opinions on Thinkwell for Algebra? I just checked out the website, and the math concepts are explained very clearly on video. My 9th grade son really struggles with math, and gets "cross-eyed" when math time rolls around every day. It is always a fight. Before I learned about Thinkwell, I was ready to sign up for Jacobs Algebra, as it seems to start out with a pretty basic review and is somewhat entertaining, and I was going to add the Callahan DVD's as well. Has anyone done this and, if so, is there an actual person explaining the concepts in the DVD's (as there is with Thinkwell) or does one just hear a voice and view problems on a board?

Wow! I could have written this post! We are in the exact same situation!

Both Cathy Duffy and a reviewer from Old Schoolhouse are quite informative on this matter, and feel that a 9th grader will be very challenged with Omnibus I, which really incorporates Ancient History/Literature and Theology. My 9th grader is taking Omnibus for the first time this year, and we started with I. Additionally, Susan Wise Bauer recommends Ancient History for 9th grade, along with Algebra and Biology, and we are right there.

My 14 year old 9th grade son has always struggled with math. We started homeschooling when he was in 7th grade, and we did the Calvert School program. He did quite well with pre-algebra. When he began 8th grade, it was as if he had forgotten everything he had learned in pre-algebra, so the entire year I reviewed basic math, pre-algebra, and beginning algebra. After intense investigation of algebra programs, I chose Potters School's University of Chicago Math Project. It is way too advanced for a struggling student, although I was very upfront with them about my son before signing up for the class. So, with a financial loss facing me, I am about to embark on another math program. Seriously considering Jacobs Algebra through Veritas Press. This had been one of my considerations prior to signing up with Potters School. Any comments? I really do not want to be my son's algebra teacher, so I am looking for live, on-line courses for him. (My strength in math is in Algebra II, not Algebra I, oddly, nor geometry.)

There are so many options out there for every other subject, but what does one very computer illiterate mom do to keep her 9th grade son in the loop with computer science? This is a very important aspect of a high school education, and I have seen classes on Potter's School and a few other places, but I don't know how well this subject can be taught with distance learning.

Pennsylvania and many other states offer cyber charter schools, considered public school education at home. The cost is free, you receive a laptop for free for school use, AP classes are available, there is no documentation since the child is considered enrolled in public school.

I would have to recommend Old City Philadelphia. Though occupied by the English during the Revolutionary War, it is not a "battle site" but does offer amazing history lessons from Christ Church (you can sit in Ben Franklin's pew), Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross House, cemetery with graves of Ben Franklin, Benjamin Rush, and many other places all within several blocks of each other and easily doable in a day, either the day before or after Valley Forge (which is awesome -- buy the CD at the visitor center and it will guide you along the entire park!)

Thank you, Josie, for your very comprehensive list of on-line classes. I think I may have found something at Apologia Academy for my 14 year old son, who is also taking classes at Potters School and Veritas Press.

I am venturing into my first year of classical education for my 9th grade son. Based on what I've read in Susan Wise Bauer's book, I decided to start with the beginning.....Omnibus I Ancients. (My son loves ancient history, so this is right up his alley, and he hasn't studied the ancients since 6th grade.) She also recommends taking Biology at the same time and also Algebra, I believe. However, Ms. Bauer does offer many other alternatives to the order of this study. After borrowing The Well-Trained MInd from the library, I decided to purchase the book as I knew I would be referring to it often! Veritas recommends Omnibus I for 7th through 12th grade, although they offer a section for those students in 10th to 12th grade.