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Carrie in NC

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  1. IMO, biology is one field that changes pretty rapidly. In the past 5 years, for example, the entire human genome project was completed, expanding out knowledge of human genetics exponentially. As one poster already mentioned the general consensus about how kingdoms are divided has changed in the past 10 years, as well. Taxonomy has changed somewhat, as well. There is a much bigger emphasis on molecular biology- studying cell structure, function, cell chemistry, etc., than in past decades. Lastly, there is more emphasis on ecology and conservation in the recent past, as well. Overall, I'd say for a first-time exposure (for 7th grade) a decent older text would be fine. However, I personally wouldn't want to use a text that old for high school biology. Blessings, Carrie
  2. Colleges and universities must be dealing with it. Many of the high schools in our area have gone to this approach instead of the Alg 1, Alg 2, etc. This includes the prestigious private schools. I actually think it's an attempt at raising math scores by integrating the course areas and showing how they interrelate. My brother-in-law, who is a physicist presently teaching math in the University of Cincinnati system, was talking just a few weeks ago about the dismal state of freshman math knowledge and the need for a more integrated approach to mathematics in high school. So maybe this trend is a good thing. Maybe.:001_unsure:
  3. They really do come out the other side! I have to keep reminding myself what a drama queen my oldest was in her teens, yet today she is a (fairly) stable 23 yr old college grad, and married lady! Yay! I have to keep reminding myself because my two youngest girls are 11 and 14 :svengo:, and although they can be wonderful, they do have their tear-your-hair-out moments. My two sons (now 17 and 19) are less about drama, but have their own bang-your-head-on-the-wall times.:banghead:
  4. I'm sure it depends on the community college. In NC the community colleges all have a "university transfer" track and are generally pretty good. The community college courses offered for university transfer are overseen by the University of North Carolina system and use the same books and syllabus as those offered at the universities. I know a dozen or more students who have taken cc classes in the university transfer program, and I've never heard anyone say they needed to retake the course at the university, or were unprepared for the next level class. I have had students tell me they were thankful to have taken some of the courses at the cc where they had smaller classes and more individual attention. The son of a friend got a list of recommended classes from NC State University to take at the community college before transferring into their engineering program. He took those classes, which included 3 semesters of calculus and two semesters of physics, and transferred straight into Mechanical Engineering. This spring he graduated Summa Cum Laude from the NC State Engineering school. I would say that, in his case, the cc classes did a good job of preparing him for the university! My daughter just graduated Magna Cum Laude from NC State this spring with a degree in history after doing one year at a private college and three semesters at community college.
  5. Another consideration is the learning style of your student. An AP class takes the college course and spreads it out over the whole year. Then in order to get credit for the course, the student has to take a separate, timed exam. This is a good fit for some students, but not for others. It means a LOT rides on that exam. Some students don't perform well under that kind of pressure. Also, while the student gets the college credit (if the university accepts it), they don't get the college experience. Community college takes an equivalent course (at least in our area) and puts it in one semester. The student has to work smart and learn to get organized. They need to be independent learners for the most part. Depending on the course, it can be a lot of work in a short period of time. It's not ideal for some students when they're in 10th or 11th grade. But for those who are, it is a great opportunity to learn to deal with two or three class periods a week, follow a syllabus, seek outside help (peer tutoring or help from the writing center for papers) and more. I know CC's vary. We happen to have a good one just 15 minutes from our house. My own kids have enjoyed the professors and the diverse student body. We've found the instructors to be more involved with their classes than at the university. They often notify students who are falling behind and help them get back on track. This effort can help pave the way for success in the more impersonal environment of many large colleges. We've also appreciated the cross-section of students, from dual enrolled high schoolers, Associate Degree candidate, university transfer students, mom's going back to school, and professionals making mid-career changes.
  6. We've used several levels of Lial's and never used the Study Skills Workbook. There are plenty of problems in the text. We do have the DVTs. I don't think they have to match the edition of the text very closely. The DVT uses different example problems. One of my students used the DVTs about half the time, the other student doesn't use them at all. I think it varies with the personality of the student. However, when the student hits a snag, they are really nice to have. If you don't have the DVTs, then make sure you have the Student Solutions Manual. With that you may not need the DVts unless your student really needs/want a visual component.
  7. We are another AP-less family. Since we have a community college handy, I see no good reason for my students to spend an entire year in an exhausting AP class only to have the entire outcome rest on one test. I'd rather them actually take the class at college and get not only the information, but the experience. My oldest dd just finished her BA in history (with honors), and she never took an AP test in high school.
  8. That was fun! When I teach Biology, I have my students type their own blood. Sometimes someone doesn't want to, but they are usually so fascinated they don't mind the finger prick that much! ;) If they really don't want to type their own blood, I get synthetic blood from Carolina Supply and let them practice on that. Carrie
  9. My dd is presently in 8th grade. Science: (probably all will be in a home school class with lab) 8th- Physical Science 9th- Biology 10th- Chemistry 11th- Earth/ Environmental 12th- Physics or community college History: 8th- American History (probably to about the beginning of the 20th century) 9th- World Wars I and II (class) and probably 20th century World History (home) 10th- World History 11th- American History 12th- government and economics English: 8th- Middle School Composition and Grammar (class) 9th- British Lit (class) 10th- World or Western Lit (class) 11th- American Lit 12th- Two semesters of freshman English at community college Math: (Lial's for all levels) 8th-11th Algebra, geometry, Alg 2. 12th- Precalc 1 and 2 at community college Foreign Language 8th- Spanish 2 (class) 9th- Spanish III (class) plus Japanese (not sure where yet) 10th- Japanese, start Spanish at community college 2nd semester 11th Spanish at community college, Japanese 12th-???? Not sure what electives we'll do. Probably Worldviews and Logic.
  10. Next year my then 9th grade dd will have a chance to take a class on World Wars I and II. My son took this class several years ago, and it is extremely well-done. Taking an entire semester on each war gives the class time to really go deeply into the causes and implications. There will be lots of reading and a few short papers- reports, really. What I want to know is what else I should do for history? I'm not sure what to call this on a transcript. My son took this in 8th grade, even though it is a high school class, so I haven't had to put it on a transcript yet. I've thought of doing a 20th Century World History to compliment the course, or geography (although she'd had that this year). Or I could do a separate history, as long as I didn't make it too strenuous, since she's got a pretty full schedule next year. We've been covering American History this year, and at the rate we're going I think we'll be just about to WWI in the fall, so i guess I could just continue that. But how should i put that on the transcript? I plan to have her take a high school level US History class. Oh, I guess I should add that she'll be taking British Lit next year. I know it's not usually a 9th grade class, but she's an advanced writer/thinker and it's what's being offered by my dear and valued lit teacher! :D My dd will also have: Spanish 3 (private class) Algebra I Biology (private class that I teach) Toastmaster Youth Chorus Piano She has developed her own RP (role playing) site where she spends a fair amount of time writing, and she wants to start Japanese. Thanks!
  11. Honestly, I understand how you feel. I was very emotional when we dropped my oldest dd off at college. I had a difficult time letting go of that stage of life where all my kids were at home, and I had a decent amount of input into what was going on. I literally had to grieve for a few days. Fast forward. My daughter moved back home two years later to finish college as a commuter student, and the same month her fiancee from across the country moved in with us, as well. We'd invited the fiancee, but didn't expect the daughter to have to move back home! :001_huh: I have four other children living at home in a smallish house. The fiancee was suppose to have his own room, but my dd got that (since she was going to school) and he ended up sharing a not-so-large room with my two teen boys. Culture shock for him, let me tell you! That was almost three years ago! My daughter graduates for NC State in May and gets married the following weekend. And guess what? They will be living with us for a few more months after that while she starts working! :blink: Oh joy! Oh rapture! Seriously, we've enjoyed them here and I know it will change soon enough, but I honestly can't say I'm going to cry when they leave or when my next few take off. Maybe when my baby leaves I'll feel it more. But right now, an empty house sometimes looks like a gift! Blessings!
  12. You may have already tried this, but I would suggest getting her a desk calendar with large blocks she cane easily write in (or some other calendar that she would actually see and use). At the beginning of each week sit down with her and help her plan her work schedule for one or two of her toughest classes, the one's she's most likely to procrastinate on doing the work. By breaking the work down into chunks, it might not look as overwhelming. In order to give her incentive for doing the work daily, make sure something else is tied to her completing the agreed upon amount of work each day. Does she like to listen to music, email her friends, or work on crafts? Whatever it is, she's not allowed to do it until the work is done. Does she want to go to a friend's house? or youth group, or whatever? Not until she does the work. Period. I wouldn't try to schedule all her school work at first, just the subject or two she is most likely to put off. That way it won't seem overwhelming. At the same time, I would work on your own procrastination problem. Get yourself the exact same calendar your daughter picks, and write down one or two jobs or obligations each day or week that you are most likely to put off. Show your daughter you're working on it, too, and give up one of your "treats" if you don't get your job done. When I start procrastinating on my work, I make myself keep my computer turned off until my obligations are met. It doesn't always work:blush:, but usually it does! Lastly, consequences like your daughter experienced at Chem class might be helpful. Who wants to go through that again? Hopefully it will be a deterrent for future procrastination, at least in that class.
  13. I keep motivated by focusing on the "must haves." These change somewhat for each child (Luke needed a disproportional amount of writing/ communications tutoring due to his disabilities), but for us generally means history, English, math, science, and foreign language. We do more than that, but I can keep myself from getting as stressed if I keep the "big five" as my focus. I put 90% of my effort into developing these five subjects. I use outside classes when appropriate, or a curriculum with helps (like the Digital Video Tutor with Lial's math). I outsource Lit classes. If I didn't have one locally, I'd do internet. That's a weak link for me, so I don't try. Since my kids have ended up taking Spanish, I try to outsource that, too, since I don't know Spanish. Math, history, and some science we do at home. I don't mind teaching the sciences at home, but we have a great class situation with lab activities, and I prefer group study for science when possible. I teach the biology class, and my kids have taken chemistry and physics there as well. Like I said, I put most of my effort into coming up with courses or classes that fit my student's need for each major area. I don't' always use the same materials again for a second student because they learn so differently. Hannah is about as auditory as they come! But Thomas is more of an auditory/visual mix, like me. Thomas also needs interaction, while Hannah was more a "let me do the work by myself, Mom, then we'll talk" kinda gal. Hannah enjoyed Hakim's History of US (using Sonlight), but so far the next three have hated it! While I sort of have a four year plan, I don't really stress about that either. I generally take one year at a time, just like I did when they were younger. I'm willing to ditch some books, or change mid-stream when needed. I try not to make four years and college entrance my primary focus, even though both are important. I have this child to educate this year...what should I do for him/her now? I don't keep the greatest records in the world, but I do keep a list of their courses and the syllabus for that course (or table of contents for main text, and/or list of books read). If I didn't keep a list, I'd forget in a year or two! :confused: As for motivation for me.... I love teens. I love teaching teens. I think the teen years are easier in some ways for me because I relate the age a little easier. I'd rather have conversations than play "pretend" or play children's games! :blush: Young children just wore me out physically. (Older children wear me out emotionally! But that's another topic for another time!) Not much help, but here you go.
  14. I don't think you'd want to do both in one year, that's why I prefer a book that has anatomy and physiology integrated and can be done in one year. I was saying that if a student was sure they'd want a full year of anatomy and physiology, then doing the Apologia series can work well. A full year of Anatomy and Physiology is great!
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