I outsource with writing and humanities classes at Regina Coeli academy. As a math science person I teach that myself, but through my classes there at the academy. My kids enjoy the class room atmosphere and interaction while still being home and having more time for other things.

Regina Coeli academy grades, teaches, everything. I am also a teacher there, but I had kids that went through the entire program before ever starting to teach there. It is fantastic and the most full service online school there is when you compare what services are actually rendered in the course by the teachers. I would characterize Memoria press classes as more of an online resource than a class as they do almost no grading, and they don't grade quarterly exams or chapter tests if you read closely the class descriptions. It seem they mostly just have self checking quizzes and online lectures. God Bless, Sandy harrison

I have had much more luck with the Latin classes taught at Regina Coeli Academy. True I teach there now, but my oldest two kids went through their entire Latin and philosophy program before I was ever asked to teach Math and science. The Henle series gets it done with the young students, and the Wheelock series gets it done with High school students really interested in classics. My kids have had both. The teachers are great, the time deadlines for homework, tests, and exams are motivating. many many hand graded assignments by teachers every quarter as well as self checking quizzes. Homework is gone over in class. they can also post questions in their class forum. Audio as well as text and white board is used. Most kids pass the National Latin exam with this set of courses. We have many who earn medals with that. The descriptions of the classes are here. Wendy is most helpful if you call there with questions. God Bless, Sandy Harrison

Write Guide and Writing consultants in house are used by Regina Coeli Academy. If you use Write guide alone then you have to come up with assignments from your child's classes. Or you can do a set program, but then that is another thing in addition to your kids's courses. I found it hard to come up with assignments so I was glad when the assignments in the Humanities program at RCA were incorporated into the writing program. The more you integrate courses the more streamlined you get and the more learning happens with less time. RCA students get a 10% discount on their write guide costs. The writing instruction coordinates with what ever literature or history course your child is doing. It really got my boys to learn to write essays well. the feed back is daily, and withing 24 hours of emailing the assignment effort to the teacher. If your child does the humanities program, the writing assignments are automatically incorporated into the class. You just add an consultant with the program. The certified (by NARS) credits are that you get one for history, one for English and one for composition. The Progymnasmata program is free standing and is really good too. My kids have done both programs every year and love it. I never got writing out of my oldest until we did this program. He won a writing symposium with an essay several years after using this program. I love it because as a math and science person, I am clueless about teaching writing. I did not want tons of expensive curriculum and still have to do the work of teaching myself. Good Luck, and God Bless, sandy harrison

Regina Coeli Academy has classes in all the areas you are looking for. The logic and philosophy classes are phenomenal as are the Latin classes (which we would never finish if we did not have the deadlines and the teacher interaction.) The live classes, audio, text, and white board interfaces, the fantastically quick response of teachers, the interaction with students, and most importantly the deadlines, really help my kids. They just don't work for me alone as well as others. But they like me helping them with their classes. My kids took classes for four years before I became a math and science teacher there. We take all the classes because I have 7 kids and can't manage without it. As a teacher there I can answer any questions you have about it. but check out the website and the course offerings for both HS and Junior program. Registration ends Aug. 15, and late registration begins after that with higher fees. Just sharing what works for us, and if you need more info email me or call the admin. Wendy is very helpful! God Bless and good luck, sandy Harrison

My son was in the new Chemistry class for Regina Coeli last year. I was also a helper in designing this class as I am head of Math and Science department for Regina Coeli Online academy. The teacher, Mrs. Kootz was excellent. The class used virtual labs. Having my son in the class in its inaugural year allowed me to see both sides of the class. There are changes we are making this year, such as doing a dual track: there will be honors track and a general chem track so that both types of students may take the class. They will take separate tests and quizzes and the same live class (3x per week, white board, text and audio) More info here Every one passed with high marks, and it was very challenging with out being overly so, or requiring more than an average of an hour a day. As a parent, then I recommend the class highly. I don't know if there are other members of this board that had kids in our online science classes last year, but I do think there are some. email me if you need more info, I'd be glad to answer any questions. God BLess, Sandy Harrison

HI, did this with my kids two years running a few years ago. We basically quit because of all the running around and seldom did the rest of the kids in the coop take the classes seriously and actually do their homework so as to participate. Some of the classes they took were ok. like Art and music and band. Things like that. The academic venture was a wash. I was teaching Latin and Pre-algebra. I did it initially for the help in teaching so many kids (5), and the social interaction (no one around us home schools) and keeping a good Christian environment. Here was my experience with the classes I taught: when the going got rough and the material got hard or the pace picked up, kids would whine about the work load, and not do it. The parents would eventually drop the class and quit coming and say something about doing things at their own pace: translation we are not that serious about school work. I would end up with one or two students in my Latin and Math classes and since I committed to teach, I would have to keep coming for just that number of students. What happened in my children's classes was that kids dropped out, A teacher failed totally to put on the play they all worked hard to get ready for, and it was just a huge disappointments. Some parents are good teachers, some are not. Basically, my kids had to redo the work at home the next year in math and science because the running around and lack of seriousness rubbed off on them. There were no consequences for not doing work and that rubbed off on them despite my efforts. IMO a school would be better than what we did because there would be consequences, and the kids would take the school seriously. If we ever did it again, we would just do the fun stuff like art and sports. But its an hour away now so with gas like it is, we will not participate. The classes have a cost associated with them, but not high enough to make the parents care a whole lot about them here. IMO the home school parents want the work done, but dont want to deal with a true hard and fast schedule. Every one seems to be about "flexibility", which really means they never really finish courses because its just not that important to them. I hope your experience will be vastly different. They way a cottage school is set up, and the attitude of most of the parents, and the consequences for not doing homework will determine the outcome. All of those can be different for any given group. God Bless, sandy Harrison

Hi, I chose the Lial series of Algebra books for Regina Coeli Academy' math program up thru Algebra II. The layout and scope and sequence are so logical. We get amazing results with it. I like the fact that the kids also enjoy the book. We use it for Prealgebra through algebra II (her intermediate algebra). The book itself is terrific. If you do it on your own I would get the student solutions manual. Our online classes use the online interface (I am pretty sure its only available to schools) which I, and the students, absolutely love. feedback on the homework is instant, and students can click to get step-wise help. They can attempt problems three times, then the answer and how it is worked is given. Then they can click to do a similar problem. What happens is a new problem with the same parameters but different numbers gets generated algorithmically. I especially like the feature with the testing. We assign a practice test/quiz before each chapter test. After completing that, the student has a customized study plan of problems assigned based on missed problems and objectives not mastered. more about the class. If you already have the book, a subscription to the Math Lab is 57.00 and is for one calendar year. You can also read more about mymathlab at http://www.mymathlab.com God Bless, Sandy Harrison

Thanks for welcoming me. This is such an interesting forum, I wonder why I did not know about it before. You Ladies really have the low down on whats available and your reviews and comments are so helpful. I already have a cache of new sites and curricula to explore. Since so many of you are doing on line courses, and there was a bit of confusion about my courses, I thought I would mention that we have several new courses starting at Regina Coeli Online Academy many of you might be interested in this year... I hope is is within the parameters to announce these late additions of courses to you here. The dead line for normal registration is August 15th, late registration after that comes with a $100 fee. Physics, (I teach this course and have been preparing it for 2 years now) physics is my College Major, and I taught Freshman physics labs and problem solving sessions in Graduate school. I am doing a simultaneous track of Conceptual Physics and An honors Physics Class designed to help the student pass the AP B physics Exam. Both are algebra based prerequisite: Geometry and Algebra II (we do basic trig in Geometry) This course will have a philosophical dimension as I am nearly done reading the The Science Before Science, by Anthony Rizzi. A marvelous book about exactly how to correctly think with science. I am also going to take bits and pieces from his new physics book and pass those gems onto students. Michael Behe returns for the Third Year in a row to lecture to our biology students twice for two whole class periods of 1.5 hours. The entire student body is invited to the first talk, the second which is just entirely made up of student questions and comments and discussion with Prof. Behe is just reserved for the Bio students. His book is required reading in the Bio course. Latin Translation class taught via email. Sister Marguerita is the instructor. Wheelock's II or equivalent is the prerequisite here. Junior Catechism class: grades 6-8th. Father Terrence Gordon, FSSP, instructor. This is a class we have been working on for a year! We have always had a great theology instructor and set of classes. This is the first year our Junior Program has such a course. Text: St. Joseph Illustrated Baltimore Catechism. (It has been called St. Thomas Aquinas distilled) Father worked all summer on notes from Aquinas, selecting the most important pieces in each volume of the Summa and re-writing them in layman's terms. He will pass these on to the children. God Bless you all in the up coming school year! May God grant all our children and families patience, perseverance, wisdom, and success in our endeavors ! Sandy Harrison

I came across this forum in a search for info and deiced to stop and join it is so interesting. I also decided to answer this post as I am well qualified to do so :) As the Head of Math and Science Dept. for RCA, and the teacher of the Biology course for the last four years, I would just like to offer my website for biology, for the record. http://www.reginacoeli.org/mrsharrison/biology The website includes reason why we chose this text, and how it is supplemented (heavily with online books by Pearson and Holt.) and used with a perspective that most Catholics are looking for. I prefer a text book that does not treat evolution as an absolute entrenched fact and organizing feature of biological information and that is also respectful of creation AS an act of God. I do not use Wile for any other texts than life science and biology because I consider his books "lite". But the pro-life perspective, and the respect for God as creator was important for us. As for the Geometry, I teach that too, and it can be taken independently of the biology course. http://www.reginacoeli.org/mrsharrison/geometry God Bless, Sandy Harrison