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TheAttachedMama

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Everything posted by TheAttachedMama

  1. English + Lit: Integritas Academy Underclassman class Math: Finish AOPS Geometry start Derek Owen's Precalculus Social Studies: AP Psychology (PAH) Science: Honors Physics Derek Owens Foreign Langauge: CLRC Latin III Not for credit: Policy Debate and Public Speaking, Mountain Bike Racing, ACT Prep
  2. Hi Everyone, Please share your best tips for putting together a school routine for a VERY SQUIRMY (and school-resistant) 9-year-old boy. He does a lot better when he knows what to expect each day, so I would like to put together a routine for him and just "stick to my guns" about it for a few days. Which do you find is most successful? To do all of your "desk work" first? To do all of the content subjects first (history, science, read aloud, bible, etc.). Or maybe to alternate between those things that are at the desk (copywork, spelling, math) and subjects that are more listening-based (history or literature, etc.)
  3. Hello Everyone, I am hoping you can help me solve a mystery. I met a very sweet homeschool mama at a speech and debate tournament who was telling me about a wonderful blogger who walks you through step-by-step how to put together a transcript and "documentation package" (not sure what that is???). She told me that she used the process this lady suggests for each of her kids. I wrote down the name of the blog, but I accidentally threw it away when I was cleaning out my purse. Any idea of which blogger she may have been talking about? I have been using Lee Binz as a source, so I know it is not that website. Thanks in advance for any help, Cathy aka The Attached Mama.
  4. I am not an expert. (I am going through the process along with you!) But I have asked around and more experienced mamas have told me that colleges only "skim" course descriptions at best. They might read one or two in detail to get a general idea of the homeschool since homeschools tend to be all over the place with academic skills. SO I wouldn't expect them to be read very carefully, and I certainly wouldn't expect that they are familiar with every textbook and know which ones are "college level" or not. If I were you, I would say that the class used "college level" material in the course description (just in case they read that one!) AND list the textbook/materials. What do you have to lose by putting that in there? Just my 2 cents. Of topic.... (Don't quote...just musing "aloud"...) This sort of makes me question my homeschool philosophy at times. My son took a very difficult chemistry class (Adv. Honors Chemistry) and let's just say he no longer has a 4.0 ---plus he spent hours and hours per day on the class. He would work on school from 8AM to 6PM M-F...sometimes as late as 9PM, plus 4-5 additional hours Sat and Sun. (He had some other rigorous classes on his plate too. But this chemistry class took a lot of time. More than his AP classes). I felt like my poor son was often stressed, didn't get near enough exercise, and seemed to be working way harder than any of his peers...even kids doing DE. I actually missed spending time with him and often thought that I was working him nearly to death! At the end of the day, all I can call this class is "Advanced Honors Chemistry" on the transcript though, and write a course description trying to convey that it was a challenging course. (A course description that colleges may or may not even "skim"....Right?) In hindsight, my son probably wasn't ready for the class, but it is what it is at this point. On the other side of the spectrum--- My friend had her son complete what she is also calling "Honors Chemistry" too. ( He used the advanced apologia book which is a lot easier. ) He currently has a 4.0 on his transcript AND he was finished with school most days by 1PM, M-Th only (took Fridays and weekends off). He is also able to use his free time to study for the ACT a LOT, work outside the house, read a ton, develop interests/intern, volunteer, etc. etc.....which certainly gives him an advantage. SO--what is the outcome at the end of the day? Both students will graduate with a class called "Honors Chemistry" written on their transcripts. But one student will have a 4.0 (without working nearly as hard) and the other will not. One student will also have gathered all of this awesome life experience that may help them with life and spent a lot more time prepping for high stake tests. On paper, it seems to me that the child who took the easier path may be at an advantage---which makes me wonder why we are working so hard? I try to tell myself that my son will have it easier if he takes Chemistry in college, but I also know plenty of friends whose kids "only" used Apologia and they did just fine in Chemistry in college.
  5. Yes, we own that book too! It is really cool! It takes forever to download, but don't give up.
  6. My son would LOVE to do an online study session too! He is very social and likes to work with others. 🙂 FYI...the mom was talking about total time spent doing chemistry each day: reading the textbook, watching videos, extra study time for exam, and homework/practice problems.
  7. Hi Everyone, My son is enrolled in the AP chem class given by ChemAdvantage/PAH (Mr. Peter Moskaluk). I heard on a Facebook group that another student was spending 5 hours per day on this class. Is this the case?! My son is a slow worker so this is making me nervous.
  8. I personally used a Casio graphing calculator all through high school and brought it with me in college. It was awesome and so much better than a TI
  9. Yes, I have owned that same book for a couple of years. It is OK.... Last summer I had my DS go through it. I just assigned him a few pages per day. He just took a practice ACT and I realized that he forgot half of what he learned to do on his calculator. Back to the drawing board. My DD is going through Algebra II, so I am looking for a review program.
  10. I was just going to say...Paul Noble! Although, by 8th grade, I would just start him in the regular program. (Not the one for kids.). I would also require daily Duolingo or flashcard practice to build/maintain vocabulary. ETA: The Paul Nobel program (available via Audible) goes over JUST speaking and listening to French. If you want to work on the same skills with reading and writing, there is an ebook available via amazon that goes with the program. (OR just work on speaking and listening. Another alternative is to get actual speaking practice with some iTalki native French speakers. But I would only invest in that after you get through the Paul Nobel program.
  11. @cintinative, may I ask what you ended up going with? My DD is currently going through Derek Owen's Algebra II class, but he doesn't give much help with learning to use a calculator. I am thinking of having my son and daughter go through some sort of calculator boot camp this summer. The TI-84 videos don't really go very deep. BTW-- I did notice that the video course you linked to above is free on YouTube.
  12. Hi Everyone, I have a 14-year-old daughter who has dyslexia. I am thinking about trying "How to Teach Spelling" with her over the summer. Can anyone tell me what exactly I need to order? I am unsure of which workbook she might need. Thanks!
  13. I am looking for a decent self-paced precalculus course for my son next year. Can anyone compare and contrast Larson Precalculus with Derek Owens? Thanks!
  14. I wanted to tell you that REAL Science Odyssey Level 2 has some fantastic microscope labs and demonstrations. (It is also on sale this weekend only.) You could do a whole year focusing on mastering the microscope. I know REAL Science 2 is not technically "high school"--but after viewing just about every High School Biology program out there, I always thought, "The microscope labs in REAL Science were so much more complete and easier to understand" 🙂 Just to clarify, I am not suggesting you use REAL Science 2 as your only high school program. But, I think you could use that as your lab component and skip Explore Biology as I recommended above since EB is so dissection heavy. I would also have the kids read through a high school-level textbook to bring the course up a bit. I would probably align the textbook reading to the lab layout order of REAL Science Odyssey 2. (Just a note that evolution is covered in both the book and in REAL Science Odyssey.)
  15. We did a very lab-heavy biology course for my son. We used the Miller Levine Biology book as the main text/content source. Then, we used Experience Biology for the lab component. Experience Biology also has some lecture videos which round out the Miller-Levine book that is read. (We lined Miller Levine topics to Experience Biology.). I can email you the plans if you want. I have them typed up on homeschool planet, so they are easy to export as a PDF. Experience Biology alone is pretty light IMHO, but the lecture videos were interesting and fun to watch. Experience Bio also suggests another different textbook, but we found the Miller-Levine text to be top-notch. The labs all have video demonstrations which we found to be REALLY helpful with biology in particular. (ETA: Teacher-MOM time was once per week during the labs. I wanted to oversee things mainly. The rest was expected to be done independently. The quizzes/tests on Experience Biology are all self-graded by the computer. They are really light. I assigned additional research topics that I had to grade once per week too. They were short summaries written by the student on outside reading on topics related to Biology--or they could choose to "solve the chapter" mystery in the Miller Levine book. I also had to student learn to write a formal lab report for the first time.). Here is a list of our labs -- all from Experience Biology. You can buy a lab kit here: BIOLOGY LAB LIST Using a Compound Light Microscope Lab Reports and Drawings Comparing Cell Structures in Plant and Animal Cells The Impact of Light on Chlorophyll Production, Part I The Impact of Light on Chlorophyll Production, Part II Viewing Mitosis in an Onion Root Tip Basic Genetics Exercise Punnett Squares Inheritance Simulation Creating a Classification System Microorganisms in our Environment Observing Fungi from Three Different Phyla Observing Protists Stem, Leaf, and Root Tissue Lab Examining Reproductive Structures in Flowers Introduction to Animal Dissections Earthworm Dissection Sea Star Dissection Clam Dissection Crayfish Dissection Dogfish Shark Dissection Fetal Pig Dissection Chicken Wing Dissection Circulation and Respiration Lab Comparing Reaction Time Examining Human Epithelial Tissue Lung Excretions Exploring Global Biomes
  16. hahaha! You are too funny! Thank you for all of your help and sorry again.
  17. Another question: How do you justify what is honors? ETA: Also, if anyone could share a quick screenshot of how you clarified this on your transcript, I would be very thankful.
  18. I ran into a similar problem trying to make tests for the AOPS Geometry book. I was racking my brain on how to reproduce the various drawings that are often included with geometry problems. I ended up just taking screenshots of the problems and inserting them into a word document. I am not sure if that would be an option for you? Here is a screenshot of one of our tests.....
  19. It's transcript time! I'm just curious about how I should handle AP courses on my transcript. Thanks!
  20. We found the discussion board "help" to be lacking. My son and I actually had a lot of fun joking about how terrible it is to ask for help on the AOPS board. (We had to laugh to keep from crying!) I know the TAs were trying to help without giving too much away, but sometimes they are so abstract and vague that I wouldn't even call what they were giving "help". Here is how a typical exchange might go between students: Student: (Works for HOURS on a problem, and finally resorts to asking for help. Types up a VERY specific and detailed question that also details everything they have tried so far....in a cryptic manner that won't give away anything to other students.). (Waits for 24 hours for a response.). TA: (Replied to your question with another question.). "I see you have tried a, b, c, d, e, and f...but have you also tried g." And the student will reply: "Yes, I forgot to mention that I have also tried g, h, i, j, and k this afternoon. I am still stuck." (Wait another day for a response) TA: "Great. Why don't you try l, m, n, and o then try p." (Wait another day.). Student: "Yes, I have tried all of that. I've also tried q, r, s, t, u, and v. Any other hints? I can't quite figure out this specific thing." (Wait another day) TA: Replies with some abstract answer that doesn't actually provide any information and resembles something you might read in a fortune cookie like: "Sometimes the answer isn't where you first look for it." or "Sometimes you must travel far to get to your destination." Student: "Yes, obviously the answer isn't where I first looked for it. That is why I am contacting you for help. And how far do I have to travel to get some help? I've now tried w, x, y, and z. " 😉 (Wait 24 hours) The student happens to figure things out on their own. TA: Meanwhile replies with another abstract sentence or question. Like, "You must often search where you least expect." Let's just say that there were a LOT of wasted hours going back and forth over their "text-based" platform. Sometimes you just need to SPEAK to someone in real time. You know? Luckily my mom is a retired physics professor. So sometimes he would have to call up his Nana and ask a quick question. She was able to give him a hint without answering the question in like 5 minutes. SO MUCH less frustrating and time-consuming to get help in real time. But not everyone has a Nana who is a physicist. 😉 SO--if you aren't strong in math yourself, you may want to get a tutor AND pay for the online class. I personally wouldn't expect much help from the TAs. They mean well, but it feels a bit like trying to troubleshoot a complex computer problem over email. Just my 2 cents.
  21. Hi Everyone! My 14-year-old DD has really been struggling this year in school. My husband is asking if it might be best to hold her back a year and have her repeat the 8th grade. Her birthday is mid-April, so this would mean that she would be 19 when she graduates high school (the last month of school basically.). What ramifications would this have on her getting into college or any other options she might want to pursue post graduation? I want to make sure I make an informed choice.
  22. Yes, we have outsourced English for the past few years. I guess it has proved that the problem isn't just with me as their "teacher".
  23. Yeah--this is what I have been doing for years. I guess the reason I am feeling so annoyed with both my kids is that I tell them to proof read their papers and read them aloud several times. They hand them to me with a bunch of errors...(things I know they know better about.) Then I edit it their paper and hand it back. And sometimes, they don't even fix all of the errors I marked on the paper. I guess I just don't know how to motivate them.
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