JeanM
-
Posts
1,334 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Classifieds
Store
Posts posted by JeanM
-
-
I also found a neat flash card style music theory app for the Ipad that includes ear training exercises (recognizing intervals).
What is the name of the app that you are using? That sounds like it would be useful. Thanks!
-
We're also using the K12 Human Odyssey as a spine for the second cycle.
-
I am very curious: did the IQ test really tell you anything you had not found out by yourself about your son???
We tested because the school requested it, and there was nothing in the result that we had not known from observing and interacting with our kid... except for a specific point value. Nothing I need to know to be a better parent or teacher. So, I am very curious about this. I knew that DD was gifted, that her greatest strength was in languages, but that she is gifted in math as well and that she is a perfectionist.
I can understand testing if a child has obvious difficulties and one has to diagnose whether the child has low IQ or a learning disability or ADHD.. but a normal kid? Not getting it.
As for retesting IQ every few years: that completely boggles my mind.
I think the IQ testing was helpful for us. I knew ds was gifted, but in our family he seemed fairly "normal." Looking at his numbers made me realize that he really is pretty far outside the norm. And while we knew he had "issues," it was helpful to see which subtests were low for him. His percentiles ranged from something like the 20th to 99th (I don't remember exact numbers) so he had a huge range of abilities. The only reason I could see for testing again would be if he needed it for some school/program.
As far as reading levels go, I never really used them for my dc. When they were first learning to read, I could usually tell by scanning the book if they would be able to read it. I did give my oldest some reading level tests just to make sure he was progressing, since he was not an early reader.
-
Many thanks to both of you! Off to make more plans for next year...
-
My 14 yo is in AP Chem through ChemAdvantage. She did AP world history with me last year and is doing both AP micros with me this year. ChemAdvantage did not ask her age or grade, though AP Chem is typically an 11th or 12th grade class. She is doing well in there, but she is definitely putting in some hours.
Terri
Thanks! That's really helpful. I'm assuming that "AP micro" is economics. Is there a particular curriculum you are using for that?
-
My very smart, very hard working 9th grader is taking AP Bio this year. She had a year of chem already and this class is *huge* for her! She probably studies 10-15 hours a week. I think the classes vary, but the amount of memorization and chem in this class makes it particularly difficult. That said, the instructor is marvelous and yes, there is an 8th grader in the class.
YMMV
jeri
Is the AP Bio through PA homeschoolers or somewhere else? It sounds like a great experience for your dd.
-
I'm thinking about trying to enroll my ds next year in an online AP class at PA homeschoolers. He'll be 8th grade by age, and the class says "grades 10-12." Does anyone have experience with trying to enroll a younger student at PA homeschoolers? Or with taking an AP class while technically still in middle school? I'm not sure if we have the money for the class anyway, but I'm exploring ideas right now.
-
They are studying a possible genetic component to perfect pitch. If you scroll down to the "nature vs. nurture," in the link below, they talk about how much more likely it is to occur among siblings. I have been interested in this because I have perfect pitch, but neither of my dc do.
-
Here's what I think we will do for 8th.
Classical Writing: Herodotus, Shakespeare
Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings, great books studies
Teaching company lectures including Early, High and Late Middle Ages, and Dante
Life of Fred Advanced Algebra with Khan Academy
Third Form Latin--probably using an on-line class
Story of Science: Newton at the Center along with some kind of Physical Science
Traditional Logic I
Possibly Human Geography with AP exam (haven't figured out the time commitment for this yet)
Spanish 2 through outside class
Either business computers or graphic design/digital photography
Performance choir, piano lessons
Horseback riding
Your 8th grade sounds a lot like what I have planned for ds. I was also thinking about AP Human Geography. Do you have a curriculum in mind for that?
-
Brilliant! Dd started graphing equations this week.
(TT does a great job of presenting slope-intercept & fractional slopes. Who knew?) :)
When my older dc did CD alg at home we photocopied pages of pre-written graphs. Younger dds might appreciate a dry erase board. Different colored markers and all that jazz.
I've never seen those dry erase graph boards. I laminated graph paper for ds a long time ago. I made two versions, one had the x and y axis labeled and one was just plain graph paper.
-
BTDT! I've found - for math especially - that it's best to mix things up a bit. We work with two curricula at a time usually, so that we can use one for a few weeks, hit a wall, and use the other for a few weeks. I also back off entirely some days, use strategy board games instead of math once in a while, and work on an entirely different type of skill sometimes. The nice thing about math is that there are so many subtopics that can be covered on so many levels, that it makes it easier to jump to something else without losing steam.
:iagree: Except I never switched to strategy games because then dc would always want strategy games. I found in Singapore that you could jump to a different section easily. If my dc were struggling I'd jump to something easy for them like measurements or graphs.
-
Sergeant Snow stopped for doughnuts. The main convoy continued on at 45 mph while Sergeant Snow was in the doughnut shop for one hour. After the hour, Sergeant Snow got back in his van and continued his trip at 60 mph. How long before Snow catches up to the convoy?
Here's my wrong answer: (Tell me why I'm wrong.)
1st hour: Snow goes 0 miles, convoy goes 45 miles.
2nd hour: Snow goes 60, convoy has gone 90
3rd hour: Snow has gone 120, convoy has gone 135
4th hour: Snow has gone 180, convoy has gone 180.
Answer: 4 hours.
Here's the author's answer:
Let t = the number of hours till Snow catches the convoy.
Then 60t = the distance from the doughnut store to the point where he catches up to the convoy.
Then 45(t+1) is the distance from the doughnut store that the convoy drives until it is overtaken by snow.
60t=45(t+1)
60t=45t+45 (distributive law is the point of the lesson)
15t=45
t=3 hours
Where did I go wrong?
The t in your solution and the t in the author's solution are different. Your t is the time beginning when Snow stopped for doughnuts (including the 1 hour in the store). The author's t is the time it takes Snow to actually travel the distance (not including the time in the store).
So you are both correct. Does that help?
-
We used a 1970's era Dolciani algebra book as a supplement to Life of Fred Beginning Algebra. DS wasn't bothered by the age of the book at all, actually I think he found it amusing that it was "ancient." I didn't have an answer key or solutions manual, but I'm very comfortable with algebra. The answers to the odd number questions are in the back of the book, but they are just answers.
If you want to know why we used an old Dolciani, there are a couple of reasons. It was really cheap (I think 25 cents plus shipping), there was a nostalgia factor since DH and I used that book way back when, and I'd read good things about Dolciani algebra on these boards.
-
When my older ds was young, he was very into science, especially marine biology. Now he is more interested in history, and he loves to read.
My younger ds is harder to categorize. He likes to read, but doesn't LOVE it. He is interested in history, but not THAT interested. He does likes to write stories, but I'm embarrassed to admit that he mostly likes video games. He doesn't get that much screen time, but he thinks about it and talks about it all the time.
-
Wow, this sounds like something my ds might like. Thanks for the idea!
-
What age is Patty Paper Geometry meant for? Geometry is dd's favorite part of math.
IIRC, Patty paper geometry says middle school or high school. We're using it with a group of middle school kids of varying abilities, and it is working well.
-
I'm trying to think about next year, although older ds might go to ps. If he doesn't, this is what I have so far:
Math: AOPS "Intro to Algebra" for Algebra II
History: Probably K12 Human Odyssey book 3 and National History Day
Grammar & Writing: not sure
Science: probably "Conceptual Physics"
Literature: Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings
Spanish: Hopefully Breaking the Barrier II
Art: ??
Trumpet, swim team, lego robotics, co-op classes, etc.
For younger ds (6th grade)
Math: AOPS Pre-algebra, maybe moving into algebra
History: Probably K12 Human Odyssey book 1 and National History Day
Grammar & Writing: Growing with Grammar and ??
Science: no idea
Literature: Maybe Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings
Spanish: Rosetta stone?
Art: ??
Cello, swim team, lego robotics, co-op classes, etc.
I'd love to add in a kitchen chemistry course and more music theory, possibly some music composition. They both did a lot of Geography this year, so I don't feel like we need to do a lot of Geography next year. A computer programming course would go well with their lego robotics, but maybe we'll try to do that over the summer.
-
Would you mind sharing why you are switching? I think we are going to start AOPS next semster, but I'm still looking at various options.
Thanks!
We're switching because we don't want to go back to what we used for Algebra I (Life of Fred and Dolciani). Life of Fred didn't work very well for ds, even though he really enjoyed the story line. DS really hated Dolciani, although it seemed to work fairly well for him. So to avoid many fights and tears, we're not going to try Dolciani again. DS is sort of liking Jacobs Geometry, but I don't think Jacobs has an Algebra II book.
My ds is one of those kids who has to know "why" in math, and he's very good at making logical leaps. So from what I've read on these boards, it sounds like AOPS might be a good match for him. Also, one of my colleagues IRL used AOPS when she homeschooled her son, and she highly recommended it for my ds.
I actually think we're going to try my younger ds on AOPS pre-algebra sooner, since he's almost ready for it. I'm hoping AOPS works for him, and we'll stick with it through algebra at least.
-
You are not reading their website correctly. Their Intermediate Algebra is for their alg 3 course. Alg 1 and 2 are in their Introduction to Algebra book, so completing the chapters he hasn't covered in alg 1 is pretty much a necessity. (ETA: I just asked ds, he said the first chapter of alg 3 is brief review of alg 2 but he would not consider anywhere near enough for mastery to move forward in their alg 3 book.)
FWIW, my ds jumped into AoPS Intermediate Alg after finishing the alg 2 portion of Foersters alg 2/trig book and did so w/o any difficulty.
Thanks so much, that was my error. I think we'll get the "Intro to Algebra" book and take it from there. I'm planning ahead for next fall, but I think I'll get the book now so I can take a look at it.
-
My older ds did Algebra with Life of Fred/Dolciani, and is now doing Jacob's Geometry. We'd like to try to switch him to AOPS for algebra 2, but I'm having a hard time figuring out how to do that. He hasn't covered everything in the Introduction to Algebra book, but he has covered a lot of it.
Is it possible to buy the Intro to Algebra book, but only do certain chapters in it? Or could you just start with the Intermediate Algebra book, since they do say there is a review a basic algebra?
-
So, my son has been kind of taking a detour, math-wise, for the last couple of years. He had finished Algebra I and Geometry before typical high school age and was ready for a break. He took the "Liberal Arts Math" from FLVS last year, and this year he's doing AoPS Intro to Counting and Probabilty along with a home-made crytology study. I had assumed he'd stay on the light math path, because he's been saying he was headed for a theatre-type degree.
However, just the last week or so, he's been saying he might want to consider some kind of engineering degree. This isn't a big surprise, as that was what I assumed when he was younger would be his goal. But he's been on a whole other track recently.
I'd like him to get a solid review of Algebra I before he jumps back into the traditional sequence. I had thought he'd do a lighter review over the summer, but now we're considering having him start Algebra II this summer, instead, meaning that I need to figure out the review thing now.
Does anyone have suggestions or ideas? I can't afford to spend money now, really not at all. So, this will have to be online or something readily available from PaperbackSwap or BookMooch or the library.
Thanks!
Khan Academy is free, and you could specify which badges or activities you want him to cover. Aleks is not free, but you can generally find a code for a free trial for a month. Maybe he could spend a month reviewing Algebra I?
-
I was never required to memorize the periodic table, and I took chemistry & AP chem in high school, and was a chemistry minor in college. I do know many of the elements and symbols from using them often.
I'm not sure I'd require the whole periodic table, since there are a lot of obscure elements that aren't used often. The first 20 or so sounds reasonable.
-
I'm just trying to figure out how to help him best. It's so frustrating to have him use a vocabulary above the way normal adults talk yet not be able to read leveled readers. The child won't even use the word, "right" it's "correct" or "accurate". Last night he informed me that something on tv was not "appropriate for a child his age". We will be heading back to the states soon and may let him try PS. I'm terrified a teacher will make a quick assesment of him, classify him as low, and treat him as such. I'm going to be walking on egg shells the first few months if we do send him back!
My older ds was a lot like yours when he was younger. He did not read early, but his understanding was very advanced. Now at age 12, his reading comprehension is extremely high. In math, he would never accept an algorithm, he had to understand it for himself. jenbrdsly put it very well that he was trying to learn math from a Constructivist perspective. It's been a wild ride, and often trying to teach this child has been very difficult! It is very worth it though, and I've earned every gray hair on my head.
-
I'm still not sure what the best approach for algebra for our son would have been; we ended up going back to more hands on instruction. I'm also not sure what the best materials would be after algebra 1 for 10-11 year olds. It would be great to find materials that worked well where he could go back to learning math mostly on his own again. We may try AoPS Counting and Probability or Jacobs Geometry or LOF Algebra 2 or something else. Any suggestions??
My 12 yo is using Jacobs Geometry this year. We're going to start using Patty Paper Geometry at our coop, which should work nicely with Jacobs.
I thought the AoPS Counting and Probability looked interesting, and they have a Number Theory book too, that also looked good. We went with Jacobs for this year, but may switch to AoPS next year.
Picking a Standardized Test Level for Asynchronous Kiddo?
in Accelerated Learner Board
Posted
:iagree: The PASS test allows different levels for different subjects.