StephanieZ Posted October 16, 2009 Share Posted October 16, 2009 Is anyone using the SYRWTL Science series for older elem/jr high? What's the scoop? Any reviews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted October 19, 2009 Author Share Posted October 19, 2009 OK, so I see noone is using it!! Is there anyone who has looked into it and decided NOT to use it? Why not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greta Posted October 19, 2009 Share Posted October 19, 2009 I've thought about using it too, for next year. So I hope you get some replies, but if you don't, you could try here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/galore_park_user_support/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted October 19, 2009 Share Posted October 19, 2009 We're using SYRWTLS 1, and I liked it so much that I went ahead and bought the Junior book for my 3rd grader as well. We're only about 7 weeks in, and we're using a different program for labs this year, so I can't comment on the SYRWTLS labs... But I love the textbooks. What did you want to know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted October 19, 2009 Author Share Posted October 19, 2009 Ohh, that's great Abbeyeyej! Tell me, is there any lab involved at all? If yes, why did you choose not to use it? I got the impression NOT and so was thinking of doing SYRWTLS along with a couple of TOPS books (and related reference materials) so we'd have the spine covering the major bases and then the TOPS for experiment practice, etc. (DC love experiments, too, so that is important for us.) What are you using for lab? Are you correlating it with SYRWTLS at all or just doing it as a separate subject. Did you buy the teacher materials (on CD rom I believe). Are they helpful? (I am already a member of that yahoo group! Not much help there, either! Seems like not many folks are using the science as yet.) TIA!!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Stephanie, if there are labs, they're on the CD. In fact, I *assumed* there were labs on the CD, but I didn't buy it, so I don't know. The book itself has readings followed by exercises (matching, short answer, drawing and labeling a diagram, critical thinking, etc). We're using the Thames and Kosmos Middle School Core Science lab kit and *not* correlating it to SYRWTLS. Basically doing them as two separate subjects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawna in Texas Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 We used this. We enjoyed it. I didn't buy the CD-Rom because I didn't want to pay for it. They have labs in the book that you read rather than do, but are very clear. I think it would be easy to line up various labs to go with it. There were various charts, graphs, and diagrams that we did do. My dd is really really interested in Life Science, and she found a middle school text for really cheap at a used book store (she was attracted by the frog on the cover) and wants to do that this year. I wasn't going to stop her. :D She wants to continue with SYR book 2 afterwards though. I will probably get a lab kit or two at that point. I really credit SYR for giving her such an interest in science. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted October 20, 2009 Author Share Posted October 20, 2009 Awesome feedback. Thanks sooo much! About how much time a week (over how many weeks) do you think the book takes to complete? (I.e., how much time to schedule) TIA!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Stephanie, ds reads and keeps a notebook for all of the exercises. I think he spends about 2 hours a week doing those things, and we should finish the book in 35 weeks. Some weeks more, some slightly less, depending on how much writing there is to be done. One *could* spend more time, certainly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawna in Texas Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Stephanie, ds reads and keeps a notebook for all of the exercises. I think he spends about 2 hours a week doing those things, and we should finish the book in 35 weeks. Some weeks more, some slightly less, depending on how much writing there is to be done. One *could* spend more time, certainly. It's meant to last the school year and this is pretty much what we did. Two or three hours weekly depending on if we had to do a graph or diagram. Those seem to take longer than the writing, but I'm not sure if that's normal :D It did take us 14 months to do the book because I had a baby a few months before we started. We had some 'real life' science that year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I'll be the desenting reviewer. I owned levels 1 and 2 and I thought they were very light, simplified overviews. Perhaps it is b/c my kids aren't used to using textbooks but reading entire books on topics from the library, but my kids and I both disappointed at how little info/explanation existed in the books. I honestly can't imagine using them by themselves b/c the gaps in explanations are quite significant. I can see how they would work if there was a teacher teaching the lesson and making the larger connections via lecture. But on their own......I think there are much better sources. Even PH Explorers, which I only consider OK, are better than Science Prep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ummto4 Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Momof7, So what is your favorite science textbook ? Or do you mainly give your children any book of interest ? Dian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Momof7, So what is your favorite science textbook ? Or do you mainly give your children any book of interest ? Dian I don't use science textbooks until late middle school (7th or 8th grade). My kids read whole books on topics for about 30-45 mins per day. Most of the time the topics are interest driven choices by them. When they don't have any ideas, I will steer them toward different topics. Sometimes I give them a list of 3 or 4 choices and let them select from one. I think that Plato's middle school science selections are a decent overview prior to high school. 2 are easily completed in a single yr. All 3 are doable by a science loving kid. Those are a good transition from a whole book approach to a more standard textbook approach for high school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I actually feel that they are deceptively deep. Much more so than the other textbooks we considered (including the Science Explorers series). Not a whole lot of *words* or clutter, like so many other elementary and middle school texts, very cut-to-the-chase... But also not fluffy or filled with extraneous matter. That said, I *was* looking for a textbook to serve as a spine. One to which we could add additional reading or not, as the subject and time/interest allowed. I can see why Momof7's approach might be better. But it was not happening in our house. Since we needed a textbook approach, I was happier with this than many others I've looked at over the years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I don't use science textbooks until late middle school (7th or 8th grade). SY Science 1 is designed for year 6/7 (5th/6th grade in US terms) and SY Science 2 for year 7/8 (6th/7th grade in US terms). I suspect that they weren't pitched right for you. That said, I skipped UK KS3 (middle school) biology completely with Calvin and went straight to an early high school programme, which delved deeper and was more interesting. We are now going through a KS3 programme - not Galore Park, just something I had on hand - in chemistry and physics, in order to align Calvin's learning with the UK standard before he goes to school. It seems rather bitty. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ummof3 Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 I'm intrigued. We're just starting out and I'm finding myself quite liking the Junior Maths and Junior English. I'd like to use them as spines (I have Right Start Maths lined up and am using FLL and WWE) and am wondering if the science would be a good spine. I might just go ahead and get the Science to see what it is like. Does anyone (Laura?) know if the worksheets are worth purchasing? They aren't cheap but I don't mind buying them if they will be useful. I'm in the middle of a house move and have a new baby so the more material I have pre-planned for me, the better. regards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 Does anyone (Laura?) know if the worksheets are worth purchasing? They aren't cheap but I don't mind buying them if they will be useful. I'm in the middle of a house move and have a new baby so the more material I have pre-planned for me, the better. regards There's a sample on the site though, so that might give you an idea. Best wishes Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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