Question regarding Omnibus (Veritas)

[at the beach]

Does it matter which order one does the courses in? My dd has expressed an interest in studying American History next year. It looks like Omnibus III would fit that best out of the three levels. I had thought we would do Sonlight American History but the more I think about it, I think that she might really enjoy VP Omnibus, especially if she did an online course but I don't know that we can afford that! ETA: I see that most of the sections are already full for all three levels. Must be popular. Goodness. So, if anyone has insight into which teachers are especially good that info would be much appreciated, too.

 

Also, can Omnibus III be considered American History? ETA: I see the give it a credit in modern history US and British, so it doesn't seem like it would be a complete overview. Also, ETA: It looks like a ton of work, and upon closer inspection of the books, I am not sure that 8th grade would be the best time for them. Looks like Omni II would be better in that regard IMO. Anyhow, the work load looks steep for all levels. How much time are your kids spending on Omnibus every day, including time online if they are taking the classes? I am also not sure if that's good for next year as she will be doing other classes that will take a lot of time--Latin, German, science and math.

 

Finally, is Omnibus really that wonderful? Or does it just look wonderful? ;) What are the bad points about it? On the SL board, I recall one mom said she thought it would be much more rigorous than SL but that in the end, SL was a better fit for her child and what she considered just as rigorous. This is the first time I have considered Omnibus for my kiddo. She'll be in 8th grade in the fall, fwiw.

Edited February 21, 2010 by Violet

[at the beach]

Anyone?

[SonshineLearner]

After studying about Omni, I would have her do Omni II and then III and then go back to Omni I. I wouldn't do Omni I first... Although, at 8th... it's not as much as starting I in 7th.

 

Veritas Press Yahoo Groups has some info you can look at...

 

:-)

[JudoMom]

I don't know if this will be helpful, but I asked about starting Omni III in 7th (and taking 2 years to finish), and here are the answers.

[at the beach]

Thanks, ladies! After looking closely at III, I agree it's best to not do that one first. She probably wouldn't want to do I first, either, so II probably would be the best bet if we do it.

 

Just not sure if it is going to be too much as she will have lots of other stuff going on.

 

Thanks again. :001_smile:

[Gwen in TX]

I would say you need to do the volumes in order. Some of the Omni assignments assume you have already done the other books. They will link an essay idea from year 1 concerning a theme they discussed in one book with something they want you to consider during year 3.

[SS in MD]

I'm considering Omnibus III for my dd as well, though she'll be going into 9th grade. I also looked into VP Scholars Online, it would be great for dd to take it online, but don't know if we can afford it!!! We haven't used Omnibus before and my first thought was omni (primary alone) looked like a lot of work, can't imagine adding the secondary readings... but that's just from looking at the online catalog samples. So, I'd love to hear what others that have used the program think. I plan to look at Omnibus at the local homeschool fair coming up in April... still haven't decided WHAT dd will exactly do next year - wish it were an easy decision!

 

For those that didn't use VP online does Omnibus include a daily schedule to keep dc on track throughout the school year?

 

Thanks so much,

Good luck on your decision -

Sangita

dd(14),dd(12),dd(9),ds(6)!

[at the beach]

I would say you need to do the volumes in order. Some of the Omni assignments assume you have already done the other books. They will link an essay idea from year 1 concerning a theme they discussed in one book with something they want you to consider during year 3.

 

Thanks for sharing this. I have not heard this before. I have heard others say they did them out of order and it didn't seem like it was an issue. So, this is another thing for me to think about and look into further.

[at the beach]

I'm considering Omnibus III for my dd as well, though she'll be going into 9th grade. I also looked into VP Scholars Online, it would be great for dd to take it online, but don't know if we can afford it!!! We haven't used Omnibus before and my first thought was omni (primary alone) looked like a lot of work, can't imagine adding the secondary readings... but that's just from looking at the online catalog samples. So, I'd love to hear what others that have used the program think. I plan to look at Omnibus at the local homeschool fair coming up in April... still haven't decided WHAT dd will exactly do next year - wish it were an easy decision!

 

For those that didn't use VP online does Omnibus include a daily schedule to keep dc on track throughout the school year?

 

Thanks so much,

Good luck on your decision -

Sangita

dd(14),dd(12),dd(9),ds(6)!

 

Hi, Sangita, The online course is expensive. And I decided if we did it, we'd only do the primary readings with the online course. The time spent online doing both would just be overwhelming for my kid. She'll have a few other online courses as well. She likes them but I can't imagine her sitting online for hours at a time every day, either. Good luck to you to! :001_smile:

 

ETA: I'd also like to know for those of you who have done Omni online or on your own, how many hours per day did you spend with it, including the time spent online for class?

[swimmermom3]

Violet, I'm going to approach your question from another angle. One of my sons did SL 100 with tweaking for 8th grade. We replaced some of the easier readers with more difficult works and added in the test packet from Hewitt. One of the moms on the SL forum has created a study guide as well. We also replaced Book 6 in the Hakim series with The Civil War video series by Ken Burns. PBS offers a variety of activities that involve primary source work. You could purchase the IG and the Hakim syllabus (Hewitt Homeschool) for under $100 and get your books and videos from the library.

[at the beach]

Violet, I'm going to approach your question from another angle. One of my sons did SL 100 with tweaking for 8th grade. We replaced some of the easier readers with more difficult works and added in the test packet from Hewitt. One of the moms on the SL forum has created a study guide as well. We also replaced Book 6 in the Hakim series with The Civil War video series by Ken Burns. PBS offers a variety of activities that involve primary source work. You could purchase the IG and the Hakim syllabus (Hewitt Homeschool) for under $100 and get your books and videos from the library.

 

Thanks, swimmermom3! :001_smile: I like your suggestion, and I really like the idea of the Civil War video series. Do you know if SL Core 100 includes using primary sources? I thought one of the Hakim books had primary source documents in it but maybe I am wrong??? Anyway, I still do like the idea of SL. I think it would be fun for her as long as the IG doesn't bog her down.

[SS in MD]

I'm still pondering about history ... now considering doing an AP course thru' PA Homeschoolers instead of Omnibus III. I was thinking instead of doing yet another history curriculum, at least with AP she'd could try for college credit. AP Human Geography seems to be the "least rigorous" according to many on this forum, but dd said it sounds "OK", (she's not totally enthusiastic about it). She would like to take AP World Hist, but it's for 11-12 grade or "very advanced" 9th graders... don't know if she has that amount of time, and I don't want her to so worn out in 9th from taking such a fast paced class... anway guess I'm rambling here. I plan on looking into the Human Geography texts and see how 'heavy' the reading is and let dd take a look at the course description on collegeboard.com.

 

Good Luck and let me know what you all decide.... high school seems so daunting to me!

 

Sangita

[Julie in PA]

While it is recommended that Omnibus be done in order, it is not a must. Many people in the the VP online program take it out of order for several different reasons. The classes are 1 1/2 hours twice a week. When the students were polled about reading time outside of class, the said they spent about 2 hours a day for primary and secondary combined. Remember that this counts as 3 subjects. I think it does sound overwhelming if you think of it as 1 subject.

 

I know I am late coming on to this thread. I am sorry if you have already had these questions answered.