BakersDozen Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 My 13yos is struggling through Apologia General Science. There is no way he can pull off Apologia Physical next year simply because he hates to read and while he is a decent reader Apologia is just too much. Is there a science program that is more "reader friendly"? I feel bad for this kid because he tries his best; I gave him the choice of programs and he chose and stuck with Apologia yet confessed to me this morning that he is really struggling and frustrated. His other work is 9th grade level and involves quite a bit of reading (the Iliad, for example) so I want to give him a break. I don't want him to develop a hatred for science simply because of a text that is overly wordy. Thanks, ladies! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 What about DIVE science? He can watch the lessons on the computer. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 The audiobook of Apologia is only about $15. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BakersDozen Posted January 30, 2011 Author Share Posted January 30, 2011 The audiobook of Apologia is only about $15 Just ordered it, thanks! I told my ds that he's about to begin the modules on DNA/Human Body and he may find those more enjoyable so we'll just keep going, finish this year out and perhaps find something different for next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nan in Mass Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 I haven't seen Apologia, so maybe this isn't helpful, but just in case it is... I had to show my son how to read a textbook. He was reading the textbook sequentially, but that doesn't work very well (at least not for us). I had to show him how to first go through and read the objectives, the section headings, look at the pictures, read the bolded vocab and their defs, and look at the questions at the end, then ask himself what the chapter was about, then ask himself what he hoped to learn about as he read (things to be curious about so he could pay attention), and then after all that, when he knew what to expect and had made himself interested, read the chapter sequentially, preferably taking notes as he went along. If it wasn't making sense, I had him read each paragraph a few times and then try to tell it back to himself in his own words. If it still didn't make sense, I had him rewrite each sentence in his own words and then read his own version. Sometimes it was just a matter of telling him to read a section three times before he gave up. He was just reading through it once like a story and then complaining that he didn't understand. He had to learn to do a different sort of reading to figure out descriptions of complicated processes, etc. That was our problem, anyway. -Nan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Nan, I like that idea. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacy in NJ Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 If you're not doing it already, I'd sugget braking the text into bite sized pieces and assigning a few pages every day. I assign science reading (Apologia Physical) every day (Mon-Fri). I require note taking during reading and review those notes myself to determine whether ds is getting the most relevant info down. In a typical classroom setting, the student would be listening to a lecture/discussion on the material nearly every day prior to or after reading the material. I think that feedback loop is important for understanding/retention. It is a distinct disadvantage that we, as homeschoolers, learn to a certain extent in isolation. Some kids need more interaction. Again, it you're not doing it already, I'd suggest trying to engage in the text with him. HTH, Stacy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 I second this for the series. The audiobook of Apologia is only about $15. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.