Looking for ideas for fall

[Guest]

I am looking for ideas for my 12 yr old son who is mathy and sciencey. I am tired of spending money on curriculum he finds boring or below him or blows through in a month or 2. (yes, OM5 lasted one month.) He would rather read than write. At the moment, I have him working on some way too easy (I think) stuff for him. He has no LDs but is active and hits frustration easily. His handwriting is a mess (and seems to be getting worse!) so the computer is his friend. He would like to learn Latin. He is ready for more content but not ready for the more output required. I am thinking about Apologia Science, actually. He wants to read big brother's books but not do the work. I am looking for all subjects.

 

Thank you.

[acurtis75]

Here are some ideas/thoughts based on what we're doing...

 

We use Apologia Human Anatomy and really like it. My daughter is only 6 but reads on a high school level so she's somewhat writing resistant too. The journaling notebook is great...sometimes I let her answer the questions orally and write them in for her. There is a lot of content so it's not a breeze through kind of book. (dd read the whole story of the world history book in a few days but the science book she only reads a few pages at a time because it's so content rich)

 

As for Latin, we did Song School Latin (probably too easy for 12 yo), then Prima Latina (writing intensive and a bit dull) and now are on Latin For Children from Classical Academic Press. I would recommend it highly. Get the DVD, student book & activity book. The writing is minimal per lesson in the student book and the activity book makes the writing fun (crossword puzzles, matching games, etc). We've only been doing this a few weeks now but so far dd loves it...she now asks if we can do Latin first every day.

 

You didn't say what math curriculum you are using but have you tried math-u-see? It's self paced and emphasizes being able to do problems in your head as well as on paper. We like it and are moving through it rather quickly (finished Alpha, Beta & 1/2 of Gamma over the last year and a half).

[Guest]

Those are very helpful, thank you.

 

We are using MUS and flying through.

 

I will certainly check out the Apologia. Likely, he will be doing Rainbow Science along with his older brother, though. (Apologia Bio. bombed with my oldest.)

 

The Latin recs. are great! I had been eying LfC but wasn't sure. It looks like Latin Alive is the starting point for older kids.

[Embassy]

Maybe go the library books route for science? He can read in depth about different topics or his or your choosing and you can have him do a computer based project describing what he has learned using Powerpoint or a video program.

 

We do a 3 tier method for math. We are at one level for drill, one level for our standard math program, and another level for concepts. For instance this year we have read books and watched DVDs on math concepts a couple of years ahead of our standard math program. Just wanted to mention that in case you think it could work for you.

[serendipitous journey]

We're years away from this, but here are a couple of enrichments/curr. that have caught my eye lately ...

 

livingmath.net's lesson plans for the older ones.

csmp??? for math stuff

teaching company: esp. for science; try your library first? The lectures come with suggested readings, some popular and some quite hard to find, so it would be a bit of work to plan ahead for his readings, but this would be a fun way to get some excellent information. Perhaps to parallel his Apologia? (though the assumption is evolutionary/old earth. if that's a problem, the math courses would be a better bet)

 

If he's ready for more content but not more output, might he like programming? MATLAB/C++ would be terrific and are fabulous skills for a math/science person. I don't have any links for those; tutorials abound, but you'd prob. want a program that gave him intrinsically interesting problems & had him code up solutions.

 

good luck! and :bigear:

[Embassy]

Oh, and check out opencourseware for science related topics. There are some great lecture series available at no cost.

[obsidian]

Art of Problem Solving Math?

http://www.artofproblemsolving.com/Store/curriculum.php

[acurtis75]

I haven't checked out the Latin Alive curriculum because we are starting so young but I will say I think the LFC is quite challenging. I didn't take Latin in school so I'm learning it right along with DD. We're only on lesson 3 but it's pretty intense. It's presented in a fun, light-hearted way but it's certainly not easy. I can't imagine starting with anything more difficult than this,

[regentrude]

Check out Art of Problem solving for math.

IMO the best math curriculum for a student who is interested in, has fun with, and is good at, math

[LisaKinVA]

Based upon the age... I'd lean more towards Latin Alive than LFC. The DVDs with LFC are of younger girls... and an older boy may find them "babyish" (unless they've been updated in the last few years). Latin Alive was written more towards middle school age. Latin Alive #1 will cover essentially LFC A & B, has DVDs, and if we weren't doing Wheelocks through VP Academy online, that's where I'd be going.

 

Math... definitely look at AoPS. But there are some books ABOUT math that may prove helpful too (Euclid's Thirteen Elements kind of things).

 

Science... Teaching Company videos would be a great compliment to anything. Open courseware, Khan Academy... etc.

 

There will probably be places you will have to "put your foot down." But, I know how tiring it is to fight. So, I'm trying to pick my battles. Just because things come easy, my son still has to learn how to work and apply himself. He had a "lightbulb" moment while at West Point for a Boy Scout event a few weeks back. He now understands that to reach his goals, he has to be willing to work. Hopefully, that "lightbulb" won't dim for awhile.:001_smile:

[Ester Maria]

For Latin, if he is strong in language, check Wheelock's or, if that seems too ambitious or too dry at his age (no wonder, many react that way as it is originally a college text), try Latin for the New Millenium.

 

For math, another vote for AoPS.

[Guest]

Silly me, I never thought to check the library for Teaching Company lectures. Using the library for science is what we have done for years. I wanted a nice organized program. I will certainly check out the other suggestions. Thank you.

[love2read]

Rainbow Science will bore him. What about The Einstein Project and Art of Problem Solving? I made the mistake with my oldest son, who is gifted, of using regular material that was just advanced. This does challenge the younger child, but once they are in their teens they become restless and need programs that stretch them to think creatively with material that is challenging. Average textbooks rarely do that.