Homeschooling for highschool

[brandigirl]

Hello I am currently a rising Sophomore and this year I decided to home school because my family travels alot. Since it was my first year I wanted something reputable that generated transcripts for me. So I decided to go with Keystone Online School. It is a wonderful school but I have come to realize that my schooling does not have to be so structured this year I took.

 

AP World History

Honors Biology

Honors English 1

Geometry

Spanish 2

Digital Media

 

The courses was cool and the idea of everything being in one place is nice but I don't like that to much anymore and bedsides they are not the cheapest curriculum. So I started exploring my options and came up with the following.

 

1. Take classes at the local community college i.e. dual enrollment

2. Use FLVS for some of my courses . (Maybe seems kinda public school)

3. Keystone classes

4. Saxon Math

 

Any other ideas on what I can do science is my favorite subject and I am really good at writing essays and poems so English is also pretty easy for me. Math is not my strong suit but when I can work at my own pace and study with different methods I can do well. I plan on taking a very rigourous course load this year and if I stay with keystone this is what my schedule will look like

 

AP European History

AP Chemistry

AP Lit and Comp

AP Environmental Science

Honors Algebra 2

Spanish 3

 

I will also be taking dance 3 times a week for an hour and volunteering and the local dog rescue. Any tips or ideas would be wonderful :bigear:

[Lori D.]

Welcome to the Board, and welcome to homeschooling! There are several high school students who are new to homeschooling, are pretty much self-directed in their home education, and who participate on this board (LuvingLife and Tigersgrowl, for example).

 

Sounds like you've got a great plan going! Your first year you went with a more traditional and structured approach to ease the transition into schooling at home, and now it looks like you have some great ideas for branching out and individualizing your education. And, you've scheduled a good balance of academics and extracurricular. :)

 

 

Things to consider in your sophomore year:

 

1. Sign up in August at a local high school to take the PSAT as practice for your junior year. It is only $10-15, and a very high score in the junior year can earn you scholarship money from National Merit.

 

2. What class is in your schedule that helps you pursue a personal interest? Or would that be the extracurricular of dance?

 

3. Perhaps consider some involvement with a local homeschool group -- a co-op, student council, monthly youth social activity, etc. It is very nice to "connect" with other homeschoolers for friendship, mentoring, advice, etc. You may find you meet people with similar interests -- or may develop new interests or hobbies through making friends. You can see firsthand what other curriculum looks like. Or, you may be able to set up a "mini co-op" for science labs, or literature discussion, or other aspect of education that is hard to do "solo" at home. And other homeschooling families with experience in dual enrollment can help you avoid pitfalls.

 

Also, it helps for your senior year if you want to go through a graduation ceremony. (For example: Tigersgrowl has joined her state's homeschool organization so she can participate in the graduation ceremony at the end of this, her senior year.)

 

4. Consider registering at the FREE College Board website -- they will email you a monthly newsletter with very helpful information geared toward your year of high school so you don't miss deadlines. They also have helpful information for preparing for college. You would also sign up to take the SAT test at the College Board in your junior or senior year.

 

 

re: ideas for math curriculum

If you are wanting to move away from so many online courses, or want a bit more flexibility of doing math at your own speed, you may find that a program with a DVD or visual lesson component to be very helpful to "see" a teacher explaining the concepts and to be able to replay as often as you need:

- Chalkdust

- Videotext

- Saxon's supplemental video options: DIVE computer CDs or Art Reed tutorial DVDs

 

If you are looking for an interactive computer math text, consider Kinetic Textbooks. And for math video tutorials to supplement whatever math program you go with, check out:

- Khan Academy -- free

- ALEKS -- for a fee

- Math Relief -- for a fee

 

 

re: community college

Check into your state's policies on dual enrollment (i.e.: simultaneously high school AND college credit for coursework taken at the community college). It can be a great deal, especially if your state offers a discount for high school students taking classes there. However, there can be downsides, too, so look through those policies carefully. Our older DS (last year, 12th grade) took 2 semesters of Spanish, and while we had to pay for it, he received dual credit, had a great teacher, received early exposure to college, and it was an all-around excellent experience for him. However, it was quite expensive, and we had to jump through a LOT of hoops. Also, if you don't sign up early enough, there are no classes available -- here, to get the classes you want in the Fall semester, you needed to have signed up during the previous Spring semester.

 

 

Again, welcome! And BEST of luck in your coming year of homeschooling! Warmest regards, Lori D.

Edited July 28, 2011 by Lori D.
added link

[brandigirl]

Thank You so much for responding the websites you gave me were wonderful! I loved the free ones I think I am still between Saxon and Kinetic. These three look like wonderful additions to a curriculum

- Khan Academy -- free

- ALEKS -- for a fee

- Math Relief -- for a fee

 

Do you have any idea how I can make transcripts for this year? Do I need to go under an umbrella school or something of the sort or can I do it on my own. My interests lie in the scientific field. I am going to be taking the psat this October at my local high school. As far as finding a homeschooling group in my area that has proved to be difficult but I have found some that I am interested also my neighbor home schools and she is my age :) I am also registered with college board they are an amazing site. As for the community college it is provided free for home schoolers which is wonderful. I only have to pay for the books so I plan on taking some there. Does anybody have any experience with Saxon for algebra 2?

[In The Great White North]

You do not have to have an umbrella school just for a transcript. There are formats online you can use or you can just create your own.

 

Another source (pricier) is PA Homeschoolers, for AP courses.

[jpklehm]

:lurk5: Great information!

 

Pam

[Lori D.]

- HSLDA website: article on transcripts, with links to resources

- Donna Young website: free downloadable/printable high school planners, sample transcripts, articles on highschool planning / recordkeeping, etc.

- Lee Binz, The Home Scholar website: free newsletter, short videos; also for-purchase homeschool high school book and resources

- Transcript Boot Camp DVD, Transcript Pro software (for a fee transcript-making resource)

 

 

It's not too hard to make your own transcript; try a google search with "homeschool transcript sample", "high school transcript template", and variations on those and you'll come up with a number of samples.

 

Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

PS -- On a side note, be SURE to keep your own records and copies of anything from Keystone -- I have read several times on this board of homeschoolers who worked with an umbrella school to keep their records for them and generate their transcripts -- only to have the umbrella school lose information, mis-record it, misplace information, or generate a wrong transcript!! Best to be sure you are keeping track all along yourself and carefully monitor what the outside accountability organization is doing for you record-wise and transcript-wise!

Edited July 29, 2011 by Lori D.

[brandigirl]

Thank you so much Lori D. I was also wondering does anybody have any experience with Saxon math for Algebra 2? I want to go for it but I am nervous I will not be getting everything I need or how colleges will look at it.:confused:

[brandigirl]

bump? anymore advice :confused:

[LuvingLife]

Thank you so much Lori D. I was also wondering does anybody have any experience with Saxon math for Algebra 2? I want to go for it but I am nervous I will not be getting everything I need or how colleges will look at it.:confused:

 

Hey brandigirl!! So nice to meet you (kind of:D) and I am glad that you made it to the boards. You will find everything you need here and probably extra things that you weren't looking for, I know I have. Like you I am going to be a junior next year and there are many things to consider since colleges isn't far off anymore. I have struggled time and time again, but I am finally making the progress I need to and I feel more confident in schooling myself than I have before.

 

But in answer to your question about Saxon math, I believe it would be a good choice, but I must ask you one question, are you familiar with their format. From what a lot of people who have used or are currently using Saxon math, they have a particular format that you kind of need to be familiar with. They have their own "lingo" so to speak. So I suggest you buy a used copy or check around on the board (the search bar is awesome) or continue to ask questions until you get the answer you will be satisfied with.

 

I have no experience with Saxon, but you will definitely be prepared for college if you use Saxon. I do not use Saxon but I do use Lial's and I am going to be taking an online algebra 2 class with Jann in Tx who uses the exact book I will be using.

 

I hope you find the answers you are looking for, and if you have any quesitons I will be glad to try and answer them to the best of my abilities!

 

Good Luck!

[brandigirl]

Thank You so much I am not familiar with the format of Saxon but I pretty much not familiar with any format of math :D. I have been in public school up until 8th grade and it was math suicide! The teacher covered almost 17 chapters and 1 semester because we had fallen behind in class due to other kids.:glare: I almost died not to mention I missed a month and a half due to an illness. I can honestly say I left that math class not remembering a thing I passed with a B but I didn't truly understand the material. I am probably going with saxon because I am thinking I just need to look at math from a different perspective If I hate it i wont use it again. I found this curriculum for chemistry that looked so good its called spectrum Chemistry. It has like 30 labs and I read samples of the text and the information just clicked! but then I started reading on this board that it did not cover enough information for AP Chemistry which is what I need to take this year I was kinda hoping I could supplement it with something else to make it work. but if I cant I will have to take an online course. I am most likely to take AP Euro with FLVS since it is free.

[Hunter's Moon]

Hey Brandigirl, welcome to the boards!

 

Like Lori D. said I'm also a self-directed homeschooler. I only have one year under my belt so I can't help all that much, but I'd be more than happy to talk with you about self-directed teaching in general and things that have made my transition from a structured school to completely going it alone easier.

 

This forum is wonderful and you'll find the members here very informative and kind.

 

Another math program you might consider is Lial. I haven't used Algebra 2, but this google search should help if you're interested. Lial books are cheap and laid out perfectly for self study (IMO). I used Lial Precalculus with much success.

 

Stephanie :seeya:

[brandigirl]

Thank You so much I was looking at Lial's but keep going back to Saxon maybe I will do some more research on Lial's . I am really hoping to find a perfect curriculum by August 20 so that I can have evrything in by August 31 when I plan to start. Oh ! I have one question I plan on taking AP Lit this year and AP Lang the next but this leaves me wondering what will I do for credits in 12th also I will be skipping English 2 :tongue_smilie:

[jibaker103]

www.ck12.org offers math and science flexbooks for free. The science texts provide lots of links for labs, activities, and videos. The math texts correspond with www.khanacademy.com free videos. My son has used their Biology flexbook for this past year and I am thinking we will use it for Algebra 1 and Geometry.

[brandigirl]

Do you think that if I did Spectrum Chemistry and the supplement with flex books and videos I could be ready for the AP exam?

[Teachin'Mine]

I've held off on posting here hoping someone else would be able to give you better guidance based on the programs you're looking at, but I'll give my 2 cents for whatever it's worth anyway. :tongue_smilie:

 

Welcome to the forum!

 

As far as English, most colleges expect four years, so I would count on doing an English class in 12th grade. It can be another literature class, a creative writing class, a research writing class - anything that would count for a full credit.

 

For math. It sounds like you don't really have a good foundation due to time missed and all. Honestly, I'd suggest starting with algebra 1. Lial's or Saxon would both be fine. For Lial's I would recommend taking a class with Jann in TX if you can. If you go with Saxon, I'd recommend doing every problem and re-working every missed problem until you get it right. I'd also start by taking the online, and free, Saxon placement test to make sure algebra 1 would be the right place to start. If you learn well from a text, you should be fine doing Saxon from the text, but if you prefer visual and a "lecture" format, you might want to supplement with a video tutorial like DIVE or Saxon Teacher or others.

 

Regarding chemistry, I think you'd be fine doing Spectrum this year, and then after getting a solid algebra 1 or beyond, I'd do a more math intensive chemistry course. I don't know enough about Spectrum to know if it would be enough prep that you can jump right into an AP afterward, or if AP chemistry requires higher math skills. You can ask Stephanie, but the math in Apologia chemistry is challenging and that's just a "regular" high school text. Maybe an AP class in biology would be more within reach if you've already done a regular biology class, and the amount of math wouldn't be a concern.

 

Are you seriously looking at colleges on the level of Yale? If so, you'll need to be doing lots of test prep for the SAT/ACT tests and should be taking the PSAT each year for practice. I don't know your reason for taking so many AP courses - have you taken others before now? - but you may want to consider SAT II tests as they test more for achievement in the high school level of the subject rather than college level.

 

I'd also suggest that you do some searching here, and go to some sites - Christian Book Distributors is good - to look inside some of the books you're considering. That will give you somewhat of an idea of how they read and if the style of teaching is agreeable to you.

 

Researching a lot before you buy anything is a good idea. :) I don't know if cost is a concern, but if it is, you may also want to check if your local high school would be willing to lend some books to you. If you have a teacher you connected with last year, you can also ask him or her for some help. Often schools have books on hand which have been sent by publishers, which are never even used.

 

Enjoy planning your sophomore year! :)

Edited July 31, 2011 by Teachin'Mine

[kiana]

Do you think that if I did Spectrum Chemistry and the supplement with flex books and videos I could be ready for the AP exam?

 

Spectrum really isn't an AP course. It's a college-prep course that would prepare you very well to *take* a college course (which is what AP is). You'd have to follow it up with a college-level chemistry text to make it really AP.

 

I don't really like the idea of jumping into Saxon at Alg 2 after not having used it before; I'd be more inclined to recommend something like Lial's. Furthermore, if you felt that you really didn't understand Alg 1, I'd take some time to review that before starting Alg 2 as it is pretty foundational.

[AngieW in Texas]

http://www.brightstorm.com has free videos for high school math and science as well.

[AngieW in Texas]

You can jump into Saxon starting with any level up to Algebra I. I've never heard of somebody successfully using Saxon who started with a level higher than Algebra I. I woudn't use Saxon at gunpoint, but I know there are people who love it.

 

If you're wanting something that has instruction included, I'd go with Kinetic Books, Lial's (has DVTs), Teaching Textbooks, or Chalkdust. I love Kinetic Books for Algebra I and Algebra II. That's as high as it goes right now, so I'm switching my middle dd to Lial's for Precalculus. I used Larson's (Chalkdust text) for Precalculus for my oldest and really didn't care for it.

 

If you're not sure about your Algebra I foundation, you might want to go through all the Algebra I videos at http://www.brightstorm.com and then sign up for a one-month trial of aleks. Once you can get up to the 90% level in aleks, you'll be fine to move on to Algebra II. It probably wouldn't take you more than a month or two to get up to speed in Algebra I. If you don't want to try aleks for this, you could pick up a cheap copy of any Algebra I text that you can get student solution manuals for and just work through the tests to see what areas you need to practice more.

http://www.aleks.com/webform/bn1-154

 

Spectrum definitely is NOT an AP course. I'm using Tro's Introductory Chemistry for the class I'm teaching this year. It isn't AP either, but it's definitely a big step up from Spectrum (used that with my oldest because I knew she wasn't going into a science field). If I was doing it with just my dd, I'd use Labpaq for labs; but since I'm teaching this as a class with 7 students, it's cheaper to use a lab manual and buy all my own supplies. A complete kit is going to be the cheapest way to do labs for a single student.

[kiana]

Also adding: As of right now, you don't have the mathematical prerequisite for AP Chemistry (Algebra 2 is almost always a prerequisite -- FLVS doesn't have AP chem listed, and Keystone lists Alg 2.)

 

This is a prerequisite because they expect you to use, understand, and apply Algebra 2 in AP Chemistry. It's very difficult to pick it up as you go along unless you're very talented mathematically.

[brandigirl]

Wow thank you with all these answers sorry I haven't been able to respond but I have been busy with my keystone work. Anyway thank you for clearing that up about the English that had me worried a bit. I must have confused everyone saying I didn't learn anything in that class I didn't but then when summertime came around a got an Algebra book that covered all of algebra 1 and algebra 2 and relearned everything with help from my mom I understood everything that I why I am not worried about taking Algebra 2 along with AP Chemistry. Also have been watching lecture videos for AP Chemistry and I pretty much understand everything (I learn much better reading the text). As for standardized testing I am going to take the PSAT this October plenty of AP Test and maybe a few SAT 2 tests.

[Teachin'Mine]

Sounds like you learn very easily, so the standard rules probably don't apply. Take whatever you think you can handle and you can always use high school texts for reference when you need more clarification. You must have been bored to tears in school. :)

[memphispeg]

Brandi-

My dd liked Foerster's Pre-calc. book v. much. If you can do Alg. and Geo. and Pre-calc. with him, it would probably be great. We had a text, soln. manual and instructor's resource guide (he outlined all the assignments and pacing of the chapters). You can do quite well buying these used (older editions are cheapest) on-line.

AP chem really requires some high school honors level chem. first. The pacing of the AP classes is really fast and if you have not had a regular chem class, you might get lost quickly...even if you are trying it just by yourself. I would suggest looking at college-level inorganic chem. books and seeing if you can understand what is going on there. If you are comfy, then go AP. College level texts (older editions again) can be really cheap used....and there are all sorts of supplements available too.

For english, make sure you do loads of writing every year. You can do a lit. class of some sort (Am. lit, world lit, eng. lit, etc.) but, make sure you are writing everyday. We are superimposing the Lively Art of Writing on our lit study this year. It makes a nice framework for response papers. We developed Rhetoric skills last year during Am. Lit. (AP language and composition style class).

We just started last year and will hopefully finish up with our high school this year. This forum is a great resource....I've learned so much. Looking forward to following your journey....And always remember, learning IS fun!!!!

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Thank You so much I am not familiar with the format of Saxon but I pretty much not familiar with any format of math :D. I have been in public school up until 8th grade and it was math suicide! The teacher covered almost 17 chapters and 1 semester because we had fallen behind in class due to other kids.:glare: I almost died not to mention I missed a month and a half due to an illness. I can honestly say I left that math class not remembering a thing I passed with a B but I didn't truly understand the material. I am probably going with saxon because I am thinking I just need to look at math from a different perspective If I hate it i wont use it again. I found this curriculum for chemistry that looked so good its called spectrum Chemistry. It has like 30 labs and I read samples of the text and the information just clicked! but then I started reading on this board that it did not cover enough information for AP Chemistry which is what I need to take this year I was kinda hoping I could supplement it with something else to make it work. but if I cant I will have to take an online course. I am most likely to take AP Euro with FLVS since it is free.

 

 

You might want to check out the Open Course offerings that different universities have. They can give you a full syllabus with readings and sometimes even video lessons. However, they often don't come with an assessment, so you would need to come up with a way for a grade to be assigned (get someone to write you tests, write papers or do an oral board, take SAT Subject Tests or AP exams). One example of open courses are here at UCCP

 

If you're struggling with math, you might want to check out some of the books that put math concepts into plain language. It might help you to "see" what you're doing when you hit math again. I like [/url]series, but there are others like the Demystified series.

 

Will you be traveling with your parents? Does that make a CC class harder to manage?

[brandigirl]

I will look that up for math. As far as AP Chemistry I have done many sample lessons from different resources and understood them well. I have taken an AP class before and even though they are faced paced I like the fact that they elaborate in topics. I used to hate reading a textbook that would leave me wondering and having go off to the internet to learn more about it. I never really did this for math:D.I usually don't have this problem with AP textbooks. I will definitely look into the Lively Art of Writing because I love to write essays. Any other suggestions or tips :bigear:

[brandigirl]

bump:lurk5:

[Storm Bay]

Thank You so much I was looking at Lial's but keep going back to Saxon maybe I will do some more research on Lial's . I am really hoping to find a perfect curriculum by August 20 so that I can have evrything in by August 31 when I plan to start. Oh ! I have one question I plan on taking AP Lit this year and AP Lang the next but this leaves me wondering what will I do for credits in 12th also I will be skipping English 2 :tongue_smilie:

We've used both Saxon (but not for Algebra) & Lial's and I lean toward Lial's; my dd learned math on her own for the most part even though I am the one who decided she should homeschool (her dad & I decided). She did Lial's for Algebra 1.

 

If another one of my dc does Algebra at home in high school, I hope to have them do Jann in TX's online classes; she, along with other math gurus here, have been very helpful.

 

My dd was young, so did Algebra 1 a second time (not because she didn't do well) with another book, but it's too hard to find a solution manual (it's very old) & there are no DVDs, etc for it.

[brandigirl]

Thank You so much for everyone help but my mom wants me to go with more online classes so my schedule will look something like this:

 

AP Literature and Composition(FLVS)

AP Chemistry (Keystone)

Algebra 2 (Saxon)

AP Environmental Science (FLVS)

AP U.S. History (FLVS)

Spanish 3 or AP Spanish (FLVS)

[brandigirl]

Hey guys well I thought everything was decided but then I started looking at Apologia Advanced Chemistry. Has anybody had experience with this? Also would it qualify as an AP course???

[Storm Bay]

Hey guys well I thought everything was decided but then I started looking at Apologia Advanced Chemistry. Has anybody had experience with this? Also would it qualify as an AP course???

I don't know, but I think this has been discussed before, although it can be hard to find threads on this since you can't do quotes. I'm bumping this for you, but I think you may want to start a new thread asking this if you haven't already.