Sweet Home Alabama Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 (edited) Has anyone used Derek Owen's Physical Science class? http://www.derekowens.com/course_info_physical_science.php I'm trying to plan jr high for ds who will be in 7th next year. He has expressed an interest in earth/space science, but I don' know how to squeeze it in. I'm pushing for life science in 7th and physical science (physics/chemistry) in 8th as a prep for high school physics and chemistry. Would this course prep for high school science effectively? Derek's physical science, however, includes some earth and space science!:party:I would be interested to know how difficult this class is, what kind of math is involved, and how much time it takes on average to use this. I think we would purchase the program to use at home to cut down on cost. Thanks! Edited February 14, 2012 by Sweet Home Alabama Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 (edited) In my experience, any science would prepare your student for public high school. FWIW, my oldest did Exploration education's science kit and Evan-Moore science workbooks in K-5 and very little formal science during his homeschool middle-school years and he's getting A's in his honor's earth science class at the public high school he attends. My youngest loves science and is working through the Derek Owen's Physical Science course (the home option, not the live on-line one). He works for 30-45 minutes a day on it. He does it all on his own (watches dvd, fills out workbook, does homework and tests). The math involved is unit conversions and simple algebra formulas. It covers all the topics you mentioned in your post at an introductory level. I think you could use it over 2 years (7th and 8th grades) if you supplement it with library books and videos and extra labs. The program is only scheduled for 30 weeks or so. HTH K Edited February 14, 2012 by NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheApprentice Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 My ds is using the purchased product. The math used is simple algebra, with about six or seven labs. He is pretty independent with his science, and he has stated this is one of his favorite courses. He's using it as an 8th grader and will be finished with the course within 8 months. If your son likes science, it can be done in 1 year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Home Alabama Posted February 14, 2012 Author Share Posted February 14, 2012 Thank you so much for replying, ladies. I e-mailed Derek Owens about this class and also got his permission to post his answer here on the forum. I simply asked about the physical class class. Here is his reply: The Physical Science class does not require much math. There are a lot of places where we perform simple calculations, but only a few places where we manipulate the equations algebraically. Most students take the class concurrently with Prealgebra or with Algebra 1. When we do use a little bit of algebra in solving some of the problems, I explain it slowly and carefully as we go, such as in this example: The best way to get an idea of the difficulty level would be to preview a few of the videos. The entire first two chapters are available for preview here: http://www.lucideducation.com/PhysicalScience.php and I have a lot of sample videos on YouTube as well: I originally wrote this course for a group of parents in California. I based it on Hewitt’s Conceptual Physical Science, 3rd edition, but I also was required to use a California textbook (Focus on Physical Science), so the course drew from both books. The course is designed to prepare students for high school Physics and Chemistry, and it also includes three chapters of astronomy at the end. The Physical Science course is available for purchase, as an online class, or as a live class in the Atlanta area. Let me know if you have any questions about any of these options. Also, the Physics course that I teach is the same course that I teach at Westminster (a private school here in Atlanta). We do Physics first there also. It might be something to consider when the time comes, and of course I’ll be happy to answer any questions. Get back in touch if you need more info, Derek Owens www.DerekOwens.com www.LucidEducation.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 Just a note to the OP. If you purchase Derek Owen's class to do on your own, don't buy the textbooks he mentions. They are not required for the coursework. I purchased them and have them on my shelf (for sale!). Of course, if you want to flesh out the topics, they might be good to have.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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