Country Girl Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 I'm considering Science Shepherd Life Science and BJU Life science (dvd or textbook) for my ds this fall, and was wondering if anyone can compare or comment on them? How much time do they take your student to complete? Do they both cover an adequate scope of topics in sufficient depth? Did you find one easier to use than the other? Did your student enjoy one more than the other? I realize Science Shepherd doesn't have a lab kit or book specifically designed for it, but I will likely use the Logos Science Kit with either program, so that isn't as much of an issue. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CourtneyBrooke Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 I've never used SS so I can't comment on that, but I can't say enough good things about BJU. DD used their Life Science online course last year and learned so much! It takes about an hour a day to watch video, read text if applicable, complete tests and quizzes. Minimal parental involvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Home Alabama Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 We've used both. My dd used BJU Life Science two years ago. It was her first real text-book type class. Two primary lessons evolved early in that year: first, learn how to read a text-book and sencond, learn about life science. As for the first point, we truly practiced finding the main idea in a paragraph. Dd practiced outlining. She had to learn how to get the information out of the book and into her mind. She had to learn how to study and pass "real" tests. This was challenging. We had to make BJU work for us; therefore, dd took open book tests until she got the hang of what kinds of questions would likely be on a test and how to study for the tests. Toward the end of the year, she could take the tests closed book. All of this was a huge learning process. If you use BJU, don't be afraid to make this program work for you. The science part was wonderful. Mrs. Vick was terrific. The lessons were engaging; the experiments were interesting; and the entire course was VERY organized! My dd's two younger brothers were in 5th and 2nd grades, and I made them watch the videos as well. The oldest son gained quite a bit of knowledge from the experience, and the youngest just loved Lab Rat! Oh, the 7th grader truly did NOT like Lab Rat and Investicus Questicus.(sp?) She simply thought these were childish. Sometimes having to watch a 30 minute lecture every day with homework/study on top of that became burdensome since dd was having to *learn* how to learn from that text. I think the worst part was that the course was expensive since it was a rent-only agreement for the DVDs. All-in-all, BJU Life Science was worth every penny. Oh... a major difference- BJU is heavy on seeing science through a Christian worldview. We are Christians, and that didn't bother us at all, but I can see where it could turn some off if that aspect wasn't desired. SS is written by a Christian author, but the text isn't preachy at all. You can read Dr. Hardin's perspective about this in his FAQ section. My middle child is now a 7th grader.... the one I mentioned was in 5th grade above... and we chose to try SS Life Science with him. SS has a completely different feel. There is a well-organized schedule, so ds knows exactly what to do each day. He reads a portion of text and we go over that portion together. I use the Teacher's Notes and read facts that correspond to information in his text, and he checks that information in his book. There are also Topic Questions from the Teacher's Notes that I ask him. As part of the discussion time, he finds the answers orally and writes them down in a notebook. This student also had to figure out how to get the information out of the text and into his mind. He figured out a way to study over the course of first semester, and he's making wonderful grades. The method the Dr. Hardin laid out is working. SS isn't nearly as expensive as BJU. The biggest con is the labs. Dr. Hardin has not written a lab for Life Science. Instead, he has you purchase a general lab book that he schedules to go with his text. It is all too easy to not have supplies or just to skip experiments. This is mostly my fault. Yet, with BJU, Mrs. Vick showed (at least some) experiments. (My memory is foggy as to how many experiments we viewed and how many we actually did.) Even if we didn't *do* the labs, we could still see them. In this way labs were incorporated much better with BJU than with SS. SS is written and illustrated clearly. There aren't a lot of distracting pictures. Some of the text is in a small size font.... I remember that being an issue with some when I was researching this program. It hasn't bothered my ds, but I can see why it would be a bother to some. The method of reading, reviewing material, answering chapter questions, reviewing chapters and testing works. More than one chapter is tested at a time. I thought this would be a problem with my ds, but it has not. As for choosing between these two, it will truly depend on your students learning style. The visual learner will enjoy BJU much better. The auditory learner will enjoy SS better. I have not compared the Scope and Sequence between the two, but they seem very close. I'm strongly considering SS Biology for dd when she is in 11th grade, yet I have not made any decisions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Country Girl Posted April 22, 2013 Author Share Posted April 22, 2013 I've never used SS so I can't comment on that, but I can't say enough good things about BJU.... CourtneyBrooke~ Thanks for the reply. Everything I have ever heard/read about BJU life science has been good. It seems like this is a top notch program. We've used both.... Sweet Home Alabama~ Thank you so much for this thorough reply. I'm not quite sure where my ds falls as far as auditory versus visual learner, but I'm thinking he leans towards auditory. He is turned off by anything that can be considered childish (he forgets that he is a child himself :tongue_smilie: ), so that would be a mark against BJU for us. He has been using Derek Owens Physical Science this year, and it has been a great fit for him. He likes the straight-forward approach, and the independence of the program. It has also given him a good opportunity to take guided notes from lectures. However, I think his ability to take notes and pick out the main idea from a text is an important skill he is weak in. So I'm glad to hear that both BJU and SS could be a good avenue for him to learn this skill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Home Alabama Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 CourtneyBrooke~ Thanks for the reply. Everything I have ever heard/read about BJU life science has been good. It seems like this is a top notch program. Sweet Home Alabama~ Thank you so much for this thorough reply. I'm not quite sure where my ds falls as far as auditory versus visual learner, but I'm thinking he leans towards auditory. He is turned off by anything that can be considered childish (he forgets that he is a child himself :tongue_smilie: ), so that would be a mark against BJU for us. He has been using Derek Owens Physical Science this year, and it has been a great fit for him. He likes the straight-forward approach, and the independence of the program. It has also given him a good opportunity to take guided notes from lectures. However, I think his ability to take notes and pick out the main idea from a text is an important skill he is weak in. So I'm glad to hear that both BJU and SS could be a good avenue for him to learn this skill. Just thought I would mention.... Lab Rat and Investicus Questicus are small pieces of the whole BJU Life Science curriculum. If I remember correctly, Lab Rat and IQ present the information in each new chapter. My oldest was able to endure these little presentations with an eye roll. They only lasted a few minutes....15 mintues or so. Then everything else became "respectable" again- something she didn't despise. I say all of that just so BJU isn't dismissed completely because of these characters. Some students would enjoy this kind of silliness; others would not. Just depends on the student. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Country Girl Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 Just thought I would mention.... Lab Rat and Investicus Questicus are small pieces of the whole BJU Life Science curriculum. If I remember correctly, Lab Rat and IQ present the information in each new chapter. My oldest was able to endure these little presentations with an eye roll. They only lasted a few minutes....15 mintues or so. Then everything else became "respectable" again- something she didn't despise. I say all of that just so BJU isn't dismissed completely because of these characters. Some students would enjoy this kind of silliness; others would not. Just depends on the student. Thanks again! I'll have him view the online samples, and see what he thinks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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