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I was on the phone with Kolbe Academy this morning (wonderful chat and great customer service, btw) about their Biology course.  I wanted to use their homeschool course plan, but was concerned that the book they use is getting dated (dragonfly Miller Levine Biology book).  They have adopted the new edition for their online course (mccaw book).  So I wanted to know if they were updating the course plan soon.

 

The word is that they are in fact updating their course plan to correspond to the new edition.  The expectation is that the revised course plan will be available at the end of the summer.

 

So...

 

If you already have the dragonfly book in hand and wanted to use the Kolbe course plan, you might want to get it soon, while they still have copies of that version.

 

If you are wanting a course plan for the new edition of the Miller Levine book, you might want to wait until August, when they hope to have the new plan out.

 

 

 

Also, online honors and advanced honors biology courses use Campbell Biology.  The Advanced Honors course is being submitted for review as an official AP course.  (They weren't sure if it would be approved without live labs.)

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If you already have the dragonfly book in hand and wanted to use the Kolbe course plan, you might want to get it soon, while they still have copies of that version.

 

Thanks for the heads-up!  I do indeed have a copy of the Dragonfly book in hand, and was thinking of using it and the Kolbe syllabus the year after next, so maybe I should go buy it later this summer!

 

Do you know if they will also sell the workbook and answer key if you don't sign up for the course (maybe they'll be happy to be rid of them at this point...)

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Thanks for the heads-up!  I do indeed have a copy of the Dragonfly book in hand, and was thinking of using it and the Kolbe syllabus the year after next, so maybe I should go buy it later this summer!

 

Do you know if they will also sell the workbook and answer key if you don't sign up for the course (maybe they'll be happy to be rid of them at this point...)

 

They sell the workbooks and answer keys (only to the questions actually assigned on the syllabus) to all of their science classes without having to sign up for the course.

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They sell the workbooks and answer keys (only to the questions actually assigned on the syllabus) to all of their science classes without having to sign up for the course.

 

In the conversation I had, their rep did indicate that they only listed a book when they had it in stock.  I suspect that once they switch over to the new course plan, they will sell their in hand stock of the older edition books, but not get more in.

 

She also said that she thought the workbook was optional.

 

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We've done Kolbe Physical Science, Biology and Chemistry and I haven't had a workbook for any of the three. They are probably optional/extra as I don't remember having dd skip any workbook assignments listed in the syllabus, but it has been a couple of years. It's possible I've just forgotten. :)

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Thank you, thank you, thank you for this post!

 

I was thinking of ordering next week, but I was concerned about the difference in texts between the online class and the home version. I was going to call as well, so you saved me from that!

 

Now my only concern is if I wait until August, and it's not yet ready...LOL, then what'll I do?

 

Maybe switch the order of our high school sciences? Hmmm. Biology really doesn't have to come first, does it?

 

I have a rising 9th grader.

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Thank you, thank you, thank you for this post!

 

I was thinking of ordering next week, but I was concerned about the difference in texts between the online class and the home version. I was going to call as well, so you saved me from that!

 

Now my only concern is if I wait until August, and it's not yet ready...LOL, then what'll I do?

 

Maybe switch the order of our high school sciences? Hmmm. Biology really doesn't have to come first, does it?

 

I have a rising 9th grader.

 

IF they aren't ready in time, my plans are

 

Start reading through the book and doing problems based on our best guess of pacing.

 

Wait a couple of weeks to start biology.  We'll have a pretty heavy load in other subjects and delaying one would be ok as long as we get ahead in the others.

 

Ask if they will send digital beta test versions of the first weeks of the revised course plan

 

 

If it turns out that the revision won't happen until Dec or 2015, then I will have to recalculate.

 

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IF they aren't ready in time, my plans are

 

Start reading through the book and doing problems based on our best guess of pacing.

 

Wait a couple of weeks to start biology.  We'll have a pretty heavy load in other subjects and delaying one would be ok as long as we get ahead in the others.

 

Ask if they will send digital beta test versions of the first weeks of the revised course plan

 

 

If it turns out that the revision won't happen until Dec or 2015, then I will have to recalculate.

Good ideas. Thanks for sharing.

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  • 1 month later...

I called Kolbe last week and they said they are not changing the book this year. Just thought I should bump this in case anyone else was wondering.

 

Really?  Because I swapped emails with their science & math coordinator and she indicated that the new course material was being reviewed.  She was hopeful that it would be available in a couple of weeks.

 

I'll circle around and double check.

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Really?  Because I swapped emails with their science & math coordinator and she indicated that the new course material was being reviewed.  She was hopeful that it would be available in a couple of weeks.

 

I'll circle around and double check.

 

I've been piddling around and procrastinating about whether I should buy the Dragonfly syllabus before it goes away (since I already own the Dragonfly text), or whether I should wait and get the 'latest and greatest' (hey, I only spent $10 on the Dragonfly...).   If they delay my decision is made for me... how lame. :tongue_smilie:

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Really?  Because I swapped emails with their science & math coordinator and she indicated that the new course material was being reviewed.  She was hopeful that it would be available in a couple of weeks.

 

I'll circle around and double check.

Please do. The guy I talked with seemed a little clueless, and he had to ask someone else. I pressed him a bit, but he said they're only upgrading their online course to the McCaw, not the do-at-home version. But didn't they already upgrade the online course some time ago?

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Please do. The guy I talked with seemed a little clueless, and he had to ask someone else. I pressed him a bit, but he said they're only upgrading their online course to the McCaw, not the do-at-home version. But didn't they already upgrade the online course some time ago?

 

I sent an email asking for clarification.  I may not hear anything for a few days, given that we're on the verge of the weekend.

 

 

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I got a reply from the Kolbe Academy science and math coordinter, which I'll paraphrase.

 

The Kolbe Online Academy has been using the Macaw book since last year.  The teacher who taught the online academy class with the Macaw book last year is writing the macaw version of the homeschool course plan.

 

This teacher isn't quite finished with the course plan revision, but is hoping to get it finished before the start of his school year (with the online academy).

 

Evidently there was a period when Kolbe didn't think it would be ready in time, but it now looks like it will.  However, it is dependent on the teacher hitting this deadline. 

 

***

Back to my commentary.  Ms. Lengyl at Kolbe is hopeful that it will be finished in time.  But of course, things do happen.  If it's not done before the start of the online academy classes, I don't know how much of a delay there will be.

 

 

 

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I got a reply from the Kolbe Academy science and math coordinter, which I'll paraphrase.

 

The Kolbe Online Academy has been using the Macaw book since last year.  The teacher who taught the online academy class with the Macaw book last year is writing the macaw version of the homeschool course plan.

 

This teacher isn't quite finished with the course plan revision, but is hoping to get it finished before the start of his school year (with the online academy).

 

Evidently there was a period when Kolbe didn't think it would be ready in time, but it now looks like it will.  However, it is dependent on the teacher hitting this deadline. 

 

***

Back to my commentary.  Ms. Lengyl at Kolbe is hopeful that it will be finished in time.  But of course, things do happen.  If it's not done before the start of the online academy classes, I don't know how much of a delay there will be.

Thank you for looking into this.

 

I'm still having issues deciding what to do this fall. My son has a few chapters left in Physical Science so maybe I'll have him do those for now.

 

Please keep us posted if you hear anything!

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  • 3 weeks later...

Alas, it seems like the update will be taking longer than anticipated. 

 

On the other hand, I just checked and it looks like our old PS district is still using the 2002 Miller Levine dragonfly book.  So I'm thinking that my concern over the age of the text may not be that big of an issue.

 

 

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Alas, it seems like the update will be taking longer than anticipated. 

 

On the other hand, I just checked and it looks like our old PS district is still using the 2002 Miller Levine dragonfly book.  So I'm thinking that my concern over the age of the text may not be that big of an issue.

 

 

Thank you for updating!   Did you talk to Kolbe recently, and do they have any new news on when it might be available?

 

I'm thinking I'm just going to go ahead with the old text.  My son really needs to start on Biology, and I think he will be able to add an advanced Biology course towards the end of his high school career if we feel it is needed. 

 

What are you going to do?

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Thank you for updating!   Did you talk to Kolbe recently, and do they have any new news on when it might be available?

 

I'm thinking I'm just going to go ahead with the old text.  My son really needs to start on Biology, and I think he will be able to add an advanced Biology course towards the end of his high school career if we feel it is needed. 

 

What are you going to do?

 

My last emails were about a week ago.  At that point, they had a couple months worth of the course plan in a beta form.  They were willing to help me figure out a work around, but what I'm really looking for is a laid out set of course assignments.  There is a lot of other stuff going on at our house this academic year and bio isn't something I want to be a major focus of my time.  I found in previous years that courses don't go well when I'm still trying to figure things out as we go along.

 

I also realized that the very good school district we used to live in is still using the 2002 edition of the Dragonfly Miller/Levine book.  So that calmed my concerns that I might be using a book that is too old.

 

So one of my projects for today is to go ahead and order what I need for the Dragonfly book homeschool course.  Perhaps when kid #3 comes through biology, I'll upgrade.

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My last emails were about a week ago.  At that point, they had a couple months worth of the course plan in a beta form.  They were willing to help me figure out a work around, but what I'm really looking for is a laid out set of course assignments.  There is a lot of other stuff going on at our house this academic year and bio isn't something I want to be a major focus of my time.  I found in previous years that courses don't go well when I'm still trying to figure things out as we go along.

 

I also realized that the very good school district we used to live in is still using the 2002 edition of the Dragonfly Miller/Levine book.  So that calmed my concerns that I might be using a book that is too old.

Thank you so much for sharing. I agree, if things aren't well laid out, or planned out, it is hard to sustain the momentum.

 

So one of my projects for today is to go ahead and order what I need for the Dragonfly book homeschool course.  Perhaps when kid #3 comes through biology, I'll upgrade.

I think I'll go ahead and order, too.

 

Thanks again for all the info.

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I had a very similar exchange with Kolbe.  They were more than willing to provide the beta's as they became available and access to other teacher resources to help fill any gaps.  I finally decided that a science program in hand was worth much more than a half finished program and would allow us to move along faster and keep me focused rather than planning on the fly.  Especially since both of my high schoolers will be taking this together.   In no way do I want my choice to be seen as criticism of Kolbe's ability to finish their Macaw program.  Kolbe has been nothing but gracious and helpful in the process even though I was asking for materials that they have yet to advertise on their site.

 

In comparing the Dragonfly and Macaw editions I decided that much of what was new were links to interesting videos and demonstrations, additional articles, etc. from either the publisher's or the authors' websites.  I concluded that we can add as many of those as we wish to an older edition, I just need to place them appropriately.

 

Finally, for elfgivas, the syllabus is called "course plans and tests".  Here is the link to it in their store: http://books.kolbe.org/store/p/568-COURSE-PLANS-amp-TESTS-PRENTICE-HALL-BIOLOGY.html  As they say-if you are enrolling in their online course you don't need to purchase this - it is part of the enrollment.

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I was wondering if anyone tried to order the latest edition from Pearson? From k12oasis pearson website, I see MILLER LEVINE BIOLOGY 2015 TEXAS STUDENT EDITION + DIGITAL COURSEWARE 8-YEAR LICENSE GRADE 9/10 (ISBN 9780133303803) available with the status "In Print". When I do a search from the main pearson website with the same isbn #, I did not get any results. Is the latest edition 2010 (isbn10: 0133690091) or 2015? I'm looking for complete student package with the lab books, study guides, virtual labs etc. along with teacher resources. If you please provide the ISBNs, that would be great help. Also, what's the difference between foundation, on level and core editions? I appreciate your feedback. Thanks.

 

 

 

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I had a very similar exchange with Kolbe.  They were more than willing to provide the beta's as they became available and access to other teacher resources to help fill any gaps.  I finally decided that a science program in hand was worth much more than a half finished program and would allow us to move along faster and keep me focused rather than planning on the fly.  Especially since both of my high schoolers will be taking this together.   In no way do I want my choice to be seen as criticism of Kolbe's ability to finish their Macaw program.  Kolbe has been nothing but gracious and helpful in the process even though I was asking for materials that they have yet to advertise on their site.

 

In comparing the Dragonfly and Macaw editions I decided that much of what was new were links to interesting videos and demonstrations, additional articles, etc. from either the publisher's or the authors' websites.  I concluded that we can add as many of those as we wish to an older edition, I just need to place them appropriately.

 

Finally, for elfgivas, the syllabus is called "course plans and tests".  Here is the link to it in their store: http://books.kolbe.org/store/p/568-COURSE-PLANS-amp-TESTS-PRENTICE-HALL-BIOLOGY.html  As they say-if you are enrolling in their online course you don't need to purchase this - it is part of the enrollment.

 

I wanted to firmly second the above.  Kolbe has been helpful and gracious in every interaction over the last couple of months.  They were always clear that the course plans were a work in progress.  I wish that the new plans were ready, but to be fair, I was looking for something that they hadn't yet advertised as an option.

 

My decision to go with the dragonfly book is simply a choice that I put a higher importance on a complete course plan that will be open and go for me than on the newest book.

 

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  • 10 months later...

That would be really great.  Though I'll probably end up just using the old one with my youngest kid too, since he's doing biology this year.

 

I did find an error in the Pearson SuccessNet Virtual Lab for chapter 12.  The Fruit Fly lab asks the student to draw a bunch of conclusions from crossing fruit flies with different eye colors.  However, the Virtual Lab Bench doesn't allow the student to select the homozygous setting for the male (only allows one selection for male while allowing two for female).  So it really makes about 2/3 of the lab impossible to complete.

 

We substituted the Dragon Genetics labs from here instead.

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Peeking in from lurkdom...

 

First, thank you for sharing all of this info about Kolbe Biology.  I'd be truly lost without these informative posts!

 

Unfortunately, I'm a bit frustrated with the interactions I've had with Kolbe.  Two weeks ago, I purchased the Biology course plan and noticed that the 2006 textbook is mentioned in the plans, while Kolbe only sells the 2014 edition.  I reached out to inquire if the latter book would match with up with the syllabus, and also asked for guidance with which book to purchase.  Regretfully, I mentioned that I "heard" (from this thread) that the newer, updated course plans were coming out soon.  The answer I received was unfortunately not very helpful and only vaguely addressed the syllabus question, so I followed up with a telephone call to place an order for the lab manual and answer book.  It was almost as if I were being a burden and I was hurried off the phone after placing my order.  Maybe I wasn't asking my questions properly?

 

All of that said, now I'm wondering if I should have waited until the new plans were out before buying, but there's not much I can do about that since the old plans aren't returnable.  Will any updates be provided to those who recently purchased the older plans?  I am hesitant to seek more answers from Kolbe, unfortunately.

 

 

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Strange. I had an interaction with them about a week ago and got an email back quicker than I expected.

 

I did get an out of office reply from one person who is on maternity leave, but someone else jumped in before I could try again with another email address. I don't think their staff is large, but I've found them helpful.

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I can't answer all your questions, but the older book is easily available from amazon and other used book sellers for much less than Kolbe sells it for. Hope that helps. 

 

Thanks, I appreciate that info.  I did end up purchasing a used 2006 edition from Amazon at a good price, plus I bought the 2014 iPad version for $14.99.  

 

I sent an email to Kolbe almost two weeks ago asking how long the lesson plans for the Dragonfly edition would still be available for purchase. They never bothered to respond to me. :(

 

FWIW, I sent two email messages and one was answered, the other was not.  After I didn't get an answer, I did call, but mainly to place an order with the hope of trying to discuss my questions.  Didn't really have that opportunity, unfortunately.

 

Strange. I had an interaction with them about a week ago and got an email back quicker than I expected.

 

I did get an out of office reply from one person who is on maternity leave, but someone else jumped in before I could try again with another email address. I don't think their staff is large, but I've found them helpful.

 

I mean no ill will towards Kolbe, as their products seem to be of very high quality and appeal to many of the Catholic HSers that I have met, plus I haven't even started using the syllabus to form any genuine opinion yet!  I am hoping the interactions I've had were simply due to decreased staff at a busy time and that it was just a fluke thing.  

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A general comment as you get ready to use the course plan.  It is written with assignments for both Core and Honors students all together each week.  Sometimes there is a pretty significant difference in the assignment.

 

What I have done is made a copy of the plan for each of my older kids, highlighted each part I want them to do and noted in the margins where I've assigned alternate hands on labs.  I also wrote up all of the vocabulary words into assignment sheets that have space for them to fill out

 

I found that they were missing parts of each week's assignment or spending a lot of time on the online sections, which I considered supplemental, not fundamental.  The vocab sheets were to force them to actually write down the vocabulary rather than just look at it once and then move on.

 

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

Anyone hear anything new on this? I e-mailed them about a month ago about the new course plan, and 2 weeks later I got a reply saying they planned to have a beta version out by the end of the summer. However, seeing the beginning of this thread saying the same things about *last* summer, makes me wonder if I should just ahead and order dragonfly. I see the 2014 answer key out there, but not the course guide.

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  • 4 months later...

It still looks like they do not have the latest Course Plan out yet in checking their website.  

 

I am considering using this for next Fall and may just go with the older version if I do.  However, its a little confusing determining what resource goes with which book on their website.  For example, we are also considering using their virtual labs with the text.  Would those virtual labs go with the newer 2014 book and associated lesson plans (not out yet) or the older 2006 book?

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