ondreeuh Posted September 19, 2015 Share Posted September 19, 2015 I haven't been able to find any reviews on WTM or on the web, which seems odd since I found lots of info on Laurel Springs. http://learningsprings.com/home-study/ Welcome to the Learning Springs Home Study Program. Since 1994, the Learning Springs has provided curricula to public and private schools to supplement their academic offerings. Now, families can use the same high-quality courses in their own homes. Our program allows parents to choose the exact course(s) needed, in either textbook and online formats. We empower parents to function as the teacher and direct their children’s education as they feel best suits their needs. Parents have the flexibility to build a custom academic program for their children, as well as infusing the curriculum with special assignments to enhance their course of study. View our Home Study Catalog, which contains a list of all Home Study pricing. The content of Learning Springs & Laurel Springs courses are the same, at least in all of the ones I've directly compared (I have previewed the manuals and answer keys for both). They are actually very similar in format to Oak Meadow's high school courses- a spiral-bound book with a lesson for each week and a list of assignments for that week, plus a separate TM/answer key. They aren't pretty - the manuals are very straight-forward and get the job done, but there are directions for accessing online features. Personally, I prefer classes like this that let me do the grading as my son has a serious writing LD and cannot accurately reflect his understanding in his writing. I need to be able to provide accommodations and give him credit for doing the best he can. We use a correspondence school in our district and he still will get credit for his mom-graded courses. (We provide a portfolio basically). I'm really interested in the integrated history and literature courses, which must be bought in pairs. 9th grade is Integrated World Cultures, 10th is Integrated World Literature & History, 11th is Integrated American Literature & History, and 12th grade is Integrated British Literature & Government/Economics. The classes look good to me - I can find the details of the Laurel Springs courses, and for Integrated American Literature & History the students read A People's History of the United States as the history spine and read The Crucible, The Pearl, The Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Outsiders, Fahrenheit 451, and The Portland Vase for the literature. Anyone have any experience with this? It looks like something others here would be interested in. They are pretty affordable too - many classes under $200 for the year, and that includes textbooks for the text-based courses. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkT Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 I'm really interested in the integrated history and literature courses, which must be bought in pairs. 9th grade is Integrated World Cultures, 10th is Integrated World Literature & History, 11th is Integrated American Literature & History, and 12th grade is Integrated British Literature & Government/Economics. The classes look good to me - I can find the details of the Laurel Springs courses, and for Integrated American Literature & History the students read A People's History of the United States as the history spine and read The Crucible, The Pearl, The Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Outsiders, Fahrenheit 451, and The Portland Vase for the literature. Anyone have any experience with this? It looks like something others here would be interested in. They are pretty affordable too - many classes under $200 for the year, and that includes textbooks for the text-based courses. For Math and Science do they publish the name of the text book being used? This would be the deal breaker for many parents. The prices are somewhat reasonable for a complete self-study parent directed program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ondreeuh Posted September 20, 2015 Author Share Posted September 20, 2015 I found detailed course descriptions for some Laurel Springs courses, and I assume they are identical to the ones for Learning Springs, but you'd want to call to confirm. They have different textbooks for standard, honors, and AP classes. The online math/science classes do not use a textbook. I didn't look carefully at the math syllabi because they looked like just problem sets - don't think I saw any teaching in the guide. I don't know what the student gets in the online interface. Earth Science: Earth Science California, Prentice Hall, 2006, ISBN #0-13-166755-6 Biology: The Dynamics of Life, Biggs, Alton. Glencoe/McGraw Hill, 2004ISBN: 9780078299001 (also Labpaq kit) Honors Biology: Biology With Physiology: Life on Earth; 8th Edition, 2008, ISBN 9780131957664 Chemistry (2 versions: with wet labs or virtual labs): Chemistry, Prentice Hall (also Labpaq kit) Same book used for Honors Chem AP Physics B: Textbook: Physics: Principles and Applications by Giancoli, 6th Ed. ,ISBN: 978-0-13-607302-4Preparing for the Physics B AP EXAM with Giancoli , ISBN: 0-536-73158-6 Algebra 2: Saxon Honors Algebra 2: Prentice-Hall Mathematics Algebra 2 text, ISBN#9780133500431 Honors Geometry: Discovering Geometry: An Investigative Approach, 4th Edition Key Curriculum Press 2008, ISBN #978-1-55953-882-4 Trig: Trigonometry (6th Edition) by Charles McKeague, ISBN 13: 978-0-495-10835-1(Includes online resource video access) Honors Pre-Calc: Precalculus with Limits (A Graphing Approach), 5th Edition, Authors: Larson, Hostetler, and Edwards Calculus: Textbook: Calculus, 13th Ed., Authors: Goldstein, Schneider, Lay, Asmar, Publisher: Pearson/Prentice Hall, ISBN: 978-0-321-84890-1 AP Calculus: Calculus, Eighth Edition, Houghton Mifflin, 2006 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 It wasn't clear to me if individuals could use these courses. They have the price per student listed, but there is also a large school set up fee, which makes me think they're intended for b&m schools that are trying to offer online options to their students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliR Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 These look really interesting - thank you for the link. I also have a need to provide a lot of scaffolding for DD, which means that the pace and grading of outside classes is often too much, yet she does well with a highly structured course rather than me winging it. I did make an enquiry to the company, and can confirm that the packages are available to individuals for purchase. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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