................... Posted February 5, 2016 Posted February 5, 2016 Apologia (not honors?) Blue Tent Honors TPS Pre - AP Honors Wilson Hill? Any others? If you have had experience and felt it was do-able as a parent and your kids really enjoyed their course I'd love to hear from you. We really like the Apologia series especially since the labs all actually work at home ...but my son needs to pass a SAT subject test for Biology and I am not certain Apologia is rigorous enough. (He took an apologia academy course before and he pretty much hated it but I really felt it provided more rigor and accountability than just using the book.) Quote
yvonne Posted February 5, 2016 Posted February 5, 2016 My oldest took WHA's Biology course last year, in 9th grade. We all thought it was worthwhile and well-done. I liked the fact that they used the Miller Levine text and that they used the QSL Bio lab kit & taught students to do lab write-ups. My daughter will also take it through WHA next year, unless I find a conceptual physics course for her to do first. 2 Quote
Kalypso Posted February 6, 2016 Posted February 6, 2016 My ds is taking Biology with The Well-Trained Mind Academy. He really likes it and the workload keeps him busy. 4 Quote
Paula in MS Posted February 6, 2016 Posted February 6, 2016 Chemistry is a pre-requisite for Bio at Wilson Hill now because, I think, they are beefing up their biology classes even more. They are still using Miller-Levine, though, as far as I know. 1 Quote
Woodland Mist Academy Posted February 6, 2016 Posted February 6, 2016 My oldest took WHA's Biology course last year, in 9th grade. We all thought it was worthwhile and well-done. I liked the fact that they used the Miller Levine text and that they used the QSL Bio lab kit & taught students to do lab write-ups. My daughter will also take it through WHA next year, unless I find a conceptual physics course for her to do first. How do they approach evolution? Quote
AppleGreen Posted February 12, 2016 Posted February 12, 2016 (edited) How do they approach evolution? Bumping, because I am curious about this, as well. I am actually curious about all of WH's science classes, so if you have any experience, please chime in. I am specifically interested in how the Christian philosophy comes through in those classes. I never thought I would consider a Christian provider for science, but we have been very pleased with math and they are one of the few online providers that use M/L bio, which is my preference. I love their interface and find usability from both the parental and student ends fantastic. edited b/c I clearly haven't had my coffee or put on my glasses. :001_rolleyes: Edited February 12, 2016 by AppleGreen 1 Quote
Paula in MS Posted February 13, 2016 Posted February 13, 2016 Bumping, because I am curious about this, as well. I am actually curious about all of WH's science classes, so if you have any experience, please chime in. I am specifically interested in how the Christian philosophy comes through in those classes. I never thought I would consider a Christian provider for science, but we have been very pleased with math and they are one of the few online providers that use M/L bio, which is my preference. I love their interface and find usability from both the parental and student ends fantastic. edited b/c I clearly haven't had my coffee or put on my glasses. :001_rolleyes: I talked to the biology teacher last summer. She stated that the classes would be taught from a "Christian world view." I got the impression that she was a young earth creationist, but she didn't state that emphatically. She did say that Wilson Hill endeavors to respect a parent's teaching in this area and that there were usually a mix of beliefs in her classes. She also said that everything would be discussed respectfully. I'm not sure how all this would play out in the actual class, but I think if you called or emailed her, she would answer your questions. 1 Quote
rdj2027 Posted February 13, 2016 Posted February 13, 2016 Apple Green, I had to laugh at your comment because I am in the same boat. It strikes both my son and me as rather funny that not only did we end up with a Christian provider for science but also that we both really like the class and both thought continuing with Wilson Hill is a sound choice. He is taking chemistry this year and I have not seen anything remotely religious in the obvious way. If Christian refers to an enthusiastic teacher who can inspire a student and who because of this class develops an appreciation just how intricate and marvelous nature really is then yes, the class has a very Christian feel. He is signed up for biology next year and we both are looking forward to the class. We did consider this for a while though because the chemistry class is rather demanding (at least from our point of view) and my concern was that it was actually too much. Is he retaining everything? Probably not but on the other hand I also see many things come together that two months ago I was sure he would not remember or be able to do in the future. For him it seems to be one of those classes that will need time to settle but it provides a very solid foundation for future chemistry studies. I signed up my youngest son for the physics class, will see how that goes. 1 Quote
yvonne Posted February 13, 2016 Posted February 13, 2016 WHA is unabashedly Christian, and the teachers teach from that world view. One of the things I like about the WHA science courses is that they do not limit themselves to certain texts just because they are specifically Christian texts, like Apologia, Science Shepherd, BJU,... I am a committed Christian, but I don’t think that Christians need to, or should, avoid secular science texts. Whether one is a young earth creationist or not, one should understand the theory of evolution because it's a big part of "science." A YEC will consider it a flawed or incorrect theory, but s/he should still have an understanding of the theory. If I recall correctly, the students in the WHA biology class read & discussed the evolution unit of the ML text and took a unit test on it. Obviously, that would require having some understanding of evolution, regardless of personal beliefs about it. I think the WHA instructors try to be very respectful of different families' beliefs. Even among Christians, there are YEC, OEC, theistic evolutionists, etc. I'm pretty sure the Biology instructor presented the theory of evolution simply as something to be understood, but left it to the families to interpret as correct or not, according to their beliefs. I know she never spoke of it derisively, as I've sometimes heard Christian speakers do. I'm not sure that was much help! If you have questions or concerns, definitely contact Marie Owens, the Biology instructor. She is so helpful and responsive. 4 Quote
Chanley Posted February 13, 2016 Posted February 13, 2016 My daughter is taking Biology at WTMA and Ms. Upperman is an excellent teacher. 2 Quote
lauranc Posted February 13, 2016 Posted February 13, 2016 My son is taking Biology through WTM Academy this year. It's a fairly heavy workload, but the assignments have been worthwhile, and he's learned a lot. Teacher is Upperman. 1 Quote
fourisenough Posted February 1, 2018 Posted February 1, 2018 Reviving an old thread to get any updated (2016-18) impressions of science classes at WTMA, WHA, Blue Tent or others. Quote
Woodland Mist Academy Posted February 2, 2018 Posted February 2, 2018 (edited) Our experience with WTMA science classes has been positive. The classes are secular and solid high school level. (Quite surprisingly, I've been more impressed with the science classes than the writing classes.) Edited February 2, 2018 by Woodland Mist Academy 2 Quote
southcactusrose Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 Is the workload extreme in the WTMA biology course? I'm concerned due to the fact that you have two live classes plus a lab. With that plus all the other AP courses and online classes I'm not sure how my son could possibly keep up too heavy of a workload Quote
Aloha2U Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 We’re considering BJU Press for Biology, but we’d most likely do the DVD course with books. Here’s a link to the online class: https://www.bjupresshomeschool.com/product/421941 Quote
madteaparty Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 Calming Tea, what did you settle on and did kid take the SAT subject test? I am also, maybe, looking for a bio class that would enable one to do well on SAT subject test. I say maybe because there’s two local options, community college and a private high school he could take it in. I don’t see schedules aligning though. Quote
skimomma Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 Is the workload extreme in the WTMA biology course? I'm concerned due to the fact that you have two live classes plus a lab. With that plus all the other AP courses and online classes I'm not sure how my son could possibly keep up too heavy of a workload My dd is taking it right now and does not find the workload heavy. 5-8 hours per week, including class time. It bumps up to 8 hours on weeks when there is a more involved lab due or dd is studying for a test. 1 Quote
madteaparty Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 My dd is taking it right now and does not find the workload heavy. 5-8 hours per week, including class time. It bumps up to 8 hours on weeks when there is a more involved lab due or dd is studying for a test.Is the expectation kids are able to take the SAT subject test after this course? Quote
Woodland Mist Academy Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 My teen didn't find the workload heavy. She did well on the subject test after the class. As always, she did test prep on her own as well, but I think the class was a solid foundation. 1 Quote
skimomma Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 Is the expectation kids are able to take the SAT subject test after this course? I actually don't know. It has not come up in the class itself AFAIK. Quote
Amy in KS Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 My daughter is currently taking Honors Biology at WHA. The class is fantastic! We are currently using the Miller Levine text and bought various lab supplies from Home Science Tools. The teacher is very knowledgeable and approachable. I highly suggest contacting the teacher for more info. Mowens@wilsonhillacademy.com 1 Quote
fourisenough Posted February 8, 2018 Posted February 8, 2018 Anyone have a review of Blue Tent Honors Bio? Quote
mirabillis Posted February 9, 2018 Posted February 9, 2018 Is the expectation kids are able to take the SAT subject test after this course? my son and at least 1 other i know on the boards took the SAT Bio after WTMA Biology. It prepares them well. They have to go over all the body functions chapters and of course going through a couple prep books is good too. 2 Quote
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