mirabillis Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 Has anyone completed the Wilson Hill Honors Physics class? My DS will be 9th grade next year, and we're now considering and researching outsourcing science classes. I see WHA recommends Physics first, and as he's a strong math kid, that seems fine to me going their route. I don't know whether to go with Regular Physics or Honors Physics, but as he's a bright kid, I would think the "Honors" designated class would suit him fine as he is advanced. Anyone take either or have info regarding? Or anyone with experience with another online provider for 9th grade science?? TIA!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjeepa Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 I'm curious about this too for my DD. Hope you get some responses! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SevenDaisies Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 I am considering WH for science because I want to use the Novare texts, but have no experience with WH or that course. However, this article from the author of the text might help you: http://www.novarescienceandmath.com/wp-content/uploads/Novare_Newsletter_v4_3.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 (edited) No clue about Wilson Hill, but we used Derek Owens Physics http://www.derekowens.com/course_info_physics.php for 10th. It is also available as an Honors class; as I recall, you have a bit of time to decide if you want to switch from Honors to regular after you get started. Dd has also been taking Algebra 2 while taking Derek Owens. When she took the ACT this spring she noted that she could solve many of the trig problems because the math had been explained in the Derek Owens class. I suspect a 9th grader who is confident in math would be fine. Derek Owens seems the sort you could email and ask whether your child's math abilities would be suitable for the class -- he's VERY approachable and VERY interested in having kids learn physics! Both of my kids have preferred learning physics before tackling chemistry, feeling it paved the way for chemistry (not that younger dd has started chemistry yet, but she has commented that she's glad she's learning various topics before tackling chemistry -- she can see the connection). They both took Biology in 9th simply because a fantastic teacher happened to be available at the time. Older dd took Kinetic Physics in 10th grade in a co-op class. Skimming the article SevenDaisies links above, I should probably note that older dd really likes vectors, and that can be traced back to high school physics. So maybe we're outliers with weird ideas of what's "fun" and "easy". Edited to add: Dd said that you only need Algebra 1 for the DO physics course -- he explains all of the geometry and trig you need. We also had a discussion of what physics without vectors would look like ... she also thought vectors were pretty easy if the explanation is adequate. Edited May 31, 2016 by GailV 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 Dd#1 is taking DO honors physics this year. She was strong in algebra last year, so I felt confident going into physics this year. The trig and vectors have not been a problem, but we've had to weave more review in for her.(My dd needs lots of review.) DO is easy to accelerate if you want abd there are lots of available helps if you ask for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula in MS Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 Depending on what textbook you used for physical science, this may or may not be a repeat. The honors section seems to be very close to BJU physical science with part of the year being physics and the other part being chemistry. The only math prerequisite is algebra. I think the primary difference between the regular and the honors class is the accelerated sequence and addition of chemistry at the end. If you are going to continue with the physics first concept, the intro to chemistry will be helpful for the next year's chemistry. At least this is how I understand it from talking with the people at WH. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mirabillis Posted May 31, 2016 Author Share Posted May 31, 2016 Thanks everyone. Paula, did you take any of the sciences at WH already? I'll have a look into DO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 Can't help with Physics or the Novare texts, but my 9th graders took WHA's Biology last year with Marie Owens. We were all very happy with the class! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourisenough Posted June 1, 2016 Share Posted June 1, 2016 Can't help with Physics or the Novare texts, but my 9th graders took WHA's Biology last year with Marie Owens. We were all very happy with the class!How does this text/teacher treat the concept of evolution in the bio class? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland Mist Academy Posted June 1, 2016 Share Posted June 1, 2016 DO wasn't a good fit for my dd; she prefers live classes. She's not taken science with WHA, but has had good experiences with other classes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula in MS Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 Thanks everyone. Paula, did you take any of the sciences at WH already? I'll have a look into DO No, we haven't, but we had planned to. The Physics first thing threw a kink in our plans because, although, my daughter is science oriented, she needs a slower place with anything math-filled. I thought it wise to do physics at home so that I could slow down when needed. She took a Great Conversation and Latin class this year and both were top notch. She will continue with those two and add logic next year. After that we will start their science sequence with chemistry. I really love that they use secular science texts for chemistry and biology. That was a selling point for me. I think they will be very rigorous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 How does this text/teacher treat the concept of evolution in the bio class? Copying and pasting from another thread I posted to in reply to this question.... WHA is unabashedly Christian, and the teachers teach from that world view. ... 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. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KellyMama Posted June 6, 2016 Share Posted June 6, 2016 (edited) We are signed up for regular physics this fall. My 11th grade DD and 9th grade DD are both taking it - neither one is wanting a STEM major. I think the honors class has some prerequisites from memory, so maybe look into that to help decide? While we haven't taken any sciences at WHA we had an excellent experience with Geometry class there this past year. Edited June 6, 2016 by KellyMama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frogger Posted June 6, 2016 Share Posted June 6, 2016 (edited) My son used the Accelerated Studies in Physics and Chemistry book this year but not with Wilson Hill. As long as your student finished the Algebra requirement he will probably be fine. It is not conceptual like Hewitt's. It has lots of math exercisers at the end of each chapter but more basic ones based off of Algebra. There were things I didn't like about it like having to know the Ptolemaic model of the heavens. It is good to read about different ideas and see how new ideas come into acceptance but having to be able to explain it/memorize it was silly in my opinion so after the first review test we skipped those questions. He is big on actually knowing the stuff in the book by the end of the year so it isn't a cram and forget. There are weekly review sheets (we didn't use all of them) and the quizzes will have stuff from all the previous chapters not just the one you are on. On the quizzes, there usually will be a page with math (acceleration equations, etc.) and a page with essay type questions (state Newton's laws of motion, etc.). They are required to have the correct amount of significant digits, convert things to MKS if not otherwise stated, and those types of things. So there is a big focus on skills not just knowledge. The writer doesn't believe in a young earth and makes that clear but is a Christian and talks about truth a lot in the first chapter. Subsequent chapters focus on the math and such but the first chapter in most science books usually give you their idea of how we know things, yadda, yadda. It is good to know the author's angle anyway. I do not know how the Wilson Hill teacher (who may or may not agree with the author on everything) will handle it. Edited June 6, 2016 by frogger 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omma Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 My dd is enrolled in this class for the upcoming year. Can anyone tell me what the labs are like for the WHA Physics honors class (ie. how many, how involved, do they write up formal lab reports each time, what is the lab supply list like, etc.)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 My son did physics honors through Derek Owens. He did it self-paced and where I graded the work. He really enjoyed the class and I thought it was well done. If you want a live component then this is not for you, but he really enjoyed the Derek Owens videos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omma Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 My son did physics honors through Derek Owens. He did it self-paced and where I graded the work. He really enjoyed the class and I thought it was well done. If you want a live component then this is not for you, but he really enjoyed the Derek Owens videos. Thanks, Julie of KY. I am actually considering Derek Owens Math and Physics for my ds who will be a senior next year. But for my dd, I have already signed up for WHA Physics 1 honors and I was hoping to hear what the labs will be like there at WHA. Some online schools do more virtual labs than anything else and I didn't know if WHA was like that, as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkT Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 Did this student take a "middle school" science course with some Physics exposure? What Math will be completed by this year? Have you looked at Clover Creek Physics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omma Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 Thanks, Mark, for alerting me to Clover Creek Physics. I recently checked out their website but I had a scheduling conflict with them and decided not to pursue it any further. I am committed to doing WHA for next year and just wanted to know what to expect from the science labs going forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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