DragonflyAcademy Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 My son is an average student.. He is in the 10th grade this year and things are going well with what we have chosen.. except for science. We are doing Biology this year and he HATES it.. and that might not even be a strong enough word to convey the depth of the loathing he has for it.. We are using Elemental Science HS Bio with the CK12 text and the Online Lab option... We tried Oak Meadow self paced BIO over teh summer.. and he hated that too.. I've looked at PS textbooks for Bio (he is doing reading from Modern Biology to supplement his CK12 text) and while that is "OK" he says.. it is still not his favorite thing.. Last year we did Oak Meadow Environmental Science , self paced, and he enjoyed that.. I am at a loss as to what to do.. keep plodding along with what we are doing or change things? He is NOT a science kid.. and wont' be going into those types of fields.. Right now he is looking at Computer Technology/Network Systems as a possible career field.. just like his dad.. And he likes those types of things.. he likes to code, build, troubleshoot etc...He' taken several Coursera and Stanford Online computer courses and liked them.. Right now, for college, he will most likely attend a 2 year state school and then transfer... We spent 4 hours today trying to figure out the Cell Division lab (one issue is that we are never sure what it is supposed to do to compare what we have done...)and trying to understand the levels of division and stages of division on onion and white fish cells.. At the end of his rope, he tearfully demanded to know when this would even be useful to him..? and I could not say that it ever would.. I was an HONORS high school student that graduated second in my class and I can only recall the horror frog dissection instilled in me from science.. I cannot tell you one other thing from any of the 4 years of science i took in High School...and I ended up getting my master's degree in education....and I've not had to use any of HS science in the depth that this is pushing.. that I can think of.. Is there a science curriculum for the science hating kid that would fulfill HS transcript requirements..? (we are in NY)..Something that gets the points across without beating a dead horse....? Does anything like that exist? We've been plodding along for 9 weeks now and he is diligently taking notes, trying hard, trying to do the labs.. and he cannot tell me anything that he's learned.. and that makes me sad.. I want him to get something from this.. instead of just convincing himself he hates science and isn't good at it.. I am not a fan of Apologia, BJU etc....and would prefer a secular program....although a nicely done christian program would be fine as long as the science is sound... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 My first questions would be: why does he "hate science"? And does he actually hate science, and not just biology? The answer would depend on that. I can imagine many reasons to dislike a particular science or curriculum; I cannot see why a blanket hatred would extend to 'science" in general. So, I would first want to figure out what he dislikes: is there a large amount of rote memorization? Does he dislike hands on projects and labs? Is he squeamish about organisms? Once you pin point this, you can address. For example by changing the biology program to give it a focus he finds more interesting and palatable. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 I bought Walch Biology (just the textbook). We went with something else, but you are welcome to have it if you want it. Just PM if interested. It's a good no frills git er done Biology curriculum. I'm in NY as well and it would most certainly satisfy the regs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 The beauty of homeschooling is that you can tailor the studies to the student's interest. If your son is interested in computers, he should learn how they work. Which means physics, several layers deep. I would work with him to identify science topics he is interested in and build the curriculum around those. Plus some things have to be non negotiable and can be done on a get-er-done level. Like bio. I have two kids who dislike bio. They still need to know how cells function, how the human body functions, why antibiotics work, how evolution works, what genetically manipulated organisms are - because they need to be informed citizens. They do not, however, have to memorize dozens of vocabulary words, memorize precisely how many molecules of ATP are created in each cycle, or do tedious labs - there are other sciences where lab work can be practiced. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonflyAcademy Posted October 7, 2016 Author Share Posted October 7, 2016 He dislikes the rote memorization.. I think that is huge.. He much prefers to read about things and discuss them...and is finding that the chapters filled with lots of scientific jargon confusing and intimidating.. Today, for example.. when the text and lab were discussing Meiosis and Mitosis.. he got lost in all the terms... after I finally had him stop and we found a You Tube video on the concept.. that could explain it and also show it with beads.. he said it was a bit easier to understand.. He liked last year's Envi Science.. but I think any good feelings about that are being erased with his negative feelings this year towards Biology 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonflyAcademy Posted October 7, 2016 Author Share Posted October 7, 2016 I agree.. he needs to know basic biology.. how cells function.. etc.. but the depth in which every bio curriculum is going into is just too deep... or maybe I just need to eliminate the labs, have him watch videos etc to see the concepts and not worry about memorizing the vocab..?? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 (edited) He dislikes the rote memorization.. I think that is huge.. He much prefers to read about things and discuss them...and is finding that the chapters filled with lots of scientific jargon confusing and intimidating.. Today, for example.. when the text and lab were discussing Meiosis and Mitosis.. he got lost in all the terms... after I finally had him stop and we found a You Tube video on the concept.. that could explain it and also show it with beads.. he said it was a bit easier to understand.. He liked last year's Envi Science.. but I think any good feelings about that are being erased with his negative feelings this year towards Biology OK, so restructure bio. Find video lectures for him that explain the topics, if the textbook is badly written. Don't make him memorize the things - instead, have him explain the topic to you with the help of illustrations in the book. For one quiz, I had my kids explain the Krebs cycle to me by having them narrate the flow chart form the book - I cared that they understand the steps, not that they can beat them into their short term memory. Focus on basic concepts. With DS, we fleshed out bio by doing a unit on biology in society. I found him articles that discussed the GMOs, antibiotic resistance, opiod addiction etc. Or you can give the bio course an environmental focus. Or center on zoology. ETA: If he has trouble keeping track of the terms in the text, he needs to learn to take notes, copy and summarize definitions, extract main info. He needs to learn how to read a science textbook - that is a specific skill that requires practice. Edited October 7, 2016 by regentrude 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 Yeah unfortunately biology is very term heavy. Sounds like he wouldn't go for the Walch book either. It's dry dry dry, but it's a good git er done book. Only other thing I can think of is to maybe have him watch a lot of biology videos. Maybe get some books on topics related to biology that he is interested in. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 He is NOT a science kid.. and wont' be going into those types of fields.. Right now he is looking at Computer Technology/Network Systems as a possible career field.. just like his dad. He doesn't hate science since computer technology is actually science even if it is not a "lab science". You might want to look at CompTIA and CCNA certification exams for him. We are using Miller Levine biology text with a labpaq lab kit as a get it done. My kids are interested in only the genome sequencing part of biology so there is no point in doing a rigorous biology course. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonflyAcademy Posted October 7, 2016 Author Share Posted October 7, 2016 SO, I sat him down and had him explain to me what is the issue here.. and he said He likes science but just not the depth that the program is getting into. He likes reading about cells etc,, but when it spends page after page on the nitty gritty on each step of Mitosis and then asks him to see and label each part.. when he says he can't understand the vocabulary... I shudder to to think what chemistry is going to be like.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebel Yell Posted October 8, 2016 Share Posted October 8, 2016 SO, I sat him down and had him explain to me what is the issue here.. and he said He likes science but just not the depth that the program is getting into. He likes reading about cells etc,, but when it spends page after page on the nitty gritty on each step of Mitosis and then asks him to see and label each part.. when he says he can't understand the vocabulary... I shudder to to think what chemistry is going to be like.... Is chemistry required, either by your state or his future plans for further education? Diamond did not love science. She took Bio and Anatomy because they would be useful to her as a dance teacher. Origins Studies for creation/evolution understanding. She took Astronomy because she was interested in it, and again as a college science elective. She did a lighter study of Physics, more as it applied to movement rather than all the mathy stuff. My current senior will have Biology, Anatomy, Origins Studies, and a lighter Chemistry class for her credits. Sophomore will have Origins, Bio, Anatomy, and a science of her choice TBD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonflyAcademy Posted October 8, 2016 Author Share Posted October 8, 2016 I don't think it is required per se.. but don't colleges want to see it? I'm not sure if a 2 year State school (SUNY) cares.. I need to look at that.. He wants to go into Networking/Computers.. his dad is in this field.. and has a Comp Sci/Business degree... and didn't take Bio, Chem or Phys in college (he took Comp Sci classes).. When you say "Lighter Physics and Chem" were they specifically that or did you modify courses? Has anyone looked at or used PAC sciences? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted October 8, 2016 Share Posted October 8, 2016 I would definitely look into whether it's actually required, or if he just needs a certain number of sciences. Most of the state schools and private schools that we looked at wanted 3 years of science, and specified 1 or 2 with labs. Some schools specified that they wanted EITHER biology or chemistry to be one of the sciences (as a minimum--the student could obviously have both). Some specified both--and some actually didn't specify anything. My oldest did Physical, Robotics, and Biology for his sciences. No chemistry. It's not surprising to me that mitosis and meiosis confused him--I used to always get those terms mixed up in school. I think the video was a good idea. Can he just move past this section now? I confess, I don't have my kids spending 4 hours trying to work on experiments (unless we took the day off of all other school and are doing a bunch in one day). Anything over 1.5-2 hours for an experiment (including figuring out what to do, actually doing it, and lab write-up time) is probably not going to be worth his time for the learning gained in a high school biology class. Again, I'd just move on, find a video, etc... It sounds like it was written in a confusing way or isn't very clearly laid out. With regard to memorizing vocabulary, do you mean for a test? If so, limit the number of words (don't have him study everything, but have him study a few for the test). If the test has more than 5 or so vocabulary words on it, restructure so that he can choose 5 to define, or some are extra credit--ie, make it work for you if it's really heavy on vocab. Or do open-book tests. Or just read and discuss. Sometimes I have also alternated--labs one chapter, test the next, rather than do both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted October 9, 2016 Share Posted October 9, 2016 . He likes reading about cells etc,, but when it spends page after page on the nitty gritty on each step of Mitosis and then asks him to see and label each part.. when he says he can't understand the vocabulary... For my younger boy looking at the glossary of the biology textbook as well as watching Bozeman videos help. http://www.bozemanscience.com/biology-main-page/ Also my public high school biology teacher let us have open book test for class tests so that we don't panic over memorizing and get demoralized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted October 9, 2016 Share Posted October 9, 2016 Sometimes one must take courses they do not like, to get a diploma. Sometimes one person/book can present material in a manner that is much easier to understand. Has he looked at the courses required by the university he might transfer to, to see which courses they require for the Major(s) he might be interested in? If he does go forward with his interest in computers, that is STEM. That involves Math and it involves Physics. The first 9th grade course my DD finished was Biology. That's an old course (I believe they are going to release a new course soon) and it used a CD to do Virtual Experiments. I thought that was rather cool, because the students can repeat the experiment, if something goes awry, or, they can repeat to look for different results. This is what she used for Biology: Levin, Joseph and Kenneth Miller. Biology (Texas Edition). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson/Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-115291-2 Pearson.Biology: All in One Study Guide. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson/Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-115522-9 Pearson. Biology: Virtual Labs CD-ROM. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson/Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-125682-3The CD-ROM allows you to conduct investigations related to the material covered in the lessons. These investigations are virtual laboratory experiences. GL to your DS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.