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Is it too early to talk hits/misses for '18-'19?


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12 minutes ago, GeoKitty said:

Essentials in Literature is relatively new, from the Essentials in Writing EIW people

yes, DS loves Hillsdale classes.  He wants to use them next year for government and economics.  But I may sneak in a textbook too.  We will see. 

Could you link the Hillsdale classes please? Sorry if you already did this but I couldn't see it and couldn't seem to find the right place to look on their website.

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2 hours ago, Roadrunner said:

Tessa’s Intro to Lit class is also excellent!

Does she only teach in two hour blocks? Ugh! I have a kid I'm looking at for Intro to Lit next year but that's a loooong class length. 

My dd#1 also took Norse and found the class length too long. That put a big damper on the class likeability (somewhat offset by having a friend in the class). She also found the grading of some items to be weird (overly picky on some things) but it wasn't a hard class. The writing projects, ultimately, were fun and DD learned a few things. (Plus, she added Old Norse (?) to her list of "want to learn someday" languages. Sigh.)

After a teacher crisis, German 2 at CLRC is going as well as can be expected. The new teacher is fun but the class is waay behind (somewhat due to German 1 pace being slow & first teacher this year trying to firm up foundations). I have come to peace with it, but hope CLRC adds a German 2 1/2 next year for the kids who are continuing. (My kid is graduating.)

Will try to post reviews of Norse & Intro to Java (through Excelsior Classes) in Online Class Master Thread on General Ed Board when I get the chance.

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7 minutes ago, RootAnn said:

Does she only teach in two hour blocks? Ugh! I have a kid I'm looking at for Intro to Lit next year but that's a loooong class length. 

My dd#1 also took Norse and found the class length too long. That put a big damper on the class likeability (somewhat offset by having a friend in the class). She also found the grading of some items to be weird (overly picky on some things) but it wasn't a hard class. The writing projects, ultimately, were fun and DD learned a few things. (Plus, she added Old Norse (?) to her list of "want to learn someday" languages. Sigh.)

After a teacher crisis, German 2 at CLRC is going as well as can be expected. The new teacher is fun but the class is waay behind (somewhat due to German 1 pace being slow & first teacher this year trying to firm up foundations). I have come to peace with it, but hope CLRC adds a German 2 1/2 next year for the kids who are continuing. (My kid is graduating.)

Will try to post reviews of Norse & Intro to Java (through Excelsior Classes) in Online Class Master Thread on General Ed Board when I get the chance.

 

Yes, only 2 hour blocks, but I believe it includes a 10 minute break. I have mine run around the house sometimes in between.

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On 9/1/2018 at 4:43 PM, fourisenough said:

I realize some people won't begin school until after this holiday weekend, but for those who are already in the thick of things, how is your year going?

DD13 is beginning her third week of school. Two of four outsourced classes have begun and are both HUGE hits! She loves Clover Creek Physics (though it will be a good challenge for her) and CLRC Great Books 1 (intense work load, but squarely within her area of strength). Latin 1 and Geometry at WHA begin next week, but both are just the next course in the sequence for her with this same provider, so I am fairly confident they will be great fits, too. Overall, I'm very happy with the amount of work, quality of instruction, expectations, feedback, and schedule. 

 Seems like a lifetime ago that I started this thread! All four of DD’s online classes mentioned above were, indeed, huge hits this semester, especially Clover Creek Physics. Wow, Jetta is just amazing! I will say that we’re all looking forward to having fewer providers next year. But if Clover Valley Chemistry is as good as I’m hearing, maybe we’ll be stuck with three different calendars/portals/LMS! 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 9/14/2018 at 8:36 PM, 8FillTheHeart said:

I want to share that I am very satisfied.  It is obvious you put a lot of thought into creating the course. My Dd has been able to look at the syllabus and figure out how to divvy up the work to stay on track without ever feeling overwhelmed. The workload does not seem at all atypical for an honors level course.  (But, oh my, rdj2027's poor Dd.....that would be insane!!)

My Dd got upset with me bc I told her that for the foreseeable future she has to do the labs on the weekends bc our grandkids are living with us until Dil is no longer on bedrest and their baby sister arrives.  I just handle any other non-routine things during our school days.  She had different ideas.....oh well, that has absolutely nothing to do with you and she will just have to get over it. But it made me try to imagine what rbj2027's Dd was thinking this week!!  Chemistry nightmare!! 

8 (and anyone else with a child taking Clover Valley Chem), can you give an update on your student’s experience with chemistry this year so far? Can anyone compare it to chem or honors chem at WHA? I’m considering both for my DD for next year. She’s currently taking Clover Creek Physics and earning an A-. It is a challenge for her but, like everyone else, she adores the teacher and her excellent organization. Science isn’t really DD’s ‘thing’ but I want her prepared for college-level science work should her interests shift.

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7 hours ago, fourisenough said:

8 (and anyone else with a child taking Clover Valley Chem), can you give an update on your student’s experience with chemistry this year so far? Can anyone compare it to chem or honors chem at WHA? I’m considering both for my DD for next year. She’s currently taking Clover Creek Physics and earning an A-. It is a challenge for her but, like everyone else, she adores the teacher and her excellent organization. Science isn’t really DD’s ‘thing’ but I want her prepared for college-level science work should her interests shift.

CVC honors chemistry is an excellent course.  The workload is heavy as is appropriate for an honors course.  The content is taught very well and the course is well-organized.  Connie is timely in grading and in answering questions.

My caveat would be that I wouldn't want to compare the course to CC's physics.  I have no first hand experience with CC's physics class, but based on my reading, the 2 courses are not comparable in structure or workload. For a student who doesn't like science and just needs to be prepared for college, you might want to also look into the non-honors course that Connie offers.  

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  • 3 months later...
On 9/1/2018 at 4:43 PM, fourisenough said:

I realize some people won't begin school until after this holiday weekend, but for those who are already in the thick of things, how is your year going?

DD13 is beginning her third week of school. Two of four outsourced classes have begun and are both HUGE hits! She loves Clover Creek Physics (though it will be a good challenge for her) and CLRC Great Books 1 (intense work load, but squarely within her area of strength). Latin 1 and Geometry at WHA begin next week, but both are just the next course in the sequence for her with this same provider, so I am fairly confident they will be great fits, too. Overall, I'm very happy with the amount of work, quality of instruction, expectations, feedback, and schedule. 

Just a follow up here at the tail end of this school year. All four outsourced classes mentioned above were unqualified successes. The Hive did not fail me; your teacher recommendations were spot on. 

My DD14 is not now and never will be a Physics lover, but Mrs. Jetta might go down as best teacher of all time. My DD cc’d me on a note she sent Jetta thanking her for the class and she shared Jetta’s response. What a bond she develops with her students over the course of the year! DD loved all the problem-solving practice; seems like it was a great application of Algebra to keep it fresh/build skills in a fun, applied way. The class was a ‘laboratory’ in which DD developed strong study skills at the rhetoric level. 12/10 as the kids would say!

CLRC GB1 was a killer workload, but Mrs. T turned my kid into a critical reader and a fast and skilled writer. I’m shocked by what they’ve accomplished this year. DD’s final summa reflected on her biggest take-away from the class: a newly-developed ability to evaluate the quality of her own thinking. As the MasterCard ad goes: priceless.

WHA Geometry was rigorous, well-organized, and reasonably fun. Mrs. Smith did an excellent job, although DD is giddy to have Mr. Reini again next year for Algebra 2. He is a fan favorite in our house! 

WHA Latin 1 was just fine. It isn’t my DD’s favorite (and she’s already asking if she can be finished with foreign language after Latin 2), but that is probably no fault of Mr. Handermann’s. He wasn’t amazing, but we have no specific complaints either. The class was organized, logical, and thorough. She knows the material and is well-prepared to move onto the next level.

Anyone else have any reflections on this year to share?

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8 minutes ago, Roadrunner said:

 

Could you give more details on the workload? Daily or weekly hours maybe?

It’s hard for me to say exactly for a couple of reasons: my DD lived out-of-state with grandparents this year to train at a ballet school, so I wasn’t physically present with her most weeks of the school year, AND my DD is a crazy fast worker. I would say it was double the amount of work in any of her other classes, but that stands to reason since I’m awarding her two full credits for the course (English & History). If you look at the reading list for the class, keep in mind that they read most titles in-full, with the exception of Plutarch and maybe one other book in which selections were read. I would guess most weeks were 2-hours of in class time and approximately 5-7ish hours of reading and writing.

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So glad I posted on this as the semester wore on because last semester seems like years ago. (I wonder if that is because it is DD's senior year?)

Wrapping up comments on CLRC's  "Intro to Russian" which quickly became "Russian 1" under a new teacher- DD decided to keep going with CLRC's class because while she continued not being a fan of Mrs T (the same one y'all love for GB classes), she LOVES Russian. Mrs T at CLRC got enough feedback that she moderated the pace of the class. I think she was disappointed that the class didn't cover all that she wanted but that she's going to put some changes in place for next year to make it a better experience. Even with all this, no regrets.

Due to the generosity of Mrs Denne (to fit her in mid-year), DD added private Russian classes to her CLRC class and doubled up on Russian second semester. This doubling meant she was getting similar material twice - hopefully making for a good base when she continued with the language in college. (No regrets on going with Mrs Denne second semester.)

German 2 at CLRC had a rough start due to multiple teacher changes. The new teacher is enthusiastic and makes class fun. I'm not sure DD learned as much with her as with her previous teacher(s) and that is the language she might end up dropping in college, but she had fun because of her great fellow students. The other kids in her live classes make the experience better (or worse) for her. Overall, a hit.

AP Calculus @ WHA. DD would not change a thing, but I was not impressed with it. I love Mrs Smith, but I hate teach-to-the-test and I greatly dislike the textbook WHA uses. Definitely a miss this year.

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I will say again - Clover Valley Honors Chem has been incredible. Very well organized, challenging, outstanding teacher support (live office hours plus email support), well taught (quality of lectures is top). 

German at CLRC - I agree with RootAnn. My kid loved the class and the social aspect of it. 

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19 minutes ago, Roadrunner said:

I will say again - Clover Valley Honors Chem has been incredible. Very well organized, challenging, outstanding teacher support (live office hours plus email support), well taught (quality of lectures is top). 

German at CLRC - I agree with RootAnn. My kid loved the class and the social aspect of it. 

Based in part on your (and others’) great feedback, my DD will take Connie’s regular chemistry next year. So excited for her. My older girls had less than stellar teachers for chemistry at our local public HS, so I’m especially grateful to have an excellent teacher as I know it can make a huge difference.

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Both my dds have taken Physics with Jetta at Clover Creek, 2nd dd just finished, and yet again an absolutely fantastic class! Jetta is the most fantastic teacher! I am so pleased with this class! I helped my dd review for the final by quizzing her on various things and her level of understanding and retention was amazing! I can not recommend this class enough! It is fantastic and I am so thankful that both my girls have been able to take it.

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Well, this thread sure makes me feel good about having signed my boys up for regular chem at Clover Valley. Hopefully they'll do okay.

Now that the year is nearly done, I can say that our misses were...

Open Tent classes. One didn't run and then the replacement didn't either. Sigh. We have the worst luck on things like that. The writing class other kid took was fine, but not great. I will say they were very responsive though.

Conceptual Science Academy. I wanted a get it done physics for the year, but this was a real misstep on my part. I should have put them in a proper class. They just need more support. I ended up teaching it from the textbook instead and we used the videos there as a sort of extra. We also used a kit from QSL and that was okay. Definitely a very thorough kit, but I wish the lab answers had shown how they worked them. Mostly we were fine, but physics is not my thing and a couple of times, the answers they had were not answers I could find using any variation of the values in their data. So I had no idea if we were doing the math right or not. I'm sure if I understood physics better, I would have gotten it, but I was feeling my way through for the most part.

Middlebury French was also just meh for us. I did the support, which I thought would be okay with my French level - and it basically was, but... I just think it's too light on quizzing and so forth - there's not enough practice work. And is there some reason that within less than a month they need to have learned three different patterns for verb conjugation? I'm just really struggling to find the right incremental approach. At this point, I think I'm going to do a physical textbook with them next year and then let them take it online or at the cc the following year.

The homeschool class center we tried was also a bust. I had heard such good things and now I'm like, what the heck is wrong with people. I'm glad I didn't trust any core academics to it. Several people did say it had gone downhill, but still.

Jacob's Geometry was also not a big win for us. I was disappointed by it overall. And that's after adoring his Algebra. It wasn't a miss exactly, just not the win I hoped for.

Hits... um... the program I made for humanities (see my sig link) has worked very well. Architecture worked nicely - we did some Great Courses stuff, plus the class at the homeschool center (that was one of the few good things). And overall, even though I listed a lot of misses, it's not been a bad year. They were all mild misses, not big failures.

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Our standout hit this year:
 
Logical Communication with Mr. Roy Speed has been a big hit. It focuses on clear thinking, organizing ideas and arguments, backing up your ideas with evidence, logical flow, and rhetorical devices, all in conjunction with analyzing high-quality essays. The instructor has appropriately high standards and is enthusiastic, the live classroom is well-managed and has interactive discussions, the workload is just right (emphasis on quality, not quantity), and the feedback is individualized (appropriate for a range of abilities), prompt and constructive. DS has taken several composition courses  before this, and this one is the best he's had by far. Mr. Speed is known here on the forum for his Shakespeare courses, and he's offering full-year writing courses online now too. He also teaches writing to corporate professionals. DS will be taking his Essay Writing and Appreciation course next year.
 
Another hit:
 
Derek Owens for math continues to be a hit for us. DS has done DO Algebra, Geometry, Algebra 2, recently finished Honors Pre-Calc, and is looking forward to AP Calc next year.
 
Misses:
 
No real misses for us this year. However, I have been disappointed with the slow grading and little feedback in the German class at Big River Academy. Grading and feedback in foreign language seems significant since the work builds on itself every week. But overall the course is solid, the workload is appropriate for high school, and DS has enjoyed it.
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45 minutes ago, Farrar said:

Well, this thread sure makes me feel good about having signed my boys up for regular chem at Clover Valley. Hopefully they'll do okay.

 

I wonder if the rigor with the honors course was, in part, because of the 36 week schedule. Connie is now offering the parent graded version, which gives a full year of access, which might make it an easier pill to swallow. I'm just thinking out loud here. We are a year away from signing up for her course (likely the regular as well).

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2 hours ago, RootAnn said:

@TarynB Are you willing to share which language @ Big River or name the teacher specifically? Thanks.

@RootAnn I was hesitant to put it in my original post because the last couple of tests haven't been returned and grades are not final yet.Â đŸ˜‰Â I am willing to share it via PM for now, and I will come back and edit my post once the class is officially over. I know how much this community values this kind of info and I have benefited from it myself!

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33 minutes ago, SeaConquest said:

 

I wonder if the rigor with the honors course was, in part, because of the 36 week schedule. Connie is now offering the parent graded version, which gives a full year of access, which might make it an easier pill to swallow. I'm just thinking out loud here. We are a year away from signing up for her course (likely the regular as well).

Maybe. I'm just aware my kids are definitely regular level students for the most part, which is fine. So thorough and somewhat challenging but not overwhelming or crazy time consuming is what I'm hoping for. It's genuinely the ONLY on level, secular, with an actual teacher chemistry class by a qualified teacher I found. Everything else was either not a live teacher or not someone who seemed qualified to teach an actual high school level science course in chemistry. Oh, or was an one of these online schools with per class prices above $1000. So... with that in mind, I sure hope it works for us.

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21 minutes ago, Farrar said:

Maybe. I'm just aware my kids are definitely regular level students for the most part, which is fine. So thorough and somewhat challenging but not overwhelming or crazy time consuming is what I'm hoping for. It's genuinely the ONLY on level, secular, with an actual teacher chemistry class by a qualified teacher I found. Everything else was either not a live teacher or not someone who seemed qualified to teach an actual high school level science course in chemistry. Oh, or was an one of these online schools with per class prices above $1000. So... with that in mind, I sure hope it works for us.

 

I'm with you. I am super stoked to have Jetta and Connie teaching these classes! If only there was a Clover Bio! 

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My 10th grader had a full slate of online classes. WTMA Government/Economics and History and Philosophy of Science and MPOA Chemistry, Geometry, High School Comp 1, Material Logic, Classical Rhetoric, and The Novel.

We are at the point where ds is just getting through the work. He does a good job but he doesn’t just love anything he does. Likewise he is not a complainer so is unlikely to hate anything either. All the classes accomplished what we were going for which was solid academically but not necessarily honors or super rigorous. These classes hit that note for us. None overly cumbersome in work but all legitimate high school classes.

That said we had one I would call a hit and that is the WTMA Govt/Econ. Ds adores the teacher and has had him previously. He would love anything with Mr. Caro. 

And one huge miss and that was Novel from MPOA. I really like MPOA and the class did accomplish the goal of ds reading several good books that are traditionally covered in high school. But there were lots of issues. I don’t want to get into a lot more on that here but it was a big disappointment. I actually feel so fondly about MPOA in general that it hurts me a bit to post that here but it is the kind of feedback I know is important. I can’t say I recommend that class even though I think MPOA is generally a very good option and I trust them enough to sign up even without a lot of reviews on a particular class or teacher. I still feel that way and will give MPOA lots of my money going forward. But this class had some issues. 

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2 hours ago, SeaConquest said:

 

I wonder if the rigor with the honors course was, in part, because of the 36 week schedule. Connie is now offering the parent graded version, which gives a full year of access, which might make it an easier pill to swallow. I'm just thinking out loud here. We are a year away from signing up for her course (likely the regular as well).

 

I would say anything becomes easier if time is doubled, of course,  but the 36 week schedule for honors chem is just right. I think only once (a unit in the beginning of the second semester if I remember correctly) we felt the pace was rushed,  but otherwise it is just right.

I am so very glad that we had teacher grading, because it isn’t just as simple as getting the final right answer. Dicentra went through every solution to identify where the mistake was made and gave feedback on mistakes that made it possible for my kid to rework some of the problems he missed. She also gave partial credit for some mistakes. I am not a knowledgeable person in chemistry, so I really, really appreciated this level of detail in grading. When it’s time for a next kid to do chem, I will chose the teacher graded option again. However, for anybody who knows something about chem, parent graded option is just fine.

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2 minutes ago, Roadrunner said:

 

I would say anything becomes easier if time is doubled, of course,  but the 36 week schedule for honors chem is just right. I think only once (a unit in the beginning of the second semester if I remember correctly) we felt the pace was rushed,  but otherwise it is just right.

I am so very glad that we had teacher grading, because it isn’t just as simple as getting the final right answer. Dicentra went through every solution to identify where the mistake was made and gave feedback on mistakes that made it possible for my kid to rework some of the problems he missed. She also gave partial credit for some mistakes. I am not a knowledgeable person in chemistry, so I really, really appreciated this level of detail in grading. When it’s time for a next kid to do chem, I will chose the teacher graded option again. However, for anybody who knows something about chem, parent graded option is just fine.

 

I don't want to derail the convo (and have another year to decide), but I feel torn. This is the class that is going to prepare him to take Gen Chem at the CC, so I feel like it should be rigorous. But, on the other hand, you all have warned me off from taking the honors course because of the intense workload, so I was thinking that perhaps spreading it out with the parent version might be a compromise. 

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27 minutes ago, SeaConquest said:

 

I don't want to derail the convo (and have another year to decide), but I feel torn. This is the class that is going to prepare him to take Gen Chem at the CC, so I feel like it should be rigorous. But, on the other hand, you all have warned me off from taking the honors course because of the intense workload, so I was thinking that perhaps spreading it out with the parent version might be a compromise. 

 

I can only speak for my child. I can tell you the textbook used for honors chem is almost identical to the one used by AP Chem. You might also check on accelerated board. I rarely look there but they probably have kids more like your boy and can give you a better advice.

You can certainly stretch it over a longer period,  but the question to ask is does your kid really want to spend that much time on chem? Mine doesn’t. He likes chemistry, but I think he will be happy once it’s over. đŸ™‚Â 

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4 hours ago, Roadrunner said:

 

I can only speak for my child. I can tell you the textbook used for honors chem is almost identical to the one used by AP Chem. You might also check on accelerated board. I rarely look there but they probably have kids more like your boy and can give you a better advice.

You can certainly stretch it over a longer period,  but the question to ask is does your kid really want to spend that much time on chem? Mine doesn’t. He likes chemistry, but I think he will be happy once it’s over. đŸ™‚Â 

And of course the logical conclusion for my DD is that, no, we will not do back to back Chemistry, as I had planned 2 years ago. We liked the class too, learned a lot from an amazing teacher, but DD really needs a break from this subject. It was an intense class for DD (maybe not for a different kid). I think if she were older, she would have had an easier time with an Honors course. Just like with AP Latin, she would have done better with the essay portion if she had a couple of more years of writing experience. Each new year brings growth and maturity (and more wisecracking apparently), as I’ve noticed from 7th to 8th grade. It really depends on the student. 

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12 hours ago, crazyforlatin said:

And of course the logical conclusion for my DD is that, no, we will not do back to back Chemistry, as I had planned 2 years ago. We liked the class too, learned a lot from an amazing teacher, but DD really needs a break from this subject. It was an intense class for DD (maybe not for a different kid). I think if she were older, she would have had an easier time with an Honors course. Just like with AP Latin, she would have done better with the essay portion if she had a couple of more years of writing experience. Each new year brings growth and maturity (and more wisecracking apparently), as I’ve noticed from 7th to 8th grade. It really depends on the student. 

May I ask how heavy your daughter's academic load was this year? My son is enrolled for Hon Chem next year as an 8th grader, but I am trying to cover some subjects over the summer so that her will only have 3 core classes and one elective. And he has already said no foreign language til high school! Did your daughter have a lot more juggling to do between classes?

It's so hard to get the balance right, especially when they themselves are always changing!

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10 hours ago, SanDiegoMom in VA said:

May I ask how heavy your daughter's academic load was this year? My son is enrolled for Hon Chem next year as an 8th grader, but I am trying to cover some subjects over the summer so that her will only have 3 core classes and one elective. And he has already said no foreign language til high school! Did your daughter have a lot more juggling to do between classes?

It's so hard to get the balance right, especially when they themselves are always changing!

DD studies a few languages. For the 2nd semester, we took a break from Greek and Latin at Lukeion so that she would have enough time for the modern languages and the rest of the subjects. And it was the right decision because I felt Chemistry got more difficult for DD during the latter half. She also does a lot of activities outside of the home, so I wanted to make sure she didn't cut back on those due to homework, especially since she has been going through the typical teen growth. 

I think a typical 8th grade schedule such as science, math, writing plus elective will be fine if taking Honors. We figured out a schedule that worked for her which was 4 chemistry nights with homework that night or next day plus tests or labs on weekends. For DD she needed more time to absorb the material. Not every kid will need the amount of time DD spent on chemistry. 

 

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Connie's honors chem is definitely going to require time commitment. My Dd is an 11th grader and it took a decent amt of time for her.

Fwis, if a student is going to repeat gen chem at a CC, I would suspect the reg class would be enough preparation. I think Dd is going to try the CLEP exam sometime in June. There are a few topics not covered that she will need to self-study, but Connie's class was spot on for someone wanting an advanced high school chem class but not AP.

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Well, for my last little chickie at home, Clover Creek Physics with Jetta Seboly was her absolute FAVORITE!  "Little Chickie" is even SAD that the class is over.  This is not an easy class, but Jetta has done an excellent job of putting this information together.  Jetta is a personal friend of mine.  I am SOOO proud of her and the job she has done with these classes.  She puts her heart and soul into it.  She LOVES her students and wants them to do their VERY best.  

We HIGHLY recommend this class, especially for those going into a STEM field.  

Little Chickie also liked Derek Owens Algebra II, but I found I had to sit with her and discuss the videos with her.  Her mind tended to wander just a bit.  We also took an extra day right before the chapter tests to rework her homework assignments.  Was a great review for her.   Wish DO had an online option like Jetta's class  that would have a "online class" once a week to go over topics that might be causing some issues.  Would be helpful.  

Hope that helps!

 

 

 

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CLRC’s Great Books class was our big hit this semester. There was a strong focus on writing and analysis skills which is what we were looking for. My dd greatly enjoyed the class discussion and felt she learned so much from the reading and lectures as well as from the other students, who were as highly engaged as she was. She is looking forward to continuing next year.

 

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16 hours ago, 8FillTheHeart said:

Connie's honors chem is definitely going to require time commitment. My Dd is an 11th grader and it took a decent amt of time for her.

Fwis, if a student is going to repeat gen chem at a CC, I would suspect the reg class would be enough preparation. I think Dd is going to try the CLEP exam sometime in June. There are a few topics not covered that she will need to self-study, but Connie's class was spot on for someone wanting an advanced high school chem class but not AP.

 

Gen Chem is a two-semester 200 level science majors sequence at the CCs here and requires either a 100-level Prep for Gen Chem one semester class, passing a department placement exam, or proof of a high school level chem class as a pre-req (not all of the CCs around here allow you to bypass with high school chem). I've been warned that Gen Chem is tough, so I'm trying to decide on one of Connie's classes or having him take the Prep for Gen Chem class, but covering it all in one semester seems more grueling than either of Connie's classes.

It's not so much that he loves chem, but gen chem is a pre-req for the bio and physics stuff he wants to do, so it's necessary. 

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47 minutes ago, SeaConquest said:

 

Gen Chem is a two-semester 200 level science majors sequence at the CCs here and requires either a 100-level Prep for Gen Chem one semester class, passing a department placement exam, or proof of a high school level chem class as a pre-req (not all of the CCs around here allow you to bypass with high school chem). I've been warned that Gen Chem is tough, so I'm trying to decide on one of Connie's classes or having him take the Prep for Gen Chem class, but covering it all in one semester seems more grueling than either of Connie's classes.

It's not so much that he loves chem, but gen chem is a pre-req for the bio and physics stuff he wants to do, so it's necessary. 

I still think her reg chem class will be enough if all they are asking for is a high school level chem class pre-req.  Her class will definitely exceed that threshold.

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On 5/12/2019 at 12:21 PM, SeaConquest said:

 

Gen Chem is a two-semester 200 level science majors sequence at the CCs here and requires either a 100-level Prep for Gen Chem one semester class, passing a department placement exam, or proof of a high school level chem class as a pre-req (not all of the CCs around here allow you to bypass with high school chem). I've been warned that Gen Chem is tough, so I'm trying to decide on one of Connie's classes or having him take the Prep for Gen Chem class, but covering it all in one semester seems more grueling than either of Connie's classes.

It's not so much that he loves chem, but gen chem is a pre-req for the bio and physics stuff he wants to do, so it's necessary. 

I think math level is going to matter, too. We concurrently did Algebra 2 and a non-major college/ advanced high school level text, and even though dd's pretty mathy, I think she would have enjoyed the course more having Algebra 2 complete. It will vary course to course, but I think anything Connie offers will be similarly rigorous.

Edited by MamaSprout
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Miss: Lukeion’s self-paced post-AP Latin class. Little useful feedback given on a very delayed schedule. No constructive feedback given on essays and what was given was so late as to be useless. Latin is/was my dd’s favorite subject and the lack of responsiveness was really discouraging to her.  I have noticed Lukeion is rapidly expanding their course selections and maybe they are just overwhelmed, but I am not really sure what I paid for with this class other than strict deadlines, lol. Very disappointing. Next year, she will continue with her Latin translations independently, unless we can find something better.

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On 9/4/2018 at 6:55 PM, Calming Tea said:

Yeah it's too early but we already have a "miss"

--Community College for an English major.  Also not all community colleges are created equal.  

1.  My dd is a future English/Lit/Teaching major so the humanities and literature classes really matter to her.  The classes they teach at the community college are such a joke, and cover no actual literature until 2B.  Even at that level, very few whole literature novels are assigned and the student population seems wholly uninterested in literature and just trying to get the class out of the way.  It was better to enroll my dd in classes at the local co-op and WTM Academy!  Now, she has a lovely balance between online and in-person classes and all ALL of her teachers truly care and are teaching actual content, instead of trying to be social justice warriors.  (The first essay assigned at the CC was to choose from Gender, Ethnicity, Cosumerism or Social and Economic Class") That's not English, that's something else.

Edited to add (For my son it didn't matter that CC teaches weird humanities and less literature than high school because he was getting it all out of the way so he could get to Math and COmp Sci and Engineering...) So knowing your student and their goals actually makes a big difference where they take their classes!!!

2.  Additionally the only CC that would have worked for my dd with her schedule is far inferior to the other local CC.  There are three CC's locally that are top-ranked and literally draw students from all over the world, regularly feeding straight to Berkeley and UCLA. This other CC is in the boonies, in a mostly farming and rural community and it shows.  Although the staff were very caring and are absolutely striving to help people succeed, the entire atmosphere was geared towards poorer students not seeking a UC education, or adults seeking career/technical training.  Therefore they don't over very many sections for advanced UC-bound students, and even when they do, they're often at night or at odd times because the limited number of classrooms need to be used for the population they are trying to serve, which is remedial/career-technical.  For example, they have ONE section of British Literature, at a weird time and over 12 sections of Remedial English.  I value what they are trying to achieve and support them in the effort, but it wasn't a fit for our kid. ?  

Mine is a future dual major of Letters (classics basically,) and English lit. I put her in comp 1 at the cc next semester if senior year. I'm probably going to regret it. But tuition us free for high school seniors and she needs to start knocking off a few credits. They suggested history as well. And I didn't want to give it up! So we're doing history at home and going to try to clep it. I am nit doing comp 2 at CC second semester because I want us to do literature. I already decided that. I don't want to skip certain titles. But oh, your post reminds me of what others here have said about comp I. Yuck. It's so different from what I remember. 

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This year was kind of a get things done, carry on with what you've been doing year for us, no big hits or misses. 

We did everything at hone with my junior and focused on getting ready for ACT, PSAT, SAT, and Latin exams, college visits and figuring out all of those processes. She did finish her Gold Award at girl scouts, and that was a huge hit. It was a two year process between earning it and turn all of the events they had this year for recipients. She worked hard and is so proud. But subject wise- we mostly did things St hone, WTM style. 

For my 9th grader we've started diving into Writing With Skill, and I remembered how much I love that program. 

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On 5/15/2019 at 8:17 PM, Mom0012 said:

Miss: Lukeion’s self-paced post-AP Latin class. Little useful feedback given on a very delayed schedule. No constructive feedback given on essays and what was given was so late as to be useless. Latin is/was my dd’s favorite subject and the lack of responsiveness was really discouraging to her.  I have noticed Lukeion is rapidly expanding their course selections and maybe they are just overwhelmed, but I am not really sure what I paid for with this class other than strict deadlines, lol. Very disappointing. Next year, she will continue with her Latin translations independently, unless we can find something better.

We only did the first semester, not the second. I thought that there was timely and constructive feedback, but maybe the amount of work changed for the teacher. We did have a hard time with something else not related to the class itself. It did seem that the teacher was very busy and didn't communicate that well over email.

I haven't quite decided what to do for Latin next year. If we have to do something on our own, it may not get done.

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Final update on Lange's Lit 2 class at Integritas Academy. What I liked about this class was the interaction between Lange and the kids. Lots of back and forth, mature conversation. Lange welcomes multiple drafts before the due date. For the final paper, she gives line by line comments, when necessary, which includes everything from grammar, word use, phrasing, etc. She emphasizes literary devices, so I think every week there were 1-2 of them with worksheets. I highly recommend her.

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4 hours ago, crazyforlatin said:

We only did the first semester, not the second. I thought that there was timely and constructive feedback, but maybe the amount of work changed for the teacher. We did have a hard time with something else not related to the class itself. It did seem that the teacher was very busy and didn't communicate that well over email.

I haven't quite decided what to do for Latin next year. If we have to do something on our own, it may not get done.

Honestly, I think this was the issue, at least in part. And the first semester did go better than the second.  At least during the first semester, the Latin essays were graded in a reasonable amount of time. The second semester, she received both essays back at the same time weeks after the class had ended. And there was no specific feedback, just a sentence or two expressing the teacher’s general opinion.

I am sure they are swamped as they seem to be taking on more and more, but I feel like we got very little for what we paid, especially considering there is no instruction at all with this class. 

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 5/24/2019 at 6:02 PM, Mom21 said:

Miss: PAHomeschoolers AP Computer Science A by Cynthia Lang. We withdrew from this class and will attempt another AP CS A course elsewhere, not by this teacher.

 Can I ask why?  I was just looking at this class last night for my son for next year or the year after.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 5/10/2019 at 11:47 AM, teachermom2834 said:

And one huge miss and that was Novel from MPOA. I really like MPOA and the class did accomplish the goal of ds reading several good books that are traditionally covered in high school. But there were lots of issues. I don’t want to get into a lot more on that here but it was a big disappointment. I actually feel so fondly about MPOA in general that it hurts me a bit to post that here but it is the kind of feedback I know is important. I can’t say I recommend that class even though I think MPOA is generally a very good option and I trust them enough to sign up even without a lot of reviews on a particular class or teacher. I still feel that way and will give MPOA lots of my money going forward. But this class had some issues. 

Totally concur. The reading list and basic structure of the class are quite good, but the teacher is just plain awful. It was the only class (out of 13 so far) that I would actively discourage a student from taking unless the teacher changes. Feel free to pm for details.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hits:

AP Physics C (Lanctot) for DS13

AP Chem (ChemAdvantage) for DS13

AP Statistics (summer school 2018) for both kids

AP Macroeconomics & AP Microeconomics (summer school 2018) for DS14

History (tutor) for DS14

Thankfully all their classes were outsourced as I couldn’t help from January onwards with all my doctor appointments and chemo treatments. 

On 5/24/2019 at 6:02 PM, Mom21 said:

Miss: PAHomeschoolers AP Computer Science A by Cynthia Lang. We withdrew from this class and will attempt another AP CS A course elsewhere, not by this teacher.

 

On 6/10/2019 at 2:45 PM, HeatherL said:

 Can I ask why?  I was just looking at this class last night for my son for next year or the year after.

 

Edhesive’s class was great for my kids in 2015/16. They did decently well for the AP exam. However my DS14 can’t use his AP Computer Science A exam score as a prereq for dual enrollment computer science classes. The community college he picked doesn’t give any credit for AP Computer Science A. It doesn’t matter for us, just a FYI.

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3 hours ago, Arcadia said:

Hits:

AP Physics C (Lanctot) for DS13

AP Chem (ChemAdvantage) for DS13

AP Statistics (summer school 2018) for both kids

AP Macroeconomics & AP Microeconomics (summer school 2018) for DS14

History (tutor) for DS14

Thankfully all their classes were outsourced as I couldn’t help from January onwards with all my doctor appointments and chemo treatments. 

 

 

Edhesive’s class was great for my kids in 2015/16. They did decently well for the AP exam. However my DS14 can’t use his AP Computer Science A exam score as a prereq for dual enrollment computer science classes. The community college he picked doesn’t give any credit for AP Computer Science A. It doesn’t matter for us, just a FYI.

Which AP Stats and Econ classes did you use?

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1 minute ago, fourisenough said:

Which AP Stats and Econ classes did you use?

 

It was at a local brick and mortar place that does mainly after school classes. They compressed the summer course to 6 weeks of 3.5hrs tutorial sessions twice a week. Stats had mid term and finals. Econs had two finals (one each for macro and micro). 

Edhesive has an AP Statistic course that is well recommended in this forum. My DS13 needs brick and mortar classes for math to do well.

For AP Statistics, the instructor used The Practice of Statistics (Fourth Edition). New York: W. H. Freeman & Co.

For AP Econs, the instructor used: Macroeconomics, 3rd Edition, by Krugman and Wells.

Microeconomics, 3rd edition, by Krugman and Wells.

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