What is everyone doing for science next year?

[crazyforlatin]

Just curious and seeing if I can find some inspiration and guidance as Dd will be in 9th grade. We've done physics with Clover Creek and currently in Honors Chem with Clover Valley. 

 

[rdj2027]

Well, we have done Clover Creek Physics and are now doing Clover Valley Chemistry.  I keep ignoring the issue because someone (not me) has exactly 8 months to come up with Clover ... Biology.

On another note, I am looking at a couple of biology classes for my daughter and I have no idea for my son.  He has done physics, chemistry and is now in biology.  His favorite subject is physics but he will only be in pre-calc next year.  I am trying to remember how much calc I actually needed for physics but it has been 25 years.  He is interested in engineering and suggested an engineering class but I am also coming up dry with that (he is not a kid who does well with self-paced study, otherwise I would look at the MIT courses).

[fourisenough]

1 hour ago, rdj2027 said:

Well, we have done Clover Creek Physics and are now doing Clover Valley Chemistry.  I keep ignoring the issue because someone (not me) has exactly 8 months to come up with Clover ... Biology.

On another note, I am looking at a couple of biology classes for my daughter and I have no idea for my son.  He has done physics, chemistry and is now in biology.  His favorite subject is physics but he will only be in pre-calc next year.  I am trying to remember how much calc I actually needed for physics but it has been 25 years.  He is interested in engineering and suggested an engineering class but I am also coming up dry with that (he is not a kid who does well with self-paced study, otherwise I would look at the MIT courses).

Sorry, OP, for derailing your thread, but I’m curious if rdj2027’s student is in Clover Valley’s honors chem or regular? And how would you consider the level of difficulty of that chem course compared to Clover Creek Physics?

Crazyforlatin, I could ask you the same. Has honors chem been a huge increase in workload and or level of difficulty from CC Physics?

What is the daily/weekly workload for CV Chem for your student?

[Roadrunner]

15 minutes ago, fourisenough said:

Sorry, OP, for derailing your thread, but I’m curious if rdj2027’s student is in Clover Valley’s honors chem or regular? And how would you consider the level of difficulty of that chem course compared to Clover Creek Physics?

Crazyforlatin, I could ask you the same. Has honors chem been a huge increase in workload and or level of difficulty from CC Physics?

What is the daily/weekly workload for CV Chem for your student?

 

I am not crazyforlatin or rdj2027, but my kid has done both CC physics and CV honors chem. They aren’t comparable. At least for my child the level of difficulty is much, much higher for CV honors chem. 

[rdj2027]

My daughter is in the Honors Class for chemistry.  I personally find the workload roughly the same, Connie gives more time to do it and there are no quizzes in chemistry.  Chemistry in my opinion is more abstract and can be harder to grasp to begin with and Connie seems to go into more detail than physics did (Maybe it just seems that way because chemistry takes place on a smaller scale; it is very hard to visualize what is happening on an atomic scale.)  I don't think the math in chemistry is any harder and Jetta certainly provided plenty of problems that were not just conceptual in nature.  I would call it a very solid foundational physics class but not honors.  Having said that, my boys took honors chemistry classes and I come across plenty of things I have not heard of before (or maybe just not under that name but I had plenty of "Aha" moments) myself so even comparing it to other honors classes, Connie's class is a step up when it comes to difficulty.  

While my daughter is not the science fiend her brothers are, she is considering going into clinical psychology which requires a sequence of calc, several semesters of chemistry and biology and thus we opted for the honors level for chem and bio.  My inkling is that Connie's basic class is like Jetta's physics class, a solid foundation for anyone to build on.

What I appreciate about both classes is the lack of busy work, especially in an honors class.  I have come across too many honors or advanced classes that have a very high workload and in the end the retention is low because the student is more concerned with turning work in rather than actually processing it.   Connie's class seems to be less broad but deeper (or Connie assumes that some topics have been dealt with in prior physics.  For example, my sons spend a lot more time on unit conversions, the spectrum, the history of the periodic table...)

I am glad she had Jetta's class before chem because there are times she directly relates chem to physics (particularly energy and forces) and reasons based on her physics knowledge.

I don't think you can go wrong with Connie's class but if I had a student who is not interested in science or struggled with conceptual understanding, I would sign him/her up for the regular class based on my experience.

 

Edited for grammar

Edited January 13, 2019 by rdj2027

[ShepCarlin]

I'm seriously considering Clover Valley Chemistry for my son, he'll be a 10th grader next year. He is a science kid, did great in a very intense honors biology class in our co-op last year. This year, struggling quite a bit in his co-op physics class. I think it's because it has been taught at an honors level (wasn't supposed to be) and the math has been more advanced than advertised. He is taking Algebra I with me (Teaching Textbooks) this year. Doing well with it, but we are slogging through it at a snail's pace. Trying to decide if he should go regular chemistry with Clover Valley or honors to keep with all his science classes being honors. He wants to major in biology in college, as he plans to be a herpetologist. I guess my concern is that since his math skills aren't awesome and he moves rather slow in math, will he be overwhelmed in honors chemistry?

The advice I've received thus far has been to push him to the honors chemistry but my gut tells me not to push. But my gut also tells me to eat all my Dove chocolate out of my chocolate stash so.......

[RootAnn]

No inspiration here, I'm afraid. I was rather successfully ignoring this issue until your thread.

I'll have to figure something out for dd#2 who is not mathy. We've done conceptual physics and are doing Guest Hollow' s kitchen Chem this year. Biology is up next, but heck if I want to mess with that! (I successfully skipped Bio with dd#1 but won't be that lucky with the rest, unfortunately.) I'd love to have her do ornithology or meteorology but I haven't even started looking around for materials. She's my no-(live-)online-class kid.

I'll keep watching y'all for inspiration.

[Roadrunner]

1 hour ago, ShepCarlin said:

I'm seriously considering Clover Valley Chemistry for my son, he'll be a 10th grader next year. He is a science kid, did great in a very intense honors biology class in our co-op last year. This year, struggling quite a bit in his co-op physics class. I think it's because it has been taught at an honors level (wasn't supposed to be) and the math has been more advanced than advertised. He is taking Algebra I with me (Teaching Textbooks) this year. Doing well with it, but we are slogging through it at a snail's pace. Trying to decide if he should go regular chemistry with Clover Valley or honors to keep with all his science classes being honors. He wants to major in biology in college, as he plans to be a herpetologist. I guess my concern is that since his math skills aren't awesome and he moves rather slow in math, will he be overwhelmed in honors chemistry?

The advice I've received thus far has been to push him to the honors chemistry but my gut tells me not to push. But my gut also tells me to eat all my Dove chocolate out of my chocolate stash so.......

 

Honors can mean a lot of different things in different schools and classes. For example, an honors chem at our local high school is using a text that is significantly easier that Chang text used at Clover Valley, which is a college level text. So I think the best way to decide what you want is not to look at an honors designation, but look at samples of textbooks used by Clover Valley for different courses and decide (based on what you see in those textbooks) appropriate depths for your child. 

 

[Alte Veste Academy]

I’d love a synchronous AP Biology for DS. In the absence of that, he will either do Bio with WTMA or DE. He will also do a homemade Forensic Science course I’ve been putting off. 

[crazyforlatin]

On 1/12/2019 at 7:51 PM, fourisenough said:

Sorry, OP, for derailing your thread, but I’m curious if rdj2027’s student is in Clover Valley’s honors chem or regular? And how would you consider the level of difficulty of that chem course compared to Clover Creek Physics?

Crazyforlatin, I could ask you the same. Has honors chem been a huge increase in workload and or level of difficulty from CC Physics?

What is the daily/weekly workload for CV Chem for your student?

The workload in Honors Chem is much more, relatively speaking. When DD took physics she was much younger, no experience with formal science or labs, so generally it was above level work for her, and this required more from her. If she were to take the class now, she wouldn't need to spend the same amount of time; most of it is maturity.

It's the same now. Honors Chem is a challenging class for her; she needs to work hard to have a decent grade. She prefers doing math (Int Alg AoPS) more than doing chem. I'm not sure what this means, but I think chemistry is not familiar and comfortable as math; there's a steady progression in math whereas chemistry has been basically a new subject and at an honors level. The most important part for this class is time management, not necessarily math skills, although having strong word problem understanding is helpful. Dicentra makes it easy for the students; there is a checklist so you get the general idea of how much time to allocate without needing to break it down yourself. Dicentra is very supportive of the students, not just in the subject itself (we had a last minute request for a LOR because another vendor didn't come through for us, and she came through for us and wrote it up within a day).

[hollyhock2]

I have non-science kids. My oldest wants to do physics with some combination of Physics 101 DVD, Conceptual Physics and possibly the physics chapters from PAC IPC. My next one is leaning toward geology/archaeology, but hasn't decided for sure yet.

[crazyforlatin]

1 hour ago, Alte Veste Academy said:

I’d love a synchronous AP Biology for DS. In the absence of that, he will either do Bio with WTMA or DE. He will also do a homemade Forensic Science course I’ve been putting off. 

At our CC we have 2 bio classes, one of which is for a student needing remedial bio, and another that has prerequisites.

Has anyone heard of a remedial bio class? 

 

 

[Janeway]

I would totally do Clover anything for science. There was a coop that was online that I thought looked great for biology. I need to look for the link....someone here must know what I am referring to.....

[Alte Veste Academy]

13 hours ago, crazyforlatin said:

At our CC we have 2 bio classes, one of which is for a student needing remedial bio, and another that has prerequisites.

Has anyone heard of a remedial bio class? 

I have not. Odd.

Neither of the intro bio classes (general and for majors) at our cc has a prerequisite, I think. And they have many more follow up bio classes after the intro. I’m pretty impressed!

[RootAnn]

15 hours ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

Will she watch anything online, like just more nature like videos rather than lecture? Or is she absolutely no computer type on this stuff? If she'll watch videos, the Cornell course might work well. You can borrow our book if she decides she wants to take it. 

She'll do online, just not live. Thanks for the offer. I'll keep it in mind!

15 hours ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

And I have no clue what we're doing next year. She's done Biology, Paleontology with University of Alberta on Coursera, and now Ornithology with Cornell. I'm hoping to find inspiration at the homeschool convention in March! 

What did she use for Bio?

I'm looking at Thinkwell, but everything I've read so far says it is College Level. I might end up posting another thread eventually.

[....]

DD17 is now unschooling.  Next fall, I'll also have an 11th grader and a 9th grader and they're switching to unit studies.  I'm putting them together myself (again *sigh*).  I know for sure they are doing Human Anatomy and Chemistry.  

[crazyforlatin]

3 minutes ago, Evanthe said:

DD17 is now unschooling.  Next fall, I'll also have an 11th grader and a 9th grader and they're switching to unit studies.  I'm putting them together myself (again *sigh*).  I know for sure they are doing Human Anatomy and Chemistry.  

Does human anatomy require bio? DD wants to do human anatomy but we have not done any bio yet. 

[....]

1 minute ago, crazyforlatin said:

Does human anatomy require bio? DD wants to do human anatomy but we have not done any bio yet. 

 

I really think it would be fine if you put it together yourself.  Some of the textbooks say you need Biology first - like the Apologia anatomy

[crazyforlatin]

1 hour ago, Evanthe said:

 

I really think it would be fine if you put it together yourself.  Some of the textbooks say you need Biology first - like the Apologia anatomy

There's only so much I want to do for 9th grade, and I think science is not going to be one of them lol. 

We're also in the odd position of not knowing what's going to happen until after mid-March to see if DD can pass an exam to take cc classes. But I don't know if science ought to be the first class at CC, unless it's one of those remedial science classes, which may look subpar on a transcript. 

[Miss Tick]

My two older will be in 9th next year. They've been doing great in ClemsonDana's bio class at Fundafunda (recorded but synchronous @RootAnn). They have expressed interest in doing her Bio 2 class. I see no reason to try to dissuade, among other things that should (ideally) let dd get through algebra, which would open the doors for "the Clover classes".

Edited January 19, 2019 by SusanC
You put your left foot in, You put your left foot out...

[FairProspects]

My oldest with be 9th grade next year. He will be taking a local homeschool science class taught by one of the few teachers IRL I trust to teach my kids. The class uses Apologia Biology and includes dissections and experiments. He is currently considering whether he wants to double up on science next year (STEM kid) and take Clover Physics also.

[crazyforlatin]

16 minutes ago, FairProspects said:

My oldest with be 9th grade next year. He will be taking a local homeschool science class taught by one of the few teachers IRL I trust to teach my kids. The class uses Apologia Biology and includes dissections and experiments. He is currently considering whether he wants to double up on science next year (STEM kid) and take Clover Physics also.

I would like to double up science and skip something, maybe history? With history I think at CC it's like this: one semester is one full year high school course. 

Question for anyone here: is it ok to skip history and take a couple of history classes at CC in the later years of high school?

 

 

[FairProspects]

1 minute ago, crazyforlatin said:

I would like to double up science and skip something, maybe history? With history I think at CC it's like this: one semester is one full year high school course. 

Question for anyone here: is it ok to skip history and take a couple of history classes at CC in the later years of high school?

 

 

I can't answer the CC part, but skipping history would be our plan. Our state only requires 3 years of social studies for graduation, and every college I've checked also only requires 3 years. I actually skipped history myself my 9th grade year with zero college consequences (and one of my majors was history).

[RootAnn]

Dd#1 actually skipped science one year, then took a lab science at the local state college. (One semester because none of her colleges require four years of science.) She also took a semester of Psych at the college so she had enough "Social Studies" credits to skip history this, her senior year. (That allowed her the time to start Russian.)

@SusanC Thanks for the mention. I looked up FundaFunda earlier and found all the threads about how time consuming and confusing Bio is/was. I don't think that is the class for this kid. I also checked out Blue Tent. That's another No.

[fourisenough]

1 hour ago, RootAnn said:

I also checked out Blue Tent. That's another No.

Do you mind saying why you eliminated Blue Tent? I am sooooo not sciency, so I feel insecure choosing science classes/providers. And I can find no reviews of it.

My DD is taking and doing well in Clover Creek Physics this year, but it’s tough for her. She is not a science whiz/lover, even though she is capable.

[Farrar]

I'm completely unsure about what we're doing... we did physics this year, maybe we'll do chemistry next year and we might do CV if so.

Can I just say though... I really wish there were more teacher supported (doesn't have to be live, but not online video-based/self-graded) options for regular high school science. It seems like the honors and AP options at least exist (even though more variety there would be good too) but other than the Clover options and some of the come and go Open Tent/Outschool classes (which, honestly, dubious without reviews) there's almost nothing unless it's through a school district (and even most of those are self-graded online deals). In general, there just aren't enough "regular kid" options for online high school. So much is geared toward honors/AP or CC.

ETA: Adding... secular, I mean. I know there are some more in the Christian realm.

Edited January 19, 2019 by Farrar

[RootAnn]

@fourisenough Know Thy Child. There is zero chance I would put DD#2 in a Blue Tent class. BT as a provider is known for being rigorous and also having time consuming classes. Dd#2 has an interest in animals but no love for science at this point. She's not heading for a STEM field. Edited to add that the Clover classes aren't her type either. She needs a get 'er done at home class, and I would prefer one that didn't require a bunch of my time if I am outsourcing. Guest Hollow Kitchen Chem has been a good fit for this kid where it wouldn't be for DD#3, for example.

Here's one thread with a review.

Edited January 19, 2019 by RootAnn
Adding more info

[Roadrunner]

44 minutes ago, Farrar said:

I'm completely unsure about what we're doing... we did physics this year, maybe we'll do chemistry next year and we might do CV if so.

Can I just say though... I really wish there were more teacher supported (doesn't have to be live, but not online video-based/self-graded) options for regular high school science. It seems like the honors and AP options at least exist (even though more variety there would be good too) but other than the Clover options and some of the come and go Open Tent/Outschool classes (which, honestly, dubious without reviews) there's almost nothing unless it's through a school district (and even most of those are self-graded online deals). In general, there just aren't enough "regular kid" options for online high school. So much is geared toward honors/AP or CC.

ETA: Adding... secular, I mean. I know there are some more in the Christian realm.

 

My kid needs a live teacher. Clover Valley and Clover Creek have been perfect, but staring ahead is scary. I can’t imagine the kiddo succeeding in any class without a live interaction, and that describes most of PAH. 😕

 

 

[Mbelle]

DS did MP Bio for 9th, a local class for honors Chem that used BJU for 10th, Derek Owens honors physics this year.  I think he will do dual enrollment physics next year.

If you are needing bio, we had two kids take online with different providers. My oldest did Kolbe bio.  We liked both Kolbe and MP Bio.  Kolbe meets 2 times a week and also has students read Cardinal Shonborne.  MP doesn't have any official religious aspec but they are Christian and only meets 1 day per week.  

[Miss Tick]

@Farrar the Fundafunda class does come in honors or regular, but I agree that we could use additional options. I read some of the reviews that Rootann mentioned, and followed up with one of the posters who said that for NT kids it wouldn't need so much time. That has been our experience. I schedule 5 hours a week, which we use, but don't regularly exceed.

My plan is to follow with Cover Valley Chemistry and then Clover Creek Physics and then a year for student choice. But really I'll have to see once my dc get there. Like Rootann said, "know thy child", and dd in particular can be hot and cold about math and science, so we'll see where we are at.

[crazyforlatin]

2 hours ago, Mbelle said:

DS did MP Bio for 9th, a local class for honors Chem that used BJU for 10th, Derek Owens honors physics this year.  I think he will do dual enrollment physics next year.

If you are needing bio, we had two kids take online with different providers. My oldest did Kolbe bio.  We liked both Kolbe and MP Bio.  Kolbe meets 2 times a week and also has students read Cardinal Shonborne.  MP doesn't have any official religious aspec but they are Christian and only meets 1 day per week.  

How much work was required on average for  MP and Kolbe? 

I don't think DD can spend more than 1 hour per day on bio, so 5 hours max per week. If it were marine bio, anatomy, or zoology, it would be different. 

[madteaparty]

11 hours ago, Farrar said:

I'm completely unsure about what we're doing... we did physics this year, maybe we'll do chemistry next year and we might do CV if so.

Can I just say though... I really wish there were more teacher supported (doesn't have to be live, but not online video-based/self-graded) options for regular high school science. It seems like the honors and AP options at least exist (even though more variety there would be good too) but other than the Clover options and some of the come and go Open Tent/Outschool classes (which, honestly, dubious without reviews) there's almost nothing unless it's through a school district (and even most of those are self-graded online deals). In general, there just aren't enough "regular kid" options for online high school. So much is geared toward honors/AP or CC.

ETA: Adding... secular, I mean. I know there are some more in the Christian realm.

DS is taking “regular kid” math and science at a local private. Financially, it makes zero sense but it solves other issues for us so we are glad for the option.

[Roadrunner]

40 minutes ago, crazyforlatin said:

How much work was required on average for  MP and Kolbe? 

I don't think DD can spend more than 1 hour per day on bio, so 5 hours max per week. If it were marine bio, anatomy, or zoology, it would be different. 

 

Your DD is a fast worker. I saw you said she spends 5 hours on honors chem. I bet the WTM bio class (talk to Mirabilis about it. Her DS loves it) won’t be any more than that. 

[Clear Creek]

Next year my middle child (10th grade) will be doing earth science using the AGS textbook and lab book. I have no idea what my oldest (12th grade) will do for science. So far she has taken environmental science and biology, and is currently taking chemistry. I know physics is what is typically taken next, but she has zero desire to study physics. She loved her biology class at FundaFunda Academy, so she may end up taking the biology 2 class there if we can't come up with another science option.

[Roadrunner]

Has anybody tried CTY Homors Bio? They expect 2 hours a day of study, but I wonder if they have a live session and if they moved away from Tinkwell. 

[Mbelle]

1 hour ago, crazyforlatin said:

How much work was required on average for  MP and Kolbe? 

I don't think DD can spend more than 1 hour per day on bio, so 5 hours max per week. If it were marine bio, anatomy, or zoology, it would be different. 

I think they teach about the same amount of material, but it seems like Kolbe takes more time and more work.  It di meet 2x a week for 70 min I think, I can't remember the exact amount of time.  I knew my DS did not need nor would want to spend the amount of time as dd needed, so we went with MP, which he was familiar with from online Latin class.  If she's a fast worker she could do it in 5 hours per week. I'm pretty sure my son spent the minimum amount of time and he squeaked out an A.  He did actually enjoy it and would come and tell me about some of the things he was learning.  

[crazyforlatin]

2 hours ago, Roadrunner said:

 

Your DD is a fast worker. I saw you said she spends 5 hours on honors chem. I bet the WTM bio class (talk to Mirabilis about it. Her DS loves it) won’t be any more than that. 

What?!? Typo or I typed while daydreaming. No way 5 hours for H Chem. With the videos, reading, and homework, and maybe rewatching parts of the videos, I'd say closer to 8 hours not including the tests.

She's not been very focused this year due to puberty and such. I sure hope it gets better in 9th grade.

 

 

[crazyforlatin]

1 hour ago, Mbelle said:

I think they teach about the same amount of material, but it seems like Kolbe takes more time and more work.  It di meet 2x a week for 70 min I think, I can't remember the exact amount of time.  I knew my DS did not need nor would want to spend the amount of time as dd needed, so we went with MP, which he was familiar with from online Latin class.  If she's a fast worker she could do it in 5 hours per week. I'm pretty sure my son spent the minimum amount of time and he squeaked out an A.  He did actually enjoy it and would come and tell me about some of the things he was learning.  

So if not a fast worker and maybe the focus is not all there, how many hours on average? Bio seems easier than Chem though or maybe not?

[teachermom2834]

I think we are going to go with AP Physics 1/2 from PA Homeschoolers. I don’t feel great about it because I don’t know that we will have access to AP exams and he is likely headed to a STEM major so this level physics probably won’t transfer in his major even if he did have exam access. But he isn’t far enough in math to take the calc based physics. He will be a junior and had Clover Creek physics last year and biology at a co-op and he has chemistry this year through MPOA. I’m just not sure what else he could take that make sense for him. He could use more biology but he doesn’t enjoy it. He prefers physics and chem. I’m planning for him to take chem de his senior year. So...right now we are looking at the AP Physics 1 and or 1 and 2 from PAHS but I am reading this thread for other options. It’s a lot of money to spend just because we can’t think of something we’d rather do.

[crazyforlatin]

5 minutes ago, teachermom2834 said:

I think we are going to go with AP Physics 1/2 from PA Homeschoolers. I don’t feel great about it because I don’t know that we will have access to AP exams and he is likely headed to a STEM major so this level physics probably won’t transfer in his major even if he did have exam access. But he isn’t far enough in math to take the calc based physics. He will be a junior and had Clover Creek physics last year and biology at a co-op and he has chemistry this year through MPOA. I’m just not sure what else he could take that make sense for him. He could use more biology but he doesn’t enjoy it. He prefers physics and chem. I’m planning for him to take chem de his senior year. So...right now we are looking at the AP Physics 1 and or 1 and 2 from PAHS but I am reading this thread for other options. It’s a lot of money to spend just because we can’t think of something we’d rather do.

Dicentra offers Intro to Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, http://www.clovervalleychemistry.com/

I haven’t seen upper level chem courses yet at other vendors.

[Mbelle]

38 minutes ago, crazyforlatin said:

So if not a fast worker and maybe the focus is not all there, how many hours on average? Bio seems easier than Chem though or maybe not?

My ds does need me to stay on him to keep on task a bit. I do think you could get it done in 5 hours a week if you do the work.  

Ds did better in chem than bio, but he loved his teacher and he likes the topic better.

[Arcadia]

On 1/17/2019 at 5:26 PM, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

 She's done Biology, Paleontology with University of Alberta on Coursera, and now Ornithology with Cornell. 

 

Is the Cornell Ornithology course this one? https://store.birds.cornell.edu/product_p/edu-ornith.htm

DS13 who would be in 9th grade this fall would probably enjoy astronomy, botany and ornithology. He would do any science that doesn't have dissection and has a relatively light workload. He is doing physics and chemistry this year so we can afford a relax pace for science next year. He did Miller Levine Biology with the labpak Biology kit and puked 😛 He loves nature photography as a hobby.

No idea about what DS14 who is going into 10th grade would do for science. His interests are still changing. We are waiting for course approval for a physics course this spring semester. Tentative plan would be dual enrollment astronomy in summer at a community college that is hosting a blood moon lunar party tomorrow night. Both kids love using the telescopes at the observatories as our neighborhood has too much light pollution to see stars well. 

ETA:

Blood moon watching party is tomorrow night. Corrected my post.

Edited January 20, 2019 by Arcadia

[FairProspects]

16 hours ago, Farrar said:

I'm completely unsure about what we're doing... we did physics this year, maybe we'll do chemistry next year and we might do CV if so.

Can I just say though... I really wish there were more teacher supported (doesn't have to be live, but not online video-based/self-graded) options for regular high school science. It seems like the honors and AP options at least exist (even though more variety there would be good too) but other than the Clover options and some of the come and go Open Tent/Outschool classes (which, honestly, dubious without reviews) there's almost nothing unless it's through a school district (and even most of those are self-graded online deals). In general, there just aren't enough "regular kid" options for online high school. So much is geared toward honors/AP or CC.

ETA: Adding... secular, I mean. I know there are some more in the Christian realm.

WTMA? Has anyone tried these?

[crazyforlatin]

28 minutes ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

Yes that’s the same course. I did get the textbook new off of Amazon and saved $50! It’s an extremely well produced program from the parts I’ve seen, and would qualify as a non-exhaustive workload for sure. 

Is there a lab component? 

Actually does every science course need a lab for college app?

[TarynB]

On 1/18/2019 at 8:08 PM, RootAnn said:

Thanks for the mention. I looked up FundaFunda earlier and found all the threads about how time consuming and confusing Bio is/was. I don't think that is the class for this kid. I also checked out Blue Tent. That's another No.

 

FWIW, my son took FundaFunda's Biology and in his experience it was not time consuming or confusing. Perhaps the reviews with that experience were for kids younger than the target age (high school)? Or otherwise needed more than the typical high school level of assistance with executive function/organization? Or had not taken online classes previously and were therefore dealing with learning how to learn online while also learning the course material? I think all those background factors are important to consider when reading reviews. We found that FundaFunda Bio's materials were all well organized, laid out clearly week by week, easy to work with, etc. DS was in 9th grade and the typical 9th grade age & maturity when he took it. It uses the Miller and Levine text as a spine, which is a solid, regular high school textbook - not advanced. I doubt he ever spent more than 4 - 5 hours per week, and that was during weeks with labwork; non-lab weeks took less time. Of course "know thy child" always applies though. 😊

ETA: I think I found the thread with the reviews you were referring to. There is mention of dyslexia, non-NT, Asperger's/autism, so def. understandable in those cases that some students might need additional parental support in the class.

High school bio classes that use secular texts are hard to find. The class wasn't perfect (none are), but it worked fine for DS. I hope others reading would consider it as an option.

Edited January 20, 2019 by TarynB

[Arcadia]

9 hours ago, teachermom2834 said:

I think we are going to go with AP Physics 1/2 from PA Homeschoolers. I don’t feel great about it because I don’t know that we will have access to AP exams and he is likely headed to a STEM major so this level physics probably won’t transfer in his major even if he did have exam access. But he isn’t far enough in math to take the calc based physics. He will be a junior and had Clover Creek physics last year and biology at a co-op and he has chemistry this year through MPOA. I’m just not sure what else he could take that make sense for him. He could use more biology but he doesn’t enjoy it. He prefers physics and chem. I’m planning for him to take chem de his senior year. So...right now we are looking at the AP Physics 1 and or 1 and 2 from PAHS but I am reading this thread for other options. It’s a lot of money to spend just because we can’t think of something we’d rather do.

 

Which STEM major is he interested in? Where is he in math? 

[teachermom2834]

7 hours ago, Arcadia said:

 

Which STEM major is he interested in? Where is he in math? 

He thinks some kind of engineering but I’m not sure he really knows what that involves. In reality he just really likes math. I think he could end up in statistics or data analysis (that is what dh does). He lately has been spending his free time creating spreadsheets tracking and analyzing the statistics of his favorite basketball teams. Lol. He did an electrical engineering camp last summer and liked that. So really he doesn’t know what he wants to do but he is pretty academic and likes numbers. He is in 10th grade now and is in geometry. He will be in precal for 11th and can take calculus senior year. We decided not to rush him way ahead in math. 

[Arcadia]

2 minutes ago, teachermom2834 said:

He thinks some kind of engineering but I’m not sure he really knows what that involves. In reality he just really likes math. I think he could end up in statistics or data analysis (that is what dh does). ...

 He will be in precal for 11th and can take calculus senior year. We decided not to rush him way ahead in math. 

 

I was thinking Chemistry for 11th and DE Physics or AP Physics C for 12th since Physics would be fresh going into college. I was also thinking paying for DE Physics or AP Physics C might be more “worth it” than paying for AP Physics 1 & 2. My younger is doing AP Physics C concurrently with calculus. My kid did the AP Chemistry exam because some engineering schools would give credit for that and he might be able to avoid taking chemistry for freshman year, lightening his load. 

For what it’s worth, my older boy took macroeconomics and microeconomics and AP statistics during summer and found they complimented each other.

[teachermom2834]

6 minutes ago, Arcadia said:

 

I was thinking Chemistry for 11th and DE Physics or AP Physics C for 12th since Physics would be fresh going into college. I was also thinking paying for DE Physics or AP Physics C might be more “worth it” than paying for AP Physics 1 & 2. My younger is doing AP Physics C concurrently with calculus. My kid did the AP Chemistry exam because some engineering schools would give credit for that and he might be able to avoid taking chemistry for freshman year, lightening his load. 

For what it’s worth, my older boy took macroeconomics and microeconomics and AP statistics during summer and found they complimented each other.

I was also thinking of de Chem 1/2 junior year and AP Physics C senior year as an option but then I thought he might be better off with the de chem senior year basically so chem wouldn’t be his first de class (he will be starting de in 11th with Comp and Spanish). But yes, I agree with your line of thinking and that the Physics 1/2 isn’t really going to the worth it. But I’m not crazy about jumping into de chem with a lab at the local university as a first de class. There is some kind of Earth and Space Science or something like that at the local univ we use for de that might be an easier initial de science class than chem. Our de is very inexpensive. So it is all very muddy. 

This kid won’t be applying to competitive colleges. He’ll be attending a state school and planning on automatic merit aid based on ACT scores. So we are just trying to get him a solid education while allowing him to pursue extracurricular interests. All that to say we aren’t striving to impress an admissions or scholarship committee. Just trying to give him the best foundation we can. Maybe when the de schedule comes out some great option will show itself. 

Thanks for the thoughts!

[Roadrunner]

10 hours ago, TarynB said:

 

FWIW, my son took FundaFunda's Biology and in his experience it was not time consuming or confusing. Perhaps the reviews with that experience were for kids younger than the target age (high school)? Or otherwise needed more than the typical high school level of assistance with executive function/organization? Or had not taken online classes previously and were therefore dealing with learning how to learn online while also learning the course material? I think all those background factors are important to consider when reading reviews. We found that FundaFunda Bio's materials were all well organized, laid out clearly week by week, easy to work with, etc. DS was in 9th grade and the typical 9th grade age & maturity when he took it. It uses the Miller and Levine text as a spine, which is a solid, regular high school textbook - not advanced. I doubt he ever spent more than 4 - 5 hours per week, and that was during weeks with labwork; non-lab weeks took less time. Of course "know thy child" always applies though. 😊

 

Fundafunda didn’t work for us. I think the lack of a live class was a factor. My kid also started to dislike the style of videos. Once he discovered Bozeman videos, he refused to watch her hand write slides. It just wasn’t a good fit here, but glad to know it worked for your DS.