HELP!!!! Derek Owens Physics

[ProudGrandma]

My son (a senior) started using this physics about the first part of October (we started with a different program that failed) and he is just not getting very far, very fast.  He is only on the second chapter...towards the end...but only chapter 2. At this rate, there is NO way he will finish this program by mid-late May.  Is this normal?  He has to have physics because his college of choice requires it.  How can I help him move more quickly or what do we do?   How much time each day should he be spending on physics?  He says he spends about an hour, but I am not sure if that is enough or if he just isn't pushing himself enough.   What are we doing wrong?  Please help me out.  Thanks. 

[EKS]

He should be spending as much time as it takes to get the work done.  I'd have him figure out how much he is going to need to do each week to finish by the time he needs to and then make sure he adheres to that schedule.

Is he really focusing during that hour he spends?  It's really easy to go look at something else on the internet for "just a few minutes" in between DO videos.  That few minutes can expand before you know it.

Edited November 17, 2019 by EKS

[lmrich]

It is a tough class. He might need to work on the weekend to get it done since he started late. It can be done, but he will have to work. 

[ProudGrandma]

I agree with all of this...what is hard is some things take him longer than others...so it's sort of hard to know...but you are right...he needs to work until it's done.....on the average...how much time does one need to spend a day.  I told him that the videos are like his school lectures (for an hour in school) and the homework is the "out of school" work...so sometimes that is another hour or more at night and on the weekends. 

I think it's time to have another heart to heart talk with the boy.  He is only on week 4 and there 32 weeks total...and only 22 more weeks of school (if he wants to be done by mid May...and that includes our Christmas break).  I am just not sure it's going to happen. 

thanks.

[fourisenough]

Are there any other classes he can drop or really lighten up on to allow more time to complete physics? Should you sit at elbow with him and watch the videos to help him stay on track?

[Garga]

My son devoted 2 hours a day on it last year, with a 10 minute break between the 2 hours.  And he still took a bit into the summer to complete the class.  And that was with a mid-August start.

However, don’t be too discouraged: my son also has slow processing speed, so he needed the extra time.  (He gets time and a half on SAT tests.). If your son doesn’t have slow processing speed, he may be able to catch up.  But he’ll have to work hard to get there. 

Teach your son how to divide up the work over the remaining months of school.  Tell him to expect to work on Physics for 2 hours a day.  And if he doesn’t get the week’s work done M-F, he needs to get it done on S-S.  Make sure he accounts for vacation days (Christmas/spring/whatever days you guys take off).

Also, you might want to consider having all his other courses done by mid-May, but let this one go to mid-June and he can devote a bunch of time to it for that last month.  But be SUPER careful with offering something like that and be in control of it.  That’s the sort of thing that young people think, “Oh, I’ll just put it all off and do it in one month!” And then they find that it’s impossible to do 5 months of work in 1 month.  It’s just an idea to give him a little more time so that getting through this isn’t torture.

Edited November 18, 2019 by Garga

[ProudGrandma]

can someone tell me if the weeks are equally balanced time wise? In other words, one week isn't longer or more time consuming than another? And also is the work load about the same level of difficulty or does it progressively get harder? thanks for your help,.

[ProudGrandma]

After doing some math, I think if he does a week of work every 5 days (including weekends) he might be done by the end of May.  Is this what you would do? 

What's hard is that doesn't take into account the time it takes to get homework back... And redo if needed. And no real time to study for tests. 

I am just not sure this is realistic.

I just remembered the idea someone else said to make physics done in June. That might be possible.

Edited November 18, 2019 by kfeusse

[RootAnn]

I don't think the weeks are balanced. Mine had a harder time first semester than second but maybe that was partially because I helped her get a constant review process set in after she bombed the midterm. It took her almost an entire calendar year to finish.

I'd suggest he move onto new sections while waiting for homework to come back & tests to be returned. He might end up needing to retake an exam or two, so he'll need to keep working through the material.

[EKS]

4 minutes ago, RootAnn said:

I'd suggest he move onto new sections while waiting for homework to come back & tests to be returned. He might end up needing to retake an exam or two, so he'll need to keep working through the material.

This.  You can't wait for stuff to come back.  Just circle back to previous material if the grading shows that it needs attention.

[Garga]

8 minutes ago, RootAnn said:

I don't think the weeks are balanced. Mine had a harder time first semester than second but maybe that was partially because I helped her get a constant review process set in after she bombed the midterm. It took her almost an entire calendar year to finish.

I'd suggest he move onto new sections while waiting for homework to come back & tests to be returned. He might end up needing to retake an exam or two, so he'll need to keep working through the material.

I agree with no waiting.  Just move ahead and keep working while waiting to get the grades back.  

[mirabillis]

We just followed the syllabus week to week. I'd break it up day by day to give my DS more directed input. He took the Honors version, so had more HW, etc. But he's a mathy, STEM kid at heart so found it pretty easy to tackle. He was in 11th grade. How old is your ds? Just keep plugging away. If you're not adhered to a tight schedule due to AP or SAT II exam, then just take as long as it takes. Try to follow the syllabus, adjust a little as needed.

[Garga]

@kfeusse  I just had a chance to ask my son if some weeks were harder than others and he said yes, some were easier and some were harder, but it seems to me that it’ll depend on the kid.  Some things might be easier to one kid and harder to another and vice versa. 

So, I’d still split it out evenly and on the hard weeks, expect to work a bit into the weekend, or else plan to have a buffer and let Physics go into the summer if necessary if he needs longer.  In other words, keep your plan online and don’t print it out more than a week out, so that you can tweak dates as needed for harder/easier weeks.  

[Miss Tick]

My ds ran into this last year with DO algebra, so this year in geometry we've been paying close attention to the syllabus - and still falling behind!! Not as far, thank goodness, but still frustrating. In our case we need to revisit spending 2 actual hours a day, rather than "roughly" or "about". 

[JoJosMom]

You might want to help him a bit more with the scheduling. My daughter took it as a freshman, so I was quite involved in scheduling. I would go through the upcoming week and total up the time required for the videos, then estimate time for the homework, and schedule accordingly. Doing it that way, she was done around the first part of May, IIRC.

Also, if you don't want to wait for the homework to come back, you can ask Mr. Owens for the key. That way you can check your student's answers. If they are mostly correct, you can just let him move on without waiting for detailed grading. If there's a lot of incorrect answers, you may need to slow down a bit.

[Meriwether]

I didn't realize you could redo homework and quizzes. Is that true of all DO classes?

[RootAnn]

I think so.

[Mbelle]

My ds took DO Physics last year and we did go to June, but one reason is because we went on a vacation in May and were gone for 10 days.  Some of the chapters were harder.  He figured out that you can ask for more video's to explain if you get stuck and  those are usually really helpful. 

Ds is doing DO Calculus this year.   He is a senior and has senioritis as well as being closer to 18 so I'm feeling like he needs his almost adult space, however I am going to have to be his project manager because he needs to be done with first semester by Christmas so we can have his transcript updated and sent to the colleges he is applying to.  Then he needs to be done in May so that he can graduate from his hybrid school.

[Meriwether]

21 hours ago, RootAnn said:

I think so.

Thanks. That is good to know. Is there a time limit to redo something?

[RootAnn]

@Meriwether I don't know. Good question to ask DO himself. The only redo I remember vividly (as it has been 4 years since my DD#1 took a DO class) is the midterm. *shudder*

My kid took maybe two months before she was ready to retake the midterm exam, but I told DO it might take that long before she was ready. She was working on regular DO lessons, redoing all first semester homework & exams (the stuff that she obviously didn't undertand enough to remember once she took that chapter's quiz), and doing targeted review of the current lessons so we wouldn't have to go through it all again for the final. So, think double the amount of time she spent first semester. But it worked out.

[Joyful]

DD also took longer to finish last year with Algebra 2 and Physics bc we took weeks off for travel.

But I would second the suggestion to follow syllabus closely to make sure you finish on time. If they need to spend time after dinner and weekends to finish the homework and study for tests, then you can help keep them on track with that.

I also agree with not waiting for the feedback to move on with the work. You can have them do more revision if the marks are not up to expectations.

The other suggestion would be to encourage your son to email Mr. Owens for help when he has trouble with understanding the concepts even before getting feedback for the homework. Mr. Owens was very helpful in answering questions that DD had whenever she needed help.

[deerforest]

double post

Edited November 30, 2019 by deerforest

[deerforest]

We haven't taken the physics class yet, but we're in our second DO class (Algebra 2), and we've found it pretty easy to stick to the schedules. https://www.derekowens.com/CourseSyllabuses2.aspx?Location=Online&Day=Monday&Year=2019-2020&Course=Physics&Teacher=Mr. Owens and we also do the self grading option so we can move at our pace. 

Edited November 30, 2019 by deerforest

[HeatherL]

Hoping someone who posted in this thread can help us.  My son got access to this physics class tonight, but we can't find the labs anywhere.  The syllabus lists them, but where are they?  I checked the videos, workbook, assignments, and test links.  Please help!