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Geometry - HS College Bound


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1 hour ago, Kimberly A.Q. said:

"It was one of my favorite classes" - from my son Derin (who took every class they offered over a six-year period!).  You WILL NOT FIND a better program.  These are professionals: people who thoroughly know and are passionate about the subjects they offer, and then take the time and care to get to know their students as well.  They somehow combine the rigor of a high-level course and appropriate expectations of a student with a firm but gentle guidance and encouragement that keeps a student's love of learning intact. My son was well prepared for AP classes (he focused on AP Govt. & Politics) and received a scholarship to University of Maryland, College Park, and STILL says his classes with HSCB (the Speeds) were the best... I cannot believe how truly fortunate we were to have had them be such a profoundly positive part of our high school experience.  - Kimberly 

Thanks so much! I appreciate your thoughts! 

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I have taken the HS College Bound workshop for parents, highly recommend. Years later, this material continues to be my ‘go to’ reference. 

My son has taken several courses each with Roy and Diane Speed. The quality of their courses stems from their authentic passion in the field, deep knowledge, teaching ability, connection and conversation during classes and organization. Having also taken classes with other organizations throughout the country, we have found the HS College Bound classes to be of the highest quality, the most engaging and most retained. 
This year, My son chose to pursue another learning opportunity that homeschooling affords him. He is often the only highschooler amongst adults in class and work settings. Yet, his math, critical thinking and communication skills stand out. Several times, he has specifically cited his Geometry class with Diane Speed for giving him a deeper understanding of concepts that are applicable to his current situation.

A final point and true testimony is that *HE* looks up their website to see upcoming classes and is saving to take more of their courses despite not ‘needing’ the credit. 
We highly recommend HS College Bound’s Geometry course with Diane Speed.
 

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I want to be generous in my estimation of the provider, because I really respect their classes and I have known families who were very satisfied by their experiences with the Speeds, but three positive posts all in a row by posters who have never posted before is super sus, y'all.

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31 minutes ago, Farrar said:

three positive posts all in a row by posters who have never posted before is super sus, y'all.

I confess.

Yesterday I saw that @Nam2001 had gone nine hours with no responses to her query. Also, I knew something others may not know: that the universe of alumni of my wife's Geometry course is TINY — she usually has fewer than ten students per year; I didn't recall seeing any of those parents making regular postings here.

So I confess: I looked into our records and sent an email to roughly a dozen parents who had direct experience of Diane's Geometry and who might be able to provide @Nam2001 with a useful perspective.

If the comments of those parents are an unwelcome intrusion, I apologize to everyone, including to you, @Farrar, whom I deeply respect.

@Nam2001: Are you sorry to see the comments of those parents? — If I've done wrong by you, the original poster, just say the word; I'll never do anything like it ever again.

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In-teresting. I had considered responding with a positive review of the provider and Mr. Speed, but I was holding off since we didn't have any experience with Geometry (my dc loved all the Shakespeare classes they took) and the class is taught by his wife, making our experience that much less relevant. I, too, thought three positive reviews from first time posters was weird. I was also a bit surprised that Mr Speed hadn't responded himself, since he often comes in on threads related to his classes. Clearly this is a public forum so none of this violates any rules. I'm glad to read the explanation. I'm interested in other's thoughts, we can sometimes feel like a small, insular crowd here.

Some of my hesitation about the new posters was that since I've never seen the them before, even though their posts read as legit, I have no idea of their approach to homeschooling. Are they using this to supplement K12 or CC? Is this the math their dc used to get into MIT or win math contests?

It is an interesting, benign, starter making me question some of my assumptions.

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The Speeds asked their current Geometry parents to share our experiences here, and I'm happy to do so! My 9th grader is in Geometry with Diane Speed, having switched mid-year from Saxon (Saxon since kindergarten).   Her instruction is thorough and also welcoming, and she has taken many extra hours to ensure DC is fully caught up and understanding the content.

Our philosophy: We have never done co-ops or CC, and through the elementary and middle years aimed at a Charlotte Mason-flavored, Well-Trained Mind plus Saxon school experience.  I am a trained teacher and worked in the public schools for a number of years before starting our homeschool journey, and excellent pedagogy is very important to us, which we've found with the Speeds.  Our homeschooling goals are to spark a life-long love of learning, while preparing for college engineering or sciences (DC might not go that way, but we want the door open).

DC has also taken a Shakespeare class with Roy, and two science classes with Diane, all of which have been superb.  They offer precisely what I have been looking for: honors-level classes with the highest quality instruction, WITHOUT the unnecessary stress often inherent in high-level classes.  Theirs is not a 'collect all the most gifted students and claim their success' approach, but utilizes a thorough, sequential art of teaching difficult ideas in a delightful and interesting way which has absolutely hooked my student.  You can DM me for more info (facebook or twitter): Leslie Dripps

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1 hour ago, royspeed said:

I confess.

Yesterday I saw that @Nam2001 had gone nine hours with no responses to her query. Also, I knew something others may not know: that the universe of alumni of my wife's Geometry course is TINY — she usually has fewer than ten students per year; I didn't recall seeing any of those parents making regular postings here.

So I confess: I looked into our records and sent an email to roughly a dozen parents who had direct experience of Diane's Geometry and who might be able to provide @Nam2001 with a useful perspective.

If the comments of those parents are an unwelcome intrusion, I apologize to everyone, including to you, @Farrar, whom I deeply respect.

@Nam2001: Are you sorry to see the comments of those parents? — If I've done wrong by you, the original poster, just say the word; I'll never do anything like it ever again.

Thanks Roy. I’m glad to see the reviews. 
It’s fairly easy to find reviews about the English classes but harder to find them for Diane’s classes. 
Thanks to all who gave feedback. 

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16 hours ago, Nam2001 said:

Why is the post reported? 

I reported the post because I thought it came awfully close to violating the board rules against advertising.  Possibly an overreaction, but I could see that Roy was on the thread and assumed -- correctly -- that he had asked parents to come over here to (1) register; and (2) post.   

I actually do think that this sort of thing does violate the spirit of the no-advertising policy, but I also agree that it's hard to find info about homeschool high school resources, so perhaps this isn't the place for a strict application of the rule.

Still, I appreciate Roy's clarification, and especially the poster who prefaced her comments with a note that she had been asked to post.

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As a parent looking for classes for next fall. I appreciate the reviews.  Sometimes I wish we had more parents homeschooling high school on this board, as a lot of reviews I find when I search are older.  

To the new posters here- Welcome!  Share your experiences and join in the other conversations,  too!  

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On 1/27/2023 at 9:43 AM, C_H said:

Having also taken classes with other organizations throughout the country, we have found the HS College Bound classes to be of the highest quality, the most engaging and most retained

Which other organizations?

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Several synchronous classes from Excelsior (based out of TX but teachers are remote & can from other states), several asynchronous from Hillsdale College and several CT trade school adult extension and trade programs.

As far as our style, we’d come from a private religious school setting. We started homeschooling at Highschool level, seeking more rigorous academics and consistency (no lockdowns/closures) we couldn’t guarantee in a school system setting. 

On a personal note, I appreciate the welcome. We are not on social media. Connecting with others for home schooling insights, especially at the high school level, has been challenging!
 

Roy and Diane have helped us navigate this life chapter and available resources. Call it ‘advertising’ but I sincerely appreciate them brining us into the fold of a forum for the connections and insights it affords us. 
 

 

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Yes, we were asked to write a review and I am happy to do so.  I could not find ANY reviews for the Diane Speeds Geometry course last year so I blindly signed my 9th grade son up for the class.   For reference, we have used Wilson Hill, Florida Virtual School, Aim Academy, The Lukeion Project, several Outschool classes, Mr. D., Online G3,  The Next Level and Open Tent.  I am sure there are a few others that I am forgetting. Ourur experience with the Speeds has been wonderful.  You won't find more dedicated and passionate teachers.  My son enjoys his Geometry course and says it is the best math class he has had so far.  I appreciate that they use a text book and assign manageable yet challenging homework. I regret that we didn't find this in time for my 10th grade Algebra 2 student.  We hope to cycle through all of the Speeds classes before all is said and done.

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  • 11 months later...

I saw this thread while looking up the schedule for next year on hscollege bound site.  I didn’t see geometry so I wondered if Diane decided not to run it.  My daughter is trying out one of the intensive science courses this winter and she loves loves Diane, says she just explains things clearly and my daughter is paying attention the whole time (and we all understand how tough it is to not drift into your own little world while teacher on screen is taking).  I print out note taking sheets and read post class emails that Diane sends out and it looks like a well thought out class and they cover a lot. We don’t know what we are doing for next year yet, but I asked my daughter if she would consider Diane for Geometry and that’s a strong consideration.  So I was checking the schedule and didn’t find geometry in it. I am hoping that Diane’s o other classes are as effective as intensives.  Even if geometry is not an option, I’m thinking Biology if schedule permits. 

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13 hours ago, Anna sun said:

... looking up the schedule for next year on hscollege bound site.  I didn’t see geometry so I wondered if Diane decided not to run it...

Anna sun:

I'm replying on Diane's behalf (I'm her husband).

I'm afraid she's not going to offer her Geometry course in 2024-25 — that's why you didn't see it listed on our "Online Courses" page. She will, however, be offering all her Science Intensives and her year-long Honors Biology With Lab and Honors Chemistry With Lab.

Hope that helps.

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