Schooling Update

Here is a quick update of what is working and what is not for the 2007-2008 school year:

Biology

I love her activities that synthesize the material. For example, he has had to create a web page of a "New Zoo" with all five kingdoms and a paper with a cell metaphor (He used a car as the metaphor and got 60/60). I love that! It utilizes his tremendous creative talent with art through computers and challenges him to write, but she requires him to have a knowledge base of the subject where she gives very little material to give him that knowledge base! So, I have a Bob Jone book that we use to look up things. So, why don't I just use the Bob Jones book and grab her activities for synthesis? There is a balance, and I think she tends too much toward the activities having had about fifteen "activities" in only five lessons of work. In addition, the time spent in navigating the out-of-date software and website links is time better spent in learning Biology!

Michael has about a 95% average and is doing very well, but it is stressing all of us out. So, we will not continue after Module II. Thankfully, it is a class you can take and get credit for the individual modules. So, he will just get the credit for the two. He has three more activities and a test before this is possible.

We will switch to Bob Jones or Apologia. Katrina is sending me the 1st edition book in the mail, and I will decide. I need to have some lab too and both BJ and Apologia have lab/dissection kits.

ABeka Science - Paul is TICKLED with this. He is still studying mammals and chatters about it constantly. :)

K12freehomeschool.com World History and Art/Music

History: Fabulous. For instance, today they had to write free responses about eight words/phrases that are from Greek culture and are used in our culture today: Hippocratic Oath, Marathan, Democracy, Ostracize, Citizen, Olympics, Spartan, Tragedy. I love this! Michael works on his own downstairs, and I help Paul. It is 10th grade work for him. So, he needs more help. It has well-written chapters and reasonable synthesis. I am sold, and you can't beat the price!

Art/Music has grown on me. No more long and rambling chapters. We are going ultra-slow because I want to coordinate it with the history, and the Art is heavily slanted toward the Middle Ages and beyong. It will pick up soon. The ONLY complaint I have about this course is that there are few pictures and few LINKS to pictures which I think is quite odd. As a result, I am rounding this out with Sister Wendy video and book. I also ordered The Annotated Mona Lisa and Introduction to Drawing in the DK Art series.

Classical Literature with Thelma's Library

LOVE it! It is HARD for Michael. The study guide questions require a ton of time, but we are all learning so much about classical Greek culture and how it has affected our culture today. This is also a passionate teacher. I love that. In addition, it mirrors our studies in history, and my goals from The Well-Educated Mind reading list. All the way around, TWO THUMBS UP!


Bob Jones Math - So far so good

Four Squares - Still LOVE this!

Daily Grams - I love them! It is great for Paul. Michael's grammar has consisted of plenty of writing for history, classical lit, science, and Four Squares

So, Biology will be done in a couple of weeks, and I can go back to enjoying EVERYTHING about our homeschool!