BJU Press Blog

high school transcript

4 Reasons to Include Labs in Your Homeschool

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homeschool labs
Let’s get real for a moment. Teaching high school science is intimidating.

I still remember how nervous my homeschool mom was about high school science. When I got to physics, we couldn’t find any labs kits. It was a nightmare. My dad helped me do one physics lab without a kit. That single lab cost us around $75 in supplies. We also spent hours creating the tool we needed for the lab. And when we finished, it didn’t even work. We couldn’t collect reliable data, and I never finished that particular lab.

So what could my mom do? She knew she needed to keep homeschooling through high school—and that she needed to include labs. Before I tell you how she made high school labs work for our family, here are four reasons she was committed to teaching with labs.

1. Creational Approach

Science at its core examines the works of God. We’re looking at what He did at creation and how His creation functions. As much as nature documentaries and science textbooks can evoke awe  and wonder at God’s creation, they’re only presenting what others have discovered by investigating God’s world. If we teach our kids science without incorporating close, hands-on examination of creation, we’re doing it wrong.

2. Deep Understanding

There were a number of chemistry concepts that I thought I understood. After all, I could ace the reading quiz. Then we did the lab over the concept. I discovered I didn’t understand it nearly as well as my quiz grade suggested. Labs are where head knowledge meets real-world experience and critical thinking. If I hadn’t completed the labs, I would have only superficial knowledge of chemistry without deep understanding.

3. Student Scientists

We aren’t teaching our children science so they can win on a TV game show or in a trivia competition. That would reduce science to superficial answers for esoteric questions such as, “Why is the sky blue?” That isn’t what science is at all. Instead, it’s a powerful tool for investigating and solving real-world problems. So when we teach our children science, we want them to act like junior scientists instead of students learning about science facts. Labs are where children act like scientists. This is especially true in high school science. We need labs to give our students the opportunity to behave like scientists.

4. Required Courses

Many states require lab sciences for high school graduation. And even if your state doesn’t, the college your son or daughter wants to attend may require it. And colleges may view non-lab science courses with suspicion. So how many labs should you include? A good rule of thumb is thirty hours of labs for each course. If you figure your setup time, lab time, and post lab time, each lab can last two to three hours. So aim for ten to fifteen labs.

Making Labs Happen at Home

So what did my mom do? She found kits. A number of kits helped us complete high school biology and chemistry. These kits made high school labs achievable. My sister and I could do most of these labs without any parental aid. They also made it affordable. We could have spent thousands of dollars if we had tried to pull together all the individual components that were in these kits. Instead, they cost my parents around $200.

For me, these lab kits made science creational, deepened my understanding, and gave me an opportunity to practice being a scientist.

At BJU Press, we’ve worked with Logos Science, Inc., to create lab kits for all of our secondary science textbooks and video courses. If you’re looking for something to help you bring labs to your homeschool, check out our Logos Science Kits.

 

Tips and Tricks for High School Transcripts

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This month we have been focusing on college planning. So far we looked at choosing a major and taking financial responsibility for college (part 1 and part 2). For our final post in this series, we will look at some tips for high school transcripts.

image of a girl holding her high school transcripts.

Pretty soon seniors all over the country are going to start preparing to submit college applications. One thing that most universities require is a high school transcript. You may be thinking, “High school transcripts are so overwhelming!” That’s OK because, while they can seem overwhelming, that doesn’t mean that they have to be. Here are a few questions you may have been thinking about and some answers you may have wanted to know.

Why is it important to have a high school transcript?

A high school transcript documents all academic achievement and validates the work completed during high school. Without such a transcript, there is no way to actually prove whether the student took an adequate amount of coursework, what quality of work the student was capable of accomplishing, and that the student graduated.

What do colleges look for on a student’s transcript?

    • Years of high school study
    • Titles of all courses taken (including any that did not earn a passing grade, any times the course was retaken, and any that were withdrawn)
    • High school course credits (Carnegie units) earned for each course
    • All grades achieved in each high school course (including any non-passing grades, any grades earned in a class retaken, and any withdrawn courses)
    • Grading scale used to determine letter grades
    • Cumulative GPA
    • Actual graduation date

When students who have not graduated from high school send in their college applications, they can also have a transcript sent showing the coursework that they have completed so far. After graduation, a final transcript should be sent to the college/university to show their final grades and that they actually completed their coursework and graduated.

Students should check with the college they’re applying to regarding other specific requirements.

What is a Carnegie unit?

A Carnegie unit (credit hour) is a time-based measurement that consists of 120 class hours or instruction time over the course of a year at the secondary level. Typically, a student earns one Carnegie unit by attending class five days a week over the course of a school year. A one-semester course that meets five days a week typically earns half a Carnegie unit.

How should I calculate GPA?

You can find a GPA calculator easily online. A simple one to use is gpacalculator.net.

Regarding the GPA, you should research the common GPA scale in your state. Some states are moving toward a weighted GPA (such as the UGS GPA in South Carolina). In these situations, it would be advisable to provide two GPAs—one based on the 4.0 scale and another one based on the state’s standard weighted scale.

 How should I create a transcript?

Making your own transcript from scratch can be intense. To help you, here is a transcript template that you can download creating transcripts for your students or children.

Don’t forget—transcripts should be treated as official documents. Students attending traditional schools can have their school office send transcripts to the schools they are interested in. Homeschool students should have their homeschool teacher (most likely their mom or dad) prepare and send their transcript for them. If you have specific questions about sending transcripts, check with the college/university’s admission office.

Hopefully, some of these questions and answers have helped you better understand high school transcripts. If you have further tips about transcripts, feel free to share them in the comments below.

What has been the most helpful thing that you read in our college planning series?