The Challenge

Finding a chemistry class that would engage a reluctant teenager

Patricia’s oldest daughter, Jasmine, is a self-starter who loves English but not science. As an aerospace engineer, this situation was disappointing for Patricia. She was excited to teach her children science and math, but they were not interested. 

Patricia didn’t want to force Jasmine to learn science from her, so she bought Jasmine science textbooks. But Jasmine didn’t enjoy the experience of reading a textbook and figuring out the questions and labs on her own. 

With a new school year coming up, Patricia wanted Jasmine to learn more science than she was able to get from just a textbook. She was looking for a robust curriculum to give her daughter a strong foundation in the sciences. She wanted a hands-off course because she was struggling to school all her children at once. Plus, Patricia wanted a curriculum with good lab experiences because she knows that labs bridge the gap between theory and real-life application of science.

The Solution

An engaging and hands-off science class with a robust curriculum

Jasmine was eager to take Journey Homeschool Academy’s Experience Chemistry because she had taken Experience Biology and enjoyed the class. 

Experience Chemistry has two engaging video lessons per week, weekly hands-on lab experiments, graded comprehension quizzes, and weekly assignments. Patricia was impressed by how easy and self-explanatory the labs were. Even though Patricia and Jasmine did the labs together, the videos provided ample guidance for Jasmine to do the experiments and write the lab reports on her own. 

The course was laid out well, and it was easy for Patricia to access the Student Guidebook and Lab Manual and print it out for Jasmine. She was relieved Jasmine could watch the videos any time instead of having to attend live classes. 

Best of all, Experience Chemistry was so hands-off for Patricia, that Jasmine could watch the videos, take notes, do the labs, and take the quizzes without Patricia breathing down her neck. This gave Patricia more time to focus on teaching her younger children.

The Result

Strong science education that applies to everyday life

Patricia is confident that Experience Chemistry has taught Jasmine the basics of science and given her a strong scientific foundation. She’s pleased that the course gave Jasmine enough lab sessions to exceed the state requirements for high school credit.

Compared to a textbook science course, Experience Chemistry was more engaging and exciting for Jasmine. Patricia is happy that this course taught Jasmine how chemistry applies in everyday life. For example, one of the lab supplies was sodium bicarbonate, which gave Patricia the opportunity to teach Jasmine that it is also used for cooking. 

Patricia is thrilled because while Experience Chemistry was hands-off for her, it was hands-on for Jasmine. It taught her autonomy and independence. It has given her the power to take ownership of her academics because she has her own online classroom where she can access the course and communicate with the instructors.