DIVE Saxton Math & Science Information

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D.I.V.E. Instructional CD-Roms

D.I.V.E. , which stands for Digital Interactive Video Education, is a revolutionary product which utilizes recently developed software and hardware technology to create math and science lectures on a computer whiteboard that looks and sounds as though you are doing a lecture in a real classroom.

Each lesson is taught along with several practice problems per lesson. Lessons are short and interactive, which minimizes time spent staring at a computer screen. Easily rewind, pause, and fast forward with the click of a mouse. Easy access to previously taught lessons that have been forgotten.

Dr. David Shormann, instructor, has over 6000 hours of teaching experience in science and mathematics!

Syllabus
BEFORE you order a CD, please make sure that a syllabus for your textbook is available.

Christian perspective - Dr. Shormann's Christian testimony is included on each CD, and several math lessons begin with an encouraging Bible verse. Many DIVE science lessons end with information about famous scientists who were Christians or comments about how a Christian worldview can be achieved through studying science. Dr. Shormann believes that God created the earth in 6, 24 hour days, because the Bible tells him so!

How does a student use D.I.V.E.?
Each lesson is stored as an individual file. The student puts the CD-ROM in the computer and selects the lesson they have scheduled for that day. The student will have their book open to the appropriate lesson, with their pencil and paper ready. The whiteboard "screen" is large and fills up most of the computer screen, making the writing easy to see.

What are the lessons like?
Each lesson begins with a brief introduction of the topic to be covered. The student will listen to the instructor and take notes on anything that is written on the whiteboard. The student will then work all practice problems by pausing the lecture, working the given problem, then watching the lecture again to see if it was worked correctly. If the problem was worked incorrectly, the student can rewind the lesson and find their mistake. The student stays actively involved during the entire lesson, as they are either reading along with the instructor, taking notes, solving problems, or rewinding/fast forwarding as necessary.

How long is a typical lesson?
Each lesson is about 10-20 minutes long. However, because of the time to pause and work practice problems or rewind for review, the total time will vary from student to student.

Is this as good as a classroom lecture?
Actually it's better because the student can easily pause, rewind, and fast forward the lesson with the click of their mouse, something that cannot be done in a classroom lecture. Also, there is no teacher in the way, so the student can always see exactly what the teacher is writing as it is being written.

Why is a lecture important?
If your child is considering going to college, then having good note-taking skills is extremely important. The CD-ROM lectures have the look and feel of a live classroom lecture, with one distinct advantage: you can pause, fast-forward, and rewind with the click of a mouse! This allows your child to take good, detailed notes, which they can then use to help them complete the review questions. Taking good notes is crucial to performance in college, where some teachers base most or all of their exams on their lectures, and the exams are usually "everything" in terms of your grade for a particular course.

What is the purpose of the review questions?
The review questions were designed to help your child "get the big picture" for the topic they were studying, and to provide you with an excellent way to determine whether they understand the most important points for a particular lesson. Since you can see and hear the solution to each review question on the CD-ROM, then it will be easy for you to tell if your child has mastery of the subject, as well as determine if they have weaknesses in any one of the following areas: reading, memorizing and understanding definitions, or note-taking. If your child can complete 85% or more of the review questions correctly, then you can be confident that they understand that particular lesson. You can even use the review questions for their test if you want.

Should my child also complete the review questions that our textbook provides?
Yes.

Why are the lessons taught from a Christian perspective?
I believe the number one purpose for taking a science class is so that a student can know God better. At the end of some of the lectures I will discuss different science topics and how they relate to a Christian worldview. I also discuss the achievements of many famous scientists that were Christians, so that students can understand and appreciate how God used these people to help us understand how His creation is designed to work. Romans 1:20 states that some of God's attributes can be clearly seen by observing His creation. Therefore, by studying His creation, we can come to know Him better. ~Dr. David Shormann

System Requirements : Windows 95 or greater, speakers, and a printer (for DIVE Science).


DIVE Math

CD's are math lectures designed to supplement the Saxon Math (TM) curriculum.

Along with a Saxon Home Study Packet and Solutions Manual, D.I.V.E. Math provides all the resources a student needs to excel at math! DIVE science CD-ROMs are designed to enhance a student's note-taking abilities and study skills in order to adequately prepare them for college-level science and engineering courses, where tests based on classroom lectures are the norm!

DIVE Math includes: Math 5/4, 6/5, 7/6, 8/7, Algebra 1/2, Alg. 1, Alg. 2, Advanced Mathematics, Calculus, Physics, and SAT Math Prep CD's. DIVE Science includes: ICP (aka physical science or intro chem/physics), Biology, and Chemistry.

Please Note : D.I.V.E. for the NEW Saxon Editions 54-87 will not be available until early June.

Why use Saxon curriculum?
We chose to follow Saxon curriculum because we believe it is the best curriculum to prepare a student for college entrance exams and college level math. Saxon problem sets and tests contain a variety of problems, which is good preparation for taking tests like the PSAT, SAT and ACT. We believe the review system implemented by Saxon is very beneficial and greatly increases student retention of the material, which will help any student learn math better. Saxon also integrates geometry with algebra (similar to curriculums found in Europe and Asia), which ensures that the student will never have to stop learning algebra to learn geometry. Some people have heard that Saxon does not have enough geometry. This was true of the older editions, but the new editions have more than enough geometry.

D.I.V.E. is not affiliated with Saxon Publishers. While D.I.V.E. CD's are designed to enhance the effectiveness of the Saxon textbooks, they can be used with other curriculum as well.

DIVE Science

CD's include lectures and review questions, and will supplement almost any high school physical science, biology, or chemistry textbook.

Note: DIVE Science CD's work best with Bob Jones Curriculum, but they also correlate with other textbooks. BEFORE you order a CD, please make sure that we have a syllabus for your textbook.

What is DIVE Science?
DIVE Science is a CD-ROM designed to supplement (not replace) the textbook you are using for high school science by providing video tutorials on science topics that students typically have trouble understanding, as well as review questions and video solutions to the questions. Lessons are organized by topic, and a syllabus will be provided to cross-reference the DIVE lessons to the appropriate chapter in the textbook you are using. Requires Windows 95 or higher, speakers, and a printer.

What is on a DIVE Science CD?
There are two main parts; the Assignment files and the Lecture files. Assignment files are printable files that contain instructions for completing the assignment, a list of definitions to complete and a list of review questions to complete. Lecture files contain a CD-ROM lecture that has the look and feel of a classroom lecture, and is very similar to the DIVE Math CD-ROM lectures. At the end of each lecture are detailed explanations for solving each review question. The first two lessons on each CD give detailed instructions on the scientific method as well as instructions on how to complete a science project.

How will DIVE Science help me teach my child high school science?
DIVE Science is designed to help you "get organized" with your high school science. First, we will provide you with a syllabus that references the DIVE lessons with the appropriate chapters in the textbook you are using. Just email me a copy of your table of contents, and I will cross-reference the DIVE CD to your textbook in the form of a 32-week syllabus. The DIVE CD has two main sections: Lecture files and Assignment files. A typical week would go as follows: Read the syllabus and find out what textbook reading to do and what DIVE Assignment to print out. Print out the DIVE Assignment (Assignments will be in .pdf format, and Adobe Acrobat Reader will be provided if you need it), complete your reading, and write down all assigned definitions. Next, watch the lecture and take notes, complete all review questions, and then watch the CD again and see and hear each solution explained in detail.