Chemistry 101, 4 DVD Set

I took chemistry in high school and never really understood much of it. Using this DVD set with my sophomore son, not only did he learn the concepts in a way that made it really to understand, now I understand it better too! Olson really explains the concepts in easy to grasp ways with examples and demonstrations. I believe you can learn more from this video than reading an entire textbook on the subject! Olson also provides a curriculum you can follow if you want to make the study more in-depth with additional research recommendations and experiments. Tests are provided as well. I highly recommend this product, particularly if you or your child find this subject intimidating.

I absolutely love this curriculum. It really makes chemistry easy and fun to learn.

This was truly a God-send for us! My son's private school closed down so he is homeschooling his last 2 years of high school. This series got him his chemistry in a fun and informative way! He enjoyed it and learned a lot as did the rest of the family! I highly recommend it! When I was looking into it, it stated that it is a basic class for kids who don't intend to enter a scientific field which is exactly where we're at. Thank you, Wes Olsen!! You saved the day!

My daughter, 16, just began homeschooling this year. She has been using the Chemistry 101 DVD/curriculum set and we are pleased in some ways but not pleased in others. She does not plan to pursue a four year college degree but, rather, a certification program or associates degree at our local community college. I thought this program might suffice as she does not plan to go into a heavily science-related career. Unfortunately, I find it lacking in content. It is very interesting but, in my opinion, should only be used as a supplement. The videos are clear and I appreciate the historical presentations and their connection to the science of Chemistry, but there is simply not enough material to call it a "full credit" of high school science. I became so concerned about this that I had a college professor of Chemistry review it and he called it "pretty light." He said it contained a lot of important basics but it lacked depth. He said there was not nearly enough math or instruction on balancing equation, etc.... He did mention that the "mini-labs" (as they are referred to in the series) were decent but if a student wanted to truly claim that he/she completed a lab course in Chemistry, more advanced labs would be needed. He stated that Chemistry 101 would not prepare a student adequately for even the most basic college Chemistry course. I also had a problem with the "Accreditation Booklet." Some activities that are listed as taking an hour take only 15 minutes. Part of the hours accrued at the end of a segment include re-watching the video presentation. This is really just a waste of time! I really dislike leaving reviews like this but I thought it might help another parent. This program will still be enjoyed by all of our kids as a supplement but I am now left with having to find a more academic program. Would I recommend this to a friend as an supplement? Yes. Anything more than that is really stretching it.

My daughter is studying the Apologia Chemistry and we are watching this video with the rest of the family. We are still in the first few lessons, but we are loving it. The presentations are engaging, the content is presented in a historical context so you get a real sense that science is a part of life. Also, some concepts are illustrated and explained so well, that they finally made sense to my daughter, when she felt confused after just studying the text.