Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Recommended Resources Bill Nye and Descartes' Cove for cheap!

Homeschool Buyers' Co-op, which is open to afterschoolers as well as full-time homeschoolers, is offering a group buy on Bill Nye's videos for the original series on DVD and on Descartes' Cove, the well-respected computer math game from JHU, geared for 6th-8th graders.

The more people who buy, the deeper the discount the buyers receive, so please feel free to spread the word! I'm considering buying both under the circumstances.

www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org

Happy shopping!

Kriston, I saw that, too. Are the Bill Nye prices for the series? Why are there little checkboxes after each title? Didn't see how that affected the price. How many titles do you get for the $40+, and can you pick and choose through the different parts (as they are listed top to bottom in alphabetical order, so it's random which subjects are included in each "Part"). DS loves these, so I'd like to supplement what we can get from the local library.

Also, note, there are a few Bill Nye titles available on Discovery Streaming, but not the more entertaining titles.

I'm not sure. I didn't wind up ordering the Bill Nye yet. I was reading it to mean that $40 cost was per DVD, which would make them ridiculously expensive actually, even on sale. But it's hard to believe they're selling the DVDs for $40 per show before the discount! I mean, yikes! So maybe I'm misunderstanding.

That's what I get for posting before I do the math, huh? Sorry!

The deal on Descartes' Cove could get really good though. I was buyer #9 already at $120 (down from $150!). The price goes down to $112.50 (as I recall...) if just one more person buys, and will go down one more notch to $45 off if enough people buy.

Kriston,

I'm familiar with Bill Nye, but not with Descartes' Cove. Could you enlighten me? I've been searching for a computer math game for my DS. Everything that I've found so far has been either too easy or too hard (or dry) for him. I'm having trouble finding something in the 6-8th grade range that he considers fun. Very curious!

I need something to get him to put the Lego Star Wars game down, since it was only a brief summertime excursion and not intended for the school year. (It has been put up on a high shelf now that school has started!) He loves games like Chemicus and Physicus, where you have to wonder around and solve clues to science puzzles in order to progress through the game. But he doesn't like math games that are more focused on drills and problems. I've probably goofed by letting him play too many exciting computer games. Time for a brief detox and withdrawal, I guess.

Ebeth - science games?!!!!! Thank you!

OT: EBETH!!!!!!!!!! More info on Chemicus and Physicus!

Do we have a Descartes' Cove thread here?

Yes, I'll third the request for info on the games, ebeth.

Descartes' Cove is a "wander around and solve clues" (!) math game that people who have gotten always seem to rave about. It's a virtual world with algebra and geometry and such sort of puzzles to solve. Very problem-solving oriented, not drill-and-kill. I recommend checking out the link if you're interested. They give you all the info you could ever want, including an online video of the game being played so you can really see the sorts of problems as well as the graphics. It's good stuff. It was just too expensive for me at $150 when DS7 isn't quite ready for it yet. But at $112 or $105, I'm a lot more willing to give it a go. I suspect by the end of the year, he might be ready for it, and maybe he'll get there faster if he has this game as incentive!

It sounds like it might be a potential fit for your DS, maybe?

Thank you questions, for reminding me about the library. In MN, we have an interlibrary loan system for pretty much every library in the state, and i searched and found over 300 bill nye videos! Maybe other states have such interlibrary loan? Those Bill Nye videos are pricey!

I went to www.billnye.com which referred me to Disney. Here's their price list. I think these things are about $40/dvd. I think we'll stick with the library. (For some reason, the link doesn't highlight, but you can cut and paste or follow from billnye.com)

http://dep.disney.go.com/educational/search?form.keywords=Bill+Nye

Descartes Cove, however, sounds great. I wonder why CTY would undersell their own kids. Doesn't really make sense, unless they're coming out with something new.

http://cty.jhu.edu/cde/cove/index.html

Strange...