I thought about this. I'm sure her kit recommendations will change, so I am curious to see those changes. I can't imagine her overall methods would change, though. Do you think it would be a big change like that?

Thank you for all of this feedback! It really does seem like most families tend to either buy a science curriculum or make their own, but not really in the way that TWTM suggests. I looked over Elemental Science again today. I know it gets mixed reviews here, but it does seem to follow TWTM closely in that there are weekly experiments and write-ups with further research. If I were to pick my own materials, I'd be leaning towards the ones used in ES anyway. My biggest concern is that I tend to be inflexible when following a specific curriculum, so I worry that I'll become a slave to the "plan." My oldest used NOEO last year, which is a similar set up, and he liked it. I thought it was boring, but ds12 didn't seem to mind. This year, we switched to Apologia, which he hated, so we've been winging it the rest of the year...using McHenry's The Brain now. Anyway, thank you for sharing your experience!

Thanks for the feedback. I've been searching Amazon and our library and trying to see which books are available to try to follow SWB's plan, but I'm still on the fence. I swing between doing our own thing at home, Elemental Science (b/c it's so close to SWB's way!), and the Holt textbook. It seems so easy to just purchase a textbook, but then I know I am the type of person that likes to "finish" a book. It's easier to be flexible and skip around when not following a set textbook. And so the search for clarity continues...lol!

As I'm planning next year, I'm rereading (and rereading, and rereading!) TWTM. I'm curious if anyone here actually teaches science in the way described in the book. I don't think this would be a problem at all for my grammar stage kid, but the logic recommendations are different and I'm just not sure... One issue is that I don't love the kits that are recommended. Many do not get good reviews online (cheap, don't work, etc.) and I also cannot imagine the kits lasting as many weeks as she states. I'm looking at Earth Science, btw. I'm considering purchasing some of the books and include VanCleave's Earth Science book for experiments instead of using the kits (or in addition to the kits). I also wonder how my kid would fare in this scenario. Would he plug away at a kit and come up with info to research and report upon?? I don't know. So, if you don't use a standard curriculum, and only do science the TWTM way, how does that look in your home? Thanks!

I'm moving more and more towards strictly TWTM methods and materials, but every single day looks different in my house. I usually give my kids a list of what needs to be done and then they take it from there. We also have co-op for social activities and field trips, so our days are never the same. I'm interested to hear how others arrange their time. For me, science is the "least" WTM thing I have and I don't know how well the logic stage recommendations will work here. I can't tell my kid to do experiments for an hour with a kit...he needs more direction than that. Also, the follow up research will need more direction, so I feel more comfortable with specific materials...does that make sense?

I don't know, sorry.

You can look at their younger grades to see the differences. I haven't actually used RS4K, but they have Building Blocks or Focus On series. Focus On concentrates on one topic in the book (Astronomy, Geology, Biology, etc.). Building Block has units in each area and should last the full school year.

I don't have much advice as I am also searching for a great 7th grade option. However, I emailed Real Science 4 Kids and they told me that they are publishing a 7th grade Building Blocks set (I think it goes up to 6th now). The 7th grade set should be out by the fall...I can't remember exactly when, though.

I'm considering Holt Earth Science for next year. It is a middle school text book and I believe that if you order it from Rainbow Resource, you get a CD with tests and activity sheets...but I'm really hoping I'm remembering that correctly! Someone can correct me if I'm wrong! They don't give you a huge sample and I haven't personally used it, but I've seen it recommended here.

I'm very excited that we decided to enroll ds in a tutorial for next year, so I updated those classes above. This was completely out of the blue for us, but a very exciting change!

What about Sonlight Core D+E?

Thank you so much for all of the resources. One of the things that was making me slightly crazy is that I couldn't find a "preview" of the Kingfisher Ency. Thank you for linking the older version. All of these look great...so hard to choose!

double posting problems...

This thread is inspiring! I can never seem to find the perfect science fit, but making up my own seems so overwhelming. One question...if you were going to use an encyclopedia as your spine, which one do you prefer for grade 4 and 7?? Kingfisher or Usborne? Any others I am unaware of?

The ladies on this board have so much knowledge!! I would have never found many of these sites on my own!

Yes. I tried to look at the site after receiving their email that it was updated. I have been able to get through only once and then was interrupted, so I needed to leave the site. Every time I've tried to go back, it will not load.

Great idea! It never occurred to me to only purchase the one book from Notgrass...I always looked at the "set." Greenleaf looks great, too...and cheaper than Jackdaw!

Wow! Thank you! That Stanford link is fantastic! This was very helpful.

In planning for next year, I'm trying to incorporate primary sources into our history study more. This year, I've only added one source, but there is still time, so I'm looking to add a few at the end of this year. My question is WHERE do you get your primary sources and HOW MANY do you use each year? I've looked at Jackdaw per TWTM, but they are so expensive. I've looked at the fordam site, but since they aren't organized into "books" like Jackdaw, I don't know how many or which ones are most important. Next year, we'll be covering early modern, so I'm thinking about the colonization of America, Revolution, and Constitution...again, there are so many to choose from. How do you make these choices? Thanks for any advice. Michelle

I second Skrafty. My son likes that and it is monitored by homeschool parents. Be very careful letting your kids play on multi player servers that are not monitored.

Thanks!

Do I need the teacher guide or just the answer key? I'd be using book A if that makes a difference. Thanks.

Me, too...

Thanks! Your projects sound fun, too!

I don't remember anything. Some people are sensitive to themes like lying and such and he does lie to his parents and does things he shouldn't, but I don't remember bad language, etc. If there was any, it was minimal enough that I forgot about it!