beginning science?

[lulubelle]

I'm feeling a bit confused about science. I just checked out classical curriculum from Verita Press and they do no science until 7th grade! And, then all the talk lately here about RS4kids being suggested in the new edition of WTM. But, then I hear that RS4 kids is a very short program and they plan to add a book for each section. How important is science in elementary school, when you have a heavy classical approach?

[MIch elle]

I just checked out classical curriculum from Verita Press and they do no science until 7th grade!

 

Waiting to do science until grade 7 is unacceptable in today's world.

 

K-3 should be about nature studies & more - The Burgess Books for Children (Birds, ANimals, Seashore, Flowers), Christian Liberty Press nature series and The Childcraft How & Why Library are excellent resources. We did all of these and more.

 

Grade 4 & up begin gradually increasing the science lessons/books - then by grade 7 your dc will have a basic understanding

 

Find a science resource you will ENJOY with your dc and do it!

[amtmcm]

As Michelle said, science needs to be gently introduced during k-3. SWB recommends sticking to one topic for a year - ie: Life Science alongside Ancients; Earth & Space alongside Middle Ages, Chemistry w/ Early Modern and Physics/Computer Science w/ Modern History.

 

SWB says if you jump around in science (like the typical textbook does) then the child doesn't grasp the full concept of how that branch of science works.

 

I'm not sure how long ago the audio CD I'm listening to was recorded, but she says she uses an Usborne book about the topic they're studying for that year and complements it with experiments from Janice Van Cleeve. She stresses that the study of experimentation is for Logic years, but Grammar stage children learn from observation so they like to watch an experiment without having to make any predictions about it.

 

http://www.peacehillpress.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=10

I highly recommend the audio CD. I found it very helpful. The Writing Without Fear CD is also excellent!

 

So again to agree with Michelle - for a young child I'd start with Nature (Life Science) and spend a lot of time finding out about birds, animals, plants, bugs, depending on your child's interests. I'm not sure what age One Small Square books are geared towards, but I'll be picking up a few for next year.

Edited May 15, 2009 by amtmcm

[sagira]

IMO Science is as important as History and Literature. As an hs mom who's following a lot of Charlotte Mason's principles, I remember reading about the importance of these three bodies of knowledge:

 

- Knowledge of God (Bible, Theology)

- Knowledge of Man (History, Geography, the Arts)

- Knowledge of the World (Nature and the Sciences)

 

In addition, the child must be able to deal with these bodies of knowledge efficiently with the tools of reading, mathematics and writing.

 

That said, we're using a combination of the following for our elementary science from K-6:

 

- Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding K-2 (BFSU), starting in K

- Nature Studies using Handbook of Nature Study as our spine starting in 1st

- Lots of living books on the topics we will be covering

- A Nature Notebook and Almanac to record our observations, findings, and experiments and include sketches

 

For example, in First Year we'll be studying Trees, Birds, the Human Body, and Weather & Climate for six weeks each, and continue with BFSU for 12 weeks. At least that's the plan. We may devote more on some topics (depending on interests and mastery of subject matter).

Edited May 15, 2009 by sagira