Long Range Plans for Science? Starting K/1

[kindermommy]

I am interested in so many different programs (and have quite the collection already) that I feel like I am all over the place with this subject and I need to narrow things down with a real plan/outline for the future and then just find programs that fit that path.

 

I admire the WTM and consider it my "spine" for our educational plan for the most part. I like structure, planning, etc So it's my go-to book when I feel lost (everyday?? LOL).

 

However I've tweaked the History plan a bit (probably not going to start the 4 year cycle for at least 2 more years) and wondering which way to go in Science (with WTM suggestion or not?)

 

I'm torn between doing "General" Science (ala Sonlight or HOD's reccs) for the next few years, especially because at least *right now* DD is interested in so many aspects of Science, or going straight to the WTM suggestions of a four year cycle (and using Noeo, Apologia, Elemental, or other classically matched programs)

 

What do you see yourself doing for Science long-range?

[Crimson Wife]

Honestly, I don't think you would lose much by doing general science during the grammar stage and then starting the WTM cycle during the logic stage if that's what you prefer.

 

I personally have chosen to use the WTM cycle as "themes" for the year. For biology and earth science/astronomy we did unit studies. This year for chemistry, we're using an actual curriculum (The Elements by Ellen McHenry) since I don't feel I have a strong enough background in the subject to put together my own unit studies. I haven't decided what I'm going to do next year for physics, but I'm considering R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey (assuming the physics book is ready by then) or Real Science 4 Kids.

[The Governess]

If you are starting your history rotation in a couple years, I would wait and do the science rotation then, alongside. In the meantime, I would just do some inquiry-based, fun science on whatever topics you are interested in.

 

This year we are doing a biome/animal study because I recently decided we aren't starting the official cycle until next fall.

 

I am still trying to figure out my long-term plans as well. I'm thinking for grades 1-6 I will follow WTM guidelines, but once we get to 7th grade I may switch to a more traditional science sequence. That way we will get in 2 years of life and earth science (which I think are better adapted to the younger grades anyway) and 1 year of basic chemistry and physics by 6th grade. Then we will probably do general science, physical science, biology, chemistry, astronomy, physics, etc. in jr. high and high school. But I haven't completely thought this out yet. So....

 

:bigear:

[Aurelia]

We are doing general science for the grammar stage, since kids at this age do want to know about so many things, and I'd feel bad about telling Ariel we don't have time or can't learn about force or chemistry because we are doing life science now, but we can look it up in a couple of years, LOL. Once we get to the logic stage, I definitely see specializing in one branch of science per year. For example, my tentative outline for science (and definitely subject to change as it will be awhile before we get there!) is to do life and earth science in 5th and 6th, Ellen McHenry's chemistry courses (I want to do them now, for me!) in 7th and then either physics or physical science for 8th. That does assume, of course, we don't find something we fall in love with along the way, or discover an as-yet-unwritten curriculum that's just awesome, even if it doesn't follow the WTM recs.:001_smile:

[kindermommy]

We are doing general science for the grammar stage, since kids at this age do want to know about so many things, and I'd feel bad about telling Ariel we don't have time or can't learn about force or chemistry because we are doing life science now, but we can look it up in a couple of years, LOL.

 

That's *exactly* how I've been feeling all year so far. She keeps asking about other topics and I'll say "we're studing ANIMALS right now". We barely get to Science as it is so we don't have time for anything else! And WP AW is really good, so it's hard to let it go. But then I feel bad and I began thinking that maybe the "one topic in depth" is just not what my kids need/want right now.

 

Once we get to the logic stage, I definitely see specializing in one branch of science per year. For example, my tentative outline for science (and definitely subject to change as it will be awhile before we get there!) is to do life and earth science in 5th and 6th, Ellen McHenry's chemistry courses (I want to do them now, for me!) in 7th and then either physics or physical science for 8th.

 

Great, that confirms it I think for me.

 

Now, just to decide what to do for the rest of this year, and then the next three :) For Science I am *NOT* a pull-it-together kind of gal. I must have something laid out for me, easy to use, etc. I enjoy Science in a watching-a-half-hour-sitcom kind of way, but I just don't get *into* it.

 

You are using Sonlight Science 1 this year, right? Do you like it? May I ask why you chose 1 instead of K (or did you already do K?)? I actually follow your posts because we seem to have similiar interests and of course children that are the same age. What do you plan to use for the next few years?

 

Thank you!

[kindermommy]

Honestly, I don't think you would lose much by doing general science during the grammar stage and then starting the WTM cycle during the logic stage if that's what you prefer.

 

I personally have chosen to use the WTM cycle as "themes" for the year. For biology and earth science/astronomy we did unit studies. This year for chemistry, we're using an actual curriculum (The Elements by Ellen McHenry) since I don't feel I have a strong enough background in the subject to put together my own unit studies. I haven't decided what I'm going to do next year for physics, but I'm considering R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey (assuming the physics book is ready by then) or Real Science 4 Kids.

 

Great - yes, that is what I was leaning towards - general Science for now and starting the cycle (history and science) in the logic stage. But then I worried that just because it's what *I* want, doesn't mean it's best for them, kwim? Especially because I am *not* a Science person. But your advice has helped me be confident/comfortable with that "leaning"!!! :) Thank you!

[kindermommy]

If you are starting your history rotation in a couple years, I would wait and do the science rotation then, alongside. In the meantime, I would just do some inquiry-based, fun science on whatever topics you are interested in.

 

This year we are doing a biome/animal study because I recently decided we aren't starting the official cycle until next fall.

 

I am still trying to figure out my long-term plans as well. I'm thinking for grades 1-6 I will follow WTM guidelines, but once we get to 7th grade I may switch to a more traditional science sequence. That way we will get in 2 years of life and earth science (which I think are better adapted to the younger grades anyway) and 1 year of basic chemistry and physics by 6th grade. Then we will probably do general science, physical science, biology, chemistry, astronomy, physics, etc. in jr. high and high school. But I haven't completely thought this out yet. So....

 

:bigear:

 

Thanks for your input - yes, I really do want to wait at this point I think, especially since DD's interests seem so varied. I mean I totally trust WTM, but there are lots of other great, reputable programs that focus on more random general stuff only, or at least multiple topics in one year for all the younger, grammar ages. But I will need to find specific programs - I must have my hand held *completely* in Science (and Art and Math!) The only subject I feel really comfortable with is History and Geography.......and Phonics, but that's really only thanks to Elizabeth (from this board) and Blend Phonics - love that program! But I digress:tongue_smilie:

[Aurelia]

You are using Sonlight Science 1 this year, right? Do you like it? May I ask why you chose 1 instead of K (or did you already do K?)? I actually follow your posts because we seem to have similiar interests and of course children that are the same age. What do you plan to use for the next few years?

 

Thank you!

 

 

I looked at the K, but it seemed a little too light to me. We did FIAR last year, so Ariel was used to more challenging stuff, and I didn't want her to be bored. She loves the science 1. That said, I plan to use Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding next year. It's for K-2, but it seems to only cover a year of material and I wanted to be able to go deeper into the material than using it this year. For 3rd grade we may go back to Sonlight, and I'm hoping the 2nd level of BFSU will be written by the time Ariel hits 4th grade, otherwise we'll either continue with SL or look into My Pals Are Here.

[MissKNG]

Answers in Genesis sells a series called "God's Design for Science". It begins in 1st grade and I can't wait to start that!! I plan on using that for as long as we can. Right now, we are using a hands on Science book by Teacher Created Resources and the 5-7 Environment Concept by Moving Beyond the Page as science.

[kindermommy]

I looked at the K, but it seemed a little too light to me. We did FIAR last year, so Ariel was used to more challenging stuff, and I didn't want her to be bored. She loves the science 1. That said, I plan to use Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding next year. It's for K-2, but it seems to only cover a year of material and I wanted to be able to go deeper into the material than using it this year. For 3rd grade we may go back to Sonlight, and I'm hoping the 2nd level of BFSU will be written by the time Ariel hits 4th grade, otherwise we'll either continue with SL or look into My Pals Are Here.

 

Ok, thanks - I was debating between K or 1 since DD is 1 and DS is K. They haven't had a lot of Science though, so I'll need to study more.

 

I am intrigued by BFSU, belong to the yahoo group and I've had his book in my amazon cart for forever, but I haven't bought it because it scares me since it's not really "open and go" (and I need that for Science). I had his other "Tapestry" book and I just never sat down and got into it.

 

I also noticed you have MBTP. I had always liked this curriculum despite the fact that it's not very popular here. I have one unit from 5-7 and one from 6-8. I tried the 5-7 at the beginning of last year (DD was kindy/5 and DS was PK/4) and it didn't fly (just too much I think at that point). I've been meaning to get it out and try again this year but then I got WP AW and that kind of takes up all our time. But I think I may take a break from AW and give MBTP a try. I also have the third book of FIAR and never tried it either :rolleyes: I'm so pathetic!

 

Thanks for your advice :)

[kindermommy]

Answers in Genesis sells a series called "God's Design for Science". It begins in 1st grade and I can't wait to start that!! I plan on using that for as long as we can. Right now, we are using a hands on Science book by Teacher Created Resources and the 5-7 Environment Concept by Moving Beyond the Page as science.

 

 

I actually have the first book (animal/biology one) of God's Design - it came with some WP books I bought from someone on the forum. I actually really like it, but I'll be honest, even at 1st grade (which my DD is) it seems a bit heavy. I think we will get the most out of it if we wait a few years (especially b/c of DS being a year younger). But it is staying on my short list for the future because like I said, it does seem to be pretty good! I also have Considering God's Creation which I love even more, but it is also a bit "heavy" for us now. I think we need another year for that one also.

 

I have a lot of Science curriculums on my shelf and I am not even a "science" person! LOL (I have Apologia Zoology too!! Sigh.....)

 

So you like MBTP? I have one unit from 5-7 and one from 6-8 and they look good. Started the 5-7 one last year and *I* loved it but it was too much for DD (then 5) and DS (then 4). I keep meaning to get it out again.......

[mom31257]

I'm fairly new to actually applying classical education methods, but I'm doing a variety of topics in science with my 1st grader, in fact, a different one each month. One difference is that we do science about 4 days a week.

 

I've actually been doing history chronologically, but a 3 year cycle. Last year (K) we did ancients/some middle ages. This year we're doing mostly middle ages and early modern. We're going to do a full year of American history next year.

 

For science next year, I will be following along with his sister. In Rainbow, she'll have Biology and Earth/Applied Science. I think those will be age appropriate to do a semester of each. I think it will give me a good idea how he does with a topic long term.

 

When his sister is in 9th, he'll be 3rd. We'll be starting history over, and she'll be doing BJU DVD's in their recommended order, not classical order. I plan to have him study the same topic as her, if he handles the semesters next year.

 

All these plans though depend on him. If he likes studying a variety of topics better, then that's what we'll do. I don't think one formula for education can fit all kids. The goal is to get them learning, and liking to learn.

[~Kirsten~]

Ok, thanks - I was debating between K or 1 since DD is 1 and DS is K. They haven't had a lot of Science though, so I'll need to study more.

 

I am intrigued by BFSU, belong to the yahoo group and I've had his book in my amazon cart for forever, but I haven't bought it because it scares me since it's not really "open and go" (and I need that for Science). I had his other "Tapestry" book and I just never sat down and got into it.

 

I also noticed you have MBTP. I had always liked this curriculum despite the fact that it's not very popular here. I have one unit from 5-7 and one from 6-8. I tried the 5-7 at the beginning of last year (DD was kindy/5 and DS was PK/4) and it didn't fly (just too much I think at that point). I've been meaning to get it out and try again this year but then I got WP AW and that kind of takes up all our time. But I think I may take a break from AW and give MBTP a try. I also have the third book of FIAR and never tried it either :rolleyes: I'm so pathetic!

 

Thanks for your advice :)

Ronda, just as an aside, I find BFSU to be open-and-go now, after doing some planning upfront. I know, that's a contradiction, but I'm finding it much, much easier to implement than I believed possible. To me, it was really, really confusing at first, but after a very little bit of time reading through it (reading through it in order of how to teach it rather than from page 1 forward, if that makes sense), it clicked for me. If nothing, I think it would be a great resource to turn to for answering questions. I'd encourage you to go ahead and purchase it, if just for that reason and the lists of books for each subject.

 

To answer the original question, I'm struggling with this, too. We're doing a light gloss of BFSU for K, just to make sure I've covered things beyond biology and nature, which is my personal area of interest in science. :tongue_smilie: I'm leaning now toward keeping the WTM cycles for grammar stage, but adding in units of interest as they come up (and in my mind, I'm thinking I can do that with BFSU and some experiment books. I'm really not sure, though, and I haven't decided how to implement the WTM approach either! :lol: I love, love the looks of Elemental Science, though!

 

This is a great conversation! Thanks for starting it!

[MissKNG]

I actually have the first book (animal/biology one) of God's Design - it came with some WP books I bought from someone on the forum. I actually really like it, but I'll be honest, even at 1st grade (which my DD is) it seems a bit heavy.

 

So you like MBTP? I have one unit from 5-7 and one from 6-8 and they look good. Started the 5-7 one last year and *I* loved it but it was too much for DD (then 5) and DS (then 4). I keep meaning to get it out again.......

 

Yes, I've heard God's Design is a bit heavy for 1st grade but I still plan on getting it then and go from there!

 

I like MBTP. I don't like that it's secular and expensive. I do like the activities, the worksheets and the books - the mix of all that stuff (like you don't necessarily read a book every lesson either). I don't "fret" if dd doesn't remember all the vocabulary words, for example. As long as she gets what she is doing, is getting at least something out of it and having fun with it. She originally wanted the Patterns Concept and I was worried that would be too dry for her age. But since I like the curriculum thus far, I think we are going to go ahead and order the Patterns Concept (plus she's been bugging me about it! *eyes roll*).

 

So far, it's not "too much" for her. Her mind runs about 100 miles a minute so it really keeps her busy, challenged and engaged. And I really need that with the winter months coming up. We kind of just started it but based on looking ahead, I can see that she will do well with it.

 

Which unit do you have?

[Aloha2U]

Yes, I've heard God's Design is a bit heavy for 1st grade but I still plan on getting it then and go from there!

 

:iagree:

 

I plan to use the new editions of God's Design Science series from AiG as well. It is designed to be used with students in grades 1-8 and each lesson is divided into three sections (beginner-blue, red, green), so I plan to rotate through them twice as follows:

 

God's Design for Life - Grades 1 & 5

God's Design for Heaven & Earth - Grades 2 & 6

God's Design for Chemistry & Ecology - Grades 3 & 7

God's Design for the Physical World - Grades 4 & 8

 

Actually, I believe this rotation plan is similar to that which is recommended in TWTM. :)

[Aurelia]

We also use MBTP, nearly finished with the 2nd concept of 5-7. It's a supplement for us, so it doesn't get done every day, but I have noticed that what we cover really seems to stick. I was so happy to find something that was a secular unit study - I really don't want to incorporate religion into our schoolwork, the only drawbacks are it is expensive and I'd prefer a little more "flow" instead of skipping around so much (like how in one unit you might cover weather and Helen Keller and in another you cover ancient Greece and American heroes.) Ariel enjoys it (and she has been begging to do the patterns concept, too) and it makes her think.

[MissKNG]

We also use MBTP, nearly finished with the 2nd concept of 5-7. It's a supplement for us, so it doesn't get done every day, but I have noticed that what we cover really seems to stick. I was so happy to find something that was a secular unit study - I really don't want to incorporate religion into our schoolwork, the only drawbacks are it is expensive and I'd prefer a little more "flow" instead of skipping around so much (like how in one unit you might cover weather and Helen Keller and in another you cover ancient Greece and American heroes.) Ariel enjoys it (and she has been begging to do the patterns concept, too) and it makes her think.

 

When we use it, as a supplement, I'm doing one concept at a time. When we finish Environment (which is the only one we have right now), we'll move onto Patterns We are just trying it out. I probably won't buy it too far along after 5-7 since it's way too expensive.

 

We are just the opposite - the Bible is the center of our HSing so of course, that is the largest drawback of MBTP for us. But I definitely like the mix of activities.

[MissKNG]

:iagree:

 

I plan to use the new editions of God's Design Science series from AiG as well. It is designed to be used with students in grades 1-8 and each lesson is divided into three sections (beginner-blue, red, green), so I plan to rotate through them twice as follows:

 

God's Design for Life - Grades 1 & 5

God's Design for Heaven & Earth - Grades 2 & 6

God's Design for Chemistry & Ecology - Grades 3 & 7

God's Design for the Physical World - Grades 4 & 8

 

Actually, I believe this rotation plan is similar to that which is recommended in TWTM. :)

 

Good idea - the rotation! Thanks for that tip~!

[ChristusG]

My DD is 5 and in Kindergarten. She will easily tell you that science is her favorite subject that we do. She'll beg to do more science for the day. We are using science books from Evan Moor. She LOVES them, as do I. They are very hands on, lots of experiements, things to color, cut-outs, books to color and read together, etc. Since September we've been working through the one about animals. We've learned about habitats, how different animals find their food, herbivores vs carnivores, the protection that different animals have, why animals may be a certain color, etc. We took a "field trip" over to my sisters house, who has lots of pets, to measure animals. We're going to the pet store soon on a field trip. Next month we'll be going to the zoo and doing some of our work.

 

I also have the one about weather and the one about the human body. I'll let her choose which one we do next. They are not Christian based, but I continually add in things about God's creations and stuff into it. I can't recommend them enough. We're having a blast with them.

 

http://www.evan-moor.com/Series.aspx?CurriculumID=6&ClassID=163&SeriesID=117

[Lisa in the UP of MI]

Ronda, just as an aside, I find BFSU to be open-and-go now, after doing some planning upfront. I know, that's a contradiction, but I'm finding it much, much easier to implement than I believed possible. To me, it was really, really confusing at first, but after a very little bit of time reading through it (reading through it in order of how to teach it rather than from page 1 forward, if that makes sense), it clicked for me. If nothing, I think it would be a great resource to turn to for answering questions. I'd encourage you to go ahead and purchase it, if just for that reason and the lists of books for each subject.

 

To answer the original question, I'm struggling with this, too. We're doing a light gloss of BFSU for K, just to make sure I've covered things beyond biology and nature, which is my personal area of interest in science. :tongue_smilie: I'm leaning now toward keeping the WTM cycles for grammar stage, but adding in units of interest as they come up (and in my mind, I'm thinking I can do that with BFSU and some experiment books. I'm really not sure, though, and I haven't decided how to implement the WTM approach either! :lol: I love, love the looks of Elemental Science, though!

 

This is a great conversation! Thanks for starting it!

 

I've been noticing the same thing about BFSU and pre-planning. I've planned out a sequence and have added activities from other books (mostly the Mudpies to Magnets books). I wouldn't call it totally open-and-go, but it's been going well so far and it's also lots of fun. My youngers are also able to participate. We do science once or twice a week (plus nature study Fridays) and I'm sure this curricula will take through dd's 2nd grade year. Even the first lesson has lasted us a while because of the extra activities. Next year we will be doing a biome/geography study based on the ideas in a few of the lessons as well as covering a few other lessons. I like how the lessons build on each other and that everything is so hands-on. We are a very hands-on family!

 

As far as long range-plans, I plan to both BFSU books with some level of supplementation. I'm not sure how long these will last. I'll start looking for other things to use when we get close to the end of the second book. In middle school we'll include a history of science along with our regular history cycle.

Edited October 20, 2009 by Lisa in the UP of MI