Third Grade Chemistry: RSO vs. Elemental Science?

[elise1mds]

I need you guys to point me in the right direction for fall. Everything else has fallen into place without a problem (TOTALLY dumping WWE), but I'm struggling with science. DS *LOVES* science. He'll throw fits about every other subject, but the second I sit him down with a science project/book/experiment, he'll happily and calmly work for hours. So I don't want him to get bored. However, I am not a science-y person and need something that gives me step-by-step directions. I prefer a secular approach.

 

Here's are my top two choices:

 

REAL Science Odyssey - PROS: We have used this for the past two years for biology and now earth science, and I enjoy it. It's a familiar format. The experiments and projects are usually pretty fun, and DS seems to learn from them. CONS: I sometimes feel that it's lacking depth, which is something that DS craves. I'm not good at remembering to use the list of supplemental books. (I would have to remedy that one myself if we went with this curriculum, so that's a personal con, not a strike against the curriculum necessarily.) There is no physics curriculum for fourth grade, so I'd have to change anyway.

 

Elemental Science - PROS: I love the fact that there is a daily lesson plan and it uses outside books regularly. I love the "Want More?" area added right into each lesson, because yeah, I have that kid. I like the simple weekly quizzes, because I want to add quizzes next year and these are perfect. CONS: I see there are 12 weeks spent on experiments out of a book, and I worry about variety. I know nothing about ES other than from reading the reviews here on the board, though most of those seem very positive. It seems to have a lot of writing, which DS hates.

 

Other curricula I've considered and pretty much discounted:

 

NOEO - I really, really like the look of NOEO, but I don't think I could handle using it. First, there is no earth science curriculum by NOEO, and their chemistry curriculum spends five weeks on rocks and minerals, which we're studying this year. Sure, I could probably figure out some chemistry experiments to fill in, but again, I'm not science-y and I like having things laid out for me. There are also five weeks dedicated to the scientific method. DS already knows the scientific method by heart and has designed several experiments on his own. Finally, all the books and kits either have to be requested (and then I hope they don't have holds on them at the library) or bought, and that adds up fast.

 

Mr. Q's Science - I tried using this for a while at the end of last year/beginning of this year, and while it's a fun curriculum and DS really loves the guy's humor, a lot of the stuff seems to go over his head. I find that I have to back up and rephrase a lot of material. DS also doesn't like the word finds/word unscrambles which seem to be the basis of his reviews. The experiments are fun, but again, sometimes the point gets lost in the emphasis on vocabulary. Finally, there's no list of supplies so I can easily make sure I have the equipment, and there's no list of supplemental reading within the book (though there is a list of links online).

 

Any thoughts? Thanks!

[JESSICAinMD]

I would stick with RSO if you are already using it and like it. The supplement book list is really great at adding more depth. THe FAQ says that the Physics book is in the works, hopefully it will be ready soon.

 

ES looks great too. I haven't used it so I don't have any helpful advice or opinions about it. I don't think you could go wrong with either one.

Good luck picking!

[GoVanGogh]

Elemental Science - PROS: I love the fact that there is a daily lesson plan and it uses outside books regularly. I love the "Want More?" area added right into each lesson, because yeah, I have that kid. I like the simple weekly quizzes, because I want to add quizzes next year and these are perfect. CONS: I see there are 12 weeks spent on experiments out of a book, and I worry about variety. I know nothing about ES other than from reading the reviews here on the board, though most of those seem very positive. It seems to have a lot of writing, which DS hates.

We are doing ES Chemistry right now. Love it for all the reasons you stated.

 

Now the cons.

There is a lot of variety with the experiments. That is actually what *I* love about it - always something new!

My son also hates writing. I have him do a selective amount of writing - like writing the keyword or words, then I write the remaining. Or I have him look up the definition of a word and dictate it to me to write. Or I may have him write out the supplies needed for an experiment, then I write up the rest of the lab sheet. Also - she has pictures at the back of the student workbook that the child can use (cut and paste) if they don't want to write or draw the word or symbol. It is easy to work around w/o getting bogged down in the writing.

 

I don't follow the daily schedule, instead we do chemistry one afternoon a week. Some weeks we do all of that week's lessons. Others, like this week, we will do four of the five days as those are on one subject while the fifth lesson goes into next week's topic.