science progression ?'s

[Alison in KY]

If you've done a hodge podge of occasional science for elementary school, are there any must do's to prepare a middle schooler for high school science? Which science subjects would you choose and for which years(6th through 8th)?

 

Thanks,

 

Alison

[ktgrok]

:bigear:

[elegantlion]

We've done a variety of sciences over the years. I'm spending the middle years trying to make sure he has an understanding of the basics of chemistry, biology, physics, and Earth science.

 

For this we've stumbled through several different programs. The only specific programs I truly liked was Ellen McHenry's The Elements.

 

For an overall picture of science I like this book, Science Matters. We read through part of it last year and this year.

 

I'm also trying to make sure he understands the history of science. There are a few ways to achieve this.

 

There are these books, Exploring the history of..... There are several books in the series, biology, chemistry, physics, medicine, mathematics. They are christian based.

 

Other options are:

 

Joy Hakim's Story of Science which is a 3 book set.

 

Bill Bryson's A short History of nearly Everything. This one we plan to use next fall.

 

I also purchased this book, Sourcebook for Teaching Science. It's a wealth of information for people who prefer to do their own thing. It's geared for upper middle school - high school.

 

The other thing I'm working on is solidifying his math skills. I've read a lot on the high school board, and the biggest identifier for success of high school science seems to be adequate math skills, especially at the pre-algebra and algebra levels.

 

I feel like we've stumbled through science the last few years. My son likes science, but none of the programs we've purchased seem to hold his interest. He watches a lot of science shows on his own, sometimes creates his own experiments, and adores Mythbusters.

 

HTH

[Keniki]

We've stumbled around with a lot of different things for K-6. DS will most likely major in science, so I really want to get serious about something for 7th-12th. This year, we accidentally fell into God's Design for Heat and Energy and really like it. We've decided to use the other two Physical science books for the first part of next year and follow up with the Chemistry books. After that (starting in 8th) I plan to move him to BJU.

[Guest]

Prentice Hall Science Explorer series is for this age.

 

Rainbow Science is a 2 year course.

 

Apologia's Elem. books (using 2 a year) can be used for 5th and 6th, then move into Apologia's General Science and Physical Science for 7th and 8th. When the child begins Algebra, begin Apologia's Biology.

 

Oak Meadow is very very gentle for this age but picks it up considerably with Physical Science in 8th. Do not even attempt it unless the child is spot on for math.

 

As much as mine LOVE science and both plan on sciencey majors, we have not done any real course all the way through.

[karensk]

Our elementary science was pretty hodge-podgish and did not at all follow a standard scope & sequence, which I don't regret at all. :) Starting in 6th, we follow a more traditional s&s:

 

6th: life science

7th: earth/space science

8th: physical science

 

And then they should be ready to do a pretty traditional high school sequence:

 

9th: biology

10th: chemistry

11th: physics

12th: either an AP science course or else something like marine biology or human anatomy, etc.

 

Ds14 is currently taking physical science at a private school, but I started him in life science in 6th grade (at a homeschool co-op class) so he could end up doing physical science in 8th. I'll probably do the same for dd11, who will start 6th this fall.

 

Another option is something like:

 

6th: life science or earth/space science

7th: Apologia's General Science

8th: physical science

 

Or you may choose to do physical science in 9th instead of 8th, bumping everything back a year.

 

It's usually recommended that a student has completed Algebra I before he starts Chemistry. And from what I've seen, chemistry is taken concurrently with Algebra II, though I don't know if that's more from convention or necessity.

 

I tried to figure out where I wanted my student to end up at, by the end of high school, and then worked backwards.

 

HTH!

[Ann@thebeach]

Thanks for asking this, we are in the same boat.

 

What exactly is "physical science?" I have a few things that I thought fell under this and want to know the "official" word on it.

 

My DS is in 6th this yr and we are doing McHenry's Elements now in prep to get on a more "formal" schedule next yr.

[Guest]

Physical Science is a kind of basic mix of chemistry and physics. At least that is my impression after seeing several texts.

[swimmermom3]

My own odd opinion is that what you do is less important than doing something science-oriented on a regular basis. If you personally aren't keen on doing experiments, check with 8FillTheHeart about how her children do interest-led science at this stage. If you enjoy doing experiments with your kids, try to pick a curriculum that has the following:

 

1. clear objectives with each experiment

2. clear instructions on how to conduct the experiment

3. clear analysis after the experiment is over

 

Check with board members about their success rate with a particular curriculum's experiments. Occasional flops are a learning experience where the child documents what happened and tries to figure out what went wrong. That is easy to do with well-designed experiments. Some curricula have such poorly written instructions that the failure rate is high as is the student's frustration.

 

For 4th and 5th grade, we used Sonlight's recommendations. If I remember right, that was electricity, energy, and then the human body. My son blazed through SL5 and we finished the year with something from LifePac on cells, plant life, etc. The SL units were great; LifePac was dry as toast and involved as much Bible work as science, but it did the job. Ds took our state science test and excelled.

 

Last year for 6th grade and this year for 7th, we have used an inconsistent hodge-podge of materials from Noeo Chemistry III, Rainbow Science, Hakim's science history books, CPO, Teaching Company lectures, GEMS, and two high school texts. In a way, I wish this child could be happy with the Apologia General Science and Physical Science books that his older brother used, but he's not.

 

Ds has had exposure to most of the science disciplines at this point. My focus with him is more skill-based: reading a text, taking notes, lab safety, organizing a binder, making drawings, and writing a lab report. But then, I have been burned. My oldest son homeschooled for 7th and 8th grade. His middle school had me so worried about science that I was absolutely diligent about following our Apologia work. The boy scored in the top range in science for the 8th grade state test. Now, he is struggling to pass chemistry and hates science. I didn't work as much with him on organizing skills and regret that. Some of my fondest memories of homeschooling is doing science lab with that boy. His enthusiasm was contagious. Sigh.

 

I don't believe there is one right way to conduct science at this age. Find what you are both comfortable with and as the Nike ads say, "Just Do It."

[birchbark]

For an overall picture of science I like this book, Science Matters.

 

Thanks for this. It looks terrific!

 

And great post, swimmermom.

[Capt_Uhura]

The boy scored in the top range in science for the 8th grade state test. Now, he is struggling to pass chemistry and hates science. I didn't work as much with him on organizing skills and regret that. Some of my fondest memories of homeschooling is doing science lab with that boy. His enthusiasm was contagious. Sigh.

"

 

Swimmermom - Can you talk more about what you wish you had done differently for this particular child? Was it mostly a lack of organizing skills? And what exactly do you mean by that?

 

Capt Uhura

[Alison in KY]

:lurk5:

[regentrude]

If you've done a hodge podge of occasional science for elementary school, are there any must do's to prepare a middle schooler for high school science? Which science subjects would you choose and for which years(6th through 8th)?

 

 

I find that there is no one science topic or skill that is needed to be prepared for high school sciences. In my experience, the most essential preparation is a solid math foundation.

So, I continue using a hodegpodge of topics and materials for my children through the Middle grades, mostly interest led, BUT I spend time and effort on creating a solid mathematics base so that they are prepared to start the high school sequence with an algebra based physics course. (This will give them a good foundation for chemistry, and that in turn will be valuable to take biology, after which they follow up with a calculus based physics course.)

 

I do not find it particularly useful to do formal labs in the Middle grades; I much prefer saving the time and then doing really rigorous labs during high school. My children have no desire to do hands-on activities and we do not spend any time on doing experiments. (If your student likes it, that's great for fostering an interest. I just do not consider it necessary as a preparation for high school.)

 

My main objective during Middle grades is to expose my kids to a variety of science topics and to wake an interest. I also want them to learn how to work with a textbook and how to take notes. But I see no specific content that must be covered in order to be prepared for high school.

 

FWIW: I am a physicist and teach at a four year university.

[8filltheheart]

I find that there is no one science topic or skill that is needed to be prepared for high school sciences. In my experience, the most essential preparation is a solid math foundation.

So, I continue using a hodegpodge of topics and materials for my children through the Middle grades, mostly interest led, BUT I spend time and effort on creating a solid mathematics base so that they are prepared to start the high school sequence with an algebra based physics course. (This will give them a good foundation for chemistry, and that in turn will be valuable to take biology, after which they follow up with a calculus based physics course.)

 

I do not find it particularly useful to do formal labs in the Middle grades; I much prefer saving the time and then doing really rigorous labs during high school. My children have no desire to do hands-on activities and we do not spend any time on doing experiments. (If your student likes it, that's great for fostering an interest. I just do not consider it necessary as a preparation for high school.)

 

My main objective during Middle grades is to expose my kids to a variety of science topics and to wake an interest. I also want them to learn how to work with a textbook and how to take notes. But I see no specific content that must be covered in order to be prepared for high school.

 

 

 

This is us as well except I don't even care about the using a textbook part. My kids read science every day. They write science reports about every 2-3 weeks. They all love science and all my older kids have performed well w/in their ability level in high school science/beyond.

[txhomemom]

My dd is really more of an artist, so we are not going to go into a heavy science/math curriculum (no calculus, physics) in high school. Following that route this is what we are planning on doing:

 

7th: Earth Science and Basic Math and Geometry

8th: Life Science and Prealgebra

9th: Physical Science and Algebra 1

10th: Biology and Algebra 2

11th: Chemistry and Geometry

12th: Environmental Science and Consumer Math or Personal Finance

[TheHomeScientist]

My dd is really more of an artist, so we are not going to go into a heavy science/math curriculum (no calculus, physics) in high school. Following that route this is what we are planning on doing:

 

7th: Earth Science and Basic Math and Geometry

8th: Life Science and Prealgebra

9th: Physical Science and Algebra 1

10th: Biology and Algebra 2

11th: Chemistry and Geometry

12th: Environmental Science and Consumer Math or Personal Finance

 

That sounds like an excellent progression for a student who won't major in science in college. One thing you might consider is substituting a criminal forensics course in 9th grade. Most kids are fascinated by forensics, and because forensics is so cross-disciplinary it's an excellent introduction to biology, chemistry and the other sciences without getting too rigorous or requiring anything beyond basic math. Also, in 12th grade you might consider substituting an intro statistics course, which is valuable in so many ways.

[Katiebug_1976]

What great suggestions. I am starting to look for science options for my ds for the next 2 years and you guys have given me quite a bit to look at. :001_smile:

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm