mlbuchina Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Ug. I love the books we have for science, and the girls love the experiments. However. I can't seem to get it together, even after all this time! Most weeks we end up skipping science all together. It is just so easy to let it slide. Have you ever had this happen to you? Did your dc ever recover from it? Meaning do they know science now, and have a love or enjoyment of it? If this has happened to you, did you decide to try a different science program? If not, how did you get your bum in gear and get the work done? :tongue_smilie::D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay3fer Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 I let it slide too often. From what others have said, it seems that science is either the biggest casualty around here OR the subject we feel most guilty about not teaching as often as we "should." I keep myself on the straight and narrow by reserving library books on our science topics so at least we get some reading done, to keep it all fresh in their mind between lapses. Remember also that the experiential nature of homeschool science can make it more intense and memorable than elementary-school science, which is usually done very badly, if at all. I don't remember anything from elementary science except that another class got to study meal worms! My kids will have tons more than that, even if I only cover science every other week... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lily_Grace Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 I think a lot of letting it slide has to do with how much prep work is required. I'll be the first to admit, if I have to look ahead 6 weeks, get together supply lists and organize the lessons, I won't do it. Nope. Not gonna happen. We eased in to science slowly with Noeo. It all comes prepacked: books, experiments, links to games online, instructor's guide with day by day lessons. Easy-peasy. All I had to do was open and go. It was our afterlunch special so we could take as much time as we wanted to. Two years later I got comfortable enough to ditch their prepackaged experiments, fill in our own (still with an open and go kit!), and rewrite the lesson plan to fit at the beginning of the year. Still easy, still no prep time each week, and we still get to do it after lunch for as long as we want. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Ug. I love the books we have for science, and the girls love the experiments. However. I can't seem to get it together, even after all this time! Most weeks we end up skipping science all together. It is just so easy to let it slide. Have you ever had this happen to you? Did your dc ever recover from it? Meaning do they know science now, and have a love or enjoyment of it? If this has happened to you, did you decide to try a different science program? If not, how did you get your bum in gear and get the work done? :tongue_smilie::D Organize. The biggest thing to getting it done is to make sure everything is available. Every 6-9 weeks I sit down with the science books and read the lessons. I gather all supplies that I have and get what I don't. For things that need to be gathered that day or a day before(ice, flower, banana, etc.) I put a post-it not on my lesson plans a day or two before the planned lesson, helps remind me to get it. Then everything goes in a basket. I also don;t save science for the last class of the day. If it is just reading a lesson or library book on the topic I will read it during lunch or at our snuggle on the couch time. If it has an activity, I schedule it right before lunch if it is fast or have it all set up for right after school...I find if I set the activity up early in the day, my dd will be curious enough to not let me forget to do it. Another thing I did when my 3 boys were young was do all experiments either on the weekend or on Fridays. With several science courses going at once and everyone wanting to see the other's science experiment it was the easiest way for me to do it. Dad would get involved on the weekend ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
---- Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrissySC Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 We are only on week 8 in ES biology! We tend to move through it in spurts towards the end of the year and during the summer. I don't worry about it. We work up through the next year too if need be. The types of programs that I use are well planned, but poorly executed because we get stuck too long with a topic. A week does not seem long enough to explore algae or fungi. We tried for weeks to grow the right kind of mold on bread, and identify it correctly, so that we could say that we had penicillin. Ours is more one of a lack of self control to stay on topic. Don't worry. You could always just have them read. You truly only need to do a handful of experiments each year to be on task with national standards in the early grades. You could skip them in favor of a reading. As a matter of fact, you could go CM style and smash a notebook. And yes, she knows more science doing it this way than when she was in actual school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 I use a schedule. We did Easy Classical for 2 years and it got done and we loved science. I tried to do chemistry and physics on my own. We read a LOT from the library and did some experiments but it fell by the way side. Too much prep on my own. We moved to SL science last year and I like it. A schedule, shopping lists for experiments, the experiment kit, and a video for days when you can't get the experiment done but just watch. :tongue_smilie: We are doing SL science again this year and it's getting done. We even skipped an experiment and just watched the video and the kids thought that was fine that week b/c it wasn't worth doing but worth watching they said :lol: When I asked what they like/dislike about school science is the one thing both agree they like. And it gets done b/c there is the schedule. I am learning I need a schedule :D Otherwise, we have tons of science books the kids just like to read and look through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llindseymomoffour Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Check out http://www.hookedonscience.org. The kids can watch videos of cool experiments and download experiment guides to go along with it. Most importantly, he uses items from around the house. Fun, easy, and little prep work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloggermom Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 (edited) We don't like doing anything FORMAL for science in elementary. There are plenty of easy ways to get science done without too much planning or frustration: The Everything Kids' Science Experiments Book: Boil Ice, Float Water, Measure Gravity-Challenge the World Around You! Science in Seconds for Kids: Over 100 Experiments You Can Do in Ten Minutes or Less One Minute Mysteries: 65 Short Mysteries You Solve With Science! Naked Eggs and Flying Potatoes: Unforgettable Experiments That Make Science Fun The Book of Totally Irresponsible Science: 64 Daring Experiments for Young Scientists Science Experiments You Can Eat: Revised Edition Fire Bubbles and Exploding Toothpaste: More Unforgettable Experiments that Make Science Fun As far as books for teaching science go, nothing can beat Basher Science: Basher Science: Chemistry: Getting a Big Reaction Physics: Why Matter Matters! Biology: Life as We Know It! Basher Science: Astronomy: Out of this World! The Periodic Table: Elements with Style! Basher Science: Human Body: A Book with Guts Basher Science: Planet Earth: What planet are you on? Basher: Rocks & Minerals: A Gem of a Book Basher Science: Algebra and Geometry Edited January 25, 2012 by Bloggermom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edelweiss Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 I tried a bunch of different science programs and NONE of them got done until we started Nancy Larson science this year. NL Science comes with all of the supplies, etc. and is easy to schedule and accomplish. For the first time ever, we will actually complete a science program. :hurray: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay3fer Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 I have found over the years that science curriculum gets done sporadically, but that reading of topics of interest gets done regularly. Much of our science is reading library books on all sorts of science topics. And I do sometimes pull out the science curriculum (especially for the hands on stuff). I feel like my kids are learning more than what they would learn from an elementary science textbook. :iagree:This is kind of what I was saying. Science doesn't have to be a big scary thing. High school is different, but at the elementary level, you just need to keep feeding their sense of wonder and they'll be FINE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 It is normal. It is okay in elementary. I don't feel guilty about letting it slide, because I feel that it is imperative to focus on math, spelling and writing. Also, my dh is a physics teacher, so he does a lot of things with the kids. And dd6 has been taking some science-oriented classes at the library. They are not particularly in-depth, but it is something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlbuchina Posted January 26, 2012 Author Share Posted January 26, 2012 Wow! Thank you all for your responses. They are encouraging and informative. I have many links to look through and suggestions to ponder. Thanks, again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 Science totally got lost on the list of things to do this year. A few weeks ago we discovered AHA! Science. It's done on the computer, completely independent from mom. I'm having dd8 skip the activities (experiments) right now, but she loves the games. She's always asking if she can do "one more". I like that it's easy to assign the units to the child, it gives little quizzes and keeps grades in a gradebook for me. I can go into that gradebook and see exactly what she's finished and how she did. It says it's for grades 3-5, but my dd5 is tagging along and watching the lectures with her sister. I'm amazed at what she's picking up from it too. Best part of it is that it's only $15/per kid for the calendar year. That is so tempting!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FriedClams Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 In a rage of I-hate-what-we-are-using this fall I busted an Abeka book off the shelf. I thought it would last a week... But my kids love it. I generally have them do two sections a day and answer the section questions on paper. They are learning, and retaining, a lot. They ask to do it every day. I never thought I'd say it - but we really like it and will be using BJU 6 next year! ETA - I know it's not the perfect/ideal/WTM science - but it's getting done. In my world "done" is better than wishing we'd done something and end up frustrated and doing nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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