BJU Science or Apologia, preferences? Is BJU workable in homeschool setting

[Chris in CA]

Is BJU Science workable in a homeschool setting?

I am planning on using BJU Life Science next year (8th), following with Earth Science, Biology, and Chemistry for hs.

She used Apologia's General Science and didn't like the chatty nature of the book, but if it is a better option for hs, we'll use it

I'm a bit concerned because she would like to major in Biology and needs to understand the material. I am not very sciency (is that a word?), and need to have a curr. that will not expect a vast amount of knowlege on the teacher's part.

The DVD option for BJU may work in hs, but they don't have the DVD yet for the 3rd edition of Life Science so next year we would wing it.

any advice?

[summer]

If she already had Apologia General Science and wants to switch over to BJU sequence, she would go straight in to Earth and Space Science(which is the 8th grade book). If she wants to be a science major in college, she really needs to stay on track and not get a year behind. She will need at least 1 AP science course really. Ok..so she does not NEED it, but anyone who wants a future in science should likely take it.

 

My DD wants to be an aerospace engineer and has a great interest in geology. I have been trying to decide if I should switch her over to BJU for 8th grade myself.

[Michelle in AL]

We did BJU Life science this past yr and I would say it is very teachable. I prepared the weekend ahead by reading through the chapters we would cover. The teacher's notes tell you what to emphasize and also gives you a schedule to follow that coordinates in the student activities & tests. It is a very solid science foundation for Biology. I would compare it to the general science she did with Apologia to see if it goes that much more in depth or not.

 

The only warning I can think about for a child going into science and using BJU is that they view creation & evolution differently than most colleges would. They do have a bias in their texts when comparing theistic evolution, old earth christianity and plain scientific evolution. They will emphasize the downfall of all the others, but do not mention the holes in their theory. As a Christian, this seemed somehow dishonest to me.

[yinne]

Chris:

 

We used the BJU 8th Grade Earth and Space course this past year and I was very pleased with it. However I had my dd use the DVDs and I wouldn't want to use it without them. The DVD course for 8th grade was excellent. My dd is a very independent person and very fews times did she request assistance from me. She watched the lessons and labs on the DVDs and then would do the labs herself. She did very well and completed the course with an A average. The grade included; section review questions, labs, quizzes that are given on the DVDs and chapter tests.

 

This year I will be using the 10th grade and the 7th grade course with DVDs. I compared the 2nd edition and 3rd edition of the 7th grade text and honestly did not see a huge difference between the two books. I had both books side by side and they are very similar, the labs (investigations) are very similar, etc. The investigation workbook looks nicer in the 3rd edition, but content wise I didn't see many changes.

 

A couple of years ago we gave Apologia General Science course a try and we both disliked it. This has been a much better fit.

 

Yvonne

[Chris in CA]

I understand, I wasn't very explicit but the plan is to do Life Science and skip the 8th grade book because we only did the first 1/2 of Apologia and she loves life science. thanks for your reply

[Chris in CA]

Hmm, we are creationists, but would like to teach the other side as well. Are you going to continue with BJU?

[Chris in CA]

I really am on the fence about Apologia, I know it would be easier - for me - because it is much more self-teaching, also I think that the General Science book is a yawn and the more specific books may be more interesting. But, BJU has a great rep from what I've heard. So I'm assuming you will use the 2nd edition of Life Science this year? I hadn't thought about doing that, hmm

[yinne]

Actually I'm using a combination of the two. I had already purchased the 3rd edition books but I really, really, really did not want to teach it myself, so I looked at the 2nd edition and decided it was doable. So we will be using the 3rd edition books with the 2nd edition DVDs. There will be a few things that we will have to adjust, but I sat down with the lessons from the DVDs and matched it up with the pages from the new book. If I had had the opportunity to do a good comparison before I purchased I would have just gone with the 2nd editon, even though I really like the looks of the new book!

 

Yvonne

[gamommy]

We will be doing the 2nd edition BJU text with my 7th grader this fall. She did Abeka's 6th grade program which gave her a bit of earth, space, and physical science. The materials arrived several weeks ago and look good, quite a rigorous and comprehensive course. We may co-op with a few other families, but it looks quite feasible for the hs with some slight modifications.

 

Since my dd already has quite a bit of earth science under her belt we will most likely skip the 8th grade course and do Physical Science as an 8th grader instead. My dh (chemistry teacher) feels that it's a good idea for a college bound student to start with Biology as a freshman. That way they can get extra coursework in. So our planned sequence looks something like this:

7th- BJU lifescience

8th-BJU physical science

9th-Biology (either BJU or Apologia, dh will select)

10th-Chemistry(either BJU or Apologia as above)

11th/12th Physics and either AP Chem or Bio (dd will help select)

 

It's important to consider where the student will be in math when planning a science sequence as well. You need at least a firm grasp of Algebra to do well in Chem. and Alg2/Trig to tackle Physics.

 

We are conservative Christians and are firmly in the creationist camp. Dh has researched lots of the ins and outs of that. We will use a Christian text but will use a secular text (luckily dh has access to plenty at his school) and will assign her to do those extra chapters on evolutionary topics, just so that she has an understanding of them. The Answers in Genesis site has some great resources, you could simply get some additional readings there for your child as well. We won't tackle this piece of it next year, but will do some in 9th grade during our study of Biology and some additional in conjuction with AP Bio. She's already pretty well versed in this as it's a hot topic around here. I do agree with the AP that an exposure at least to these ideas is important for a college bound student.

[Chris in CA]

I like your plan, it is similar to mine : )

I have promised dd she can do Life Science next year and I was thinking I would have to commit to a publisher, but I like that you are leaving Bio, Chem and Physics open - very smart!

I think we'll go with

bju life science - 8th

bju physical - 9th

and leave the rest open right now - perhaps Apologia will be more her cuppa by them or not

I've heard - perhaps wrongly - that bju earth and physical cover many of the same topics, so I really am not concerned about skipping it.

I want to keep dd passionate about science, but unfortunately she can't take all Bio type sciences - so there will be some give and take.

One thing I love about Apologia is that they have the Advanced Bio and Marine Science - but we'll see - that would mean skipping Physics - the horror! : )

[paula j]

I have the BJU Earth science for this year and I think it looks quite doable. I love the labs and the text seems pretty easy to understand.

[Chris in CA]

Thank you, I had dd look at the Life Science text last night (online) and she said she thought it would be no problem - : )

[Karis]

I have the BJU Earth science for this year and I think it looks quite doable. I love the labs and the text seems pretty easy to understand.

 

 

Can you give me an idea about some of the labs for BJU earth and Space?

[Melissa in CA]

My ds is currently using the 2nd edition of BJU Life Science w/DVDs and I would not hesitate using this edition again. I'm sure the 3rd edition is nice, but the 2nd edition has been around a long time and taught many kids what they need to know. ;) I can't imagine the content changing much. Also, I would NOT want to do this course, or any BJU science course, without the DVD teacher. They are excellent, and the DVDs add much to the learning experience. They are well worth the money. :D

 

My middle son used the BJU DVD Chemistry and Physics. The Chemistry was his favorite science ever. The Physics was tough, tough, tough. I plan to use all BJU science through jr. high and high school. Science is my youngest ds's favorite subject, and BJU's science DVDs are what he calls "the bomb!" :lol: