Staci in FL Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 I'm thinking about having my eighth grader take Earth Science for high school credit this coming year. Does a rigorous course for homeschoolers exist for Earth Science? And I'm not a fan of Apologia.... Staci Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 We liked the Earth Science text by Tarbuck et al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 We were coupling a Tarbuck text with the Teaching Company series How the Earth Works and local field trips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltagal Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 This is what we used for Freshman year. I thought it was quite rigorous and my son LOVED it! Earth Science, Holt McDougal 2010, ISBN-13: 978-0-55-400579-9 or ISBN-10: 0-55-400579-4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 BJU's text is rigorous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 BJU's Earth & Space text is great, but it is junior high level and not high school. It would be perfect for a rigorous eighth grade course, but not for high school credit. Because it is viewed as a typical junior high course, I think you would need to be careful to use something that is specifically for high schoolers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 (edited) BJU's Earth & Space text is great, but it is junior high level and not high school. It would be perfect for a rigorous eighth grade course, but not for high school credit. Because it is viewed as a typical junior high course, I think you would need to be careful to use something that is specifically for high schoolers. Obviously, the OP would have to decide for herself, but I 've read that BJU Press says it can be used for high school level (unless that has changed), and the material in it is much more challenging that the material in a Holt high school level earth science text I have. ETA: I just reread the OP's post, and I had forgotten that this was for an 8th grader seeking high school level credit. In that case, Angela is probably right that you would want a text that is considered "high school level." Edited June 11, 2012 by klmama Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staci in FL Posted June 11, 2012 Author Share Posted June 11, 2012 Thanks for the responses. A few questions: Which Tarbuck Text would you all recommend? And are there lab/hands on activities that are suggested within the text? How difficult was it to get those materials? Also, does anyone have any thoughts on CPO Earth Science? Thanks, Staci Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 Which Tarbuck Text would you all recommend? And are there lab/hands on activities that are suggested within the text? How difficult was it to get those materials? This is the HS level text; Pearson publishes various supplementary materials such as a workbook and lab book, but I haven't seen them. I did find a TE for this book fairly easily. Also, does anyone have any thoughts on CPO Earth Science? CPO Earth Science is excellent — but definitely middle school level. Exploring Geology (Reynolds, Johnson, Kelly, et al) is a really interesting, and very visual, college-for-nonmajors text. How Does Earth Work (Smith & Pun), is another very visual, well-illustrated text used for both nonmajors and intro-majors courses. Essentials of Geology (Lutgens & Tarbuck) is a pared-down version of their larger college text, which covers the basics. The Teaching Co geology course is excellent, but I found the accompanying text (Planet Earth by John Renton) to be pretty dry. Generally I prefer college texts, but it can be difficult to find an Instructor's Manual if you need answers to chapter review questions & such. Jackie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staci in FL Posted June 12, 2012 Author Share Posted June 12, 2012 Very helpful, Coraleno. Thanks so much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewelma Posted June 12, 2012 Share Posted June 12, 2012 We are using the university level text. I have compared it page for page to the HS text and there is a LOT of overlap. The graphs, diagrams, photos are the same. And at least half of the text is word for word. We use this one: http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Science-Edward-J-Tarbuck/dp/0136020070/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1339479388&sr=8-2 And the investigation book: http://www.amazon.com/Applications-Investigations-Earth-Science-sixth/dp/0910222991/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1339479427&sr=8-9 Somewhere online is the top half of every page in the investigation book. It was very helpful to see it before making a decision. We got the answers for the text and investigation book from the publisher with proof of purchase and proof of homeschooling. Ruth in NZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staci in FL Posted June 12, 2012 Author Share Posted June 12, 2012 Lewelma, Would you mind telling me a little about your schedule with the Tabuck book? Will you be able to finish it in a year? How often are you doing labs (I assume those are in the Investigations book that you linked)? How many hours a week does it take you to use this? And are you lecturing from it or is your son reading it on his own? Any insight you can give me as to how you use it during the week would be great. Thanks, Staci Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elinor Everywhere Posted June 12, 2012 Share Posted June 12, 2012 Lewelma, Would you mind telling me a little about your schedule with the Tabuck book? Will you be able to finish it in a year? How often are you doing labs (I assume those are in the Investigations book that you linked)? How many hours a week does it take you to use this? And are you lecturing from it or is your son reading it on his own? Any insight you can give me as to how you use it during the week would be great. Thanks, Staci We just finished Tarbuck's Earth Science. We did skip a few chapters based on my dd's interests. She did labs from the lab book, but we didn't like the amount of write-up that was required, so she often did the labs and then did a standard experiment summary. I do have a syllabus if you'd like to see it - you can get an idea from it and pick and choose what you like. Just pm me your email address if you're interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewelma Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 Would you mind telling me a little about your schedule with the Tabuck book? Will you be able to finish it in a year? How often are you doing labs (I assume those are in the Investigations book that you linked)? How many hours a week does it take you to use this? And are you lecturing from it or is your son reading it on his own? Any insight you can give me as to how you use it during the week would be great. We will not finish it in a year. There are 4 major topics in Tarbuck: Geology (the longest), Oceanography, Meteorology, and Astronomy. I asked my ds if he wanted to skip one topic completely or do only 3/4th of each. He preferred the latter. So we did: Term 1: Astronomy Term 2: Geology Term 3: Oceanography Term 4: Meteorology And he read all 4 chapters of astronomy, 4 out of 10 chapters in Geology, 2 of 3 chapters in Oceanography, and 4 of 5 chapters in Meteorology. He did all the investigations that matched the astronomy and geology chapters that he read, but for oceanograpy, he did a science fair project (I've written it up here http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361740 ). We ran out of time to do any investigations for Meteorology. I expected him to spend 3 hours per week reading and 1 hour per week doing the investigation in terms 1 and 2 and first half of term 3. The second half of term 3 and all of term 4 were focused on the science fair, and he only read about 2 hours per week. We did no lectures and had no tests. HTH, Ruth in NZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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