History and science for lazy planners?

[ChristusG]

I'm not good at planning. We get through grammar, phonics, reading, math, cursive, etc just fine. It always seems to be history and science that are lacking. I know my kids are still fairly young (3rd grade and K), but I do feel that the 3rd grader should be getting more than she is.

 

I'm having a hard time keeping up with housework, planning, homeschooling, activities, meal planning, two older kids, and a baby who is into everything. Is there a science and history curriculum that requires very little planning? Should we just read lots of different books?

[5LittleMonkeys]

I've used Aha! Science before when we've had times that we have to focus on skill subjects and don't have time for an involved science. It is a great, independent resource that you certainly could add to if you have a week once in awhile that you have a bit more time. We did a few of the experiements and added in library books and documentaries. Hiwever, even if you didn't have time to get to the library your dc would still be getting some science exposure. It was very inexpensive and, I thought, gave a pretty good basic overview of all the sciences.

[Aurelia]

Galore Park has texts that are basically "do the next thing". I like them because they are solid, and the science has one fairly easy to do experiment for each chapter. They start at approximately a third grade level. They're UK materials, so there's no specific "third grade" designation. Level/Book 1 is for Year 3 and up.

[LMD]

I can relate. I'm planning to use the simply charlotte mason history next year, which is quite open & go. Science will be a mix of apologia astronomy & bfsu. I'm going to put together a basic roadmap for the year, then just work our way through.

This year was tough for a lot of reasons, & history/science got the short straw too often.

Good luck.

[Farrar]

Evan-Moor is also very do the next thing, worksheety, check off this box kind of stuff. RSO is very planned out. If you were interested in doing nature studies, The Nature Connection is very planned out - it helps take "nature walk" and make it more like a curriculum.

 

You have a 1 yo. Just read books and watch movies and then do projects when you can. :)

[boscopup]

I've found history so much easier this year because I have all the books already here. I'm using Sonlight, which is planned out, of course, but even if I were using SOTW or something else, purchasing the books to round it out would probably have greatly reduced my angst about history in the past and helped get it done. This year (also 3rd grade and K), we're getting history done regularly, no problem (well, K'er isn't doing history, but 3rd grader is doing US History).

 

For science, I'm just doing library books. I also don't do a lot of projects or outside activities.

 

ETA: Just noticed the 1 year old. Um... wait a couple years, and things may start to come back into place again. :D

[PollyOR]

For science I use a textbook (R&S). I copy the table of contents and mark off the lessons as we read through them. I don't have a plan as to how many to read each week but seeing the lessons marked off gives me an idea of how we are pacing things. It isn't the way I envisioned doing science but it is better than not doing it.

 

 

Edited to add: We've also been bringing home all the Let's-Read-And-Find-Out-About Science books we can find at the library. The books rarely fit in with our science lessons. We read them for fun.

Edited November 11, 2012 by PollyOR

[....]

Should we just read lots of different books?

 

This is how my 5th grader and 4th grader are doing science this year. :thumbup1: Today, we read from one of the Stephen and Lucy Hawking books and the kids watched a short lecture by Stephen Hawking on Youtube. My son is fascinated by Stephen Hawking right now. I've been very happy with science this year.

[CatholicMom]

I feel your pain. I'm finally happy that we are consistently getting our skill subjects done, like you are, but we are barely ever doing our history & science. *sigh* It's always something.

 

For science next year I'm thinking about possibly picking several science kits from Home Science Tools (my new favorite site! :001_tt1:) and just doing, say, the magnet kit activities one month for a couple times, and then doing the butterfly kit one month, etc... Along with the library or sonlight books here and there, and calling science good.

 

For history, we are doing SOTW and history pockets to go along with it.

 

I have also thought about doing the project-heavy science one month (once a week or so) and then switching to history the next month. Or just doing science one semester and history the next semester. Just a thought. I can't get into many content subjects at one time, personally.

[Sahamamama]

I've found history so much easier this year because I have all the books already here. I'm using Sonlight, which is planned out, of course, but even if I were using SOTW or something else, purchasing the books to round it out would probably have greatly reduced my angst about history in the past and helped get it done. This year (also 3rd grade and K), we're getting history done regularly, no problem (well, K'er isn't doing history, but 3rd grader is doing US History). For science, I'm just doing library books. I also don't do a lot of projects or outside activities.

 

Once again, Boscopup has the good ideas. :D

 

Buying the books -- this has been my life-saving epiphany. Last year for History and Science it was library, library, library. I love my local library, but I was wearing out with putting books on hold, going to get them, reading them, keeping track of when they were due, taking them back, paying fines. :glare: So when I was planning out this year, I said to myself, "I want the books in the house."

 

For American History (Part 1), I made a list of spines & other books at their level that appealed to me, ordered those, labeled them by date, and put them in two old dresser drawers on the floor. We are reading through the books in roughly chronological order, at no particular pace. ;) It's fun and it's getting done. [Except that I was stupid, and started History Pockets, so we are stillllllllllllllllllllllll studying Native Americans. We're having a great time, though.] I based my list off of Sonlight, Beautiful Feet, Winter Promise, Guest Hollow, my own ideas, and some others (can't remember now). No worksheets, no notebooking or lapbooking, no projects (except History Pockets), no coon skin caps.

 

For Earth Science, same thing -- I chose a spine plus a list of books about Geology/Weather, bought the books on Amazon, put them on the science shelf next to the rock kit and weather station stuff. Done with planning. We are reading/exploring through the books at no particular pace, and they are learning a TON. I'm happy with this approach for this grade level.

 

With this method, you pay for books/resources that you and/or your 3rd grader will probably really read, not teacher-driven curriculum you might never get around to. I figure, even if I don't read every word of every book, the girls do. They have so much up in those little heads now, I'm seriously blown away by the power of building a home library.

 

And once you make your initial list and order the books, the planning basically done unless you want to add more. It's a relief not to have to run to the library all the time, and I'm glad our Science and History are "off the check-list," while still getting covered. HTH.

 

 

 

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[MAIMOM]

I have enjoyed using Christian liberty press history for 4th grade. It was written to the student and we both enjoyed reading it. I would think the 3rd grade would be fun too. I just looked and the book is only 165 pages so that is not too much to get through in a year. The link is herehttp://www.homeschools.org/viewCurriculum/grade3/grade3History.html#History3

I highly recommend the 4th grade history for next year if you are not opposed to a Christian perspective. It covered from the Mayflower through president Regan. I looked forward to reading with my DD as it kept me interested also. I also figured out we did not have to do history or science every day.....that was a novel idea to me : )

 

As others have stated it is ok to focus on reading for this year...stages of life change the baby will grow and you will be able to focus more at a later time.

 

I have no recommendation for 3rd grade science. You have some good ideas here from others. I guess I would encourage you to give yourself grace during this year. Education is a journey with 12 years to finish it. Many subjects are just introduced in these early years and later unpackaged in more depth. Enjoy books and videos. You Dc is learning all the time. My kids learned a lot of history and science from unexpected places like Magic school bus books and videos from the creation museum.

[Firestar Academy]

look at easy peasy homeschool. free online. even the links to the books are online. i think the mom designed it because she has a lot of kids and it is supposed to be independent.

 

we are using it for English - because it is all there. just there. and it is getting done which is better than not getting it done.

 

http://allinonehomeschool.wordpress.com/how-to-use-this-curriculum/

 

Robin

[napualani]

I am awful about planning for science. This year I subscribed to ScienceFusion. My dd (5th grade) does online lessons, and she also has a workbook that corresponds to the lessons. For experiments, she attends a science club once a week. Science is so much more fun with other kids, and she enjoys it. Other than that, she enjoys building the occasional kit and will randomly do some independent study based on something that piques her interest.

 

Darlene

[TengoFive]

When I'm on a streamlined season of homeschooling we listen to the Story of the World cds and activity guide. I skip all of the activities, and only add the extra reading if I happen to be in the library that week to get them. We listen to the lesson, do the coloring pages, map work, and review questions and call it good. Are they getting the depth that they could if I took the time to plan all the activies? Maybe not, but its getting done and they're learning more than they would if we weren't doing any history.

[stm4him]

I would buy the Acts and Facts timeline cards and Science cards from Classical Conversations and read one or two science cards per week and one or two history cards per day. I would have them notebook (1 sentence per grade level plus an illustration and/or copywork from the cards) what they learned and I would have some basic resources on hand that they can look up more information in (usborne books, eyewitness, etc.) as well as some educational videos related to the topics for that year. They can explore those as they are interested. Lyrical Life Science and Earth Science are fun to listen to and get some vocab in there easily.

 

I would also buy a Christian Liberty Press Nature Reader on grade level and have them read that and answer questions on days you are too busy to read the science cards (like 2-3 days per week). Homeschool Curriculum Co has packets that go with the CC memory work and cards for $5 that are very simple. This could be done once a week for science. Until you get your 3 R's done for the year I'd postpone doing anything else too complicated.

 

Once the 3R's are done buy them Nancy Larson Science (everything in a box, 30 min. lessons) or Apologia Science (with experiment kit) if they are 4th grade and up and have them do it mostly independently. Read the chapter one day (or listen to the audios that are coming out), do the experiments the second day, notebook the third day. The reading can be split up if that is too much.

 

For history another option would be SOTW audios and VP Self-Paced with the kit of books they sell so you don't have to go looking for any.

 

HTH!