alisoncooks Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 We're currently not getting much science done (other than checking out library books based on interest). I've been thinking of adding in more "living book" type programs, and I think Sassafras might be a good one to try. I know a few people have been using this ... is anyone planning to stick with it for the course of the series? As your only science program? Or are you supplementing extensively? I think we'd start next year (with a 1st & 3rd grader) and follow the pace set of 2 books a year... (caveat being that she actually releases the other levels in time. :() Anyone else thinking of using this as your only science program for the elementary ages? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anmom Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 We use it and have really enjoyed it. We just finished Zoology and will be starting Anatomy next week. I did not supplement any with Zoology (other than with the library book suggestions and sctivities given) but plan to do so and stretch Anatomy out a bit. The reason I chose to do that is just because my kids are getting older and I wanted to add a little more meat to it so to speak. However, it seems to be a full but gentle program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted January 4, 2014 Author Share Posted January 4, 2014 Thanks for the feedback. What are the ages you are using it with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craftyerin Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I'm planning to use zoology in the fall with three 1st graders (roughly). I do not plan to supplement it at all, and honestly, probably won't even do most or all of the supplemental reading and projects. I think it looks like great, though! I'm excited to use it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 We're currently not getting much science done (other than checking out library books based on interest). I've been thinking of adding in more "living book" type programs, and I think Sassafras might be a good one to try. I know a few people have been using this ... is anyone planning to stick with it for the course of the series? Kind of. As your only science program? Yes, it's our only science program. Or are you supplementing extensively? Actually, I don't supplement this one. The only thing I added to Zoology were animal documentaries and TV programs. We watched David Attenborough (sp?) docs, Disney Nature docs, and corresponding Jeff Corwin episodes. Plus lots of Wild Kratts stuff on their own. I usually supplement things to death, but didn't feel the need with this program. Also I didn't feel the need to do most of the demonstrations. We did a few that I felt were really useful, but my kids got a lot out of reading the story, filling out the logbook, and the extra books/videos. I think we'd start next year (with a 1st & 3rd grader) and follow the pace set of 2 books a year... (caveat being that she actually releases the other levels in time. :() Anyone else thinking of using this as your only science program for the elementary ages? My oldest is probably going to age out of the program before she gets the other volumes released, but I have a feeling that she will want to read the books on her own. This is the one curriculum that my dd10 BEGGED me not to change. We start anatomy next week. My youngest will be doing something different instead of anatomy since I felt the subject matter was a little much for her. My answers are in bold above. The only reason we might not do all of the series is that the science topics might not line up with what I'm wanting them to study each year before they age out of the program, but I would definitely consider having them read the books even if they didn't do the rest. However, my only negative to the program is that they main book, the adventure novel, is poorly written. The way the dialogue flows is stilted and awkward at times. I have also found quite a few grammar mistakes. These things don't bother me overmuch because I edit on the fly as I'm reading to the girls. Plus science is getting done regularly and with enjoyment so that outweighs the other for me. I used Zoology this past year with my K'er and 3rd grader. The logbook was a little too much for my K'er so I made her a simpler version just for her in Word. It was easily our best year of science yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hands-on-mama Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Is it okay to use these out of order or is it best to start atthens beginning? We are using the preschool series and will do Intro to Science next year, but I am thinking about buying the anatomy set of this because my oldest is so interested in it. She will be a 6 1/2 year old 1st grader in the fall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deerforest Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 We started with the Zoology book, but we gave up midway through it despite being quite excited at first. The writing and plot were not to our liking, and the science was quite light, in my opinion. We just stuck with all the zoology books I got to accompany it instead and moved on to our own science instead. ETA: I agree with absolutely everything that Farrar said down below--absolutely perfect summary of our experiences except as I noted, we couldn't even to finish it. DD saw through the weak plot line easily and kept getting disappointed in the lack of real science. We were really disappointed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Is it okay to use these out of order or is it best to start atthens beginning? We are using the preschool series and will do Intro to Science next year, but I am thinking about buying the anatomy set of this because my oldest is so interested in it. She will be a 6 1/2 year old 1st grader in the fall. Yes. There's an explanation at the beginning of the Anatomy book of the back story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sew happily ever after Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Two of my dd have used the zoology book. My 11yo and 10 yo found TONS of grammar, punctuation, awkward sentence mistakes. Also several mix ups in the guides. I emailed the author to let her know. If it were me I would want to know! She was very gracious and apologized for the mistakes. She said they paid quite a lot of money to have it professionally edited, twice. Even so there are tons of mistakes. I did purchase book 2, anatomy, because my 10yo really enjoys the learning style. The author also sent me a free copy of the anatomy guide. I still need to look through that. And I keep meaning to read the anatomy book, but I just can't get myself to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sew happily ever after Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Two of my dd have used the zoology book. My 11yo and 10 yo found TONS of grammar, punctuation, awkward sentence mistakes. Also several mix ups in the guides. I emailed the author to let her know. If it were me I would want to know! She was very gracious and apologized for the mistakes. She said they paid quite a lot of money to have it professionally edited, twice. Even so there are tons of mistakes. I did purchase book 2, anatomy, because my 10yo really enjoys the learning style. The author also sent me a free copy of the anatomy guide. I still need to look through that. And I keep meaning to read the anatomy book, but I just can't get myself to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 Two of my dd have used the zoology book. My 11yo and 10 yo found TONS of grammar, punctuation, awkward sentence mistakes. Also several mix ups in the guides. I emailed the author to let her know. If it were me I would want to know! She was very gracious and apologized for the mistakes. She said they paid quite a lot of money to have it professionally edited, twice. Even so there are tons of mistakes. I did purchase book 2, anatomy, because my 10yo really enjoys the learning style. The author also sent me a free copy of the anatomy guide. I still need to look through that. And I keep meaning to read the anatomy book, but I just can't get myself to do it. I had a similar experience with a similar gracious response following my mediocre blog review that mentioned the errors. We read the zoology book aloud for fun - not our only program. The typos and grammar errors really bugged me. I know some people find errors in every book, but I rarely do, so I felt it must have been pretty egregious. Even more than that, I found that the book itself wasn't so great. The concept is good. My kids basically enjoyed it, though I don't know that they loved it. They hated the ending because nothing really happened after a lot of build up about the mysterious man. I just felt that there was a lot of the characters getting somewhere and then listening to a lecture about science. And then going somewhere else. Ugh. I really prefer stories that incorporate the science better. Something like Magic School Bus presents a plot that is solved by science. Something like a story of an animal presents specific animal through which you can learn about science. Or a nonfiction book just honestly tells you the information, hopefully in interesting language. This felt more like... a brussels sprout wrapped in a chocolate coating. But I can see the appeal. And the concept is so good. In another thread, I was just reflecting that if it weren't for the fact that there are already so, so many massively superior books about zoology already out there, it might have looked better to me. Like, if they had started with chemistry, which has almost no good children's science literature, I might have been more excited by it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Χά�ων Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 DS, age 10, is finishing NOEO Biology II and will be doing the Sassafrass Zoology directly after. He loves the zipline and is eager to get started on it. If he really loves the characters I may buy the Anatomy book. I do not plan to use it exclusively for this age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyJo Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 This felt more like... a brussels sprout wrapped in a chocolate coating. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Χά�ων Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 . In another thread, I was just reflecting that if it weren't for the fact that there are already so, so many massively superior books about zoology already out there, it might have looked better to me. Can you list a few of your favorite zoology books please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted January 5, 2014 Author Share Posted January 5, 2014 So...for those who were lukewarm with Sassafras, we're you doing the "full program" (encyclopedia, library books, logbook) or was it mainly as a read-aloud? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 Can you list a few of your favorite zoology books please? Sure... I'll start with authors and series... Seymour Simon's animal series is good about specific animals - middle to upper elementary, good photos, lots of detail. We've found they're good for independent reading. Sandra Markle has several series that I really like - the Predator/Prey/Scavenger series is excellent for middle to upper elementary, great photos, and the series she has that's illustrated by Alan Marks about specific animal stories skews a little younger - early to middle elementary and is also excellent, the watercolor illustrations are great - we really liked the Koala bear one, which was based on a true story. Jim Arnosky's books are all very good, more on the nature studies end of zoology, but very good with lots of good advice about how to observe animals. Steve Jenkins's books are good for looking at - excellent illustrations - very appealing to younger kids but with some detail that is maybe best for older kids in some of them. The Scientist in the Field series has more than a dozen books that fall into the category of zoology and all are excellent. Upper elementary to middle school. I have a fondness for Project Seahorse and the kids liked the Manatee one best (did you know Manatees may use their gas emissions to help regulate how they float - ha!) but they're all excellent. Bobbie Kalman is another author with several good series about animals. We liked her books less, but she has many fans. For lower to middle elementary. I'm almost afraid to start in on individual titles. It's like a can of worms... A few that I recall off the top of my head... Flute's Journey by Lynne Cherry - about a bird migrating An Extraordinary Life - about a monarch butterfly Search for the Golden Moon Bear by Sy Montgomery The Carpenter Bee by Ross Hutchins Really, I'm just scratching the surface and with all the books the above authors have written, I've just listed well over a hundred options. There's just soooo much out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted January 5, 2014 Author Share Posted January 5, 2014 Is it okay to use these out of order or is it best to start atthens beginning? We are using the preschool series and will do Intro to Science next year, but I am thinking about buying the anatomy set of this because my oldest is so interested in it. She will be a 6 1/2 year old 1st grader in the fall.You can read the first chapter on the website. That may give you an idea of how easy it'll be to jump into the series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 So...for those who were lukewarm with Sassafras, we're you doing the "full program" (encyclopedia, library books, logbook) or was it mainly as a read-aloud? It was just a read aloud for us. It's possible that the log book makes the information feel less rudimentary and more integrated than I felt it was in just the book alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deerforest Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 We were doing the full program, and it felt like busy work. I had a bunch of supplemental books that ended up being the core learning for us. We might be science snobs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 Please list some! I did! Scroll up... ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sew happily ever after Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 We used the sassafras book, guide, logbook, and the animal encyclopedia. We did not add any additional books from the library because we were also doing the science in HOD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SereneHome Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 Farrar - did you go in any particular order or just picked random books? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 We have been using it. I admit I don't like having several books to go between, but it's interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted January 6, 2014 Author Share Posted January 6, 2014 Another question: Has anyone used the lapbook option for Zoology, instead of the Scidat Logbook? I'm wondering if that'd be a better place to start for my young one and my non-writer. (In addition to the story, encyclopedias, and demonstrations.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H_Household Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 We loved Vol 1 and it gave my kids an excitement for science again. We are doing Apologia this year as we do CC so we're studying Astronomy this year. Next year, CC does anatomy so we plan to pick up the Sassafras again along with Apologia. My kids will be excited to see the next adventure. We hope to do the whole series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaConquest Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 I noticed the same thing. I'm pretty easy going about stuff like that. I expect any book has some errors. But really it makes it difficult to read the book sometimes! I don't know what to deal is. If they really paid some professional to edit their book they should ask for their money back! We just started the first book the other day and I just want to echo how egregious the errors are -- definitely to the point of distraction. There's no way this book was professionally edited. I really hope ES fixes these issues. My son is enjoying the adventure novel, but we will be adding some of the living books mentioned above for more meat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vida Winter Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 I have to agree with those who were disappointed with Sassafras. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsbushman Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 Sassafras Science is such a hit in our household! I read it aloud to my 8 and 10 year olds (thus they aren't aware of any typos because I edit as I read if I need to) and they go crazy for it. It is the ONLY science curriculum we have ever completed. For Zoology, I bought all the books that came with the program, but for Anatomy I did my own supplemental work. We use books, videos, science experiments, worksheets etc. from all over the place! I love how Sassafras Science can be both a science program and a geography program. I think it is very easy to internet search for supplemental items. I just glance over the next chapter and get our materials ready. I will pull worksheets and videos relating to the upcoming locations (geography) and science subjects. I just honestly cannot say enough good things about the program. LOVE it! We are eagerly awaiting Botany. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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