Does any one actually like Elemental Science (logic stage)?

[fairy4tmama]

I am wondering if anyone here uses Elemental Science and likes it. I have to admit that it's not my first choice but I am considering it because I desperately need to cut down on my planning and prep time. ES is already scheduled into Build Your Library (our core) but I keep reading really negative reviews about it. (My oldest used BYL last year but we replaced the science)

 

If you use it and you like it what do you like about it? What do your kids think about it?

 

[scbusf]

We have just started using Logic Stage Biology, and we like it. A good friend of mine locally used Logic Stage Chemistry last year and she and her kids LOVED it.

 

I think you will find negative reviews about everything. You have to gather your information, make the best decision you can, and go for it. (I'm reminding myself of this, too! I'm such a second guesser.)

[JusDelenH]

Following. I am wondering about the Chemistry myself. 

[fairy4tmama]

We have just started using Logic Stage Biology, and we like it. A good friend of mine locally used Logic Stage Chemistry last year and she and her kids LOVED it.

 

I think you will find negative reviews about everything. You have to gather your information, make the best decision you can, and go for it. (I'm reminding myself of this, too! I'm such a second guesser.)

Can you elaborate on what you like about it?

[kesmom]

We are about to start Logic Stage Biology. It came up repeatedly as a recommendation in a local hs group. 

 

I also had my DD look at the sample pages and she got SUPER excited about it. That influenced my decision more than anything.

[RootAnn]

We have a tough time with science programs in our house. I use something different just about every year because I've never found anything I loved.

 

That said, I am going to reuse Elemental Science Logic Stage Biology this year. My oldest used it when she was in 5th grade. This year, dd#2 (7th/8thish) & dd#3 (5th/6thish) will be using a modified version of it. (I tweak everything, so we don't follow the plans exactly.)

 

What I like:

I like that it is fairly open & go. I rewrote the plans in the TM in checklist form so my kids can be more independent.

I like the memory work & build it in.

I like the flexibility & that it doesn't take us all year to get it done (I took out the science fair section).

 

What the kids don't really like:

It is fairly boring in some sections.

There can be a lot of writing.

The tests are not super easy.

There is vocab & memorizing.

 

I didn't see a ton of retention from dd#1, but enough that we'll reuse it. (I've also not found anything else for Bio for the logic stage that I'd buy.)

[SamanthaCarter]

I think it depends on the students writing skills/stamina and independent study skills. I felt like it wasn't developmentally appropriate for the age I tried to use it for (3rd grade). That's my only real beef. 

 

Edited: Oh gosh, I just realized I had no business commenting here! We did Grammar stage Chemistry.

Edited July 28, 2016 by SamanthaCarter

[Bocky]

We have used Logic stage Biology and Earth Science, and will use Physics this year. I really like how much is done for me as a non-sciency teacher. Having the schedule, the teacher book, the kits, and the teaching in the student book is a big help here for getting science done. What we struggle with in the program is using an encyclopedia as the primary reading. Dd 12, in particular, does not like getting her information from a DK type book. She finds the pages both too terse and too busy, too many little disconnected paragraphs. For physics I am adding the Holt Science and Technology Physics textbook as reading to help with this. Our experience has been mixed. I used Logic Biology with a 5th and a 3rd grader. We had the encyclopedia problem and it was hard for the 3rd grader (even using the recommended lower level encyclopedia), but it was a good solid program. I tried other programs but I switched to Logic Earth science last year for my 6th grader when my homemade earth science using Geology of the Pacific Northwest wasn't cutting it. Earth Science went well; I liked the coverage, the retention, and how well it was all laid out for me.

[HilJoy14]

We used logic biology last year and enjoyed it for the most part.  I didn't make the kids do any outlining - we just answered the questions (kids are 9 and 11 - technically the 9-year-old wasn't "logic" stage, but I knew she could handle most of it).  I appreciated it all being laid out, having it tell us what to do each day.  The experiments were mostly good.  (I think we skipped a couple that were really obvious and/or I just didn't want to get supplies, so I found something online they could look at instead.)  Overall, a good program that I'd recommend.

[GeoKitty]

We used logic stage earth science and astronomy when my son was in sixth grade.  We both really liked it!  The labs were great, and we had no trouble with them - we did most of them.  The set up was easy to use.  We did add extra readings - just the encyclopedias wasn't enough.  And we added lots of videos.  But overall we loved it!

[Pink and Green Mom]

I used biology and earth science for the logic stage (and all 4 years of the grammar stage).  I am the least science-y person out there, trust me.  I loved that these programs were well laid out for me.  My kids enjoyed doing them.  It was a few years ago but I'm fairly certain we cut out a lot of the writing (I was lucky to get my oldest to do writing for his writing class, let alone for science).  I am pretty sure that I would get a few library books on the topics and require a little bit of extra reading (not a fan of the science encyclopedias here, either).  My oldest is, at best, an average student.  But when he went off to private school in 6th grade his science teacher wanted to know what programs I had used at home because she was very impressed with what he knew.

[fairy4tmama]

Thanks for the feedback- I think we will try it!

[fairy4tmama]

For those of you who have used Biology for Logic Stage, did you buy the optional books? I am wondering if I really need those specific books or if I can just use whats on my selves already.

 

[RootAnn]

I think I only used the main spines & whatever else we had on hand. I seem to remember a few times that we had to look for something in a different book because whatever we had wasn't completely straight-forward, but i think you can use what you have on your shelves.

[fairy4tmama]

Thanks