Your favorite 2nd grade science

[AimeeM]

I have BFSU. I just can't seem to get it DONE. DS7 absolutely loves science and wants to actively "do" science. What are your favorites for this age? The more hands-on, the better. He is not reading fluently (we suspect dyslexia), so this would need to be mom-friendly.

[domestic_engineer]

Mystery Science.  It gets done because there is minimal prep from me.  And there's something hands on each time.  I think they have a free year offered right now (or did last month). 

[Jackie]

Not typical curric, so not sure if it would end up in the "not getting done" category, but we keep coming back to The Private Eye. It's a quirky science/art/language mashup. The main idea is that you use a jeweler's loupe to examine any natural object, then sketch what you see, then come up with analogies as to what it looks like. You can also discuss/ponder why it would look that way, which is where a lot of the scientific discussion comes in.

 

Lego Education also has some amazing hands-on stuff. As does K'Nex. Or Thames and Kosmos kits. Or Snap Circuits.

 

I'm more brainstorming on how to get him "hands on" asap with little needed from you. While I use BFSU as a general guide, I don't really "do" a science curric for my elementary kid. I do, however, load her down with science toys.

[Mrs Twain]

All of my kids suffered through BFSU because I thought it was such a great program.

 

Then I tried Mystery Science. I don't regret my time spent on BFSU, but Mystery Science is so much better! Plus I think you can still get the one free year deal.

[calihil]

Nature study. We have a butterfly garden out back that is swarming with caterpillars right now so we've had so much fun with that. I have her read the Christian Liberty Nature Reader and we read some of the Let's Read and Find Out books, along with the Among the ___ People books. We do a few experiments with our MFW curriculum, but she doesn't like it as much as learning about nature.

[visitor]

My Pals are Here international edition

[Abeilles]

I loved BFSU but it never got done. So in 3rd Grade we started Nancy Larson Science 1. We have used it the last 3 years a loved it! It is open and go and the children really enjoyed it! It's expensive but I was able to find mine used which helped. I'm starting NL 1 again with my 1st grader and just love how it is all prepared for me.

[Kiara.I]

If Christian is fine, Science in the Beginning is good.

 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[Cake and Pi]

Another vote for Mystery Science.  We switched over from BFSU, which I loved the idea of but could never get done.

[ScoutTN]

Library books, lots and lots of them.

Some good science dvds or shows. Magic school bus, wildkratts, PBS' Nature.

Plenty of time in nature and some basic science stuff - hand lens, butterfly house, bug box, trowel, ruler, nets, sketchpad etc.

Trips to the zoo, planetarium etc.

Snap circuits!

Edited September 4, 2016 by ScoutTN

[Eagle]

Real Science Odyssey covers similar material to BFSU. It is quite easy to implement and has a lot of fun hands-on projects and experiments.

[lexi]

Mystery Science

 

Or

 

Nancy Larson Science

 

We enjoy both. Both are easy to use and actually get done at my house.

[happypamama]

My second grader is enjoying Pandia Press's REAL Science Odyssey, and it's easy to get done.

[Vintage81]

Another vote for Mystery Science. :)

[2_girls_mommy]

I am not sure what mom friendly means to you, so I don't know if I am helpful at all.

 

For 2nd, we just preferred the WTM's science recomendations. We used the Usborne First Encyclopedia series for Earth and Space. We checked out lots of library books and watched videos. We used the encyclopedias as a guide. We read corresponding library books and did any experiments that came up in them. We narrated about the experiments and what we learned in our science journals and wrote definitions. We did art projects to go along from the Arty Facts Science and Art books to go along. We went on lots of field trips and spent a lot of time outdoors.

 

Since I stuck to the WTM science rotation in the grammar stage for my 2 that are 2 years apart, the first second grader was in Space/Earth while the Ker tagged along, Then 2 yrs later we were wrapping up chemistry and onto physics at 2nd grade for the younger (4th for the older.) Same concept, though we used something different for physics than the Usborne guides. I had books on Simple Machines as recommended in WTM, and another guide I found online full of experiments and explanations, and lots of library books and videos.

[Catalytic]

We're enjoying Pandia Press R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey here, as well.  My DS6 is working on Chemistry this year, tons of fun!  You can download samples from the website of each subject.

[gratitude]

I really liked, and my kids liked, the Sonlight DVD / lab kit / Usborne experiment book at that age. I ended up not using their worksheets or all of their books for science for that age. Many of the science books though they did like.

 

The DVD shows the experiments, which makes it easy to get done.

 

The Usborne books gave the lab directions written.

 

The lab kit includes essentially everything needed for the experiments.

 

My kids loved the hands on, reading aloud, and learned a lot. I really liked it for early elementary.

 

At that age the more hands on science the better for understanding science for later on.

[My3girls]

We tried BFSU in second, and although I loved the premise, it didn't get done.  What got done was Magic School Bus books and videos, library books, nature walks, and growing a garden.  We studied life cycles, habitats, food chains and webs, and adaptations for the most part.  We, also, did homeschool days at the aquarium. If only all our science went as well as 2nd grade science. lol

 

ETA:  Oh, and we used BrainPop, Jr., too!

 

Edited September 6, 2016 by My3girls

[Bernard J. Nebel]

I don’t really understand the difficulty of “not being able to get lessons done.†The very process and essence of science and scientific thinking is in the “not done.†Every investigation leads to more questions, more avenues to explore, more connections and implications to recognize. It is this that makes science an ongoing pursuit, and it is what enables parallel technological development. In short, lessons should conclude with dangling loose ends that invite further questions, and contemplation. It is such reflection that moves new learning into longterm memory and makes it the basis for rational thinking. Conversely, finishing a lesson into a tidy packet with no loose ends to invite further questions and reflection, and not revisiting it may become a recipe for forgetting. I hope we explore this issue further. Bernie Nebel

[lexi]

I'm not the poster but when I say something didn't get done I mean that we didn't do it at all....that it got pushed aside. I know that I tend to gravitate toward things that have more of a laid out plan for me. Otherwise I feel overwhelmed and then nothing gets done.

Learning is never "done," but I have to have a concrete plan to get started. I need that jump start with ideas and plans to get us moving in the right direction.

[domestic_engineer]

I'm also not the original poster, but I agree with Lexi.  When I say "science doesn't get done," it means that I'd like to have it be part of my day, and I might even have a plan of what to discuss, but that time slot for science gets overcome by the events of the day.  (It may be on my To-Do list each day, but it may not get checked off.)

 

First priority for me and the primary years is Reading, Writing and Arithmetic.  Any *formal* science lesson is a bonus.  I *wanted* to do BFSU, but it required me to set aside time (a) to read the book before implementing it and (b) the night before to read/plan the lesson.  With Mystery Science, there's no philosophy/book I need to read before the school year and night-before-prep-time is < 30 minutes.  For this season of life with littles to care for, a home to keep, and educating my older children, I prefer something open-and-go since formal science lessons are NOT a high priority.  This doesn't mean that my kids don't have scientific knowledge; it's just being gained in a less systematic, more haphazard manner.  It's not my ideal solution for science education, but it's what works for my family.   Some moms can do all the prep required for BFSU, and I give kudos to them.  But this mom uses up all her energy on the 3Rs and needs a low energy barrier to transition into a formal, dedicated science instructional time.

 

(We're honored to have you join us, Dr. Nebel!)

[AimeeM]

I'm not the poster but when I say something didn't get done I mean that we didn't do it at all....that it got pushed aside. I know that I tend to gravitate toward things that have more of a laid out plan for me. Otherwise I feel overwhelmed and then nothing gets done.

Learning is never "done," but I have to have a concrete plan to get started. I need that jump start with ideas and plans to get us moving in the right direction.

Yes, this. I mean, it isn't getting done at all. I keep looking through the book, but the prep (the required teacher reading, gathering materials, finding extension literature or comparable literature, and then figuring out how to present the lesson in words my children will retain) is just causing it to, as you put it, get pushed aside. 

[Momto6inIN]

We did Magic School Bus videos and some of the experiment kits along with books from the library for 1st and 2nd. It was great fun for her and easy for me. Not the most rigorous, of course, but she remembers things she learned and talks about them and says science is her favorite subject, even now that we've moved on to a different curriculum. So I'd call that a success. :)