rbk mama Posted December 30, 2016 Share Posted December 30, 2016 I'm looking for a study of ecosystems to go along with a study of world geography/cultures for my 5th grader, with a 2nd grader tagalong. MFW does something similar with the ECC core. (I'd love to hear more about that from anyone with experience.) I don't need a set curriculum- a few good resources would be fine. The one thing we'll include for sure are the fun ecology videos by Untamed Science. Ideas and book suggestions much appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smily Posted December 30, 2016 Share Posted December 30, 2016 I LOVE the MFW ECC program! It is my favorite curriculum find. The TM for the program has a list in the back for the"book basket", which is a list of library books. Usually eBay has used copies. Overall the program was just the right amount of flexibility and structure for us. (I did omit some of the missionary tales as I felt they were too emotionally mature /heavy for us at the time). And that book basket had such great picks. I think this topic will be a hit for you no matter which curriculum you choose. Best wishes on a fun year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbk mama Posted December 30, 2016 Author Share Posted December 30, 2016 I'm so glad to hear that! Did you and your children enjoy the science portion? I'm undecided about purchasing the MFW ECC guide as we already have the Eastern Hemisphere core from Sonlight and most of the MFW ECC books - and a bunch of others (but I will look and see how cheap the used TM copies are). The books they list for science are pretty minimal. Do you like the Properties of Ecosystems book? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Insertcreativenamehere Posted December 30, 2016 Share Posted December 30, 2016 We found the Properties of Ecosystems book to be very dry -- I had 2nd and 4th graders at the time. We used more of the book basket books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbk mama Posted December 30, 2016 Author Share Posted December 30, 2016 Did you primarily rely on the book basket books for science, or did you do something else for science? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clemsondana Posted December 30, 2016 Share Posted December 30, 2016 I don't have any suggestions for tying it in to geography other than finding places using an atlas, but we've enjoyed the 'One Small Square' series for ecology - there's a lot of information in a way that's easy to wrap your head around. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syllieann Posted December 30, 2016 Share Posted December 30, 2016 I would pair the one small square books with Janice van cleave's science around the world and a good animal encyclopedia. If you study each animal as it appears in the one small square books you should have quite a bit of material. You could also study mountain formations, earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes, and monsoons along with your geography. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Insertcreativenamehere Posted December 30, 2016 Share Posted December 30, 2016 Did you primarily rely on the book basket books for science, or did you do something else for science? We did the book basket books but switched to another science program for the bulk of our science. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChocolateCake Posted January 1, 2017 Share Posted January 1, 2017 I did a modified version of ECC last year with a 1st and 3rd grader. I had them do lapbooks instead of student sheets and Torchlighter videos instead of the missionary biographies. We actually liked the Properties of Ecosystems book. I added in some labs from Real Science Odyssey Life Level 1 (section about animals) and read them Christian Liberty Nature Reader 2 (more animal info). We also visited zoos, nature centers and a place called World of Chocolate (world monuments carved out of baker's chocolate). I know some folks like to add in the Apologia Land Animals book (too wordy for me). My kids did some projects I found on Pinterest for some of the biomes (grow a chia pet while learning about grasslands, etc.). 🌎 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbk mama Posted January 2, 2017 Author Share Posted January 2, 2017 Great ideas! Thanks!! We love the One Small Square books, and Janice VanCleave's Science Around the World looks perfect. I love the lapbook concept but haven't been successful with them - we should try again now that they're a bit older. Never thought of growing a Chia Pet! :laugh: My kids would love that. Chocolate Cake I'm with you about Jesus and dark chocolate :thumbup1: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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