Berean Builders and apologia

[countrymum]

I have Berean Builders science in the beginning. I like the format and content a lot. I am wondering about the rest of the series though. Is there much zoology or Botany in the rest of the series? 

ETA

How does the Apologia zoology compare to Science in the Beginning?

Science in the beginning was a bit out of my 1st and pre-k students interest range. They will both sit for CHOW or a chapter book but they thought science was boring. They both like nature study but I want some kind of creationist curriculum with experiments to add to this. Would Zoology 2 or 3 (we've read alot about birds this year so I'd rather not do 1) be above their heads next year when they are 5 and 7?

Edited June 27, 2018 by countrymum
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[countrymum]

I added to this question. Can anyone answer any part of the question?

[hollyhock2]

I'll give it a shot, as I have used Science in the Beginning and one of mine has used some Apologia Zoology books. I don't know how much botany or zoology the Berean Builders series has in it. I know that Science in the Beginning has a large variety of topics in it, whereas Apologia Zoology is just animals. Zoology also has fewer hands-on things and more reading, where as SITB has an experiment every lesson. When we used SITB, I had the same experience where it was over my 1st grader's head. I thought it was better for about 3rd grade and up, and probably the rest of the series is similar.

Opinions will vary if Apologia would be above their heads at 5 and 7, but I would venture to say that yes, it might be over their heads. My son who loves animals is using the zoology books for 6th and 7th grade. He could have done them earlier (obviously) but I'm not sure I would do them sooner than about 3rd grade. There is a LOT of info packed into those books. If you want to use an Apologia book, I think Astronomy is the one written to the youngest audience.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure I have a recommendation for botany or zoology for those ages. The Berenstain Bears' Big Book of Science and Nature is awesome if you can find it but it's not a curriculum. Rod & Staff's 2nd grade science, Patterns of Nature, is really cute. I would do all the questions orally and pair it with nature walks, if possible. You could also look at Considering God's Creation, but I have no experience with that one.

[NotesFromTheParsonage]

My kids just did better with the timeline format of Berean. It helped them understand the scientific process. Since they follow along with scientific discovery, the kid “discovers” topics as they come up in history. We tried Apologia before Berean. I have a wide age range, so some kids “got” it better than others. (This past year I had pre-k through 6th grade. This year, I’ll have pre-k through 7th grade.) We did the reading together in Berean. We did most of the activities together. And then my older kids did the additional “optional” lessons on their own. I also pulled some biographies and such for them to read on their own. 

When mine were younger, we didn’t do this type of science curriculum. We took more of a Charlotte Mason exploratory approach. I think that fits the younger ages much better. Getting into nature and finding things out for themselves. My kids seemed to have a good base when we moved into more textbooky curriculum. 

[SoCal_Bear]

Well, I've used both. Berean is written at a higher reading level. I don't think I would use it for younger than 3rd unless that child was working comfortably above grade level in science. For Apologia, botany or astronomy are better for the early grades. The author intended those to be first, then the zoology series, followed by the elementary chem/physics, physiology and now the health/nutrition book. Having used most of both series, I don't love Apologia except for the older books, but my son enjoyed them all. He's really into science so that more science we do the better in his book. 

Apologia is heavy handed with YEC. I really like Berean and WIle's more balanced approach. He is YEC, but he doesn't write his book as distinctly YEC.