For those who don't have a formal science curriculum in elementary

[MomN]

For those of you who use living science books throughout elementary school, do you have a list of topics that you run through in certain grades? How does this work?  My son will be in third grade and I want to compile some science books to read for next year and am not sure where to start.  Thanks!

[2_girls_mommy]

I use The Well Trained Mind.  There is an orderly schedule of what to study and suggestions for a spine for each topic.  So right now, 1st grade is Life Science: Animals, Human Body, and Plants.  Right now we are on the Human Body unit.  We use an Usborne Encyclopedia of Life Science as our spine and a book called, Arty Facts, Human Body Science and Art projects.  We read a page of the encyclopedia and go to the online links from the book for videos and games and some activities online.  Then we do a related art project from Arty Facts.  And we do any models or read related books like Magic Schoolbus books or whatever on the topic.  I bought human body and brain models to build when I found them on clearance.   I have her copy a sentence from the encyclopedia and draw a picture into a blank notebook. For Animals I used a Nature Journal from The Thinking Tree for her to notebook about the animals we were learning about into.   

[8filltheheart]

I have taught science through whole books for K8 for almost 30 yrs now.  I don't create any sort of list or spine.  I simply let them read about topics that interest them.  If they don't have anything in particular they want to read, I offer them a stack to select from.    Every 3 or so weeks I assign a writing assignment from their science reading.  

Browsing library shelves (or our home library) and letting them pick is about the extent of my control.  But if you want some lists, the NTSA has lists: https://www.nsta.org/outstanding-science-trade-books-students-k-12

Here is another source: https://charlottemason.tripod.com/elemsci.html

ETA:  FWIW, my interest driven approach has led to solidly prepared kids.  🙂 

Edited March 23, 2021 by 8filltheheart

[MeaganS]

I generally consider myself an academic-based homeschooler. Meaning, formal academics are important to us. But I have come to have total faith in "unschooling" content subjects in the younger years. We don't use a spine or schedule for science. I check out books at the library on whatever interests me or them that week and require them to read from the non-fiction stack 15mins every school day. I also have a small home library of nonfiction children's encyclopedias and other interesting general non-fiction books. For example, I just bought this one yesterday. I also provide lots of science-y toys, like programmable robots and circuit-making kits. Each kid is given a raised bed garden they are in charge of researching, planning, and taking care of. We watch educational shows like Magic Schoolbus and Planet Earth. We have science-y apps they are allowed to play and a subscription to Mystery Science on the computer. They listen to podcasts like Wow in the World. We've had various magazine subscriptions and box subscriptions at different times. And we go to zoos, science museums, botanical gardens, national parks, and hikes. On those hikes we use my phone and the Seek app to identify plants and animals. But none of that is "formal".

So far my kids have absorbed so much content. Not definitive by any means, but one night they had a "Are you Smarter than a 5th Grader" activity at church. Out of the 12 kids participating, they were the only homeschooled ones. My girls knew far and away more of the answers than their peers. They think science is fun and read those non-fiction science books from the library on their own time as well as during assigned times. We discuss science topics at dinner and informally in the car. They are interested in the world. No worksheet or schedule I've seen would have done a better job at it, imo. And they are fairly well-rounded. One day they might be begging for books on grasshoppers because they caught one and want to draw and label it and another day they are asking for one on constellations and space because they are interested in Greek Myths and they heard about them there. When they don't have a particular interest I grab books that cover topics they haven't found on their own to expose them to more.

All that to say, I wouldn't bother with a schedule. I'd be deliberate, but informal. 

[Clemsondana]

I used Hirsh's Core Knowledge sequence.  We alternated periods (2-6 weeks) of history, science, music, and art, so we didn't do science daily.  Some topics we did minimally, mostly just reading from his 'What your ___ grader needs do know' but for most we'd get a stack of library books and maybe some videos or a project and meander through the topic and any tangents that we thought were interesting.  

[MomN]

9 hours ago, 8filltheheart said:

I have taught science through whole books for K8 for almost 30 yrs now.  I don't create any sort of list or spine.  I simply let them read about topics that interest them.  If they don't have anything in particular they want to read, I offer them a stack to select from.    Every 3 or so weeks I assign a writing assignment from their science reading.  

Browsing library shelves (or our home library) and letting them pick is about the extent of my control.  But if you want some lists, the NTSA has lists: https://www.nsta.org/outstanding-science-trade-books-students-k-12

Here is another source: https://charlottemason.tripod.com/elemsci.html

ETA:  FWIW, my interest driven approach has led to solidly prepared kids.  🙂 

This is awesome and exactly the approach I want to take.  Can I ask - do you require a certain amount of daily time reading science?  I'm looking for 3rd/4th grade so was thinking maybe start with 15 minutes or so.  These lists are amazing!

[Ellie]

17 hours ago, MomN said:

For those of you who use living science books throughout elementary school, do you have a list of topics that you run through in certain grades? How does this work?  My son will be in third grade and I want to compile some science books to read for next year and am not sure where to start.  Thanks!

No grades, only ages. 🙂

We just did science-y stuff. Forty years ago, it didn't occur to me to have "topics." Mainly I just wanted my children to enjoy science, so that when they were high school age and doing things that "counted" they would say, "Oh, awesome! Science!" instead of, "Oh, man...science..."

Is there no science-y thing that *you* are interested in? Nothing at all? IF so, go to the library (if it's open) and look for children's books on those things.

[8filltheheart]

3 hours ago, MomN said:

This is awesome and exactly the approach I want to take.  Can I ask - do you require a certain amount of daily time reading science?  I'm looking for 3rd/4th grade so was thinking maybe start with 15 minutes or so.  These lists are amazing!

In third grade, probably abou 20ish minutes.  In 4th, 30.  My 5th grader this yr is reading about 35-40 mins per day.

[madteaparty]

I did the unschooling thing with my son and it was a mistake. With my daughter. I’m using basic middle school texts as a”spine” and adding stuff like How things work and how our bodies work and various books like scientist in the field. This is all done as read aloud and takes minutes a day. I need to add some science assigned reading, I know. 

[SilverMoon]

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🙂

Edited May 23, 2023 by SilverMoon

[8filltheheart]

1 hour ago, madteaparty said:

I did the unschooling thing with my son and it was a mistake. With my daughter. I’m using basic middle school texts as a”spine” and adding stuff like How things work and how our bodies work and various books like scientist in the field. This is all done as read aloud and takes minutes a day. I need to add some science assigned reading, I know. 

Can you define "unschooling thing"?  Are you defining interest-driven selections as unschooling or letting the child decide if, when, what they did as unschooling?  Did you require science to be done daily?  Any output for science?  I don't read the OP's description as unschooling as much as non-textbook.

[wathe]

We've gone very unschooly for science.  I don't require anything - no curriculum, no topic list, no book list, no required science reading time, no formal output.  We have created a very science-rich environment in our home, and fostered sciency family culture. Lots and lots of books, podcasts, sciency toys (lego, snap circuits etc) and tools for tinkering (real tools, and lots and lots of "loose parts" a.k.a. junk and scraps), and lots of free time to play with it all.  We garden and we spend a lot of time in nature camping. Vacations are sciency - we make use of naturalist programs and interpretive centres when camping in provincial parks, visit science museums etc.  We talk about science topics and follow science current events as part of family life.  We have steeped them in science without them really noticing any intentionality on our part.  Kids are now 11 and 13.  So far, so good.  They have taken to science like ducks to water.  They are absolutely science literate.  It helps that the eldest is very mechanically inclined and likes to tinker.

I've had to be more formal about teaching history, because, since it's not an area of strength for me, I don't feel that I can create the same quality organic type of free learning experience.

[Terabith]

We did interest based science, but also, since I checked out most of our library books, I tried to be pretty varied.  We worked our way through all of the Let's Read and Find Out books, all of the Magic School Bus books, pretty much all the books by Gail Gibbons I could find.  Oh, and the Robert E. Wells books.  I'd also just browse through the children's nonfiction and pick up stuff that looked good.  We did a mixture of me reading to them and them reading on their own.  They also watched a ridiculous amount of science based tv shows and documentaries and YouTube content.  Honestly, their background knowledge was pretty phenomenal and they were far better prepared than their peers when they went to school around fourth grade.  

[Lori D.]

No formal textbook or program here until high school. However, because DSs really loved science stuff, BUT didn't initiate on their own like the children of posters up-thread, AND because I really enjoyed putting together our own DIY science (and history), 😄 I did make master lists to work from -- mostly to help track resources I had available for us to use.

Each summer, I'd spend a few weeks putting together a "master list" for an overall science subject for the year, such as Physics, or Earth Science. I'd list subtopics from the table of contents of a few science encyclopedias and viewing the online samples of science programs. Then I would add in resources available to us -- books, documentaries, educational videos, kits, activities/hands-on, field trips, etc. -- and plug those in as they covered the various subtopics.

Then during the year, we'd go through the Master list -- sometimes taking more time to explore further, sometimes speeding through a topic that wasn't as interesting, and sometimes bunny trailing onto a topic completely outside of the Master list for a week or a month. Then if no new other interest had arisen, we'd fall back on the Master list and pick up where we'd left off. 

My posts in these past threads -- "Looking for science nonfiction" for a bright 6th grader" and "Why is elementary science such a struggle?" -- give you an idea of what a "master list" of subtopics might look like.

DSs and I had a blast and did do a lot of hands-on exploring on their own, plus enjoyed some science and nature magazines as bedtime reading. In the elementary grades, because DSs enjoyed science so much, we spent about 30 min/day 4 days/week on science (books and hands-on), and then additional time after school hours for educational science videos & documentaries -- usually several per month.

Informal science this way gave them a solid foundation for high school science, and beyond. DS#1 is almost done with a Mechanical Engineering degree, and DS#2 has taken several courses in Wildlife Biology, and now enjoys learning about Forestry and Fire Science on the job as a Wildland Firefighter.

Edited March 24, 2021 by Lori D.

[MomN]

I feel so much better about my plans for science next year! A thousand thank yous!!!!

[Emily ZL]

On 3/23/2021 at 6:32 PM, madteaparty said:

I did the unschooling thing with my son and it was a mistake. With my daughter. I’m using basic middle school texts as a”spine” and adding stuff like How things work and how our bodies work and various books like scientist in the field. This is all done as read aloud and takes minutes a day. I need to add some science assigned reading, I know. 

I actually do feel a little like this. I love getting stacks of books from the library, but I noticed my son was very interested in certain subjects, but had no interest at all in biology and earth science. This year I decided to do a good text and workbook approach, especially since the library isn't open for browsing. I love that he still watches documentaries on subjects he cares about, but he really stretched himself this year learning about things he wouldn't otherwise have chosen. On the other hand, I really thought the interest based approach was more lively, and more exciting for the kids. I guess we try to combine a minimum spine/curriculum with interest topics added in their free time. But all this was much nicer when the library was open!

[happypamama]

I have tried more formal science, or even science by topic, and we don't really stick.  Soooooo, I've been going completely interest led for the last few months, and it has been wonderful!  My kids pick what they want to read (or have me read) every day, plus we have non-book options like science kits and Curiosity Stream available too, as well as gently guided nature study journals (from Our Journey Westward).  It's really been great.  Even our two year old likes picking a science book from our collection every day.  And we read biographies of famous scientists too.  Right now their daily request is Theodore Gray's The Elements, and they love learning about what makes each element special.  (I pretty much just read as is, but I do occasionally shorten very technical details because they're only 7 and 9.)

[happypamama]

On 3/23/2021 at 6:30 AM, 8filltheheart said:

I have taught science through whole books for K8 for almost 30 yrs now.  I don't create any sort of list or spine.  I simply let them read about topics that interest them.  If they don't have anything in particular they want to read, I offer them a stack to select from.    Every 3 or so weeks I assign a writing assignment from their science reading.  

Browsing library shelves (or our home library) and letting them pick is about the extent of my control.  But if you want some lists, the NTSA has lists: https://www.nsta.org/outstanding-science-trade-books-students-k-12

Here is another source: https://charlottemason.tripod.com/elemsci.html

ETA:  FWIW, my interest driven approach has led to solidly prepared kids.  🙂 

Thank you for sharing the NTSA lists!  Our local library branch is tiny, and I'm limiting visits for browsing because of covid, so I'm always happy to have specifics I can type into the search to get from other branches or to support my used book addiction.

[Xahm]

8 hours ago, Zenen said:

Dear '2_girls_mommy',

is the schedule you are mentioning found in this bundle from TWTM? (link below):

https://welltrainedmind.com/p/first-grade-science-bundle/

My 6yr old sun has been genuinely enjoying TWTM's English, Writing and Math series. I am hoping this Science Bundle will have the same approach he resonates with. 

Thanks !

 - Zenen

I hope you'll get a response from 2 girls mommy, but in the meantime, my guess is that she's referring to the schedule found in the book The Well Trained Mind. That book doesn't break things down into daily assignments but gives an overarching schedule for what to study different years and suggestions for how to implement that.

[2_girls_mommy]

On 1/29/2022 at 4:17 AM, Zenen said:

Dear '2_girls_mommy',

is the schedule you are mentioning found in this bundle from TWTM? (link below):

https://welltrainedmind.com/p/first-grade-science-bundle/

My 6yr old sun has been genuinely enjoying TWTM's English, Writing and Math series. I am hoping this Science Bundle will have the same approach he resonates with. 

Thanks !

 - Zenen

I have never bought a bundle, so I don't know if that has an actual schedule in there or not!  Good question.  It does have good books on a variety of subjects suggested in the Well Trained Mind's 1st grade topic of Life Science, so they are books worth having for a life science year!  As for the "schedule" I was referring to, as the PP said, I was talking about reading the grammar stage science section of The Well Trained Mind.  It walks you through which topics to study in what grades (1st grade- life science,) and gives you suggestions for good books to use (the ones in that bundle for example,) and gives you an idea of the kind of input and output to require for the subject.  If you want to know if it gives some type of schedule in that bundle I would contact customer service before you buy it. 

[Classically Minded]

I've laid out several books we used along with our studies in life science, plants, human body, astronomy, earth science and chemistry.  Which one are you looking for book suggestions for?  I can send you links to all the posts on each topic or just a particular one you are wanting.  We followed the WTM way (sort of lol) using a "spine" like an encyclopedia or like with chemistry, we used Christian Kids Explore Chemistry as our spine - then, I fleshed it out with lots of books, activities, videos, games, etc.  It's become my DS9 favorite subject!

[Classically Minded]

On 2/17/2022 at 6:07 AM, Zenen said:

Thanks Classically Minded !

Since my son has had a fit with The Well Trained Mind , I was interested in what WTM’s mentality would suggest for 1st Grade Science. I tracked down 4 of the 6 books in the post:

 

https://www.amazon.com/Science-Adventures-Nature-Activities-Children/dp/0876590156

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1556523483/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ASZYD5P53U3II&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/Green-Thumbs-Activity-Outdoor-Gardening-ebook/dp/B00DKMOXO4

https://www.amazon.com/My-First-Human-Body-Book/dp/B08KHXJ6FN/ref=tmm_other_meta_binding_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

But am unclear on the ‘First’ Encyclopedias for animals and human anatomy would be.

Kind regards,

 - Zenen

Here are what we used for 1st grade science, I have pictures of all the books we used:

Animals - https://www.cambridgeshireacademy.com/2020/02/1st-grade-animal-study.html

Insects - https://www.cambridgeshireacademy.com/2020/04/1st-grade-insects-and-bugs.html

Plants - https://www.cambridgeshireacademy.com/2020/05/1st-grade-plants.html

For human body (anatomy), we used the Kingfisher First Human Body Encyclopedia and here is my old outline that we still followed the book lists from but some of the links may not work: https://www.cambridgeshireacademy.com/2010/10/1st-grade-science-human-body-outline.html

Edited February 22, 2022 by Classically Minded

[2_girls_mommy]

On 2/17/2022 at 5:07 AM, Zenen said:

Thanks Classically Minded !

Since my son has had a fit with The Well Trained Mind , I was interested in what WTM’s mentality would suggest for 1st Grade Science. I tracked down 4 of the 6 books in the post:

 

https://www.amazon.com/Science-Adventures-Nature-Activities-Children/dp/0876590156

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1556523483/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ASZYD5P53U3II&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/Green-Thumbs-Activity-Outdoor-Gardening-ebook/dp/B00DKMOXO4

https://www.amazon.com/My-First-Human-Body-Book/dp/B08KHXJ6FN/ref=tmm_other_meta_binding_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

But am unclear on the ‘First’ Encyclopedias for animals and human anatomy would be.

Kind regards,

 - Zenen

I used the Usborne First Encyclopedia of Human Body and Usborne First Encyclopedia of Animals (though the animal one was my least favorite of the first series,) and for later years the Usborne First Encyclopedia of Space and of Earth and so on.