Christian Kids Explore Chemistry is a full year science course for grades 4-8, from Bright Ideas Press. It contains 30 Lessons broken down in 5 units, along with hands-on activities and experiments for each lesson.
The book is very easy to use and schedule. Each lesson is brief (about 2 pages of reading each), and there are accompanying worksheets (called Review It) the students can do to help reinforce what the lesson taught. These worksheets were generally fill-in-the-blank type questions, so they could easily be done orally for a child that does not enjoy writing or worksheets much. Following the worksheet, there is a Hands-on Activity, which range from simple experiments using basic materials that are easily found or already on hand, to simpler things such a classifying chemicals, making element cards, or word searches. Many of the Hands-on Activities are also followed by a "Think About It" section, where questions are asked about the activity and the results of the activity. After every 6 Lessons, there is a Unit Wrap-up, which is a quiz/test of all of the material covered in that Unit.
The book also contains a substantial Appendix section, which includes Answer Keys to the worksheets and quizzes, coloring pages to go along with each lesson (which is great for kids who need to be doing something with their hands while listening!), as well as a thorough resource list to delve further into topics discussed and encourage delight-directed learning.
Bright Ideas Press gave us the pleasure of choosing from several different products to review, and I purposely chose this book because I thought would challenge the children a little bit. Isaac (9) is in 4th grade, so we were on the lower age spectrum of recommended grade levels, but I thought it would be good to see how easily adaptable it would be. I also chose Chemistry because it was something new compared to the other sciences we've studied so far.
We found it very easy to complete one lesson each week, while only doing science twice a week. We did the reading and worksheets on the first day, and then the hands-on activity and any follow-up the next. The schedule was not overwhelming at all, and it was nice to be able to only have to schedule Science twice a week so that it did not become a big burden, as well as allow us room for other science explorations through the week, such as nature walks and whatnot.
As far as adapting to younger ages, I think Bright Ideas Press is correct in stating it is for Grades 4-8. (They even suggest going over the material a second year if need be). While the lessons and schedule were easy to keep pace with, the material presented is definitely complex! Chemistry is a pretty deep subject at any age (at least it was for me, lol!) and my younger ones who sat in on the lessons had a hard time grasping the concepts. Isaac was able to understand a lot of it, but it was still a challenge for him - not that challenges are bad things! I thought it was good to stretch his brain a little and try to help him understand concepts that are a little advanced.
The one complaint I heard (and had myself) was that not all of the Hands-on Acitivites were very... interesting. With a Chemistry course, I sort of expected there to be really exciting experiments - basic chemical reactions doing cool things, like making wild colors, safe explosions, etc. So the kids and I were both a little bummed when some of them were just "busywork" like word searches or classifying things, or making lists of things. Granted, there were definitely some more interesting projects, but perhaps not quite enough to hold everyone's interest.
Other than that, I think the curriculum is a great one for middle schoolers and provides an excellent foundation for a high-school level Chemistry course!
Be sure to check out the Table of Contents for the book, as well as Sample Pages to get a more in-depth look at the book and how a typical lesson looks. Also, to save families from the potential hassle of photocopying review pages, coloring pages, and quizzes to hand out to their children, they offer a Student Activity Book as well, which is a downloadable PDF with all necessary pages available to print off as many copies as needed. Definitely a time-saver, but not absolutely necessary. (For me, I love anything that makes life a little more convenient!) The main lesson book is $34.95, and the Student Activity book (optional) is $12.95.
To see what other Crew Members thought about Christian Kids Explore Chemistry as well as other Bright Ideas Press products, click on over to the TOS Homeschool Crew Blog!
Disclaimer: I was given this product specifically for the purpose of reviewing here on my blog as a member of TOS Homeschool Crew. I received no other compensation in regards to this review.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment