4 Year Rotation of Science
1.) Life Science – animals, human beings and plants
2.) Earth science and astronomy
3.) Chemistry
4.) Physics
This has taken the guess work out of what our main science focus will be for a particular year. If you are worried about learning how you were taught in school, with small segments of different sciences each year, I want to share with you what I learned. You can not get very in-depth with a particular subject if you are skimming the surface each year. But, to do a thorough study, depending on the age of your child, you are able to dig deeper and understand more. Plus, the child has time to get into what you are studying. Often when you study something for a few weeks, they are just really understanding it when you are done and ready to move on. The tricky year for me is the life science year. So, to be honest with you I have gone into the summer on that year and into a portion of the next year. If you are still worried about them getting bored, or them not learning a wide array of topics for that year, there are plenty of other opportunities to use other fields of science as you are teaching to one specifically. For example while teaching chemistry I have been able to also talk about physics, biology and earth science as we went very thoroughly through the periodic table and learned what each element was found in.
I don’t worry about missing something because I know that after 4 years we would have (theoretically) touched on all the sciences. I have children that took an interest in marine biology and now I send them to a marine biology camp during the summer, another child interested in robotics has a robotics camp to look forward to in the future. I also have one interested in archaeology and they ALL like to dig, so we are going on a local dig soon and on our next family vacation we are stopping to dig at a real site in VA, all day with a scientist. We also have started nature journaling which requires us to be outdoors observing each week and this will be an ongoing life science study for many weeks to come. So there are other times to pursue other science interests if we cannot “get to it” during our school time.That’s what homeschooling is all about to me. It’s been a lifestyle change. We learn all the time, in everything we do. And while doing it, we enjoy each other’s company. If you are homeschooling for the long haul I would like to encourage you to keep some sort of cycle of the sciences. It lifts the burden of what to teach next and gives you the freedom to be creative within certain parameters.
Side note to moms not sure if you will homeschool next year: If you are not sure that you are able to homeschool for more then a year or two, I would stick with the traditional textbook style curriculum so that your child is not behind when they re-enter. That’s my opinion.
Written by Brenda, classically eclective mother of 5
Brenda is a homeschooling mother of 5, who has a wonderful husband encouraging her to be the best woman that God has created her to be. Together they are very intentional about spending time together as a family. She considers her daily life with her children as her ministry and has found many avenues to encourage others to live a lifestyle of learning. She is the founder of an online homeschool community, Our Lifestyle of Learning and a curriculum review site authored by a group of well-known homeschool bloggers, Curriculum Choice. She blogs about their homeschool journey and family traditions at Tie That Binds Us.
My son just attended a camp in Rolla, MO that has a Jr. Vet Program. He loved it. Where is there a marine biology camp? That would be awesome to attend to. He is all about any kind of animal! I am a biologist and LOVE science. So glad my kids do to. It is my favorite to teach as it is so hands on.