I would be lying if I said that I love science. History, art, writing, nature study… those are my favorites. Science books and experiments? Not my thing. In fact, I sometimes dread science. Specifically, I dread the experiments. It’s not the mess necessarily, it’s just that my brain does not like them. They don’t feel exciting or fun, they feel total opposite. They feel like a challenge and an overwhelming feat. This is why I have struggled in the past with teaching science. Even with various curriculums at my disposal, it was a topic I avoided at all costs.
Most curriculum that I purchased for science contained a weekly theme, or 3-4 science lessons per week. It was exhausting trying to add this to the reading, writing, math, nature study, poetry, history, and everything else we were doing. So instead of adapting, we skipped lesson after lesson.
Finally, after months of doing zero science, I decided to try another curriculum. I downloaded the free Marine Biology unit from The Good and the Beautiful. Finally, we were “doing” science. We began with much excitement. But that was short-lived, and a couple of weeks later, we were tired. This was right before our current school year, and I didn’t want to begin the year with “failure”. So, instead of tossing science to the side, I decided to make it more manageable.
I decided to cover one science topic per term. This would allow us to cover 3-4 science topics per year. Compared to our past “weekly science themes”, this felt more doable. I didn’t feel as intimidated or stressed about it, and it seemed to be something I could manage. If we were having a bad day or week, it wouldn’t be detrimental to our progress. This is what I needed. Something that would work for us when we were tired, sick, or too busy playing outdoors. Something we could put down and pick back up easily.
Thus, my curriculum-free science lessons were born. Today, I’m going to walk you through exactly what we do and use.
How to Teach Homeschool Science Without Using a Curriculum
1. Choose the topics you want to cover.
I like to choose my science topics by doing two things. First, I have a conversation with my children about what they want to learn this year. They give me questions, topics, ideas, projects, etc. I write them down.
Then, I look at what is to be covered that year in Home Learning Year by Year. This is a resource that I use to “guide” me when I make our learning goals for each year. While I may not follow this book exactly, it does give me some guidance and direction as to what children are typically taught in each grade. I love that this book covers every subject, from preschool to high school. It has been immensely helpful, year after year, for our family. I also pull up our North Carolina Standards of Learning from time-to-time to see what our local public schoolers are learning about in science.
Next, I look over the list my children and I have made, and what is in Home Learning Year by Year, and notice any overarching themes. My children wanted to learn about muscle growth, meteorology, planets, seals, dolphins, whales, how circuits work, how Legos are made and edible plants (just to name a few). Some of these can be covered with a documentary or video, while others may fall under a broader category. I broke this list down into the subjects of; human body, outer space, weather and marine biology.
2. Find living books that coincide with your topics.
A Google search can give you quality living books for each topic. I like to combine a living book, with living picture books, and resource books. I take each topic and make a list of the books that are perfect for each. I also like to include living biographies, or relatable stories. Simply Charlotte Mason has an excellent list that I have used.
If you’re unsure if a book is a “living book”, here are a few tips:
- it should be written in a literary style, with a narrative or conversational tone
- it is well-written, and brings the subject to life
- it could be considered a “classic” and doesn’t contain twaddle (which is dumbed down language that is usually in the form of short, choppy sentences)
3. Break your topics down into mini-subjects.
Science subjects are pretty easy to break down (usually). For our human body study, I broke it down into body systems and cells. For outer space, I broke it down by each planet plus stars. I choose my literature before breaking down the subject because the literature can help. For example, if you choose 1 book to follow as an outline, you can use the chapters to decide on your mini-subjects.
4. Gather printable resources and hands-on activities.
We like to use printable resources for our notebooking (more on that in a moment). For human body, we have printable body diagrams to label from Wild Feather Edu and science experiment ideas from Gathered & Grounded. For marine biology, we used printable diagrams and experiment ideas from The Good and the Beautiful. For weather, we used various printables from Steph Hathaway. I print most of what I need for each term, before we begin the term. I organize it in my folder system and pull from it when needed. Sometimes, I print on demand. Whatever works best for your family is what you should do.
5. Teaching and Notebooking
“What do I do with all of this Brooke?” you may be asking. Each mini-subject is a lesson. When it’s time to teach, I pull all the books out from my science shelf and display them. I gather my printables, and our Science Notebooks. Then, I read from our living book. Before I begin reading, I prompt my children by saying, “I’m going to read to you now. When I’m done, I want you to tell me what you heard.” This is their cue to prepare for narration.
I read the chapter, and then (before they narrate) I use reference books to demonstrate what I’ve read. I may add to what I’ve read, from the reference books. Then, I ask them to tell me what they’ve heard.
In their notebooks, I write their narration on the left page. On the right page, I have them either: draw and color what they’ve learned or cut/glue/label what they’ve learned. When they are done with their notebooking page, we are done with the lesson.
6. Hands-On Experiments
Science has to include hands-on experiments. Right? Every other week, I try to include something hands on. This may be an experiment, or a play dough model of what we’ve learned. We record this experiment in our science notebooks, too. On the left page, I record “The Scientific Method” for them (or have them fill it in). On the right, they draw or cut/glue/label the conclusion of the experiment. In the past, we did this all seperately. But now, we enjoy having all off our science discoveries in one place.
7. Immersive Experiences
If you can find a field trip that goes along with what you’re learning, please go! For our outer space study, we will visit out local planetarium. For human body (skeletal system), we visited the chiropractor and viewed the spine replica he has in the office. For marine biology, we visited a learning barge with our homeschool nature group. I hope when we study meterology, we can visit our local weather station. These real-life experiences really bring to life what you’ve learned from books.
Remember: homeschooling should work for your family, not against it.
If you find that science is taking every last bit of energy you have, ask yourself, “How can I make this easier?”
If you’re unhappy with how a subject is going, ask yourself, “What would make this better?”
If your child is resisting a particular topic, ask them, “What would you change about this?”
While it’s important to maintain some consistency, it’s equally as important to remain open to what your child needs in a particular area.
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