Science is one of the most entertaining subjects to homeschool. The magic of experimentation makes it a subject children gravitate to. There’s plenty of room for hands-on learning and many of your child’s most burning questions can be solved through science. Sometimes the vast number of options you have can leave homeschooling science feeling a bit intimidating but with a few tools and a bit of imagination, you can homeschool science is a memorable and fun way that will have children begging for the next lesson.
What are Your Child’s Passions?
Star with exploring things your child is passionate about. Does your child love space? Plants? Cooking? Dinosaurs? Starting with what your child has an interest in is a great way to encourage them to learn and make what they are learning personal to them. The possibilities are endless and nearly any passions a child has can be tired into science.
Choose the Right Curriculum and Books
If you would prefer a premade curriculum look for one with a focus on your topic like astronomy or botany. Many of your favorite curriculum producers will offer topic-specific programs even for younger grades. Apologia is a great publisher for programs like this, there is a biblical focus on them.
Raid the library for every book you can find on the topic you are studying. Libraries are great for finding a lot of books with plenty of options to work with. Books on a topic your child is passionate about is a great way to encourage reading and learning.
Videos Enhance Learning
Explore video options that tie into what you are learning. Youtube is a great free place to find videos along with your local library. If you have next flix they offer a lot of educational videos included magic school bus and documentaries that will bring what your child is learning to life. Your favorite homeschool Facebook groups are a great place to ask for video ideas to help make gathering them easy.
Don’t Forget the Experiments!
Get hands-on with science experiments. The best part about science is exploring it through experimentation. Use Pinterest to find great ideas for experiments, grab a book of them from your local library, or even order a science kit to make gathering and performing experiments easy and hassle-free. Take messy experiments outside to help keep the clean up easy so you can enjoy these projects more than watching your kitchen become covered in whatever cool explosion you have planned.
Do the Lessons Stick?
Skip the test and opt to get hands-on with projects. Create some fun displays to show off what your child learned. Building a model is a great way to show what they have learned and helped make the lesson stick. The more your child shows off what they made the more they will cement what they learned into their mind.
Field trips are a great way to make science lessons stick. Visit a planetarium, a flower nursery, or explore your local aquarium. There are so many options for science field trips and if you use a little creativity no science lesson is without a field trip option. If you are unsure call your local kid’s science center or even your favorite librarian for a few ideas
So, are you ready to go out and rock science in your homeschool? It doesn’t have to be hard, and may become the most enjoyable part of your day!
Author Bio: Misty Bailey is the blogger behind Joy in the Journey and the podcaster behind Joyfully Homeschooling. Her goal in this online space is to encourage and inspire you on your homeschool journey by providing practical tips for real life homeschooling. Through real stories, real struggles, and real life, Misty encourages her blog readers and podcast listeners to embrace imperfection and strive for a more joyful homeschool.
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