For my son's Science next year...I would like to put together about 6 units for him . I have never done anything like this so not quite sure how to get going. He is a box checker ..so I want to try and come up with something I can print up for him for the day or week. ( and for me..to stay on task!) So when you begin to lay out your plans for the unit..how do you do start? I've seen some like...watch a video today, tomorrow read pg.xxx , science experiment this day...I hope I'm making sense! I guess my main question is how do you pull it all together and make the lesson plan ? and maybe if you have a sample of your unit lesson plan I could see? I have looked at buying some of the premade units, but they don't seem to cover what we really want. ( he's in 8th gr).....so I'd like to make my own. Any hints would be appreciated.
I usually make up a list that says: Day 1 - read pages 1-5 Day 2 - do review worksheet Day 3 - Experiment, recording results Day 4 - review vocabulary Day 5......etc. Then on their actual subject I put Unit X Day X and then they can go to the units and do that. Donnayoung.org has a unit study planner page too, but doesn't outline it by day. HTH.
I start by choosing my main book (spine). I use that one to organize the whole study. It is typically a comprehensive book. Take botany for example (I'm putting together a study right now). I chose an encyclopedia style of book and outlined our study. I then filled it in with DVDs, online videos, experiments and activities. I looked for what the library had to offer and what was available online and filled in our outline. Many experiment books can be found at the library to give you some ideas. Google is a great resource too. There is so much available online. It is time consuming. I've spent about 6 weeks putting together our ecology, botany, and zoology studies and I'm not done yet! It will probably take a couple more weeks. I would get it done sooner if I wasn't working every night lately though. We only have one more day of science to do before we are done with our current study so my boys are itching for me to finish with this one. Here is a brief cut and paste from the current botany study still in progress: Essential Atlas of Botany by Barrons Introduction pg 6-9 Plant Anatomy Cells, Tissues, and Organs pg 10-11 The Stem pg 12-13 View plant slide samples under microscope Leaves pg 14-15 Go on hike and find 5 types of leaves Roots pg 16-17 Dig up a few plants and examine the roots. ....and later on Kingdom Fungi The Higher Fungi (sac-type, club-type) 54-55 Truffle hunting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUcUX2oGgaU Death cap mushroom http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCylKeLRXcg Parasitic Fungi pg 56-57 Apple Canker Orchard Walk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WrgmWTxuI8 Take a hike and search for fungus Fungal Symbionts pg 58-59 Lichens http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Te4qnLkHnS4 Explore The Fungus Among Us http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Mushroom/English/index2.html Watch lecture A Visit to the Mushroom Planet http://www.cornell.edu/video/?videoID=559 ....and later on Monocotyledons pg 68-69 Banana tree Growing bananas show (4 parts) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBlu8A68_Pc Bamboo Bamboo forest http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmunAx2-FYE Types of long bamboo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmUCEfWGqR4 Types of short bamboo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxA9ewnZafk&NR=1 Bamboo dome http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7g1-lBvvN9M&NR=1 Bamboo bike http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk2i1rB17iA Orchids Orchid care http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNtNFxBqfkw Pictures of different orchids http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvqdHXeWw6Y Those are a few snips from our study. I hope to be finished soon. What I have listed above may be changed slightly. I may add in more activities or experiments or videos. I haven't looked much at different websites that my kids would enjoy either. Page numbers all come from the same book. Sometimes I will add in other books, but I use the spine as a guide. I use what is written on the pages in my major book to determine what to expand on. You can see an example of our current human body science study on my Eclectic Homeschooling blog.
Eigth grade science is usually a physical science which would include a little biology, a little chemistry, and some physics. I suggest looking at a Sonlight catolog to see what titles they include and then tweeking it to your own interests. The Van Cleave books are great and I love the tops experiments Renewed Mind
Thanks so much everyone! I'm getting it, finally! I think I can do this ! You're ideas were really helpful. Thanks for your tips! Michelle
