Christian Kids Explore Biology
Author: Stephanie Redmond
Publisher: Bright Ideas Press
For more information or to order: www.homeschoolingfromtheheart.com

Take a break from textbooks and spend a year exploring biology with your kids!  Christian Kids Explore Biology is a perfect survey course for younger students.  Classical in design, students keep their work in notebooks that are organized at the beginning of the course.  They will be keeping a vocabulary list for each topic, research forms, coloring sheets, reports, writing assignments and lesson/quiz answers in their notebook.  Author Stephanie Redmond, has done an excellent job organizing the material in an easy-to-use format.  Busy homeschool moms will appreciate the wide margins for notes and the materials list provided at the beginning of each unit.  The units consist of lessons covering a specific area of biology such as basic biology, cells, plants, birds, classification, mammals (land and aquatic), anatomy, reptiles, insects, and water creatures.   Scattered throughout the book in the margins are "Discovery Zones" - these often provide interesting tidbits related to the topic and, occasionally, a website for further investigation.  Written from a Christian perspective, you will find Bible verses throughout, as well as a suggested Scripture verse to be memorized for each unit. 

Christian Kids Explore Biology is written in an engaging, conversational style with each lesson taking one week to complete.  Each lesson has two parts, Teaching Time and a Hands-On Time.  If you do each on separate days, as the author suggests, then you'll be spending about 1 to 1½ hours studying the lesson each day.  Part of this time is review of vocabulary terms, discussion and additional reading by the student.  Throughout the book there are illustrations and diagrams - the coloring pages, drawn by the author's brother, are not only beautiful, but will keep hands busy during read aloud time!  A big part of this course is supplemental reading by the student and Stephanie has provided an appendix with a thorough list of books and videos to go along with each lesson topic.  Of course, you are encouraged to use what your library has to offer, saving you time and expense.  After the reading of the text during the Teaching Time part of the lesson, students are supposed to list vocabulary words (those in bold lettering in the lesson) and define them.  One improvement that I would like is a list of the definitions included in the answer key for quick reference.  This would be especially useful when working with a younger student who lacks dictionary skills, but who would benefit from the copywork.  In addition to vocabulary, students are also to complete the provided Daily Reading Sheet for each lesson covered.  The author also recommends having students complete additional sheets for their supplemental reading. (Since this course is designed to be used with multiple children, you should feel free to scale back the writing for those in the younger grades.)  The Daily Reading Sheets are just one of several reproducible forms available in the appendix.  For those following the classical model, the author has also provided memory lists for each unit in one of the appendices.

Throughout the book there are many neat experiments and projects for Hands-On portion of each week's lesson.  We recently made the edible 3-D cell - YUM!  Reproducible experiment forms are used to encourage the use of the scientific method.  I was a bit disappointed to find that several Hands-On Time sections simply require the student to research and write about a topic or are comprised of the end of the unit review, rather than doing a more fun, hands-on activity.  However, many of the suggested books in the appendix also include project ideas, so it would be easy to supplement on those days when you are all ready for more interactive learning.  Speaking of the unit reviews, these wrap-ups give mom a way to measure mastery and understanding.  The questions may be answered orally, or in writing by photocopying the quiz for the student to complete and place in his notebook.  My favorite part of the Unit Wrap-Up is the fun creative writing assignment, perfect for motivating even the most reluctant writer!  Another neat feature of Christian Kids Explore Biology is the Animal Kingdom ABC Book that can be completed all at once, or taken at a more leisurely pace and spread through the whole year.  While older students will most likely find this to be "below" them - the ABC Book is perfect for younger children. 

Each time I flip through the pages of Christian Kids Explore Biology, I am amazed at the amount of information that the author has managed to pack into this course!  The lessons provide a solid framework, while giving you plenty of flexibility to tailor your science studies to meet your educational goals.  After spending a year with Christian Kids Explore Biology, you may never want to use a science textbook again!

Making the Grade: A
Cost: $29.95
Value for your homeschool dollar: 10
Reviewed by Cindy Prechtel, Editor