How to Easily Get Science Done with Apologia Physical Science
I’ve shared with you before that science is just not my strong suit as a homeschool mom. You might feel that way too. But today I want to share with you about Apologia Physical Science and how this curriculum is making me super hopeful for getting science accomplished with my 9th grader this year.
Apologia reached out to see if I could check out and review their physical science curriculum and at first I thought–no way! But then I realized that my new high schooler needed a lab science and co-op is still pending. We have dabbled in Apologia’s curriculum in the past and my kids loved it! And beyond my personal issues as a “science challenged mom,” I knew Apologia goes above and beyond to make things easy for the homeschool mom and kid. So, I decided to jump on this review because I needed all the help I could get this year!
Note: I was compensated by Apologia for my time and provided the curriculum to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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Below you will find my thoughts on planning our homeschool year with Apologia Physical Science, what the highlights are so far, and why this curriculum can help the science-challenged homeschool mom 🙂
Here we go!
What is Apologia Physical Science?
Apologia Physical Science is a course full of experiments, a notebook for your student to follow, and a text. It covers lots of topics including:
- Atomic structure
- Chemistry + the periodic table
- Reactions + energy
- Motion
- Waves + Sound
- Electricity + Magnetism
- Earth’s structure
- and more
The course is not only designed to teach your child a thorough base of physical science concepts, but also gain confidence in their abilities to structure their schedule, take notes, and study.
The full course includes:
- The softcover textbook: this includes everything your student will need to read each week condensed into 15 modules–covering about 2 weeks per module.
- Student Notebook: (I love this!!) includes
- a very clearly laid-out weekly plan for students based on a 4-day school week
- experiments for each module
- notetaking tips and spaces
- lab sheets + questions
- grading guide for parents
- Test booklet
- Solutions guide
Who Is Apologia Physical Science For?
Apologia gives the basic example scope for using their curricula as follows:
- 7th grade: General Science
- 8th: Physical Science
- 9th: Biology
- 10th: Chemistry
- 11th: Physics
Although Apologia Physical Science is generally used for 8th-grade studies, we are using it for 9th and it is fine for that age too.
The great thing is that if you have kids around the same general age group, you can combine them to use the same course. This is so helpful for moms teaching multiples ages in their homeschool!
How We’re Using Apologia Physical Science This Year
I will admit, I was nervous about doing science with my high schooler this year. Never in my homeschooling career have I taught a high school lab science.
But after reading through Apologia Physical Science, I am no longer nervous.
The Student Notebook especially lays things out so clearly and so simply, they are all but physically holding your hand to get you started.
We will be using the suggested guide and doing a 4-day work week for science. The Student Notebook clearly lays out what Jack will be covering each day and he can check it off as he goes to stay organized.
I love that this curriculum not only teaches science, but it is teaching the student so many great life skills too:
- organization
- how to take proper notes
- tips on studying
- test-taking skills
- and planning out your week
As for the experiments, the textbook includes a full list of every supply needed for each module’s experiment. That means I can plan ahead, gather everything Jack will need, put the supplies together in baggies or container, mark it and he will have everything he needs when the time comes.
Also, everything needed for the experiments are things you probably already have on hand or can easily grab from the hardware or grocery store.
I can’t believe I’m saying this…but I’m actually really excited to do science with my 9th grader this year! Kudos to Apologia Physical Science!!
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Not sure how long ago you published this but I’ve used apologia for 7 years exclusively with numerous students, have a science degree, and keep my ear online to people’s thoughts online. If you become frustrated with the intensity of the 3rd edition the 2nd edition is easier. Imo the 3rd edition has too much upper high school content in it which confuses 8th and 9th graders who are unable to absorb the volume of information included. The 2nd edition is wonderful.