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We are starting a study of Earth and Space by Bright Ideas Press. This book was an answer to prayer because my youngest son specifically asked to study rocks and minerals, the weather, and outer space. Who knew I would find them all in one book, with tons of hands-on activities and printables for notebooking, and that I would be compensated for blogging about our homeschooling adventures! Those of you who have heard my finances testimony and understand my prayer life will know how I’m glorifying the Lord right now for embarking on this fun science adventure with my kids!
The first two chapters are about Earth and its structure. We colored a picture of creation and glued it onto black card stock paper. We wrote the title on the black page in silver permanent marker, before sliding it into the front of our notebook binders.
We located the continents and oceans on our maps and on the globe. We talked about the earth’s rotation (spinning), and we dramatized the revolution of the earth around the sun. You can watch these activities in our video demonstration:
Another hands-on activity was to stab a ball of Play-doh with a toothpick, to show how the earth spins on its axis.
Using one of the printables, we colored and cut out the different layers of the earth, gluing them on top of each other. Then we created a model of the earth layers out of clay. We had trouble cutting the clay with dental floss, so we used a table knife. This caused the layers of the earth to mix slightly, as you can see from the picture at the top of this page. I almost wish the clay was edible, because it looks good enough to eat!
Tags: Bright Ideas Press, Earth and Space, geography, Homeschooling, science
Looks like an awesome curriculum! What age group would it be suitable for?
It’s for elementary-aged children.
That’s a really cool way to learn it.. I wish that was taught that way to us..
Kids love hands-on activities. The kids internalize the learning.
So much fun!!! It’s been a while since my kids were that little, but I remember every moment!
My kids had a great time with these activities!
I really like how your daughter shows her work proudly. They look enjoy it a lot.
My daughter loved the activities, and she also loves the camera!
My son is fascinated with the earth as well. He has a rock we found while out walking that has broken in two and has just enough layers in it that it was easy for me to use it to explain the different layers of the earth. a year on and he still walks around the house with the rock and remembers. Hands-on learning is great!
Yes, hands-on learning is something they will never forget!