Welcome back friends! Today I am excited to share with you my first review for the 2013 Schoolhouse Review Crew year! When I sent in my request form for this review I had initially requested a different book feeling it would be the best fit for us… boy was I wrong! God knew we needed to start with the Swimming Creatures of the 5th Day. Funny how things just work out for the better!
I am sure you have heard of Apologia Educational Ministries if you are a homeschooler. If you are not, let me tell you a little about them. Apologia is one of those companies that everybody talks about and for good reason too! Apologia publishes K-12 Creation-based science and worldview curriculum for children K-12, inspirational books about homeschooling, and hosts online classes through Apologia Academy.
"So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good." ~ Genesis 1:21
We received the beautiful hardback book that is filled with over 230 pages of insightful information and pictures of the beautiful sea creatures God created on the 5th day. We also had the choice between the Notebooking Journal and the Junior Notebooking Journal; we received the Junior Notebooking Journal for our review with Montana and I purchased the Notebooking Journal for Mikayla to use along with us.
The book follows a Charlotte Mason approach, however, you can adapt the program into your homeschooling style very easily. The notebooking journals offer a suggested weekly schedule for completing the lessons each week. Since my girls are such science fanatics we went full steam ahead and aimed to do science 4 days a week and added in some living books for extra enrichment.
The Swimming Creatures book is filled with numerous hands-on experiments that reinforce the lesson along with opportunities for journaling, coloring pictures, completing mini-books and/or matchbooks, and narrations. The 26 week study coveres topics on:
~ Aquatic Animals
~ Whales
~ Seals and Sea Cows
~ Aquatic Herpes
~ Primeval Reptiles
~ Fish
~ Sharks and Rays
~ Crustaceans
~ Mollusks
~ Cephalopods
~ Echinoderms
~ Cindarians
The books in the Elementary series are designed especially for kids in Kindergarten through Sixth grade. I love that I can use these books with more than one child and they each individually can take away something from the lesson on their own level. Since Montana is a beginning reader it made the most sense for me to just read aloud the reading selections to
both her and Mikayla, who also is studying the Swimming Creatures. Madison would chime in every once in awhile with her own thoughtful insights and we would soon find ourselves down rabbit trails and finding answers to new questions.
My girls especially enjoyed completing the hands-on experiments. Many of the supplies needed for these projects can be found around the house or you can opt to purchase a kit from a secondary science supply company. A listing of lab supplies needed is also conveniently provided in the book so that you can be fully prepared to teach the lessons each week.
We have thoroughly enjoyed our study so far of the Swimming Creatures of the 5th Day and look forward to diving a little bit deeper in the weeks to come. We have learned so much so far and the girls are still so thirsty for more! Montana is especially interested in the Primeval Reptiles section as she is really into dinosaurs. I love that the information she learns will be from a Creation standpoint and not the other gobbly guck! Be sure to check out what my CrewMates thought of this book and the other three series being reviewed by clicking the banner below.
Company ~ Apologia Educational Ministries
Product ~ Exploring Creation with Zoology 2, Zoology 2 Junior Notebooking Journal
Price ~ 39.00 for the book, $24.00 for the Junior Notebooking Journal
Grade ~ Kindergarten – Sixth
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Disclaimer: I received a copy of Apologia’s Exploring Creation with Zoo 2: Swimming Creatures of the 5th Day and the Junior Notebooking Journal, in exchange for a thorough and honest review. I purchased my own copy of the regular Notebooking Journal for concurrent use with my older daughter, Mikayla. Though I am compensated with free products, I am not compensated in the form of cash for my reviews. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but are not influenced by the company or the free product provided.
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