I cannot believe that this is my last review of the year! This has been the 3rd year that I have been a part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew. I look forward to another adventure with them next year.
Now, onto telling you all about this wonderful resource! The book is geared toward upper elementary and middle school science was an amazing fit for our family. Not only did it cover topics that were of great interest to my kids, it encouraged and guided internet-based research, which when done responsibly, is a critical skill for our children to learn to be successful in our society today.
This type of learning is called Inquiry-Based learning. What exactly is that? Inquiry-Based Learning is an instructional method that can enhance experiential learning by allowing youth to construct their own learning using scientific processing skills to explore and gather evidence about a variety of phenomena in an investigative manner. Is this not what true learning is all about? Teaching our children/students to explore, gather and investigate and having them construct their own learning, not telling them *what* to learn. We become their facilitators and guide their learning, but they are doing the work (and enjoying it at the same time!)
While engaged in inquiry-based learning, youth direct their
learning in a way that is similar to how science happens in real world
situations. Students are able to identify their own areas of
inquiry and engage in hands-on learning using science process
skills to seek information. This results in increased ownership
of learning and enhanced critical thinking skills, while creating
a culture that values learners’ ideas. The Critical Thinking Company hit the nail on the head with this approach, especially in the sciences. Enhancing critical thinking skills and engaging children in a hands-on manner. This is truly what my educational philosophy has always been about-- from when I was in a classroom or now in my own homeschool.
There are 7 disciplines of science covered in the book and 46 topics of study (something for absolutely everyone! from those disciplines). They are:
- Animals
- Atmosphere
- Ecosystems and Habitats
- Energy
- Geology
- Plants
- Space
Some of the topics covered are oceans, the solar system, insects, grasslands, plate tectonics, nuclear energy, reptiles and more!
This 250 page resource is an engaging, reproducible book packed with interesting activities. The websites that are included are all free and completely safe for our children. The suggested activities include watching videos, investigating websites, searching for different images, playing online games, reading articles, engaging in interactive, educational websites and more. It is all hands-on and definitely not boring! While the kids are learning and engaging in these important computer skills, they are learning about science. Talk about a win-win situation!
We will definitely continue to use this book for the rest of the school year. I feel like we have barely scratched the surface of the many topics available. Kiddos 3 and 4 have enjoyed it thus far and I know will continue to do so.
My generation utilized card catalogs and encyclopedias that were dated before even going to publication. This generation has literally the world at their fingertips and it changes daily. What a wonderful resource to have-- an educational program that encourages them, not only in scientific pursuits, but in the ever-changing and challenging world of technology.
The Critical Thinking Co is on social media at the following:
https://www.facebook.com/TheCriticalThinkingCo
https://plus.google.com/114500823774999703181
https://twitter.com/criticalthinks
https://www.pinterest.com/source/criticalthinking.com/
The Critical Thinking Co is on social media at the following:
https://www.facebook.com/TheCriticalThinkingCo
https://plus.google.com/114500823774999703181
https://twitter.com/criticalthinks
https://www.pinterest.com/source/criticalthinking.com/
The Schoolhouse Review Crew reviewed several different resources from the Critical Thinking Company. You can see what my colleagues had to say about them by clicking on the banner below:
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