Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage Review

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A review of Elemental Science’s Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage

I received Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage free in exchange for a review. These are my honest opinions and I was not required to post a positive review.

Nothing is better than discovering a science curriculum that fits your family!

I struggled for years with my oldest kids. And then came across Elemental Science. This year my youngest kids and I are using Elemental Science’s Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage.

Before I move on, this isn’t our first year using Elemental Science. Last year my littles and I used Biology for the Grammar Stage. We meandered our way through various animals of the world, before learning about the human body and plants.

The kids loved their workbooks. And by love, I mean adored the workbooks! Once in a while we’d thumb through the book and look at everything we learned. If we’d skipped a topic because we got too busy, they insisted we fill in the missing information immediately.

Biology for the Grammar Stage was a hit! So we’re back for another year of Elemental Science.

Easy to Use Science Curriculum

I love how easy Elemental Science’s Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage is to use!

My trick is to keep a paper clip in my teacher’s manual on the page with this week’s schedule. When I sit down with my kids to do science, all I have to do is open the teacher’s manual and jump right into the day’s lesson.

The teacher’s manual includes a checklist of activities for both a two-day per week schedule and a five-day per week schedule. I use the two-day per week schedule since I like to alternate science and history.

And all I do is move down the list like the one below:

• Read about Inside the Earth
• Add information about the inside of the Earth to the students’ Narration Page
• Do the Scientific Demonstration: Wobbler
• Work on memorizing The Seven Continents poem

It’s just the right length for my children’s attention spans and the kids adore having a science activity every day.

Fun Science Experiments & Projects

The science experiments and projects are quick, easy, and doable. The formal experiment, which includes a worksheet in the student’s workbooks, follows the instructions in Janice VanCleave’s Earth Science for Every Kid.

In addition, there’s a lab report in the workbook giving my kids the experience of filling out a simple lab report.

The projects vary between involved and simple. One model Earth project required a balloon paper mache and two weeks of work. Another model Earth project used Rice Krispie Treats around a candy core. It was simple, fun, and edible. The perfect project for my family!

And the projects support the reading assignments beautifully. We studied the ocean and currents. And then completed an experiment learning about how temperature affects the ocean current.

Assigned Readings

The reading assignments are not included in the curriculum which means you will need to order the books separately. But this allows you to adjust the reading level for that of your children since Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage gives you two options for books. One set of books is appropriate for 1st and 2nd graders, while the other set is appropriate for 3rd and 4th graders.

I chose to use the books for younger children with my kids and supplement with extra reading for my 3rd grader. And yes, Elemental Science includes a list of recommended books for each topic!

Narrations, Definitions, and Lab Sheets

The heart of Elemental Science are the narrations, definitions, and lab sheets which are included in the workbooks. After I read from the assigned reading, the children give me an oral or written narration, and then we complete the definitions together.

I love doing the narrations because they make me think about what I learned! ~9yo daughter

Then the kids complete the science activity and fill out the lab reports. Not every activity has a lab report, but we do have one report to complete each week.

The student workbooks contain everything the kids need and give them a beautiful record of everything they’ve learned in science this year.

Extras

Elemental Science’s Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage include extras as well.

Quizzes are included in the workbooks to check how the kids are understanding and retaining the information.

You can order the optional lapbooks and coloring pages to supplement the curriculum.

My kids love the coloring pages and quietly color while I read. They also pay better attention to the readings when their hands are busy!

As I mentioned earlier, you have recommended extra reading for the kids as well. The extra readings are a great way to add more depth for older children while keeping the lessons at a level young kids can follow.

You also have poetry to memorize which helps to cement the concepts being learned.

What Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage Covers

Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage covers a full year of elementary science!

Earth Science

• Planet Earth Unit (6 weeks)
  • Planet Earth
  • Oceans, Rivers, and Lakes
  • Biomes
  • Earthquakes and Volcanoes
  • Mountains, Islands, and Glaciers
  • Caring for Earth
• Weather Unit (6 weeks)
  • The Sun and Atmosphere
  • Seasons and Climates
  • Weather and Wind
  • Water Cycle and Clouds
  • Storms and Rain
  • Extreme Weather
• Rocks & Fossils Unit (6 weeks)
  • Rocks, Minerals, and Caves
  • Types of Rock
  • Weathering
  • More on Rocks
  • Fossils
  • Types of Fossils

Astronomy

• The Solar System Unit (12 weeks)
  • Solar System
  • The Sun
  • Mercury
  • Venus
  • Earth and Its Moon
  • Mars
  • Jupiter
  • Saturn
  • Uranus
  • Neptune
  • Dwarf Planets
  • Asteroids, Meteoroids, and Comets
• Stars and Space Unit (6 weeks)
  • Stars
  • Constellations, part 1
  • Constellations, part 2
  • Telescopes and Satellites
  • trips to Space
  • Scientist Biography

So head over and check out Elemental Science Earth Science and Astronomy for the Grammar Stage for yourself!