Apologia Botany Elementary
Young Explorer Series Exploring Creation with Botany by Jeannie Fulbright For Used Apologia Science – Elementary and High School

Young Explorer Series

Exploring Creation with Botany by Jeannie Fulbright

This is an in-depth study of the plant kingdom  for students from about first through sixth grade. The text is written in an captivating Charlotte Mason style like the Apologia  Astronomy book for elementary children. There are explanations and descriptions that are written for a child to comprehend easily and at that appropriate reading level. No need to  stop and define words. since everything is explained simply and thoroughly, perfect for the ages it was written for.  Since the book is written for a wide range of ages (6-12), it is easy to use with all of your children together or at least those that are younger than seventh grade.

This book begins with a lesson on the nature of botany and the process of classifying plants. It then discusses the development of plants from seeds, the reproduction processes in plants, the way plants make their food, and how plants get their water and nutrients and distribute them throughout the body of the plant. As students study these topics, they also learn about many different kinds of plants in creation and where they belong in the plant classification system.

The activities and projects use easy-to-find household items and truly make the lessons come alive!  This is the part of the study that my four boys would have loved if this book had been around when they were in elementary grades. The projects include these and more:

• making a “light hut” in which to grow plants
• dissection of a bean seed
• growing seeds in plastic bags to watch the germination process
• observing how plants grow towards light
• measuring transpiration, forcing bulbs to grow out of season
• making a leaf skeleton
• forcing pine cones to open and close

The publisher and author recommend that you spend the whole school year to complete this book, using two sessions each week to the work through the course. Some of the activities and projects in the book are long-term and results of these can take several days to observe. For projects like these, you will need to have a flexible schedule.

The author of the Young Explorer Series of Apologia is Jeannie Fulbright. On her website, she writes this about homeschooling her children:

“I so very much love homeschooling, though non-homeschoolers can’t comprehend that sentiment – especially if I were to relate what it is really like. I used to pray for it to be easier. But I’ve learned that the only way it will be easier is if I change my attitude about it. My present desire is that my heart will change, that I would no longer wish for homeschooling to be quiet and peaceful and smooth sailing, but that I would have a willing heart to embrace and enjoy it the way it is today. For this is the way that the Lord has ordained it, and these little rambunctious boys and girls are my gifts to treasure, train and love. If the day is chaotic, I desire that my heart would be submitted to that with joy. If school takes all day, I want to remember that God is in control and He sets my schedule, not I. I want to homeschool as unto the Lord, not unto myself. For if I get irritated and upset because things didn’t go as planned, or as easily as I wished, then I’m saying my plan for my day was better than God’s. And because God’s plan happened, which was out of my control, then I want to be thankful and joyful anyway.

So, these are my high hopes for myself. And I pray that this year, the Lord will accomplish in me all that I hope He will.” You can read more from Jeannie at JeannieFulbright.com

So now there are two high acclaimed  science curricula for homeschooling elementary children:  Considering God’s Creation which we reviewed recently and Apologia’s Young Explorer Series-Exploring Creation by Jeannie Fulbright.