Exploring Creation with Earth Science {Apologia review}

Earth Science is the latest addition to the line of Apologia science homeschool curriculum. In this post, I share our experience with reviewing Apologia Earth Science for elementary ages.

As a homeschooling family that follows a delight-directed, relaxed, eclectic learning style, we’ve used many, many different resources through the years. There are a few favorites that we return to again and again, though. Apologia is one of those homeschool curriculum providers that we trust and have used regularly over the past decade.

Exploring Creation with Earth Science

I was excited to see Exploring Creation with Earth Science, the newest addition to the elementary science curriculum from Apologia. I remember my own public school days and how dry and boring Earth Science was. I knew it would be different for my daughters with Apologia science curriculum because the emphasis would be on the wonder and joy of discovery rather than reading a bunch of facts that are easily forgotten.

I was not disappointed when the textbook and notebooking journal arrived. Full color photos, glossy pages, and engaging writing style filled the textbook so my youngest daughter (11) was eager to begin reading. We love learning with living books and Apologia takes a Charlotte Mason-influenced approach to science.

Our previous experience with Apologia science includes:

Exploring Creation with General Science by Apologia {review}

Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics (Apologia Elementary Science Series)

We have also used Botany, Astronomy, Flying Creatures, Swimming Creatures, and Land Creatures, but I have not written specific reviews about them yet. All three of my daughters (11, 13, 19) have enjoyed learning with Apologia throughout our homeschooling years.

What topics are covered in Apologia Earth Science?

Exploring Creation with Earth Science has a good balance between hands-on activities, photos, illustrations, diagrams, and engaging textbook lessons.

Topics include:

The Observable Universe
Life in the Habitable Zone
Spheres of the Earth
Mapping Your World
The Geosphere
Making and Shaping the Land
The Hydrosphere
The Atmosphere
Climate and Weather
Weather Forecasting
The Biosphere
Cycles of Life
Unique Places on Earth
God in Creation

There is an appendix, supply list, word pronunciation guide, and answer key included, too. There are 70 activities to complete throughout the textbook. Some of them build on the previous activities as you continue through the lessons.

There is a suggested schedule included to complete the lessons at a pace of 2 days per week for 28 weeks, so it makes it even easier for homeschool parents to plan. If you choose to do 3-5 days a week of science, you could complete it in less time obviously.

There is no guesswork involved here and very little prep time. Many of the activities use common household items or things that are easily found at the dollar store. The rest of the activities may be completed by using the pages in the companion journal, such as mini-books and vocabulary crossword puzzles.

We have not completed the entire textbook and notebooking journal yet. As I mentioned, we take a relaxed pace, especially during the summer, so we have been taking our time to go through it. My daughter has been looking forward to doing the lessons since the books arrived so I know we’ll continue with it.

I agree with the author, Rachael Yunis, who says that the idea is not to hurry through and memorize facts, but to appreciate the wonder of the concepts and internalize them. This is the kind of learning that lasts for life!

Children use the companion notebooking journal (also available in a junior version for younger learners) to:

write about what they’ve learned (narration and reading comprehension)
record their observations and experiments
complete crosswords and word searches
coloring pages
complete projects and activities described in the textbook

5 Reasons we love Exploring Creation with Earth Science

The Charlotte Mason influence makes this a highly engaging and readable textbook — a living book — rather than just dry facts to memorize.
The connections that are made between the wonder of God’s creation, a Biblical worldview, and science. These are not mutually exclusive concepts and I appreciate a science curriculum that can communicate that well.
The activities are, dare I say, fun. My daughter likes learning the vocabulary words by doing crossword puzzles and we’ve already done some of the hands-on activities, with many more to come. There are mini-books included in the notebooking journal, too. This suits us well because we love notebooking and lapbooking for all subjects.
Ease of use for the teacher. This is really an open and go curriculum with an easy to follow schedule. If you want science without stress, I highly recommend Apologia!
Thorough coverage of the topic. This is an excellent introduction to Earth Science for the elementary years. It is exactly the type of homeschool curriculum I like to provide for my daughters so that they can explore new interests and discover new knowledge of a topic we might not have otherwise studied.

About Apologia Earth Science

Encourage your young explorers to interact with their world by choosing an elementary homeschool science course that walks alongside students and talks with them as it investigates and points out the science behind everyday occurrences.

Let’s dig in the dirt, not just talk about it. What is it? How did it get made? Why is it different depending on where you dig? What will you find living in it?

Let’s realize that we don’t get deliveries from outer space so everything we need, literally everything, is given to us and made fresh with the systems created to keep life forms alive throughout time. How does the Earth replenish its resources again, and again, and again? Join us in Exploring Creation with Earth Science and find out!

Exploring Creation with Earth Science is:

Based on the Charlotte Mason philosophy of learning

Filled with spectacular photographs and graphics

Easy to implement with a suggested weekly schedule that has lessons planned out in advance for you

Packed with hands-on activities

About the Notebooking Journals:

The companion Notebooking Journals and Junior Notebooking Journals, will serve as your child’s individual notebook and are specifically designed with the elementary student in mind. There is a place for your child to complete every assignment in the textbook. The engaging and colorful pages provide opportunities for active learning while reinforcing the lesson’s content.

The Notebooking Journals can be used with multiple ages within a family with great ease. To make planning a breeze, a detailed Suggested Weekly Schedule is included in the Notebooking Journal and Junior Notebooking Journal. This schedule lists the pages to read in the textbook and the pages to complete in the journal.

You can get a FREE sample of the textbook and journal by signing up with your email here: Exploring Creation with Earth Science from Apologia.

Giveaway

2 winners (USA or Canada only) will get an Exploring Creation with Earth Science set. Winner’s choice of Regular or Junior.

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Sara

Author/Speaker/Consultant at Heart and Soul Homeschooling

Sara is a homeschool mom to 3 creative girls. She holds a degree in Social Work specializing in early childhood development, which led to her interest in individualized educational options like homeschooling. She believes that learning should be a lifelong adventure, not just a checklist to get through. She is a writer, avid reader, introvert (INFJ), and dreamer of dreams.