Experience Astronomy for Hands-On Science
Are you looking for a way to put the fun back into homeschool days by engaging your roadschoolers? I found an avenue to take science education on an adventure this fall! No, this is not one of those paid advertisement blog posts. Road Trip Teacher isn’t receiving any compensation for spreading the news about this exciting addition to the homeschool resource market. Experience astronomy. I liked it right away because it is a two-word sentence! But here’s the real reasons to love this course from Intoxicated on Life.
When I first started homeschooling, I was so focused with reading, writing, and math. I admit that I didn’t pay much attention to science. After our homeschool routine continued to develop, science became something we just checked off the list. Periodically, we would accomplish an experiment here or there. Those were always met with eager minds and open hearts. That should have been an inkling to what was missing in this subject. Hands-on science is the key to the kingdom for finding the delight missing in some of our homeschool days.
In a recent interview with Luke Gilkerson, creator of Experience Astronomy, this homeschool dad of four boys shed some light on how to grow lifelong learners. He advises that by the process of observing, testing hypothesis, and finding conclusions, science teaches kids how to think. Home educators can easily integrate science into other subjects by finding topics that are naturally interesting to their students. Weaving areas of science into core subjects are simple by
- finding living history of books
- encouraging hands-on activities
- stimulating young minds to promote critical thinking
Enter Experience Astronomy. For elementary age kids, this might just be the missing link from inspiration to education. No only does it include self-paced, engaging videos, but interactive science experiments and a reading list to build reading skills are also included. Strengthening your young life learners with memory work while reinforcing key concepts are a bonus of the program. And, the icing on the cake is this course won’t break the bank. As a matter of fact, when a homeschool family subscribes to Experience Astronomy Elementary, lifetime access to the curriculum is granted. That means that you can use it now and for any other kiddos that are coming up in in later years.
Incidentally, two of my own roadschoolers took the upper level Experience Astronomy course and loved it. This subscription is geared for kids 12 and older. Middle and high schoolers alike have the opportunity to engage with one video each week that aligns with the stars in the sky at that particular time of the year. Further, there is a quiz, field assignment, and a reading exercise included for the same time period. The absolute best part of this curriculum is the encouragement to go out at night for observation of what he or she has is learning about. Students are asked to draw what they see and can write about their night time viewing experiences. Notice there is no room here for screens of any kind. Just uninterrupted quiet time under the stars. That’s music to this mama’s ears. Bonus: High schoolers can upgrade the subscription to an advanced mastery level and obtain course credit. BAM!
The elementary version of Experience Astronomy is available beginning in September of 2017 for use anytime. The upper level of this course is timely and is taught between September and May. Because the course study literally follows the stars in the sky, it’s important to being the lessons at the appropriate times of the year. How cool is that! Want to learn more details? Hit the replay on Episode #137 of Roadschool Moms to get the scoop.
Mary Beth Goff is a fulltime, RVing mama to four kiddos who travel America’s backyard in their home on wheels. She is also the creator of Road Trip Teacher, the online resource for destination based learning adventures. Mary Beth is also one-half of the Roadschool Moms team who broadcasts live on the Ultimate Homeschool Radio Network live every Sunday night at 9 pm EST from wherever in the world they are. “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.”
