I don't quite know that I would have called biology fun before using this book, but I do now. All the kids have enjoyed going through this book, even Alpha Boy (who is 4) enjoys listening, discussing and coloring along with the rest of us.
There are several things that we really liked about this book. Let me tell you what they are : )
- We love that this book touches on a wide range of topics, all fitting under biology of course. The kids liked that we were always learning something new. CKEB teaches on many aspects of Biology from plants and insects to birds and mammals to the human body.
- I felt that CKEB was very well planned out. I did not feel like I had to do a lot of advance planning. I could just open up our book and go.
- There are oodles of hands on activities in this book. At the beginning of each unit you are given a list of all the items that are needed to do the hands on projects. This is really the only planning that I felt was needed. The projects ranged from dissecting owl pellets to making pine cone bird feeders and a butterfly life-cycle mobile.
- Although there were oodles of hands on projects I did not feel obligated to do them all and felt I had the liberty to pick and choose what worked for us : )
- I LOVE that there is scripture through out CKEB. There is even memory verses for each lesson. I felt that Mrs. Redmond was very good at tying in the fact that Biology and all it consists of is God's Creation. When learning about Butterflies and Moths we also get to read Matthew 6:20, But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
- We enjoyed Mrs. Redmond's writing style, she writes like she is having a conversation with you. She is very good at drawing the kids in and keeping their attention.
- The kids liked the coloring pages and diagrams that went along with what we were studying.
- In the back of the book the author gives an extensive list of supplemental materials. Some are videos, some books and even games. I didn't feel obligated to do these AT ALL, but we did take some of her suggestions, and we were glad we did. If you are interested in seeing her list you can view it here.
- CKEB suggests that the kids do an Animal Kindgom ABC book as a year long project. She even gives several animal suggestions for each letter of the alphabet.
- CKEB is geared towards students in grades 3rd through 6th, but I felt is was very adaptable for younger kids.
There are 35 lessons in CKEB, each having a Teaching Time and a Hand on Time. Teaching time is where we did all of our reading about our topic for the week and then Hands on Time is where we did our, you guessed it, hands on project. We normally brought the lesson into 2 sessions a week, we read one day and then would do our project the next time we did science. Generally we do science at least twice a week.
In case you are curious what lessons are included in the 35, I've got ya covered. Here there are:
- Creation
- Cells
- Taxonomy
- The Biosphere
- Food Webs
- Introduction to Plant's in God's World
- Photosynthesis
- Plant Reproduction
- Fruit & Vegetables
- Trees
- Birds of the Earth - Taxonomy
- Bird Diets
- Bird Structure
- Introduction - Mammals in the Wild
- Monotremes and Marsupials
- Canids, felines, and Bears
- Monkeys and Apes
- Aquatic Mammals
- Introduction - The Human Factor
- The Human Body
- Our Five Senses
- Human Reproduction
- Introduction - Reptiles All Around
- Snakes and Lizards
- Alligators and Crocodiles
- Turtles, Tortoises, and Terrapins
- Introduction - Insects High and Low
- Butterflies and Moths
- Bees and Wasps
- Introduction - Water Creatures
- Mollusks
- Sharks
- Crustaceans
- Freshwater Life
- Amphibians
You can purchase your own copy of Christian Kids Explore Biology directly from Bright Ideas Press for $34.95. You and your kids can have fun exploring biology together too!
Please note that we received Christian Kids Explore Biology from bright Ideas Press for review purposes only. I am an affiliate of Bright Ideas Press and if you purchase anything thru my link I will get a small commission.
