Marine Biology, oh, I mean vacation

As I have previously mentioned, my philosophy on teaching science is that it needs to be 98% experiential. Sure, some reading and writing are necessary. However, I am fully convinced that reading and writing supplement experiential learning in the area of science. I use personal experience as both a teacher and a learner to support this philosophy. I have discovered that very little can compete with the joy of watching your own children learn.

We had an amazing experience last week while on vacation. We got to watch a nest of sea turtles hatch and venture into the Atlantic ocean. There was no need for me to prompt my children to learn. They were bombarding me with questions, gasping in awe and planning their futures as scientists. I was able to answer some of their questions on the spot. The majority of their questions required a bit of research.

I suspect that they will retain what they have learned about Loggerhead Sea Turtles for many years. I wish that I could take my children on a world tour, allowing them to take in the amazing variety of plants and animals that call Earth home. Since that is out of the question, my husband and I try to maximize the opportunities that are presented to us.

Here is a link to an article written by Dr. Albert Mohler that addresses the issue of exposing children to God's creation. I was encouraged by this article when it was originally published in 2005. I love it when scholars confirm what I simply feel in my gut as a mother.

For those of you interested in the turtles here is a video of the nest that we saw hatch being relocated. Hopefully the video of the babies parading to the ocean will be up soon. You could check back here or on 'Coastal Digital' page on You-Tube.

Science

Next school year will be the first time that I have used a science curriculum. I think that science should be a messy, hands-on endeavor. We have the privilege of living in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Our house is surrounded by woods. My kids can identify an eastern towhee based on sound alone. They can identify a wide variety of wildflowers and can tell you what month each of those flowers will bloom. Weather patterns are a constant topic of conversation in our community, and my children live the differences between snow, freezing rain, and hail. They are learning about seeds and plants as we participate in our neighborhood garden. They know that too much rain turns your basil black, but makes your cilantro three feet tall. They know more about salamanders than I do and can tell you the heart rate of the humming bird that we share three meals a day with,
But . . . . .

This year when my rising 3rd grader found out that there would be a science portion on her standardized test she panicked.
M: “Mom, we haven’t done science this year.”
Me: “Sure we have. You have a journal. Remember when we recorded the height of the basil plants.”
M: “yeah, but then Z ruined them”
(Z is baby brother, and did in fact ruin the basil plants. Several times.)
Me: “Well, that is part of science. Even great scientists have to start over sometimes. Anyway, we have done science. Remember talking about birds?”
M: “um, did that count?”

There was more to the conversation, but it was all pretty similar to what you see above. So, this year we are “doing science”. My girls crave structure. This free form science is life plan of mine is not working for them.

I think that I have found a reasonable compromise. Next year we will use R.E.A.L. Science level 1. I was sold when the woman on the phone started reading the necessary supply list, “pitch fork for collecting worms . . . “ R.E.A.L. stands for read, explore, absorb, learn. There are student worksheets, a short reading assignment and a lab for each unit. The material includes a reading list for each unit and helpful websites. The program assumes that you will have science twice a week. Level 1 is “life science” and includes human anatomy, animal life and plant life.

Hopefully next May M will not panic when it is time for Standardized testing, and both girls will continue to learn that science is a wonderful, hands-on subject.