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Apologia’s Young Explorer series is an award-winning Christian homeschool science series written for elementary grades. The beauty of the Young Explorer series is that each textbook is a K-6 science course. The content can be simply understood by a kindergarten student, but it can also be comprehended and enjoyed through the sixth grade. Therefore, a parent can do one course with multiple children. This makes reading time doable and enjoyable for the whole family.
Companion notebook journals allow students to process their work at their own ability and age level, making the curriculum excellent for multi-level learning. A twelve-year-old student may write an essay and make an elaborate illustration, while a six-year-old may write one sentence with a stick-figure drawing.
Through this elementary science series, homeschool students will become true scientists as they observe nature, participate in hands-on experiments, and document all that they learn.
The titles in the Young Explorer elementary series can be done in any order, so we recommend that a parent pick the course that they think their kids will find the most interesting. The goal is to let your child’s curiosity lead and learning will happen naturally. There is a reason our elementary school series is called the Young Explorers Series. Apologia’s curriculum is designed to feed your child’s curiosity, not lead it.
We offer a recommended course sequence as one possible option and a way to help you get started.
We invite you to explore our elementary homeschool curriculum. These unique courses can be completed in as little as twenty-eight weeks if you do science two days per week. They are also flexible enough so that they can be adapted to fit your homeschool’s goals.
We LOVED Exploring Creation with Botany last year when my kids were then in K, 1st, and 3rd grade. I love that I could use it across the grade levels and adapt the textbook to their level. I also used the notebooking journal along with it…exceptional.
I was never much a fan of science class growing up and believed it would be drudgery forever. As a homeschool mom I really struggled to find a curriculum that not only worked for my children, but for me, their teacher. I knew if I couldn’t be engaged, they couldn’t be either. But we are three days into Exploring Creation with Zoology 1, and I find myself excited to teach the lesson and answer questions. In some ways, I’m learning right alongside my kids but we’re all loving it. Thank you, Apologia!
We have the Exploring Creation with Astronomy textbook and notebook. We all have really enjoyed it, and I have learned so much along with them. I like being able to share a science book with them that shows that the heavens really do declare the glory of God. There have been so many neat tidbits of info along that way that we have all found very interesting. The notebooks are great! And the experiments are fun.
My favorite part is it points to God, our Creator. The notebooking journals are an awesome way for our kids to process and show what they are learning and in their own way! It was exciting to learn so many new things.
Following a Charlotte Mason approach, we develop a conversation with students. Apologia texts are written directly to the student and explore the world God made using engaging conversational-style text. The text and illustrations engage young learners and pull them into the subject so that the subject matter comes alive.
Some curriculum developers promote the spiral approach to education. Students are exposed over and over again to minute amounts of a variety of science topics. Each year sees the same material, most of it review, some of it new, none of it complete. This method assumes that the young child is unable to understand scientific truths.
With Apologia, children are given an in-depth exposure into each science topic; we call that immersion. We give the child an opportunity to develop a love for that subject. We also show the student that God has created an orderly world that works very similarly throughout all subjects of science.
Throughout our textbooks, students are asked to retell or narrate the information they just studied. This helps students assimilate the information in their minds. The act of verbalizing in their own words propels students forward in their ability to effectively and clearly communicate the information to others. It serves to lock the information in their own words, in their own understanding, in their own minds. Students can’t orally explain a topic to someone else if they don’t understand it.
Every lesson in our elementary textbooks contains hands-on projects, activities, and experiments to bring concepts to your student’s level of comprehension. There are no dry disconnected facts taught in a spiraling fashion from one grade to the next. Instead, with Apologia science, students study, in great detail, a subject area of interest.
Exploring Creation with Astronomy, 2nd Edition, launches your child’s mind on an educational journey to explore God’s incredible universe. It begins with a tour of our solar system, including the sun, planets, and asteroid belt. Then we set off across the stars and galaxies as they reveal the marvels and might of our loving Creator.
During this elementary homeschool science course, your child will build a model of our solar system, simulate the use of radar to reveal a hidden landscape, construct a working telescope, create an astrometer to measure the brightness of a star, and even launch a working rocket!
Shop NowExploring Creation with Botany cultivates an appreciation for nature with a study of the many different kinds of plants in God’s creation. This elementary science course will nurture an understanding of nature’s processes, including how plants grow from seeds, the reproductive process, the way plants make their food, and how God designed plants to acquire and distribute water and nutrients.
During this course, your child will create a “light hut” in which to grow plants, dissect a bean seed, observe the germination process, measure transpiration, and produce keepsake paintings with the assistance of nature.
Shop NowExploring Creation with Zoology 1: Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day lets your child’s imagination soar with this fascinating study of birds, bats, and flying insects. Your young zoologist will investigate the dynamics of flight, learn classification skills, keep a field journal, and explore how the design we see in flying creatures points us toward our Creator.
High-flying projects for this elementary science course include building a bird feeder, working with nesting materials, and even bringing a flying insect “back from the dead!”
Shop NowExploring Creation with Zoology 2: Swimming Creatures of the Fifth Day dives right into an underwater adventure! This course makes a big splash with kids, as they meet whales and dolphins, spy on seals and manatees, and explore the depths of God’s creation with sea turtles, snakes, and salamanders. Your child will also uncover the hidden world of crustaceans, sea snails, clams, and soft-bodied friends like the octopus, squid, and nautilus. From the microscopic to the massive, no reef is left unexplored!
Wild and wet projects for this elementary homeschool science course include using blubber as an insulator and exploring how whales can hear underwater sounds from miles away.
Shop NowExploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals of the Sixth Day makes every day an adventure as you take your child on a safari through jungles, deserts, forests, and farms—without ever leaving your backyard! During this course, your child will examine and enjoy the incredible variety of enchanting creatures God made to inhabit the earth.
Powerful projects for this course include playing predator to colored candies that hide in camouflage, acting like a primate to judge depth perception, discovering why giraffes have high blood pressure, identifying animal tracks, dissecting owl pellets and identifying the owl’s last meal, and much more!
Shop NowExploring Creation with Earth Science encourages your young explorers to interact with their world. This elementary homeschool science course walks alongside students and talks with them as they investigate and it points out the science behind everyday occurrences.
Your young explorer will begin this course with an overview of our cosmic address in the observable universe and then grow in knowledge of what, in the entire universe, makes Earth special and capable of sustaining life.
Shop NowFrom head to toe, Exploring Creation with Human Anatomy and Physiology is a personal encounter with God’s design for the human body. Your child will take a fantastic voyage through the skeletal, muscular, respiratory, digestive, circulatory, immune, and nervous systems. They will study nutrition, health, and embryology to see what makes each of us a unique creation of God.
Goose-bump-inducing projects for this course include creating an edible cell from Jell-O, testing bacteria content around the house, discovering your child’s blood type, and even building a stethoscope!
Shop NowWith Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics, from atoms and molecules to the laws of motion and thermodynamics, this amazing course will introduce your child to the properties of matter and the basic building blocks of life. Your family will bond over this exploration of God’s design for the universe as you investigate states of matter, energy in its many forms, magnetism, and simple machines.
Dynamic projects for this course include mixing materials to make a bouncy ball and creating a smoke bomb. Your child will also build a solar oven, a working periscope, and a miniature motor!
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If your child is an auditory learner or you enjoy listening to homeschool resources while driving to activities, then Apologia’s audiobooks will be a perfect fit for your busy homeschool family.
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Apologia’s notebooking journals were created to help your student build a solid science foundation by facilitating retention and providing documentation of what the student has learned.
The unique written and artistic expressions incorporate both sides of the brain and provide flexibility for multilevel learning. A twelve-year-old student may write an essay and make an elaborate illustration, while a six-year-old may write one sentence with a stick-figure drawing.
Shop NotebooksApologia’s elementary science curriculum is designed with a creation-based perspective, encouraging children to explore God’s world through hands-on experiments and engaging lessons. Each course emphasizes curiosity, discovery, and a wonder and awe of God’s creation.
Apologia’s elementary science curriculum is primarily designed for students in grades K-6. The Young Explorer Series offers age-appropriate content, fostering a love for science through fun, interactive lessons.
Yes! Each elementary science course includes numerous hands-on activities and experiments using common household items. These activities encourage children to observe, experiment, and apply what they learn in a practical way.
Absolutely! Apologia’s curriculum is designed to accommodate various learning styles, incorporating visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning through vibrant illustrations, narrated audiobooks, and hands-on projects.
Apologia’s elementary science curriculum consistently points students to God’s design in creation. While exploring scientific concepts, students are encouraged to reflect on how science reveals God’s creativity, order, and purpose.
Yes! Apologia provides easy-to-follow lesson plans, detailed experiment instructions, and additional resources. Parents don’t need a science background to successfully teach the curriculum.
Yes! Each textbook includes access to exclusive Book Extras, featuring supplemental materials like videos, interactive activities, and further reading suggestions to enhance your child’s learning experience.
Yes! Apologia’s elementary science curriculum is a popular choice for homeschool co-ops and group settings. The hands-on experiments and discussion prompts work well in collaborative learning environments.
Choosing a homeschool science curriculum like Apologia means providing your children with a Christ-centered, academically excellent education. By nurturing their minds and hearts, you equip them to engage thoughtfully with the world of science and confidently pursue understanding God’s creation.
