Science Unit Study Ideas

Astronomy Unit Study

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September 26, 2023 | Sallie Borrink
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Learning about astronomy is great fun for children because it includes interesting topics such as the sun, moon, planets, and more. This collection of astronomy printables, books, and activities includes a wide variety of learning activities. They will all help you put together a fun learning theme.

If learning with themes is new to you, check out my post on How to Easily Create a Themed Unit Study.

Planning an Astronomy Theme

Unit Study Planner: As you read through the ideas in this post, you can start making a list of what you want to include for your themed study. Include only the activities that make sense for your children and your family’s goals. Use the Unit Study Planning Pages.

Astronomy KWL: I suggest you start with an Astronomy KWL. Your child tells you what she knows (or thinks she knows) about the topic, what she wants to know, and (at the end) what she has learned. KWLs are a great way to document your child’s learning, especially if you use a more relaxed approach to homeschooling.

Depending on the age of your child, you may want to record her answers on this sheet yourself rather than asking her to do it. The important thing is the content of what she’s saying, not whether or not she can write it down. If writing will slow her down, let her dictate her answers to you.

Books About Astronomy

Non-Fiction: If you are looking for some informative books to add to your astronomy study, here are a few. (As always, please review them ahead of time to make sure they align with your family’s viewpoint.)

Picture Books: If you are looking for some fun picture books, here are a few.

Astronomy Vocabulary, Spelling & Word Search

Choose several spelling words that are appropriate for your child’s ability. If you don’t do formal spelling, you can use this list for vocabulary discussion.

space
star
moon
planet
astronaut
astronomy
explore
rocket
asteroids
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Neptune
Uranus
Pluto

For fun, create a word search using words from the word list above using the Word Search Template.

Astronomy Fun Facts

If you are interested in learning lots of fascinating facts about astronomy, these fun fact cards are available in my printables shop. There are many fun ways to use them which I explain here.

Use this Facts About Graphic Organizer Worksheet as a way to keep track of important facts or your favorite fun facts you learn about astronomy.

Handwriting & Copywork

This Astronomy Copywork coordinates with the fun fact cards. This copywork set includes both print and cursive in three versions.

Stargazing & Watching the Heavens

Our Favorite Star Gazing Tools: Our family enjoys stargazing and has invested in equipment so we can see even more when we go outside at night.

You can see our favorite stargazing tools here on Amazon as well as below.

Comparing Things in Astronomy: Complete a Venn diagram to compare and contrast two things in space such as:

sun and moon
two different planets
stars and planets

Astronomy Learning Ideas

Here are several creative ideas to add to your learning unit.

Write A Biography: Write a short biography about a favorite person in the field of astronomy at some time in history. Use the Write a Biography (Early Elementary) Worksheets or Write a Biography (Upper Grades) Worksheets. Illustrate with a portrait drawing or print a picture from online. Again, feel free to have your child dictate to you if the act of writing would be too much. The content is the important thing!

Postage Stamp: Design a postage stamp to commemorate an important event or person in the field of astronomy.

Field Trip Ideas: Have fun exploring astronomy by going on a field trip to someplace like a:

Planetarium
Observatory
Historical location
Local astronomy club

Make a record of your field trip with this page from the Unit Study Activity Pack.

Acrostic Poem: Choose a person or event from the field of astronomy. Create an acrostic poem about him/her or the event.

Travel Brochure: Create a travel brochure for something related to astronomy.

Newspaper Article: Pretend you could interview someone related to the study of astronomy. Who would you choose? Write down 3-5 questions you would ask. Then write a newspaper article with what you think their answers would be using this page in the pack.

Astronomy List It: How many astronomy words can you come up with? Keep a list as you are studying or use this printable from the Unit Study Activity Pack as a final activity to review everything you’ve learned.

Write a letter to your favorite astronomer. Use one of these Write a Letter Worksheets.

Bible Verses to Memorize

If your family would like to memorize some Bible verses related to the stars and other heavenly bodies, here are a few to consider.

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Psalm 19:1

Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his heavenly hosts.
Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars.
Praise him, you highest heavens and you waters above the skies.
Psalm 148:2-4

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.
Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.
Psalm 147:3-5

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?
You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor.
Psalm 8:3-5

He speaks to the sun and it does not shine; he seals off the light of the stars.
He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.
He is the Maker of the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.
He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.
Job 9:7-10

Everyday Astronomy on SchoolhouseTeachers.com

If you are a member of Schoolhouse Teachers, you can also utilize their extensive materials in Everyday Astronomy.

Have fun exploring!

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The Anisotropic Gemstones in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:9-27)

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June 1, 2023 | Sallie Borrink
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The reality of the anisotropic gemstones in the New Jerusalem as described in Revelation 21:9-27 is truly amazing. Creation confirms the Creator over and over again if we simply look around. But this takes it to another level. No one but God could have known this.

Now imagine how much is known by scientists and historians but is hidden from us. Why? Because they hate God or deny God’s very existence. They will do anything to hide the reality of our Creator.

I added the Scripture passage they are discussing just under the embedded video.

Revelation 21:9-27

Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls full of the seven final plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”

And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, shining with the glory of God. Its radiance was like a most precious jewel, like a jasper, as clear as crystal. The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, and twelve angels at the gates. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south, and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve foundations bearing the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

The angel who spoke with me had a golden measuring rod to measure the city and its gates and walls. The city lies foursquare, with its width the same as its length. And he measured the city with the rod, and all its dimensions were equal—12,000 stadia in length and width and height. And he measured its wall to be 144 cubits, by the human measure the angel was using.

The wall was made of jasper, and the city itself of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were adorned with every kind of precious stone:

The first foundation was jasper,

the second sapphire,

the third chalcedony,

the fourth emerald,

the fifth sardonyx,

the sixth carnelian,

the seventh chrysolite,

the eighth beryl,

the ninth topaz,

the tenth chrysoprase,

the eleventh jacinth,

and the twelfth amethyst.

And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, with each gate consisting of a single pearl. The main street of the city was pure gold, as clear as glass.

But I saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, because the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its lamp. By its light the nations will walk, and into it the kings of the earth will bring their glory. Its gates will never be shut at the end of the day, because there will be no night there.

And into the city will be brought the glory and honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who practices an abomination or a lie, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible, BSB
Copyright ©2016, 2020 by Bible Hub
Used by Permission. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

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Category: Christian FaithTag: Bible - Revelation, Science Unit Study Ideas1 Comment

Using A KWL In Your Homeschool Unit Study

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February 15, 2023 | Sallie Borrink
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The KWL chart is one of the most helpful yet underutilized tools a homeschool parent can use. I rarely see them mentioned in homeschool publications and I think people are missing out. They are a great tool to use before you plan and begin any unit study.

I recently read on a blog of a mom’s surprise when she discovered something her daughter didn’t know that the mother thought was obvious. It’s so easy for us as parents to assume our children know something. But unless we specifically ask and probe, we don’t really know.

What is a KWL?

KWL stands for:

Know
Want to know
Learned

It tracks what the child already knows, what the child wants to know, and what the child has learned about a subject. Because it’s so clear and straightforward, a KWL chart is easy to use and can be quite valuable.

Here are two KWL layouts from the Trees KWL in my shop. (I have many ready-made KWLs on a variety of topics available.)

Horizontal version

Vertical version

How To Use A KWL

When you are ready to start studying any new subject, ask your child what she knows about the topic. For example, if the topic is trees start by asking, ‘What do you know about trees?” Do not lead her to certain answers or give her answers. You want to assess what she truly knows on her own. If she tells you something that is wrong, write it down anyways. Then while you are studying the topic, you can make sure she discovers her idea was wrong.

After she’s thought about what she knows, ask her what she wants to learn. Children can usually come up with lots of questions! If she gets stuck, you could prompt her with something you would like to know but don’t fill up the column with your own questions. Use the questions in this column to guide your teaching and reading so your student is sure to find out the answers!

The last column is filled when you are wrapping up your topic. Ask your child what she learned and list those new concepts or facts.

Again, this is a simple but effective assessment tool to use. It takes very little time to go through the columns to get started and you just might be surprised what you discover when you ask your child what she “knows” about a particular subject!

A Sample Of The KWLs In My Shop

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Bumblebee Paper Roll Craft

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June 22, 2021 | Sallie Borrink
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This cute bumblebee craft made with a toilet paper roll will be a big hit with your little ones. I’ve created this craft to be flexible so it can be made with or without construction paper (in case you don’t have any construction paper in your home right now!).

There are multiple choices for making the bumblebee paper roll craft as shown on the product cover. There are options for the bumblebee face, the number of black stripes, and whether you want to print it in color or have your child color the individual pieces.

Necessary Craft Supplies

Most of the supplies you need for this craft you probably already have in your home.

For this craft you will need:

the Bumblebee Paper Roll Craft printable product file
a printer
white paper or white cardstock
construction paper (optional)
scissors
tape, glue stick, or small stapler
toilet paper roll

Your child will be able to choose:

how to make the face (printed or original)
how many stripes to include
whether to use the printed pieces or color them

Simply print the pages you wish to use, cut out, and assemble. I used white paper in the photographed example and printed in color. I was able to tape the pieces into place. If you print on cardstock, you’ll probably want to go the stapler route.

If you have more craft supplies at home, you could do pipe cleaners for the antennae and googly eyes for the eyes.

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Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks Unit Study

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May 6, 2021 | Sallie Borrink
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While we were preparing lunch, I remarked that the rose-breasted grosbeaks should be returning soon. It’s usually the second week of May we start to see them at the feeders in our part of West Michigan. Five minutes later I looked out and there he was! The first grosbeak of the season.

The beautiful rose-breasted grosbeaks make a wonderful learning theme along with birds in general. I’ve assembled some ideas below so you can enjoy learning about these birds with your children. If learning with themes is new to you, check out my post on How to Create a Unit Study.

Have fun learning about this beautiful part of creation!

Planning A Rose Breasted Grosbeak Theme

Theme Planner: Use my free Unit Study Planner to list your ideas.

How To Identify Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks

Both the female and male have a body and beak shape that makes them easier to distinguish from other birds. (Can you tell the ways that they are similar to the cardinals to whom they are related?)

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak Male Markings: The males are so distinctive in their coloring that you can’t miss them when they show up. They are beautiful when they fly because you can see the white and black markings so clearly.

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak Female Markings: The females have the distinctive white marking around their eyes. It makes it easier to identify them from a distance.

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak Songs: Rose-breasted grosbeaks have a beautiful song. They sound much like a robin, but you can learn to tell the difference. Here is one singing.

Feeding Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks

Many people choose not to put out birdseed in the spring and summer since the birds have an abundance of food around them throughout nature. We feed year round for two reasons. One, the birds are like our pets. Two, if we didn’t feed all year we would never see the summer birds such as the grosbeaks.

We put three or four different bird feeders out the first year we moved in and were thrilled to see grosbeaks. We had only seen them once or twice before at our feeders in the city. Now that we’ve been feeding them for a number of years, we will have four or five pairs each year. They come to the feeders like clockwork each day and we can enjoy watching them while we eat. They especially love eating from our birdfeeder like this one.

Here are a male and female eating together. They love black oil sunflower seeds which is what we put out year round. It gives birds the most nutrition and it is far better than putting out cheaper mixed seed.

Breeding & Migration Map

This map from Wikipedia shows their breeding and migration patterns. The light yellow is the breeding range. The orange is the migration only range. The blue is the wintering range. I am always amazed that our birds fly far away and then return to our feeder again the next spring!

Create your own map for your unit study by using one of my free printable maps:

Bird Guides & Books About Birds

Every homeschooling family should have a few bird books on hand so you can grab them and look up new birds that visit your yard.

Here are two books for children:

These are more traditional field guides:

Learning Activities

Vocabulary, Spelling & Word Search: Here is a list of words you can use for vocabulary or spelling activities during your study.

grosbeak
nesting
black oil sunflower
ornithology
chink
deciduous
songbird
eyebrow
triangular bill

Word Search Puzzle: For fun, create a word search using the word list above. Download my free Word Search Template.

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak Facts: Use my simple, free Facts About Graphic Organizer as a fun way to keep track of important facts or your favorite facts you learn about rose-breasted grosbeaks.

Comparing Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks to Other Birds: How do rose-breasted grosbeaks compare to other birds you might see more often? Complete this Venn diagram to compare them with another type of bird (cardinal, blue jay, sparrow, etc.).

Write About Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks: Write a factual report or fictional story about these pretty birds. Use one of these free printables:

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Squirrels Unit Study

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April 29, 2021 | Sallie Borrink
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Squirrels are a fun learning topic for younger children. Even though they are technically rodents, they are fun to watch during all four seasons. This collection of learning activities will help you do this with ease!

There are many fun activities, printables, books, videos, and more below to make creating a squirrel unit study very easy. If learning with themes is new to you, check out my post on How to Easily Create a Unit Study.

Planning a Squirrel Theme

Unit Study Planner: As you read through the ideas in this post, start mapping out what you want to include for your family. The Unit Study Planning Pages have spaces for: Goals, Books, Supplies, Spelling and Vocabulary, Field Trips and Activities, Videos and DVDs, Printables, Assessments, and Notes. Choose the ideas that fit your particular needs.

Squirrels KWL: I like starting a themed study off with a KWL. KWL stands for Know, Want to know, and Learned. Your child tells you what she already knows about the topic, what she wants to know, and (at the end) what she has learned. KWLs are a great way to easily document your child’s learning. You can find two of them in the Unit Study Activity Pack.

Squirrel Fun Facts Copywork

My free squirrels copywork set gives you the opportunity to practice handwriting (print and cursive) while learning more fun facts about squirrels. You can find it for free in my shop.

Squirrels For Creative Play

Stuffed animals can be such a wonderful toy for creative play. Here are four cute options! We own the first one and her name is Miss Suzy.

Grey Squirrel Red Squirrel Squirrel Plush Nuts the Squirrel

Squirrels Vocabulary, Spelling & Word Search

Here’s a list of words you can use for your squirrel study for either vocabulary or spelling.

squirrel
flying
scurry
drey
seeds
nuts
bury
rodent
baffle
tail

You can also use this list of words to create a word search with the Word Search Template.

Squirrels In The United States

Where do squirrels live in the United States? Do a little bit of research online and use this United States map to show where different kinds of squirrels can be found. You can look for:

Eastern Gray Squirrels
Fox Squirrels
California Ground Squirrels
Northern Flying Squirrels
Southern Flying Squirrels

Create a legend on your United States map to show where the different squirrels live. Do any overlap? Which ones are found where you live? Which ones have you never seen?

If you learn about two different kinds of squirrels, you can compare them using a Venn diagram.

Squirrel Videos

Chattering Squirrels: Squirrels make a number of different sounds. Don’t miss these chattering squirrels courtesy of the pumpkin cam (and the bonus creature who shows up!).

Endangered Red Squirrels In Great Britain: This is a great example of how invasive species can cause unintended consequences. This short video explains the situation in Great Britain with red squirrels (native) and gray squirrels (not native). This is an article (that parents will want to preview first) with a compelling graphic about the destruction just since 1945 – Vital volunteers needed to save our last red squirrels from Lancashire Wildlife Trust.

Saving Baby Squirrels: A short story of how a family rescued two baby squirrels. What would you do if you found some baby squirrels who had lost their mother? How would you care for them? What would you need to buy? What would you need to do?

Favorite Squirrel Facts

What are your five favorite squirrel facts you’ve learned during this squirrels study? Record them on the Facts About Graphic Organizer Worksheet.

Miss Suzy Picture Book

Did you notice one of the squirrels in the video above was named Suzy and the book Miss Suzy was in one of the photos? Miss Suzy is one of my very favorite books which I’ve written about before. There are also lots of fun activities to do with the Miss Suzy book. You can see an entire post about this with more squirrel ideas – Creative Learning Ideas for Miss Suzy.

Books About Squirrels

To learn more about squirrels, check out these books.

Squirrel Protest Letter

Most people who feed birds put baffles like these on their feeder poles to keep the squirrels from eating all of the birdseed. Why do you think they call them baffles?

Audubon Torpedo Steel Squirrel Baffle Audubon Wrap Around Squirrel Baffle

Do you think the squirrels like this? What would a squirrel say if he or she wrote to the homeowner to protest the baffle and ask to have it removed? Write a letter from the squirrel to the keeper of the birdseed using one of the Write a Letter Worksheets.

I hope you have a great time studying squirrels!

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Middle School Chemistry For Relaxed Homeschoolers

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June 11, 2019 | Sallie Borrink
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Today I’m sharing what we’re doing for Science this summer and fall. We’re taking a relaxed, living books approach to Chemistry and I think we’ve hit a home run with it. It is an excellent fit with our relaxed homeschooling philosophy.

There are three Chemistry books we are using for middle school Chemistry. The books cover the elements, molecules, and reactions. They provide a colorful and interesting introduction to this science topic for middle schoolers.

I’ve been wanting to do some Chemistry with Caroline to give her a solid start in the terminology and basic principles, starting with the elements. This is how we are going to do it!

Middle School Chemistry Books

I searched for books that David and Caroline could use together since he’s implementing the Science I plan. I found a book on Amazon that had excellent reviews and decided to order it as our science “textbook” this summer. The Elements intrigued me because it is part of a three book series.

Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe

The other two books are Molecules and Reactions.

Molecules: The Elements and the Architecture of Everything Reactions: An Illustrated Exploration of Elements, Molecules, and Change in the Universe

My thinking was this would be an excellent introductory Chemistry series if they liked the books. The books have strong visuals which I knew would appeal to both of them.

Well, they didn’t like The Elements. They loved it.

The book is well written and includes humor which goes a long way in our home. The design is top notch. Each two page spread about the element is just long enough to be a thorough introduction and hold the attention of a student Caroline’s age (currently 12 years old). David reads the text aloud and they discuss it. She uses her iPod to look up any related rabbit trail information they want to know.

Understanding the Periodic Table of Elements

I printed off a black and white Periodic Table of Elements so Caroline can color in each element as they learn about it.

I purchased this placemat as a guideline for filling in the paper periodic table. I wanted something tactile and with visual reminders (color and pictures) that I know will work well for Caroline’s learning style.

merka Educational Kids Placemat – Non Slip Washable (Periodic Table)

TED-Ed and Periodic Videos

David and Caroline are also watching the videos at TED-Ed and Periodic Videos for each element. I added this in after I knew this Chemistry approach was going to work. They are enjoying the videos a great deal and the visual approach is great for Caroline’s learning style.

Learning About Molecules

They are doing two elements a day so it will take them about two months to go through the book. The first book in the series should take them through the summer months. When David and Caroline finish going through The Elements, I’ll order Molecules and a molecule modeling kit like one of these.

Organic Chemistry Model Kit (239 Pieces) – Molecular Model Student or Teacher Pack with Atoms, Bonds and Instructional Guide Molecular Model Kit with Molecule Modeling Software and User Guide – Organic, Inorganic Chemistry Set for Building Molecules – Dalton Labs 252 Pcs Advanced Chem Biochemistry Student Edition

Learning About Chemical Reactions

Lastly, I’ll order Reactions and a set for doing chemistry experiments. By the time they get to the third book, I’m guessing we’re going to need a quality chemistry set because the ones for “kids” will be too basic and underwhelming with what they will have learned.

Thames & Kosmos Chem C2000 (V 2.0) Chemistry Set with 250 Experiments and 128 Page Lab Manual, Student Laboratory Quality Instruments & Chemicals Thames & Kosmos Chem C3000 (V 2.0) Chemistry Set with 333 Experiments & 192 Page Lab Manual, Student Laboratory Quality Instruments & Chemicals

Relaxed Homeschooling Science

That is our science plan for the next six months. I took Chemistry and AP Chemistry in high school so these topics are familiar to me. David did not so he’s enjoying going through the book with Caroline and learning along with her. I am confident that these six months will give Caroline a solid foundation for this area of high school science. After this we’ll probably do a six month stretch focused on biology to prepare her for that part of high school science. So that’s a peek at our science this summer (and fall)!