Blooming Scientists

Homeschool Creations – Three Years of Nancy Larson Science

May 22, 2013

I first met Jolanthe of Homeschool Creations at the HEAV Conference in Richmond, VA during the summer of 2010. As a former teacher and specialist in early learning, Jolanthe had lots of questions about our science programs and how they work. She spent about two hours at our booth, looking at the teacher’s manuals, booklets and manipulatives; talking with other parents who came by; and picking up my enthusiasm for Nancy, who is a master educator.

Fast forward, Jolanthe has used Nancy Larson® Science for three years and volunteers to help me at conferences. She’ll be joining me this year at the FPEA Conference in Orlando, FL, May 23–25. Jolanthe is a treasure, dedicated to helping others, creative author, fun-loving mother, and resourceful friend. Recently Jolanthe wrote a comprehensive review

Here are some of the highlights Jolanthe listed.

The science levels in Nancy Larson Science are not intended for grade levels but rather a range of ages. This means that several children can work together on science.

Complete science program that has made science learning fun, manageable, and above all – productive.

Since we started using Nancy Larson Science for homeschool, our science time has literally done a complete turnaround.

Lessons target children with different learning styles.

Lessons are completely laid out for the teacher.

Study skill and reading are integrated into science learning.

Read her complete post. Why Our Family Loves Nancy Larson® Science.

Posted in Science 1, Science 2, Science 3, Science K, Teaching Concepts | No Comments »

Spell Out Loud uses Science 1

May 18, 2013

Last year at the 2:1 Conference, I met wonderful homeschool moms who are also amazing bloggers. Maureen at Spell Out Loud is one of the most amazing: busy mom, former elementary teacher, social media expert, photographer, author for other sites, and virtual assistant. Maureen is just starting her experience with Nancy Larson Science and says:

I was drawn to Nancy Larson Science 1 because:

The target age-level is ages 5–8 years (note: the levels do not necessarily correspond to grade levels. See site for more info.)It contains everything I need—from books, student booklets, specimens to examine, picture cards, and more.
It is scripted. Normally I don’t care if things are scripted because I’m good at coming up with things on the fly, but right now I need something easy that doesn’t require much prep work from me due to my current workload. Everything is already planned for me.
It combines science with language arts.
It is created to reach multiple learning styles: auditory, visual, and kinesthetic.
It introduces several themes: Describing the Life Stages of Human Beings; Observing Trees; Exploring Sunlight, Water, and Soil; Investigating Animals and Their Habitats; Discovering What Is Inside of Our Bodies; Examining the Characteristics and Life Cycles of Insects

Maureen has some terrific ideas for helping young siblings who are sitting in on the Science 1 lessons. Read her complete post.

-Madon Dailey

Posted in Science 1, Science 2, Science 3, Science K, Teaching Concepts | No Comments »

The Homeschool Compass uses Science 2

May 13, 2013

Along with the spring flowers, I’ve been discovering more new blooms and blooming scientists. Homeschool moms who are using our science programs are sharing their stories with their friends and ours.

Marcy at The Homeschool Compass wrote about her experiences teaching science and why Nancy Larson Science was a great fit for her family.

“I am not strong in science. I had lousy science teachers in my own school experience. And as much as I value language and history (my strengths), I can’t devalue science. I think it deserves a solid place in our homeschool. Since science is a weak subject for me, I want a good bit of direction.

Enter Nancy Larson Science. I finally found a curriculum for science that I’m really happy with. Yes, it’s pricey. But it is thorough, completely scripted (so, no guessing), has everything you need for experiments in one box (almost no teacher preparation necessary, other than making sure you pull out items used in that day’s lesson), and it can be used with multiple ages at a time. For example, I used Science 2 easily with a kindergartner (who was admittedly advanced in reading and writing) and a 4th grader. We learned so much, and we all loved it. The curriculum does a great job of teaching scientific principles, not just facts. I see my children retaining the information and applying it elsewhere.”

I especially like Marcy’s section on “how to use the materials.” The complete story of her experiences are at http://www.thehomeschoolcompass.com/352/nancy-larson-science

-Madon Dailey

Posted in Science 1, Teaching Concepts | No Comments »

Why Parents Love Nancy Larson® Science

May 2, 2013

When you visit us at a conference, the first information you receive is a one-page, one-minute read with the three top reasons parents love our programs. I am especially proud to share this piece because it was created by moms who use Nancy Larson Science. They repeatedly said, “We need a quick way to tell other moms why Nancy Larson Science works so well. This is what it should say.”

Posted in Teaching Concepts, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Earth Day is Here!

April 22, 2013

Daisy purrs into Nancy’s ear, ”Earth Day is April 22. Let’s make it special.

We want to help children learn how to protect and preserve the Earth.

What can we do, Nancy?”

Nancy comes up with a great idea.

”Let’s share the Earth Day lessons from Nancy Larson^® Science with all the families we’ve met.”

Daisy and Maisy think this is “Purrfect”.

Please enjoy these lessons with our compliments.

Posted in Holidays, Science 1, Science 2, Science 3, Teaching Concepts | 2 Comments »

Nancy Larson Science Update by Yvana

April 9, 2013

Believe it or not Homeschool Conference time is already in full swing and families are thinking about what curriculum they will be using next year. Last year at this time I had pretty much decided what we would be using, this year I haven’t had much time to think about it , however for those of you that are, I wanted to give you an update on the Science Curriculum we are using.

My children love Science so we try to incorporate as much of it as possible into our homeschooling, they do Science as part of Classical Conversations, they also participate in a two hour Science class once a week. At home we have been using Nancy Larson Science 1. If you would like to sample some of their lessons they have preview samples available on their website.

What I like about this curriculum is that it is easy to use and implement. It is well scripted and although it has specific topics in a specific order, I have found that you can skip around. In fact we have skipped topics and gone to the ones that we are currently studying about in CC. I like to be able to reinforce what they are learning or sometimes study a topic I know we will be focusing on as a preview of it.

Read Yvana’s complete update here.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Why I Like Nancy Larson Science

April 3, 2013

April is curriculum review month on TheHappyHousewife.com, where they kicked the month off with this review by Marci of The Homeschool Scientist.

by contributing writer Marci

Last year, at the 2:1 Conference, I was blessed to meet Madon from Nancy Larson Science. Since I had just launched The Homeschool Scientist, I was excited to learn about a science curriculum that I was unfamiliar with. Little did I know that our conversations that weekend would lead to a school year’s worth of science fun with my son!

As a homeschool science blogger and science geek, I see lots of science curricula. There are plenty of great choices out there. Many have terrific content, great experiments and projects. Choosing one can be very difficult. I chose Nancy Larson Science 1 for my son because its benefits reached beyond the science content. Read the complete story at the link.

Why I like Nancy Larson Science