How to Choose a Science Curriculum

How to Choose a Science Curriculum

by | Aug 8, 2019 | Uncategorized

This post is written intentionally for homeschooling parents searching for the right science curriculum for their kids. Science can seem daunting, overwhelming, and expensive, particularly if your kid is a college-bound high school student.

As a homeschooling parent, every year comes with assorted new teacher challenges. Your kids are at a new level, you’re doing things you’ve never done before, and there’s a whole year ahead of you. I’ve lived the  “New Teacher” story a few times, and it’s definitely not fun. My first year of teaching, I think I ordered examination copies of 6 different curricula trying to find the one that would work with my students. The more I’ve learned about science, the more I’ve realized that wasn’t the right approach. Science is so much easier than you think.

So… without further ado, here are my top tips for choosing a science curriculum for your kid:

Choose the scientific domain your kid wants to explore. For K-8 learners, I recommend using big fields like life science (broadly studying living things), physical science (broadly studying non-living things), and earth science. For 9-12 learners, I recommend choosing specific domains like chemistry, biology, physics, engineering, anatomy, geology, and astronomy. That big domain? That’s what you put on the transcript. Done and done. It’s easy.

Make a list of topics that your kid wants to explore that are related to that big field. Younger kids probably have their list of topics before they have their domain: dinosaurs (earth science), rockets (physical science), dogs (life science), blood (life science), fire fighting (physical science), and rivers (earth science). It’s absolutely okay for younger students to dabble in all of the domains within one year. For older kids, try to group their topics into biology, chemistry, and physics first before adding more science classes onto the transcript. A topic like flight could be classified as either physics or aviation. Similarly, animals could be biology, zoology, or veterinary sciences. Get the foundational sciences of physics, chemistry, and biology out of the way sooner in high school rather than later. [NB: there is no one “right” order for those three sciences. Go with what interests your kid.] If you have more topics than feels good for one science class, go ahead and list two sciences on the transcript. You can get your science curriculum together with anywhere between one and nine topics.

Convert your topic list into big, interesting questions. Do this with your kid. Now, this is where it gets fun. Questions are at the heart of science. Additionally, the questions determine what you need in terms of supplies. For instance, I could imagine a kid interested in physics who wants to explore baseball, light bulbs, recycling, and how wifi works. You’ll want somewhere between twelve and eighteen questions. Sample questions about baseball would be “Why would pitchers want to throw different kinds of pitches during a game?” “Which baseball park is the easiest to hit a home run in and why?” and “How is a baseball similar to and different from other kinds of balls?” Doing science is about finding ways to answer the question. Sample questions about recycling might be “What proportion of materials is actually recyclable?” “What cities have effective recycling programs?” and “What can be done to reduce the amount of single-use plastics?” Big, interesting questions lead to lots of engaged learning.

Start exploring. Seriously, you’re done. You want to keep some documentary record (notebook, journal, photo essay, project portfolio, etc) of what you’ve explored, but your science curriculum is sorted. If you want to repeat steps two and three, you can totally do that as your kids’ interests change. You’re also under zero obligation to answer all of the questions you listed. The only thing you need for the transcript is the domain. And maybe a grade. That’s another bonus of a documentary record of your explorations; you have some evidence for the grade on the transcript if anyone asks to see it.

It’s totally okay (and natural!) to need to enlist the help of mentors and other resources when doing science. I’m here to help, and I’m happy to do what I can to get you connected to others who can help as well. If you have any questions, do use the comments!

Classes starting in August 2019

Classes starting in August 2019

by | Aug 4, 2019 | Uncategorized

Growing up, school always started after Labor Day so August was the time to get in one last round of exploration before the year started. Going to college shifted my expectations for classes to start in August. As a teacher, I found myself bursting with excitement in August so I liked being in schools that started early.

Maybe your kid has already boarded the big yellow bus to head back to school. Maybe you are counting down the days until your routines return to normal. If you homeschool, the question of “When does the school year start?” can invite an existential crisis as you ask “What is school?”

No matter your situation, I have classes for you.

I offer tons of 1-time workshops so that you can get a feel of my teaching style. If we’ve never met before, I’d love to get to know your learner. If you’re a returner, it’s always fun to see you; you’re always exceptionally welcome in my LEGO Engineering Pop-Up Workshop.

If you’re looking for some great ways for your kid to explore engineering, check out this line-up:

If this list leaves your kid salivating and wanting more, check out my bulk packages in Challenge Accepted. I make it easy for your kid to have an awesome time exploring science and engineering.

Welcome to Curiosity Unlocked!

Welcome to Curiosity Unlocked!

by | Apr 13, 2019 | Uncategorized

Hail and hello!

The first post on a new blog is always a little awkward, but every good blog has to start somewhere. You have found Curiosity Unlocked, a place where I share all sorts of fun tidbits I encounter as I create awesome engineering and science classes for kids of all ages.

My name is Lindsey Nelson. I’m a mechanical engineer and engineering educator who lives in Washington, DC. Over the past several years, I’ve fallen in love with teaching kids in online. The online classroom is a different sort of teaching environment. When I literally have Google at my fingertips, I can pivot a class on a moment’s notice to follow the trail of real questions from real kids. I’ve learned so many awesome things, encountered tons of amazing ideas, and prepared lots of resources to make engineering come alive for the learners in front of me.

I look forward to sharing some of that journey with you as I start sharing more here. My plans are to share thoughts on teaching physics and engineering, true stories from engineering history, fun hands-on projects for kids, and other interesting news I encounter.

Tell me: What would you like to see in this space as I move forward?