BookShark is a literature based homeschool curriculum that incorporates hands-on projects and is open and go for busy homeschool moms. I was excited when I found out they were updating all their science programs and jumped at the chance to use it with my two youngest boys (ages 11 & 12) this year. I chose to use BookShark Science Level E, as the focus for that level is to teach kids how to think like a scientist and this is something I think my little guys need to work on right now.
I was compensated for my time writing this review. All opinions are my own, honest opinions. I strive to give my readers the information they need in order to decide if a homeschool curriculum is a good fit for their family.
Table of Contents
The New BookShark Science Program:
- Is still open and go for mom (scheduled, hole-punched, all supplies & books included)
- Literature based
- Connects literature, science concepts, and experiments/activities
- Comes with an activity supply kit
- 4-day schedule to give you the flexibility
Can BookShark Science be Used Independently?
With more and more parents homeschooling while they both also work, this is an important question and a deal-breaker for many curricula. The amount of help your child will need with this program depends on two things.
- Their reading level – if they are strong readers, they can read all of the books themselves and answer the questions on the activity sheets for comprehension.
- How well they follow directions – if they are good at following directions, you can let them use the schedule in the teachers manual, do the reading, answer the worksheet, and even self correct with the answer key. (As long as your trust them to really do the work first, if not I would keep the correcting in your court as a gage for whether or not they really completed the readings…the questions are not hard, if they read the pages, they will get the correct answers.)
It’s always important that your child comprehends the science, so if they are not a strong reader yet it is best for a parent to read the pages from the books. This can be done in 15-20 minutes, 3 days a week. The fourth day there will be reading and an activity/experiment. Most kids will need supervision and help with the activity and the length of the activity will vary.
An independent learner who is a strong reader can complete BookShark Science on their own most days, but may still need assistance with the activity once a week. Of course, if you have the time, is a fun curriculum to do together with your kids.
New for 2021 BookShark Virtual
When you pair BookShark print curriculum with a Virtual seat, parents and students get cool online features like assessment, grading, and accountability—accessible via mobile or desktop!
The best way to understand BookShark Virtual is to try it yourself. The first three weeks of every Virtual course are available for free just like the Instructor’s Guide samples always have been (here).
Watch the demo videos to get your bearings, and then take it for a spin. Let your child take a peek, too!
Secular Homeschool Science Curriculum with NGSS Standards
The Next Generation Science Standards were designed to give students the information and tools that will prepare them for a future where science and technology are a part of almost every job. These standards go beyond to the typical K-12 state standards because they have been updated to include the new knowledge and information that is a part of our modern world.
For example, one of the books in BookShark Science Level E is Coding with Scratch 3.0 by DK Workbooks. A basic understanding of code is quickly becoming important for many jobs and industries.
You can check out the complete scope and sequence for BookShark here.