Friendly Biology (A Timberdoodle Review)

 

If teaching high school level science intimidates you, Friendly Biology is just what the doctor ordered. As part of the Timberdoodle 9th Grade Curriculum Kit, this course by Joey and Lisa Hajda is the most easy, homeschool-friendly science curriculum that I have implemented in my homeschool. So many different options are available in the homeschooling world and I have reviewed many that I love. Some take a hands-on experimental approach. Some use the textbook/workbook approach. Some science curriculum are easy to follow, and others are not.

Friendly Biology takes both approaches and it is easy to follow. 

My ninth-grader enjoys science, but when it comes to sitting down and reading a textbook, he is not a fan. This means I was hesitant to try this curriculum. I was pleasantly surprised to find out not only that he enjoys it, but he is passing the course with flying colors, retaining the information, and excited when it happens to be an experiment day. 

He loves working on the science experiments which have ranged from making butter to using cabbage as a PH test.

The experiments are practical and use items that you would normally have in the house.

 The best part is he works on these on his own while I am teaching the younger kids. 

Additionally, the workbook is challenging yet doable for my ninth grader. It reinforces terms and concepts that he has learned in years past while also introducing new topics.

From crossword puzzles to fill-in-the-blank to matching, the worksheets are never too redundant but are filled with variety to accommodate different learning styles. When my son was younger, we enjoyed working together with experiments and workbooks to learn new concepts, now that he is older and more independent, he is able to work on this subject almost completely on his own, coming to me only when he has questions. I am completely fine with this. We have other subjects that I work one-on-one with him to work on spelling, vocabulary, and other important skills. Once he has these skills down, he will have the foundation to love learning and learn on his own, which I see him do on a regular basis. Not only does he work through this course independently, but he will seek out how-to book to figure out how the world works. In his case, independent learning works well for him. Although he was never a fan of a textbook, this book is more conversational-style, so it keeps him engaged.

The name of the curriculum suits it well for it really is "friendly." It explains difficult and challenging topics in a simple and easy-to-understand manner. The text readings are not too long. They are bite-sized, to the point, and real-world relatable. My son appreciates content that is to the point, which is why Friendly Biology works so well in our home. 

Although I completely trust my children, I don't like to place temptation out there in front of them to tempt them. When I first began using this course I noticed that the answer keys were located in the same book as the tests. Although I could easily rip out the tests, or copy them, and hand them to my son, I knew they would get lost easily. Having his tests bound already in the book works better for him so instead I tore out the answer key, which has helped to keep his work organized.

I am so thankful for this course and I am eager to check out other science courses by this company and plan to try them out in years to come.

Disclaimer: I received the above item in exchange for an honest review. 

All thoughts and opinions are my own.