Science Shepherd Astronomy (Gr. 4-9)

Video-based course studies God's creation and how it works, providing students with a fascinating look at the solar system, stars, galaxies and more. Focusing on the laws of the stars, or the known facts about astronomy, students examine the scientific evidence to see that the origin of the universe shows the creative work of God. There is a special focus on the science and theories that underscore the big bang and creation origin models. As learners' study what is known about the objects in space, students will see how the big bang model fails, and the creation model aligns with man's observations, confirming the sufficiency of scripture.

Presented in a 36-week schedule, this one-year astronomy course is offered in two levels, targeting grade level reading and critical thinking levels. The content covered is foundationally the same, with the upper level providing 25 + additional lessons. Focusing on grades 5-7, Level A, provides 60+ video lessons, each ranging anywhere from 3 to10 minutes. The workbook provides the lesson follow-up and reinforcement. Students are encouraged to watch the lesson as many times as necessary to learn the information and may use the workbook during or after the video lesson. Workbook activities vary, for example: short answer, true or false, matching, seek -a-word and crossword puzzles, and a few hands-on activities are included. No textbook is required to complete the course, all lessons are taught through the video presentations. Workbooks are not stand-alone. Course requires the Video component . A separate answer key provides answers for all the workbook pages. Level B targets grades 7-9 and contains all the lessons in Level A plus the additional lessons, for a total of 95 lessons. This allows a more advanced study in the areas of dark matter, dark energy, relativity and more. Video lessons range from 3-12 minutes each. The Level B Workbook also offers more critical thinking questions and is more challenging than the Level A. High school students who have not studied astronomy, may find the course interesting and challenging, making this a great option for families to study together. High school students requiring a transcript lab credit will need additional lab activities.

Video lessons are available in a DVD format or as a streaming option at the publisher's website. The DVD contains lessons for both Level A and B. There are video lessons 2-4 times per week, with more video content in Level B. The video presentations are well done and age appropriate. There is no fluff, or bells and whistles here. The speaker engages the listener, but his focus is on teaching at a level the student can understand, but without dumbing down the information. Workbooks are spiral bound and consumable. Each student will need their own copy. Answer keys provide parents with the necessary answers and are staple bound. Not reproducible. ~Deanne