Carbon Chemistry Student Text (Second Edition)

Items listed in this section tend to be complete science programs with a teacher and student component, requiring few supplements besides science supplies.

Author Ellen McHenry is known for her straightforward approach to a variety of science topics. This curriculum is full of age-appropriate explanations, hands-on activities, and the familiar Ellen McHenry fingerprint characters and cartoons. The author discusses the difference between observable facts and inference, focusing on the facts. Courses are well-written, allowing children to understand more complex topics easily. Student activities vary and may include pencil-and-paperwork (like word puzzles or quizzes), internet links or a hands-on project. Illustrations are a mix of black and white, and color.

One book is required for the course, and includes the reproducible Student Text with activities , and a Teacher Section. Additional Student Books are available for most courses. This is a great option for parents/teachers with multiple students-like in a co-op or classroom. Activity pages in the core book are reproducible for families or single classroom use. The author has set up a YouTube® channel with a myriad of short videos to accompany the courses. Worth mentioning, the courses are completely doable without this bonus internet content. An exceptional science option for upper elementary and middle school ages to learn topics with more depth compared to many other science programs.

I think it takes a rare person to try to present basic chemistry at a level that an upper-elementary or middle-school student can understand, but ORGANIC chemistry? Normally, you only really scratch the surface of organic chemistry in high school, and if you go into a science-related field in college, then you're really hit with it. So, before I even cracked the cover, I was very impressed with Ellen McHenry's follow-up to her first chemistry program, The Elements. And parents, even if you never took organic chemistry, it's not as complicated as it sounds, and I'll bet you'll be drawn in as you learn along with the kids! It sounds advanced and frightening, but organic chemistry is really just an intersection of chemistry and biology, and learning the chemistry and formation of things like fats, proteins and carbohydrates can be very intriguing. It's like being able to put a "face" with a name. When you understand how molecules and substances act in your body, it can put a whole new aspect on the boring old chemistry you thought you knew!