Physics: The Foundational Science Student Textbook

Instilling an academically solid, God-centered understanding of all branches of science from the early elementary years through high school is the mission of this traditional curriculum. Uniquely, Abeka focuses on mastery of the sciences from a young age through two pathways. First, the science curriculum follows a spiral approach to learning, which means students review previously learned concepts each year, expanding on known concepts and learning new material. The second path, if you chose to use Abeka curriculum in other subjects, is the integration of the grade level scope and sequence, which takes the material taught in science and reinforces it in other subjects like language arts and reading comprehension. While this approach is helpful for mastery, it is not necessary to use other Abeka courses to gain a thorough understanding of the sciences. Scripture references are KJV.

Following a traditional philosophy of education, the basic components include a student text and a teacher edition and/or answer key. Student textbooks are full color and written at a level that each learner can read and understand. Teacher edition content will vary depending on the grade. At all grade levels, Abeka science is teacher led and not designed for independent student work, although at the higher levels, students may be able to do some reading and related activities independently. The K-2 teacher guides include all the information needed to teach science successfully from the scope and sequence and lesson plans with teaching notes, to the activity suggestions and answers (except kindergarten). Beginning in Grade 3 through the high school courses, teacher resources have been divided into separate categories. While this may seem overwhelming, targeted teacher resources help parents and teachers find what they need quickly. Additional supplemental resources may be available. Student and teacher books are not reproducible. See individual descriptions for more information. ~Deanne

Rigorous and college preparatory, the upper-level science courses from Abeka continue to provide a God-glorifying, traditional approach that follows a standard scope and sequence. Parents/teachers remain directly involved in the teaching process at the upper levels and may feel more comfortable to teach Abeka science at home if they have a strong science background. But don't let this hinder you from choosing this rigorous science curriculum! Abeka offers online courses to meet the needs of homeschool parents who feel uncomfortable teaching upper-level science courses. See their website for more information. Student books are softcover. Teacher guides are spiral bound and hardcover. Separate answer keys are softcover. Lab experiments are more complex and may require special equipment (especially at the high school level). Student and teacher books are not reproducible. See individual descriptions for more information.

Beginning with an overview of God's revelation and man's dominion, students study the principles of classical and modern physics, matter, energy, and mechanics. The course also includes an overview of recent developments in physics from particle physics to electronics, lasers, and relativity. The focus is on the knowledge and application of physics. Mathematical equations are integral. According to the publisher, Algebra 1 is a prerequisite, although an understanding of Geometry and Trigonometry may also be beneficial.

The student textbook provides textual readings, numerous articles that apply physics in everyday life, biographies of Christian physicists, key equations, chapter questions and numerous math problems to solve. Space to record answers is not included, so students will need a separate notebook. Abundant illustrations are included, along with key symbols, abbreviations, and equations.

The teacher guide provides the full student text at the beginning and the teaching resources in the back section. Teacher resources include a scope and sequence with a suggested teaching schedule, daily lessons with chapter overview, bonus demonstrations, teacher preparation notes and the teaching procedures. Answers are not included. A separate solution key contains question answers and the math equations with solutions.

Additional resources include the Lab Manual, Quiz Book, and the Test Book. Answers are not included; each offers a separate teacher guide or answer key.

The lab manual provides 20 experiments to solidify the text readings. Similarly formatted, each experiment provides the purpose and introduction, equipment list, step-by-step procedures and a report sheet. You will need to provide numerous items including safety glasses, graduated cylinders, beakers, Celsius thermometer, triangular glass prism, etc. Please contact Rainbow Resource for a full list.

The Lab Manual Teacher Guide includes the complete student lab manual with answers, a suggested schedule, and general teaching suggestions and notes for each experiment. A comprehensive listing of necessary supplies/equipment is also included.

The test book provides a total of 12 exams: 8 tests (one every 3 weeks), 2 nine-week exams, a semester exam, and a final exam. It also includes a math pre-test to help parents and students identify any math concepts that may need to be reviewed. Questions vary from reading comprehension to higher level thinking and application questions. The quiz book contains 42 quizzes (about 2 per chapter) which may include multiple choice, true or false, matching and math equations. Answers for the test book and quiz book are found in the corresponding answer keys. Student and teacher resources are not reproducible.

Also available are the Physics Student and Parent Kits. The student kit includes the textbook, test book, quiz book, and lab manual. The parent kit includes the teacher edition, solution key, the test key, quiz key, and the Lab Manual Teacher Edition.