Exploring Creation with Botany from Apologia
This post about Exploring Creation with Botany from Apologia was made possible with a copy of the student text and junior notebook to review. All opinions are our own and affiliate links are present. We may earn a commission for purchases made through them.
Over the years, we have used a lot of different curricula in our homeschool.
As much as my husband and I love science and can geek out over it, the boys do not share our enthusiasm.
This means I am always considering how to get them to learn more about science topics without a constant struggle to do the work.
About Apologia Science & Exploring Creation with Botany
In 2020, Apologia launched the second edition of Exploring Creation with Botany.
Exploring Creation with Botany, 2nd Edition, by Apologia is a God-honoring study of botany. Revised and updated with new content, illustrations, graphics, new and reworded activities, and redesigned Notebooking Journals!
The 2nd Edition Provides:
- Increased focus on nature journaling
- New chapters on gardening and mycology
- Wide variety of new and updated activities to fit any writing level and learning style
- Engaging and fun Minibooks to illustrate and assemble
- All new spectacular photos and graphics
- A Suggested Daily Schedule that makes lesson planning a breeze
- An improved layout that is more user-friendly, regardless of the climate in which you live
The science books from Apologia geared to the elementary grades have won the hearts of many Christian homeschoolers.
The reasons so many adore the Exploring Creation series include:
- Text is written to the student in a conversational style
- Inclusion of the Christian faith throughout the reading
- Vetted science (they have advisors make sure it is accurate)
- Easy to use Schedule of Reading and Activities
Components of the Exploring Creation with Botany Curriculum
Like other options in their programs, there are a few main components.
While you can make do with just the textbook, the notebooking pages make life so much easier. You can purchase them as a bundle.
Botany Textbook
Your young botanist will begin this course with an overview of botany and then grow in their knowledge of seeds, flowers, pollination, fruits, leaves, roots, and stems of plants.
Their awareness of the world around them will blossom as they experience planting a garden that they design and discover how food is produced.
By digging deeper into the many different types of plants in creation, they will acquire wisdom that will flourish for their lifetimes.
The Exploring Creation with Botany textbook is in hardcover, so durable for extended use by younger students.
Notebooking Journals
These spiral-bound books provide everything your child needs to complete the assignments, record what they have learned, and display their work.
A daily suggested lesson schedule makes planning easy!
The Junior Notebooking Journal (K-2) is for your younger student. Fun graphics and imaginative designs inspire your child’s thought and creativity. The wider writing lines make it easier for writing. Perfect for younger elementary students or those students with limited writing skills.
The Regular Notebooking Journal is recommended for grades 3-6. Regular writing lines provide space for more thorough answers to prompts.
MP3 Audio CD
The MP3 CD contains a complete audio recording of the course Exploring Creation with Botany, 2nd Edition, as read by the author, Jeannie Fulbright.
This is the perfect accompaniment to the book for students who are auditory learners, struggling readers, or have other learning disabilities that make reading difficult.
It can also be used for students who are not reading on their own yet, or for the entire family to enjoy together.
If you want to save money and have it streamable from your selected device, there is an option for a downloaded copy of the mp3 files.
Topics Covered in Apologia Botany
The book is separated into 14 lessons.
The schedule spreads the lessons out so that the entire course takes 28 weeks to complete.
- Nature Journaling
- The Science of Botany
- Seeded and Seedless Plants
- Grouping Plants
- Seeds and Germination
- Angiosperms – Flowering Plants
- Flower Families
- Pollination
- Seeds
- Fruits and Vegetables
- Leaves, Photosynthesis, Transpiration
- Roots and Root Systems
- Stems
- Gardening
- Trees
- Gymnosperms
- Seedless & Vascular Plants
- Mycology
Our Thoughts on Exploring Creation with Botany
First off, this busy homeschool mother truly appreciates the way everything is laid out for us. The main prep you have is for the different activities.
I’ve been using this with my 5th grader. If he had a love of botany (or any part of biology), then he could do most of the work with minimal guidance.
However, since he is less enthused about this study of plant life, I have found myself reading the text out loud for him.
While it takes up some of my time to do so, I am remembering things long forgotten from my past studies.
When I was asked which journal level he needed, my brain froze. We ended up with the Junior Notebooking Journal.
Although it is ‘below’ his current grade level, it works as his handwriting is a constant struggle. So, having easier activities and handwriting lines to help guide him has been a blessing.
My son still finds biological studies less interesting than other things.
However, he likes the way the textbook presents the material. And, that the notebooking journal he has is not a source of frustration when it comes to writing things down.
Notes on Timing the Material
Unlike the year I worked through the first edition with older brothers, we have not had an issue with plant life being unavailable to observe. There is something growing here in the deep south pretty much year-round.
Those in more northern climates may opt to rearrange their schedule to fit the availability of plants in their area.
Alternatively, you can spend the winter months doing the bookwork and schedule intensive experiment time for warmer weather months.
Even with more availability of materials in our yard, I elected to cluster experiments together. Note that some of them take days or weeks to complete.
Final Takeaway on Apologia Botany
Like other volumes, the 2nd edition provides a well-laid-out textbook and easy-to-use notebooking journal for complete learning. The Charlotte Mason style of learning makes it easy to implement in your homeschool.
The science is accurate while also reflecting a Christian worldview that supports a young earth theory of creation. If you prefer to not have the Christian faith and/or young earth theory presented, this may not be the title for you.