Why do I use Apologia textbooks for science classes?

  As a teacher, I had any number of science textbooks available.  Often private school teachers have the autonomy to select their textbooks, unlike public school teachers.  I did like several of the mass-marketed textbooks.  However, I’m sticking with Apologia’s Science textbooks for all grades.  Why?  They are Christian.  I don’t have to worry about odd propaganda inserted to make the textbook more current.  (I’m looking at you Climate Change!). The National Biology and National Chemistry  groups are promoting Next Generation Science Storylines currently.  Previously there was a huge push for Project Based Learning (PBL) and Flipped Classroom. (Look at the NSTA conference to get an idea about current trends.). Science teachers try to insert the basics of their disciplines around the current  instructional flavor.  You don’t have to navigate trends.

Sooner or later, science teachers revert to the basics.  Stick with Apologia’s textbooks.  The core topics, ideas, and skill sets are all there.  Apologia understands the hand of God is written over every aspect of science.  Do I supplement?  Yes, all the time.  I know teens need more problem sets in Chem than Apologia offers.  I like to add labs, such as the Bubble Membrane or a lesson such as Borneo Cats (unintended consequences) to Bio.  I’ll raid any number of Physical Science textbooks to add fun labs.  But at the core is Apologia.  I’m sticking with the fundamentals.

Have we got a deal for you!

 I love thrift stores.  I have had great luck with Good Will online.  Check back regularly to see what kind of deals they have available. Don’t forget to check the shipping.  I’m trying to resist the magnetic stirrer.  I know from experience I rarely use it.  Why?  Kids dump the little magnet bars down the drain before you can say, ‘Wait!  Watch out!’  Determine a max price for any bid which includes shipping.  Happy hunting!

AP Language and Composition

 Let me do a deep dive in how to structure an AP course.  Let’s tackle AP Language and Composition.  First look at everything on College Board: Course Description.  College Board has more materials if you join as a teacher.  The issue is the audited syllabus—a bear! It must be approved by an administrator.  Don’t worry.  There is plenty of material to use on the web.  

1. Here are materials from College Board, such as Quill and AP Teachers’ Recommended Sites, Rhetoric,  Chief Reader Comments,  and Argument. Download freebies from TPT.  Look for syllabi: Mr.Rosenberg, Montgomery Schools, Golden Valley, and Texas Tech.  These look like audited syllabi for College Board, which requires loads of details for approval.  You’ll get a good idea about the course’s scope and sample assignments.  

2.  Look for great, summer assignments: Walden, Scenarios, Thank you for Arguing (Guide), Course Videos, Analysis Charts, Several Assignments, and Intro Essay.  Summer assignments are used by teachers to launch their classes.  You can, too!  

3. Dig for FRQs. Free Response Questions (FRQs) are part of the AP exam.  I use released FRQs as quizzes.  Here are tips and samples.  Here are FRQs from 1981-2025.  Look at Sample Student Responses.    These explain how a given FRQ is awarded points.  Here is another example.  

4. Locate released exams, the multiple-choice questions: 2007 Test  and 2007 answers, 2015 (has answers), Princeton Review Sample Test, High School Test Prep,  and College Board Practice Test.   Use these exclusively for testing.  Really.

5. Study Guides are also useful: AP Lang Study Guide, Marco Learning, and Matterton Middle High.  Look for how-to sites: How to Write Lang Argument, Argument Guide, and Test Taking Tips.

6.  Look at teachers’ websites: Mrs.Rosen, Ms Effie, Mrs.Walsh, and Avon Grove.  Look for a detailed website and follow their schedule and assignments.  Look at pacing guides.

7.  Look for published book guides: Scarlet Letter, Emily Dickinson, Great Gatsby, and Flannery O’Conner. 

AP. Classes

In another life I taught AP science classes. I was an AP instructor, Reader, Table Leader, and College Board consultant.  I taught AP Bio (once), and AP Chem and AP Environmental Science  several times.  These are grueling to teach.  You might want to consider just taking a college class.  If your heart is set on AP, let me give you a bit of help.  First, here are the test dates for May 2026.  Here is my first tip: Take the test on the date assigned—not the make-up date.  The make-up test is no harder; it’s graded very strictly, however.  Khan Academy offers AP courses.  There are Openstax AP courses, too: AP Bio, AP Physics, AP Chem, and  U.S. History (supposed to be AP).  

Before you take on an AP subject look at the courses description: AP Literature and Language, AP Language and Composition, and AP Eng Lang FRQs.  Look for tips: On Your Mark, AP Bio First Time, or Seven Tips.  Find teacher weeblys.  School districts love to change learning management systems.  In self defense, teacher create their own websites.  Teachers post their resources: AP U.S., A.P.Bio, AP Lang, and AP Stats.  Look at POGILS, especially for science courses. But, here is a POGIL for Claim-Evidence-Reasoning, which is used in AP Lang.  Every discipline or course has its own subset of resources, such as Quill, HHMI, National Constitutional Center, and AP Stats.  There are also Facebook Groups for just about every course.  

I do not want to be discouraging.  By all means, if you have an undergrad major in one of the AP courses, go for it!  Just bear in mind, if your teen passes the exam, he or she gets college credit.  It’s intended to be hard.  It is!

How long do you take for Christmas Break?

  There are several factors determining how long the Co-op takes for the Christmas break.  Friends belong to a Co-op which breaks six weeks between Thanksgiving and January.  Many Co-ops are off between three or four weeks.  Typically, we take off two weeks.  One factor is travel.  My husband and I do like to travel over Christmas.  I’m not going to lie.  Classes have been postponed when we arrived home sick.  Sometimes the winter weather extends Christmas.  But our goal is to resume classes the second week of January.  My husband, Rob, and I have a rough idea how long each unit or module takes.  The Co-op families want to finish by the end of May.  We try not to stretch the break.  

Why are three hours a day probably enough to home-school?

Update: The Chem group on Facebook reminded me of another distraction.  On the run up to Christmas teachers might add games, ugly sweater contests, etc to their movie roster.  (I did labs.  If the kids are distracted at least we were doing some chem.)  Yes, you do fun things all the time, too!  My point is that time spent in schools is not always well spent at all.  

In another life I taught in both public and private schools.  Class hours at school run about seven hours a day.  So why is three hours a day enough to home-school your kids?  Let me tell you, from my experience in the trenches, not every hour is well spent in a formal school setting.  There is a lot of time lost to class changes, drills, standardized testing, misbehavior, assemblies, spirit days, home-room, announcements, etc—the list is long.  Guess what?  Too many teachers run movies for days before any holiday break.  During the first week in a public school, we spent hours every morning in home-room completing forms.  Hours!  I tried to find creative things to do to fill the time.  I cannot tell you how many times the period before lunch was cut short for an emergency meeting about year-books, class meetings, or quick home-room.  Were you imagining that classes covered by a substitute were always productive?  Home-school families tend to focus on core subjects.  They invest in music lessons.  Their families read!  Kiddos are motivated to complete their school work because they can pursue their own interests.  Stay committed to three productive hours a day!  

Buy your kids a stack of books for Christmas!

Hear me out!  For years, I bought my kids stacks of books for Christmas.  I felt the number of presents was getting out of hand.  You can’t spoil kiddos with books.  I tried to pick books based on the child’s interests.  For example, a ten year old obsessed with American Girl dolls might love the books!  Yes, we bought used copies of books.  You can buy a fat stack of books used for $100.  What about the ‘I survived’ books?  What are your children’s interests?  Drawing?  Science?  Anatomy?  There’s a good book for any interest!

Shop now for next year’s textbooks.

 Our Co-op is determining next year’s courses.  Why?  We want to have plenty of time to select the textbooks and shop for decent prices.  I’m buying copies of Chemistry and Physics to teach Apologia’s Young Explorers course next year.  I like to have the textbooks on hand for the classes.  My target price is $10.  We’re planning three new middle school courses.  Right now, we’re buying a bunch of used textbooks for U.S.Government and American History.  We need time to determine the textbooks.  Think about your classes for next year.  You’ll have loads of time to shop for decent prices.  BTW ,y favorite sites for used textbooks are Thriftbooks, eBay, and Amazon.

Hillsdale Free College Courses

 Hillsdale College offers free college courses online.  The video courses are excellent.  Get a free account and try one!

Why I use Christian textbooks….

  I use Christian textbooks in science.  Why?  These textbooks have a Christian worldview.  We know God is the Creator.  His designs are imponderable.  Christian textbooks reflect our faith in every aspect of science.  I’m teaching Anatomy right now.  I tell the kids there is always more to learn.  Science is always trying to answer questions about how the human body works.  Our intricate bodies were designed by God.  Period.  We are in search of answers about systems mysteriously made.  I teach American Literature, too.  My friend, Jen, is teaching American History.  We had a friend, Jim, do a lecture on worldviews.  (Both of us use Stobaugh.)  Jim has loads of background in philosophy.  As he examined different worldviews I was struck by the fact that too many textbooks do not have a central worldview at all.  As a Christian, I want faith, hope, and charity to be part of our scope—regardless of the subject.  I want us to be guided by God.  What freedom it is to be able to say to the class that we are plumbing the depths of God’s infinite creation—in every subject.

VeggieTales!

 Are you a fan of VegggieTales? Our family is!  Did you know Good Will often has listings?  They do!  Take a look!  The prices on Good Will usually beat those at eBay.

Go on a dig or a hunt!

  For years, my family rented a cottage on the Chesapeake Bay, near Calvert Cliffs, which are loaded with  fossils.  You can visit Calvert Cliffs State Park.  All of the nearby beaches have shark’s teeth.  Here is a field guide to those fossils.  There are places all over the world country where you can dig, gather, hunt or mine: Crater Diamonds State Park, Fossil Parks, Pan for Gold, Dig for Gemstones, Find Silver, or Rock Hounding.  Whenever I’m at a beach along the coast of Florida, I hunt for shark’s teeth, too.  Here are four U.S. locations.  Warning!  Hunting, panning, or digging are addictive!  I cannot walk a beach without hunting for fossils.  What do you do with them?  We made clay casts.  You could make jewelry, too.  Fall is ideal for fun home-school fieldtrips.  Why not plan a hunt?

Good Will Finds

 I love Good Will—both online and offline.  One interesting listing is for a set of Seeing Stars.  Here is more information.  From what I can understand, it looks as though it’s part of an intervention program for dyslexia.  Students should take a Barton Screening, with this link.  In any case there are several interesting listings on the Good Will site, including several LEGO Mindstorm kits.

Make sub plans!

 Have you ever had a week which was one crisis or another?  Plan ahead and make sub lessons.  I used Chemmatters and their teacher guides with questions as emergency sub plans when I taught in private and public schools.  Look at Ötzi and the teacher guides with questions, as an example.  The guides have answers to the questions.  Print a few articles with question guides.  You can do the same for literature.  Put aside a book and have literature questions.  For example, here or here are reading questions for Sarah, Plain and Tall and Heidi.  Make up an art kit with a Dick Blick lesson. Yes, you can tell your kiddo to work ahead in math or history.  But, why not have  a bin of free choices ready before you’re puking in the bathroom?

Add a little art to your curriculum.

 One easy way to add a little art to your home-school curriculum is to visit museums.  Find out when the museum has a home-school day or free day to visit.  Visit the gift shop after your tour and let the kids select a few postcards. I buy simple black or white frames from Walmart for about one dollar.  Sometimes, we print photos from trips on Snapfish to use as art, too.  The price of postcards does vary at museums; I don’t think I’ve paid more than $2 for a postcard.  The kids will learn about artists they like and have souvenirs which won’t cost a fortune.  Right now, I’m admiring Maud Lewis’s art from a museum in Halifax, Canada.  Your kids will be able to tell other kids about the artist and the museum collections.

Stobaugh American Literature: Pilgrims and Puritans

 My Co-op American literature class began last week.  The class meets once a week on Wednesdays for 90 minutes.  We’re following the book and did ‘Of Plymouth Plantation’ by William Bradford.  Last week our focus was on the significance of Bradford’s chronicles.  Our approach is to read, analyze, and then summarize in a paragraph.  This week we finished editing the paragraphs. We made a jump because a friend is going to teach Lesson 2, World Views.

This week, we jumped to Lesson 3 and read Upon the Burning of our House by Anne Bradstreet.  Dr. Stobaugh suggests comparing the poem to the Beatles’s song, Eleanor Rigsby.  I added Jars of Clay’s version of It is Well with My Soul.  We read the poem and listened to both ‘It is Well with My Soul’ and ‘Eleanor Rigsby’.  I added the verse from Job 1:21.  I explained the back story behind the hymn.  We did all of this before we made a comparison chart.  Next week, we’ll write a comparison paper—read paragraph.  All my teens are reluctant writers.  We spent last year just writing.  Now we need to learn how to analyze and distill the work into cogent paragraphs.  I’ll keep you updated about this class.

Let’s minimize AI!

  There have several news articles and opinion articles about the impact of AI on student brains.  Have you read the MIT article?    As a result of this evidence, I’m doing everything I can to minimize use of AI. ( I don’t encourage the use of AI, with the exception of  Grammarly AI , and only for  kids with profound learning differences.) How?  Kids are hand-writing their lab reports, homework, and tests.  We’re collecting data on paper and later creating spreadsheets.  I think we should resume using textbooks whenever possible.  Yes, I’m still using tech, such as slide decks.  But going forward I’m evaluating each assignment in light of these studies about cognitive decline and AI.

American Literature: Stobaugh

 Have you heard of James Stobaugh’s Literature courses?  I think they are terrific.  This year, I’m teaching American Literature with the local Co-op, in order.  (The same kids are taking American History.) The format is to read aloud and write paragraphs each week.  The teens all need help writing.  Literature is daunting.  So, we’re spending 90 minutes a week doing a survey course.  (Any grammar, vocabulary, and sentence structure instruction is free.)  BTW, I am a big believer in combining the literature and history periods.  There will be overlap which reinforces both classes.  For example, we did a bit of history about early pilgrims before we read ‘Of Plymouth Plantation’.  I’ll keep you posted about the class.

Build a trip around a book!

 We just stopped at Green Gables in Prince Edward Island.  Yes, they do serve raspberry cordial.  There were many excited little girls.  Why not base a trip around a book, a character, a short story, or a famous person?  One example is The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.  Visit the village.  Read Longfellow’s poem about The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere and visit his house in Boston.  Have you read any of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books?  Her family lived in several house.  Look at this blog post about the author’s vacation to three of those houses.  Here are places with connections to Laura Ingalls Wilder.  Okay, you get the idea.  What is your child’s favorite book?  Where did the author live?  Where do the characters in the book live?  Take a trip!  Think how much more meaningful the book will be.

Teach by subject.

 Does this seem obvious?  Guess what?  It isn’t.  Too many literature, history, and science textbooks are a hodge-podge of topics—many disparate.  Don’t get me started on state learning standards and objectives—especially in Social Studies.  Instead, pick a subject: Early American History, Fables, or  Human Anatomy.  Apologia’s Science Curriculum has dedicated science subjects.  Look at Cathy Duffy’s History & Geography page on her website. I am partial to the Catholic Textbook Project’s History Series.  Kolbe Academy has Primary Literature and Elementary Literature guides with questions and vocabulary for classic literature.  Once your child hits fifth grade, consider Sadler Vocabulary Workshop.  This series goes from A (Grade Six) to H.  See what I’m saying?   Build your curriculum around subjects to create a robust program.

You should teach a Co-op class.

 Do you have a four-year degree?  You should teach a class.  It will stretch your talents.  It will provide experience if you need to work full-time in the future. Your Co-op needs more variety and more instructors.  Most of all, it’s fun.  

I hear you telling me that you aren’t certified to teach.  Yes, I have certifications; I’m not convinced they help.  Many teachers in private schools do not have any educational credentials—just a bachelor’s degree.  Right now desperate public schools are waiving requirements and slapping provisional accreditation on to people with a four-year degree to fill slots.

But, the best teachers care about kids and love their subject.  They get excited about teaching strategies and want to do a good job.  Sometimes they have professional experience they want to share.  But, I’ve seen many newbies with a passion and no experience do a great job.  You have the motivation.  Chances are your kid will be in the class.  You’ll learn a lot teaching the subject.

Here are a few tips.  Pick a class you like.  My friend, Jen, a former kindergarten teacher, is teaching American History for the high school Co-op.  She likes history.  You’ll be more enthusiastic about a subject you like.  At least the first time, follow the textbook.  Go ahead and supplement—but stick to the modules.  Stay one chapter or module ahead.  Tell the kids, ‘I don’t know’ when you don’t.  Go ahead and look up a question right there with the kids.  This still happens to me.  I give the kid my best guess as an answer and tell the child, ‘I’m not 100% certain.  Let me check.’  Don’t try to fake it.  What happens when a lesson is just terrible?  Start over.  Every so often, a lab or activity just bombs.  Start again the next class and move on.  Tell the kids that the lab, project, time-line, etc. was an unmitigated disaster which we won’t repeat.  We’ll go on and make new mistakes.  In other words, be fearless.  Expect both victories and defeats.  Teaching  is probably outside your comfort area.  Good!  This will be an adventure!

Types of Co-ops

  Co-ops vary enormously.  Our Co-op originally met Fridays at space rented from a local church.  The space had enough rooms for several classes, including a nursery.  The Co-op families met after Mass, at 10 am; classes were held until around 2 pm.  Moms taught different subjects based on demand.  This model worked well for kiddos 6-12 years old.  Older teens in the same Co-op met Tuesdays and Thursdays at the library.  Subjects taught varies from Economics to Chemistry.

Another friend attends Classical Conversations, which meets for 24 weeks, one day a week.  (This program can run over $1000.  Other Co-ops divide insurance and lease fees among the members.) Another example is Classical Cottage, a consortium.  This group runs more like a private school, but is oriented to home-school families.   Locally, the scope for each Co-op varies.  Younger groups might run play dates, LEGO clubs, or park days.  Other groups focus almost exclusively on field trips.  

Different Co-ops even teach the same subjects differently.  For example, I teach science classes twice a week.  Class is 1 1/2 hours and includes instruction, labs, projects,  and activities.  Tests and reading are done at home.  Another local instructor teaches using only the textbook.  Still another Co-op nearby meets once a week to do the labs, exclusively. All of the instruction, questions, and tests are completed apart from Co-op.

Ask some questions before you join a Co-op.  What does the Co-op offer? Classes?  Field trips? Performing arts?  Debate?   How often does the group meet? Where do they meet?   What are the parent responsibilities?  What are the fees?  How does your family hope to benefit from a Co-op?  Ask all manner of questions before you join.

The order matters!

  I just finished a summer marathon: VBS, Science Camp, and two weeks of Faith Camp.  Now I’m trying to rough in lessons for the anatomy class this fall.  Do you know what is important when planning lessons, whether it is for a camp or class?   One key aspect is to determine the order of topics, labs, or activities.  We played suitcase relay the last day of Faith Camp—not the first!  We smashed open geodes outside the last day of Science Camp—not the first day my husband suggested.  Why?  When you do something that fun, you have to top it.  Instead, build a crescendo.  The same goes for class.  Many families teach math first thing in the morning.  One, the kiddos are fresh; two, math is hard.  After you get math out of the way, the other subjects aren’t as daunting. 

 Rule one is to do the worst first.  I start class with a review or introduction, usually for about ten minutes.  After we launch into activities, the labs or projects are tiered from least fun to most fun.  We meet Tuesdays and Thursdays.  I’m more likely to schedule lab on Thursday to get kids to finish work on Tuesday before starting lab.  

Rule two is to combine tedious assignments.   For example, viewing and sketching slides is dull.  We stack a few sections together and get it out of the way.  Let your kiddo do a week’s worth of geography on Monday.  Make Tuesday spelling and vocabulary day.

Rule Three is to inject a fun or novel event as a motivator.  At VBS we paint with tape on Friday.  I used tiny peg dolls mini kits as motivation for Faith Camp.  (We bring sharpies and hot glue guns to elevate Camp.  They paint and Modge-Podge, too.) Let the kiddos know that Friday they’re making ice-cream in a bag or in our case, edible aquifers.  Do I use candy labs?  Absolutely!  Cutting up gummy bears to learn anatomical positions and directions gives kids a little lift.  Remember to do the fun lab, craft, or activity last!

History: Free Tours

 Many home-school Co-ops take field trips.  My friend, Jen, is teaching American History for the local Co-op. She is planning field trips.  The Quantico area and Washington D.C. both are treasure troves for history instruction.  But don’t overlook smaller sites.  We are only about two hours from Winchester, VA, where our family lived for years.  It is loaded with history.  It is also very walkable and loaded with free resources, especially downtown. It’s nothing like trekking around the Mall in D.C. 

 The first stop in Winchester is the Visitor’s Center.  Winchester has both guided and self-guided tours with brochures, such as Walking Washington’s Winchester.  George Washington had a surveyor’s office in Winchester.  Winchester changed hands over 70 times during the Civil War; here is the Civil War Years walking tour.  Check out the History and Architecture brochure, too.  Small Town Love and Trip Advisor have some great photos of the downtown area.  Another stop is the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley.  Admission for individuals and families is free on Wednesdays, from 10 am to 4 pm. The biggest local battlefield is Cedar Creek.  What about your hometown or a neighboring city?  

Immersive Approach to History

 Three of us in from our Co-op were talking after Mass about my friend, Jen’s American History class.  We all agree on an immersive approach.  Jen suggested little games.  The kids might try playing games from the history period they are studying.  My friend, Christine, offered loads of graphic nonfiction and comics for American History.  We talked about field trips to Civil War sites; we live in Virginia where history abounds.  Lastly, there are loads of museums within two hours of home: Marine Corps Museum, Mt.Vernon, Ferry Farm, to name a few.  Have you heard about borrowing education or traveling trunks?  How about making crafts specific to the period?  How did people worship?  

You can replicate this approach, too.  Jen is using Stobaugh’s AmericanHistory textbook as an outline.  She is collecting materials enhance her class: posters, comics, videos, and Drive Through History.  Take inspiration from the hands-on history book below. Now saturate your program with loads and loads of fun to round out your program and bring history to life!

What does our Co-op space look like?

 In case you were wondering, I don’t have a polished or staged Co-op space.  This fall, four of us will use my basement classroom.  Here is an unvarnished view of our space.