Wednesday, June 10, 2015

A TOS Review: Exploring Creation Field Trip Journal



 

There is nothing better than a Field Trip. Homeschoolers are notorious for making every outing a learning experience. I, myself, have been known to make a trip through the drive thru into a math lesson. The fun ones, however, are those special trips that are out the ordinary…..those days that we get to see and learn new things.  We just had the chance to review the Exploring Creation Field Trip Journal from Apologia Educational Ministries. This is a brand spankin’ new product and we were excited to take it on a test drive.

I can’t say enough about Apologia Educational Ministries. It has to be one of my favorite publishers of Christian education materials. Everything I have ever used from Apologia has been top-notched. The ExploringCreation Field Trip Journal is no exception.

This product reminds me of a scrapbook. It’s got all manner of pages and ideas to help kiddos records their trips and experiences.  There are helpful lists and ideas for field trips.

One of the first things we started was to record the states we had already visited. There is also a place to record visits to your home state and locations around the world as well.
 
 

We haven’t had much opportunity to go traipsing around the world, but it was sure fun to start listing some of our other adventures.

 Shortly after we received the Journal in the mail, we got to participate for a commercial shoot in for a local theme park. It was certainly something that needed to be recorded.
I made sure there were plenty of pictures.

 
 
The Journal has lots of pages for Specific Trips.  It has a place for a map and pictures. It also has a spot to record how the day went.
 
 
We didn't use this little spot for this particular trip, but I sure like this idea. Last spring we went to visit the George Washington Carver Museum. Before we went, Josiah and I read several books about the scientist.
 
 
 
I'm sure Josiah could have figured a few more things to write down in this spot.
 


 
The journal gives you at least 100 ideas for field trips. I personally am ready to go on that Amazon Cruise or African Safari. There is also a password in the book that allows you to explore book extras. The site is a treasure trove of resources for field trips.
 
There is a set of pages called "My Special Spot." It encourages students to visit a special spot during all four seasons and record their findings.

Josiah chose the pond at my parents' farm.


He dictated a few observations and plans recording a few more throughout the summer. Thankfully, there is a lot to see at the farm.



There is another section in the Journal that is called "As I See It."  We haven't used it yet, but you can see that this page is dedicated for observations about the heavens.
 
  

This is such a great product overall. It is spiral bound for easy access and the pages are sturdy and colorful.

I have mention this a few times, but Josiah struggles with handwriting and drawing. He is dyslexic and deals with dysgraphia as well. He is not the kind of kid who is going to sit down with his colored pencils for hours and work in his book. For him, "less is good enough."

Having said all that, I feel that it is really important for us to have a record of this special memories. They not only preserve a moment in time, but they can become an excellent educational resource. I am going to help Josiah make this a special keepsake book for our adventures. I am and have always been the kind of person who loved to doodle, draw, write and record my memories. This is right up my alley. If you are in my shoes I suggest you do something similar. Maybe siblings can work on it together. You can also see that we included plenty of pictures. He did spend a lot of time pouring over those photos. I love that he now has a central place he can access all those adventures once again.

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Exploring Creation Field Trip Journal Review

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