My Account Wish List Shopping Cart Log In
Store Location

Science Resources

Sometimes the best way to teach a subject is to lay some ground rules and then let students actually "do" what they're studying. This is especially true of science, a study predicated on activity, experimentation and the observation of physical properties. It's also one of the best ways to get kids interested in science in the first place.

If he hadn't stood atop the Tower of Pisa dropping things off the edge, Galileo would never have made his observation that objects of any weight fall at the same rate in a vacuum. Archimedes had to get in the tub to discover that it is volume that displaces water. And the only way Newton could discover calculus was by scribbling numbers on pieces of paper.

Your kid probably isn't the next Einstein, but that doesn't mean he shouldn't learn as much about science as possible, or that he should do so with his hands tied behind his back. The problem with a lot of science textbooks is that they emphasize book knowledge without taking into account the hands-on nature of science and science learning. Observation is often touted as an essential part of the science process, but rarely is it enforced in the typical school curriculum.

Science resources can change all that. There are plenty of fact-based books (particularly those from Usborne) that pair facts with vivid illustrations, and those are fun for rainy days—kids are a lot better at acquiring and retaining raw information than we often give them credit for. But those are just a place to start; the options are limitless.

One of the best sorts of science resource are books filled with experiments. Whether it's Explorabook from Klutz Press which focuses on fun activities and includes everything you need to complete them, or Vicki Cobb's Bet You Can! experiments using household items, or the more advanced Science for Every Kid books by Janice VanCleave, you aren't likely to run out of options.

Astronomy is more observation-oriented, and we offer plenty of books on that topic, too. The Stars by H.A. Rey is a now-classic guide to the night sky for beginners, while Starry Messenger explains some of the basic tenets of modern astronomy through the (detailed and beautifully illustrated) life of Galileo Galilei. Isaac Asimov has written a number of books on space science, as has Seymour Simon.

Just letting your kids outside with notebooks and maybe a magnifying glass is as good as any book for helping them develop a love of nature and nature study, though manuals to help them identify plants, animals, rocks, etc. is a good idea. One of our favorite such books is the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock.

Keeping a well-stocked chemistry lab is a good idea for older students. Many experiments require chemicals, ingredients and equipment you aren't likely to just have lying around, so you'll need to be intentional about keeping a lot of those things stocked. Field trips are always a good idea as well, whether to a local laboratory, observatory, zoo, factory, or anywhere else that strikes your kids' fancy and has educational potential.

Whatever else you do, keep an open mind while guiding your kids' science education. The beauty of God's world and the excitement of learning about it should always be kept in view; whatever difficulty there is in physics, biology or chemistry should be met head on but not dwelt on or made cause for discouragement. Have fun, and don't restrict your science time to reading stuff—take time to actually do science, and you might find along with your children that it isn't such a bad thing to study after all.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

 

Did you find this review helpful?
Parent Categories
Science Resources
Subcategories
Related Links
Homeschool OMSI
104 Items found Print
Filter
Active Filters: 6th grade (Ages 11-12), Trade Paperback, New Books & Materials
Across America on an Emigrant Train
by Jim Murphy
from Sandpiper Books
for 5th-8th grade
1994 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$10.95
Basher Science: Astronomy
Basher Science
by Simon Basher, Dan Green
Pap/Pstr from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$9.99
Basher Science: Engineering
by Simon Basher, Tom Jackson
Reprint from Kingfisher
for 2nd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Basher Science: Extreme Physics
Basher Science
by Simon Basher, Dan Green
8.4.2013 from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$9.99
Basher Science: Human Body
Basher Science
by Simon Basher, Dan Green
Pap/Pstr from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$8.99
Basher Science: Microbiology
Basher Science
by Simon Basher, Dan Green
Pap/Pstr from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$9.99
Basher Science: Oceans
Basher Science
by Simon Basher, Dan Green
Pap/Chrt from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$9.99
Basher Science: Physics: Why Matter Matters
Basher Science
by Dan Green, Simon Basher
First Edition from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Basher Science: Technology
Basher Science
by Simon Basher, Dan Green
Pap/Pstr from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$8.99 $6.29 (1 in stock)
Basher Science: The Periodic Table
Basher Science
by Simon Basher, Adrian Dingle
Pap/Pstr from Kingfisher
for 3rd-6th grade
in Basher Science (Location: SCI-BASH)
$8.99
Biology Experiments for Children
by Ethel Hanauer
from Dover Publications
for 4th-6th grade
in Biology (Location: SCI-BIO)
$5.95
Birds: Nature's Magnificent Flying Machines
by Caroline Arnold
from Charlesbridge
for 3rd-6th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$7.95
Book of Birds
by Sarah Jo Davis & Kalee Miller
2nd edition from Memoria Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Memoria Press Science (Location: SCICUR-MP)
$20.50
Book of Insects - Student Text
by Arabella Buckley & Julia McNair Wright
from Memoria Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Memoria Press Science (Location: SCICUR-MP)
$17.35
Book of Insects - Student Text (old)
by Arabella Buckley & Julia McNair Wright
1st edition from Memoria Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Old Edition Science (Location: OSCI)
$10.50 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Trees
by Sean Brooks
2nd edition from Memoria Press
for 6th-8th grade
in Memoria Press Science (Location: SCICUR-MP)
$17.35
Burgess Bird Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Dover Publications
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$12.95
Calcium (True Books: Elements)
by Antonia Cunningham
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Chemistry (Location: SCI-CHEM)
$6.95 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Champions of Invention
Champions of Discovery
by John Hudson Tiner
from Master Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Inventions & Discoveries (Location: SCI-INV)
$4.79 $3.50 (3 in stock)
Chasing Space for Young Readers
by Leland Melvin
from Amistad Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Space Race & Exploration (Location: HISA-20SPR)
$7.99
Coolies
by Yin, illustrated by Chris Soentpiet
from Puffin Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Transcontinental Railroad (Location: HISA-19TRR)
$7.99
DK Eyewitness: Forensic Science
by Chris Cooper
from DK Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
in Espionage & Forensic Science (Location: SCI-CRIME)
$9.99
DK Eyewitness: Horse
DK Eyewitness Series
by Juliet Clutton-Brock
from DK Publishing
Science Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Horses & Ponies (Location: SCI-MAMHOR)
$9.99
DK Eyewitness: Human Body
DK Eyewitness Series
by Steve Parker
from DK Publishing
Science Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Human Anatomy & Physiology (Location: SCI-ANA)
$9.99
Draw 50 Baby Animals
by Lee J. Ames, Murray Zak
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Birds
by Lee Ames & Tony D'Adamo
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Boats, Ships, Trucks, and Trains
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Cars, Trucks, and Motorcycles
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Draw 50 Cats
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Dinosaurs
by Lee J. Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Dogs
by Lee Ames
from Broadway Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Sharks, Whales, and Other Sea Creatures
by Lee Ames
from Broadway Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Vehicles
by Lee Ames
Reprint from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw the Draw 50 Way
by Lee Ames
Reprint from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Ereth's Birthday
Poppy Stories #4
by Avi
from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Exploring the World of Astronomy
by John Hudson Tiner
from Master Books
for 5th-12th grade
in Memoria Press Science (Location: SCICUR-MP)
$15.19 $10.00 (2 in stock)
Find the Constellations
by H. A. Rey
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
Non-Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in Astronomy (Space) (Location: SCI-AST)
$11.99
First Book of Machines
by Walter Buehr
from Living Library Press
for 4th-6th grade
in How Things Work (Location: SCIREF-HOW)
$12.95
Focus On Middle School Physics - Teacher's Manual
by Rebecca W. Keller
from Gravitas Publications, Inc.
for 5th-8th grade
in Real Science-4-Kids (old editions) (Location: OSCI-RS4K)
$14.00
Fun with Gene - Workbook & Teacher Key
by N.C. Bailey & N.L. Eskeland
from Science2Discover, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Clearance: Science & Health (Location: ZCLE-SCI)
$8.00
Galen and the Gateway to Medicine
by Jeanne Bendick
from Bethlehem Books
Biography for 5th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.95
Great Wheel
by Robert Lawson
from Walker and Company
Realistic fiction for 4th-8th grade
1958 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99 $6.00 (2 in stock)
Hidden Figures: Young Reader's Edition
from Harper
for 3rd-6th grade
in Space Race & Exploration (Location: HISA-20SPR)
$9.99
History of US Book 10
History of US Book 10
by Joy Hakim
4th edition from Oxford University
American History Reference for 5th-9th grade
in History of US (Location: HISA-HAKIM)
$15.95
History's Mysteries! Animals
by George Toufexis
from Dover Publications
for 4th-7th grade
in Animal Life Coloring Books (Location: COL-ANI)
$3.00
Human Anatomy in Full Color
by John Green
from Dover Publications
for 4th-12th grade
in Human Anatomy & Physiology (Location: SCI-ANA)
$9.95
Industrial Revolution
by Carla Mooney
from Nomad Press
for 2nd-8th grade
in Industrialization & Organized Labor (Location: HISA-19IND)
$15.95 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Janice VanCleave's Astronomy for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Astronomy (Space) (Location: SCI-AST)
$16.00
Janice VanCleave's Biology for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Biology (Location: SCI-BIO)
$14.95 $9.00 (3 in stock)
Janice VanCleave's Chemistry for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Chemistry (Location: SCI-CHEM)
$14.95 $8.00 (2 in stock)
Janice VanCleave's Earth Science for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Earth Science (Location: SCI-EARTH)
$14.95 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Janice VanCleave's Food and Nutrition for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Health Resources (Location: HEAL-REF)
$14.95
Janice VanCleave's Human Body for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Human Anatomy & Physiology (Location: SCI-ANA)
$14.95
Janice VanCleave's Oceans for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Oceanography & Marine Biology (Location: SCI-OCEAN)
$16.00
Janice VanCleave's Physics for Every Kid
Janice VanCleave's Science for Every Kid Series
by Janice VanCleave
from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Physics (Location: SCI-PHY)
$14.95
Junk Drawer Ecology
by Bobby Mercer
from Chicago Review Press
for 4th-Adult
in Science Experiments & Activities (Location: SCI-EXP)
$16.99
Life Cycles of Butterflies
by Judy Burris, Wayne Richards
from Storey Publishing
for 3rd-6th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$16.95
Life of the Spider
by J. H. Fabre
from Purple House Press
for 5th-8th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$12.99 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Making It Go: The Life and Work of Robert Fulton
by Don Herweck
from Teacher Created Materials, Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.00
Marine Biology Coloring Book
2nd edition from Collins
for 4th-9th grade
in Oceanography & Marine Biology (Location: SCI-OCEAN)
$24.99 $13.00 (1 in stock)
Minn of the Mississippi
by Holling C. Holling
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic fiction for 3rd-8th grade
1952 Newbery Honor Book
in BFB Holling Geography (Location: HISCUR-BFG)
$12.99
My First Human Body Book
by Donald Silver, Patricia J. Wynne
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Anatomy Coloring Books (Location: SCI-ANACOL)
$3.99
Mystery of the Periodic Table
by Benjamin Wiker
from Bethlehem Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Chemistry (Location: SCI-CHEM)
$15.95
National Audubon Society Field Guide to Mammals
by John O. Whitaker
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 5th-10th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$26.00
National Audubon Society Field Guide to Shells
Reprint from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 4th-Adult
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$24.95
National Audubon Society Field Guide to Trees: Western Region
by Elbert L. Little
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 4th-Adult
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$26.00
Ocean Anatomy
by Julia Rothman
from Storey Publishing
for 6th-Adult
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$18.99
Oxygen (True Books: Elements)
by Salvatore Tocci
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Chemistry (Location: SCI-CHEM)
$6.95 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Pagoo
by Holling C. Holling
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic fiction for 3rd-8th grade
in BFB Holling Geography (Location: HISCUR-BFG)
$12.99
Peterson First Guide to Butterflies and Moths
by Paul A. Opler
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for 5th-12th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$7.95
Peterson First Guide to Insects
Peterson First Guide
by Christopher Leahy
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$9.99
Peterson First Guide to Mammals of North America
by Peter Alden
3rd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for 3rd-6th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$8.99
Peterson First Guide to Rocks and Minerals
by Frederick H. Pough
from Houghton Mifflin
for 5th-8th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$7.95
Physics Experiments for Children
by Muriel Mandell
from Dover Publications
for 4th-6th grade
in Physics (Location: SCI-PHY)
$7.95 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Picture History of Great Inventors
by Gillian Clements
from Beautiful Feet Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Inventions & Discoveries (Location: SCI-INV)
$17.95
Quest for the Tree Kangaroo
Scientists in the Field Series
by Sy Montgomery
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-7th grade
2007 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book, 2007 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Rock is Lively
by Dianna Hutts Aston
from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$8.99
ScienceWorks: Simple Chemistry Grades 4-6
by Jill Farinelli
from Evan-Moor Educational Publishers
for 4th-6th grade
in Evan-Moor Science (Location: ZCLE-EM)
$9.79
Seabird
by Holling C. Holling
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic fiction for 3rd-8th grade
1949 Newbery Honor Book
in BFB Holling Geography (Location: HISCUR-BFG)
$12.99
Seed Is Sleepy
by Dianna Hutts Aston, Sylvia Long
from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$7.99
Shy Stegosaurus of Cricket Creek
by Evelyn Sibley Lampman, illustrated by Herbert Buel
from Purple House Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.00
Shy Stegosaurus of Cricket Creek
by Evelyn Sibley Lampman, illustrated by Herbert Buel
from Purple House Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.99
Shy Stegosaurus of Indian Springs
by Evelyn Sibley Lampman, illustrated by Herbert Buel
from Purple House Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.99
Starry Messenger
by Peter Sis
from Square Fish Publishing
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
1997 Caldecott Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.99
Story of Inventions
by Frank Bachman & Michael McHugh
from Christian Liberty Press
for 6th grade
in CLP Phonics & Reading (Location: REA-CLP)
$14.50
Tapir Scientist
by Nic Bishop, Sy Montgomery
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 5th-7th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$9.99
Teaching Technology Through Interest Projects
by Jennifer Katherine Brooks
from Critical Thinking Books
for 3rd-12th grade
in How Things Work (Location: SCIREF-HOW)
$14.99
Ten Mile Day
by Mary Ann Fraser
from Henry Holt and Company
Historical Non-Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Transcontinental Railroad (Location: HISA-19TRR)
$10.99
The Defender
by Nicholas Kalashnikoff
Dover 2017 from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
1952 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$5.95
Thomas Edison for Kids
by Laurie Carlson
from Chicago Review Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Inventions & Discoveries (Location: SCI-INV)
$19.99
Tree in the Trail
by Holling C. Holling
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic fiction for 3rd-8th grade
in BFB Holling Geography (Location: HISCUR-BFG)
$12.99
Trees and Shrubs of the Pacific Northwest
Timber Press Field Guides
by Ellen Kuhlmann, Mark Turner
from Timber Press, Inc.
for 4th-Adult
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$29.95
Tropical Birds - Coloring Book
by Lucia de Leiris
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Bird Coloring Books (Location: COL-BIRD)
$4.99
Underground
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$12.99
Usborne Living World Encyclopedia
by Emma Speare, Lesley Colvin
from Usborne
for 4th-6th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$13.49 $8.10 (3 in stock)
Usborne Mysteries and Marvels of Nature
Usborne Internet-Linked
by Elizabeth Dalby
from Usborne
for 4th-8th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$15.29 $10.80 (1 in stock)
Volcano
by Patricia Lauber
from Simon and Schuster
for 3rd-6th grade
1987 Newbery Honor Book
$9.99 $6.00 (4 in stock)
Ways of Wood Folk
by William Joseph Long
from CreateSpace
for 2nd-6th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$11.99
We Were There at the Driving of the Golden Spike
by David Shepherd, William K. Plummer
Reprint from Dover Publications
for 5th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
Who Was Alexander Graham Bell?
Who Was?...Series
by Bonnie Bader
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-6th grade
in Who Was? biographies (Location: BIO-WHO)
$5.99
12
Sign Up!

Shop

Support

Hours & Directions

Learn more about our store location and hours

Connect

503.655.1951

hello@exodusbooks.com

19146 Molalla Ave,
Oregon City, OR 97045