I was thrilled to get a chance to review two nature unit studies that relate to God's creation:
Snow Unit Study
Pine Trees Unit Study
From Creation Illustrated and I also had access to the digital issues of the specific magazine to which each unit study corresponds:
Winter '18 Digital Edition
Fall '17 Digital Edition
Winter '18 Digital Edition
Fall '17 Digital Edition
On a side note: Who would have expected that to follow up this study, we would also actually get SNOW ON EASTER SUNDAY!?
It's a perfect combination - Expand an already gorgeous, colorful, information-packed magazine by offering an in-depth unit study that corresponds to one of the stories in each issue. For the review, we focused on the Snow Unit Study, but there is more than just a study on snow. The Creation Illustrated colorful magazine Winter edition '18 contains a story that relates to the snow unit study, and the Fall '17 magazine has a story inside that relates to the Pine Trees Units Study. The stories enhance the studies, and they work hand-in-hand to enrich both the unit studies and the magazine stories.
What is Creation Illustrated?
Creation Illustrated is entering their 25th year of publications. Readers often refer to it as "The Christian answer to National Geographic!" They are unique in that they present Christ's method of teaching using the things that He made.
Each edition of Creation Illustrated is divided into three sections:
- Creation Illustrated In Nature
- Creation Illustrated In Scripture
- Creation Illustrated In Living
These sections provide a balance of Mind, Spirit and Body.
Additionally, each issue easily serves as an Instructional Guide for homeschoolers to create lessons using the articles in the magazine. There is also a Genesis Cuisine recipes section, and coloring, photo and poetry contest for kids!
Subscriptions to the quarterly Digital editions will be available soon. Subscriptions to the Ad-free quarterly PRINT editions of Creation Illustrated are for 1 year and available for 25% Off at:
http://www.creationillustrated.com/subscriptions
If you choose to subscribe, please use this link, and check out their Affiliate Program while you're at it !
If you choose to subscribe, please use this link, and check out their Affiliate Program while you're at it !
Creation Illustrated magazine is for all ages. The corresponding Creation Unit Studies primarily target Grades 5-8 with benefits available to other age groups as well.
Here is a sneak peek at their newest, Spring 2018 cover which has a corresponding story to their latest nature unit study on butterflies with transformational character studies:
What are the nature Unit Studies?
The unit studies cover an in-depth study. The ones I got to review included one to snow and the other to pine trees. There is also a butterflies unit study in the latest spring edition. They are a study guide that you purchase as a PDF download from the site and include links to additional resources about the history, geography, science, vocabulary, and even math related to snow and pine trees. The best part is, however, all of the scripture references that relate to the subject matter.
I received two unit studies that were in PDF form that I downloaded. I also received access to the Winter '18 and the fall '17 digital version of the Creation Illustrated magazine which contain stories that relate to each unit study, and let me tell you - These magazines are packed with articles and information and simply gorgeous pictures. The best part is how it all points back to God's creation.
The Pine Trees unit study includes:
I received two unit studies that were in PDF form that I downloaded. I also received access to the Winter '18 and the fall '17 digital version of the Creation Illustrated magazine which contain stories that relate to each unit study, and let me tell you - These magazines are packed with articles and information and simply gorgeous pictures. The best part is how it all points back to God's creation.
The unit studies are available on the site and can be used by multiple students in one family and are available to download at 30% off.
The Snow Unit Study PDF is primarily intended for students in Grades 5-8 and includes:
The Pine Trees unit study includes:
The snow study begins with links to the Creation magazine that relates to snow, basic information about snow, and a couple of additional informational links about snowflakes like a guide to snowflakes, animals in the cold, and crystals. Then there are six videos to watch about snow. It then moves into vocabulary and writing exercises, Bible verses and spiritual lessons related to snow, the science of snow, a hands-on project, snow math problems, the geography of snow, a sheet where you can draw the various snowflake shapes. There is then a word search and a link to a 3D snowflake art project. The final pages are an answer key.
The pine study is structured much the same way as the snow one, but after the initial links to the magazine and videos and such, it begins with the history of the English word, Pine, which was fascinating to me and then dives more into vocabulary and spelling. It discusses the difference between pine and fir and integrates this with the scripture/Bible section. It discusses the geography of pine before delving into the science section and then presents math problems relating to pine including a portion about Fibonacci numbers. There is then a writing and penmanship section followed by a chance to draw your favorite pine tree. Finally, there is a word search and ends with an answer key.
How Did We Use It?
I downloaded the unit studies and told my daughters. My oldest daughter got excited about studying snow while my younger daughter was mostly excited about the hands-on parts. I printed out part of the pages and chose to use others on-screen using the editing tools that come with the PDF reader:
What Did We Think?
If you weren't interested in snow before you began the snow unit study, you will be before the study draws to a close. There is something for everyone - hands-on, Bible and word studies, math activities, scientific facts, videos, book recommendations, writing, vocabulary, art, and geography. These studies were really in depth. They cover every major subject matter of vocabulary, science, math, and Bible. I really like how they include scripture and Bible verses that relate to the topic.
I was so excited to learn how many times the word snow is mentioned in the Bible and what the Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic word for snow is. I especially appreciated that there were scripture references and then a section that asked the student to write down their favorite verse relating to snow. I really got into the discussions about how snowflakes relate back to biblical principals, such as how snow reflects light and how it remains pure in a sense, even though it is fragile. I loved the part about the purposes of snow and how it relates to us as Christians. We even had fun with the math word problems. I also really appreciated that the amazing photography and bright, colorful pictures from the magazine carried over into the unit study guides. The illustrations and pictures included are really nice and add a lot to the guides in my opinion.
I was so excited to learn how many times the word snow is mentioned in the Bible and what the Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic word for snow is. I especially appreciated that there were scripture references and then a section that asked the student to write down their favorite verse relating to snow. I really got into the discussions about how snowflakes relate back to biblical principals, such as how snow reflects light and how it remains pure in a sense, even though it is fragile. I loved the part about the purposes of snow and how it relates to us as Christians. We even had fun with the math word problems. I also really appreciated that the amazing photography and bright, colorful pictures from the magazine carried over into the unit study guides. The illustrations and pictures included are really nice and add a lot to the guides in my opinion.
Print subscriptions, back issues, products, and FREEbies, sample Digital Back Issues, a Sample Unit Study on Fragrance, and character-building lesson are all available at Creation Illustrated's Site.
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Read what other members of the Homeschool Review Crew thought by clicking on the picture below:
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