Science Shepherd vs Apologia Biology Comparison

Homeschool High School Biology

One of the common questions we receive is how we compare to some of the other homeschool science curriculum providers. To help families with this, we have put together a series of blog posts comparing Science Shepherd Homeschool Science Curriculum to some of the other popular science curriculums available. Each is a general side-by-side comparison, and not an in-depth review of each resource. Today, we’ll start by looking at high school Biology from Science Shepherd and Apologia.

Textbook

Summary: Direct comparison of Science Shepherd Biology and Apologia’s Exploring Creation with Biology is perhaps not a direct 1:1 comparison. Each was written with a specific scope and goal in mind, and they are not the same between the two products. Science Shepherd Biology covers the same biology topics as Apologia’s Exploring Creation with Biology and adds substantial sections on human anatomy and physiology. Another major difference is the structure of the lab material. Science Shepherd labs are contained in a separate, but completely integrated, lab workbook, while that same material is included within the Apologia Textbook. The Science Shepherd stand-alone lab manual is 85 pages, so consider that, combined with the fact that Science Shepherd Biology is already ~70 pages longer than Apologia’s biology product, as highlighting the substantial difference in content. Science Shepherd’s Biology is more comparable to combining Apologia’s Exploring Creation with Biology with Apologia’s Advanced Biology than it is as a direct comparison to Apologia’s Exploring Creation with Biology alone. Also, note all Science Shepherd Biology interactive eBooks are an 18-month subscription to the material.

Answer Key & Parent Companion / Solutions And Test Manual

Summary: The answer keys for Science Shepherd and Apologia both provide the necessary study question and test question answers. The major difference here is that Science Shepherd adds a Parent Companion, which provides a condensed overview of the textbook, with section-by-section key teaching points, as well as additional review questions parents can ask their student(s), all to help make sure they are correctly understanding the material. Apologia does include a set of tests with their answer key.

Test Booklet

Summary: No major difference here. The tests for Science Shepherd Biology occur every few chapters, while those for Apologia Exploring Creation with Biology occur once every module (which appears to be equivalent to “every few chapters”).

Lastly, for the core curriculum, we'll mention the available bundles. Science Shepherd Biology can be purchased in a 3-Book Set, containing the Textbook, Answer Key & Parent Companion, and Test Booklet, for $90.25 or with the Video Course (see below) starting at $247.50. Apologia Exploring Creation with Biology is available with the Textbook and Solutions and Test Manual for $102.95, or in various bundle configurations (see some of the "Additional Resources" below) from $136-$340.95.

Now, we'll move on to some of the add-on material available.

Video Course

Science Shepherd and Apologia both have optional video courses available for their high school biology curriculum. Science Shepherd’s homeschool Biology Video Course is a studio-produced lecture, while Apologia offers two formats; a live class or recording of a prior live lecture through Apologia Live Online Classes, and a studio/on-location produced Instructional Video. The following is a brief review of those courses.

Summary: The basic idea behind the Science Shepherd and the Apologia video courses is the same, teach through the textbook material, and they share some similarities. Ultimately, the methodology of the Science Shepherd Biology Video Course falls in the middle of the two Apologia courses, offering the depth of content, at 42+ hours, of the Apologia Live Online Biology, with the studio-produced presentation of the Apologia Instructional Video. Apologia Live Online Biology also includes having all student work graded by Apologia’s own professor. However, this option is not self-paced and requires the student to commit to a more rigid schedule. On the other hand, Science Shepherd's Biology Video Course offers online chapter review questions with automatic scoring, and the course is entirely self-paced, with a syllabus included to complete the course in one school year, which almost all students can do. Or, with the standard Lifetime subscription (no expiration date) students/families can complete the course on any schedule, or complete the course multiple times.

Additional Resources

Lastly, Science Shepherd and Apologia have additional high school Biology resources available that are not necessarily part of each core Biology curriculum. We won’t go into a detailed review of those resources but have listed them below. As we mentioned previously, Science Shepherd Labs are included in a separate Lab Manual, while Apologia includes theirs within the Textbook. However, their Student Notebook, listed below, includes lab worksheets (along with other material).

We hope this has been a helpful overview to you of the homeschool Biology curriculum for high school available from Science Shepherd and Apologia! If you have any questions about our material, please send us a message through our contact page, and we would be happy to help.

Note: Information and pricing accurate, as much as it has been understood, as of May 9, 2019. Revised December 6, 2023.

Until Next Time!
Science Shepherd