Free Preview: Fundamentals of Chemistry

Wondering if Science Shepherd's Fundamentals of Chemistry is right for your family? Check out our free preview! It provides access to multiple video lessons and corresponding workbook pages, a chapter review quiz, and additional PDFs.

Science Shepherd's homeschool chemistry curriculum, written by Dr. Scott Hardin, is a comprehensive middle school course presented in an easy-to-follow format that integrates textbook, lesson videos, workbook, and labs. The course prepares students for higher level chemistry in the areas of data collection and standardization, atoms, bonding, organic chemistry and more. Students also learn how the observations of chemistry support biblical creation. Fundamentals of Chemistry was designed for independent study, with concepts presented in an easy-to-learn format. With the supplementary teacher information provided in the Answer Key & Parent Companion, parents can be involved in their student's learning without needing to be a chemistry expert.

• Middle school grades 7-8 (ages 12-14).
• Introductory high school chemistry (ages 14+).
• High school chemistry for a "non-science" student (ages 14+).

Science Shepherd for middle school is one of Cathy Duffy's 103 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum, is a 2022-2025 Homeschool.com Educational Website Awards Winner, and receives rave reviews from families. You can be confident that our Fundamentals of Chemistry will provide an excellent educational experience to your student.

Can I just use the Fundamentals of Chemistry Video Course alone; do I really need the textbook?

The short answer is that the materials included with the video series can stand alone (especially when using the optional Workbook), but the optimal learning experience will not be attained without the textbook; however, there are nuances to that answer that deserve explaining. I have no doubt that if the video alone is utilized, your student will receive a most excellent learning experience, equal to/better than that of the other video-only based middle school chemistry programs out there. The nuance in the answer is that it depends upon what you and your student’s goal is for learning chemistry. If the goal is to ensure a solid experience for someone who struggles with science and isn’t going to pursue too much further learning in the biological or physical sciences, then the video only approach will absolutely achieve that goal. On the other hand, if the student is highly interested in biological/physical science and/or wants to pursue it further after this class, then, while the video itself is “complete” in that all of the material in the text is presented in the video, the video alone will not provide adequate ability for the student or teacher to assess the completeness of understanding of the material. I think the ideal way to learn this material is to both read and hear it (students who are challenged with text-based learning often do quite well with the text after watching the information first presented visually), with the text ultimately serving as a ready reference should a question arise (in which case trying to find the relevant material on one of more than 80 video clips amassed over more than 7 hours of video will be quite challenging). In addition, the end of chapter questions in the book are designed to test complete mastery of the subject matter (and they are ideally set up for both text-based learners and auditory learners) since they are true-false and short answer questions. This is, by far, the most thorough way to assess your student’s understanding of the material (as opposed to multiple choice or fill in the blank). If the video series is used alone, this valuable knowledge testing resource will be lost. Now, it is true that I have developed multiple choice questions that are integrated into the video series and learning platform but, again, they are really designed as a supplement for, rather than a substitute of, the questions in the text itself.

How are creation and evolution handled?

Since these are science courses that were written by a Christian, probably the most common question I am asked is, “What about evolution and creation?” The answer really starts and ends with the Bible. It is the unerring Word of God and, as such, provides the framework upon which everything is understandable, including science. As such, all Science Shepherd material is presented from a literal understanding of Genesis, teaching that God created the universe and everything in it in 6 literal, 24-hour days, about 6,000 years ago. Now, why evolution in Christian-based courses? It is important to cover evolution and some basic principles because our children will be constantly bombarded with it throughout their lives.

Additional FAQs . . .