The Solar System – Techie Homeschool Mom Review
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Learn about the solar system with us in this Techie Homeschool Mom review. This unschooling family loves interest base and student lead learning – and outer space is always a fascinating topic. Today I will be reviewing the Solar System Online Unit Study.
The Solar System Online Unit Study
The solar system unit study by Techie Homeschool Mom uses the Teachable virtual school platform. I have used this platform for other classes in the past, and was happy to see this unit study use it. I find it very easy to navigate and to know where you left off on your learning journey.
The solar system online unit study is broken up into 10 categories. Each category is then further divided to really focus on specific topics. The categories are:
- Before you start….
- Solar System Overview
- The Sun
- Planetary Orbits
- Gravity
- Planets
- The Rocky Planets
- The Gas Planets
- Comets, Asteroids and Meteors
- Final Project
We worked through each category at our own pace. The boys had seen some of the videos previously. They really enjoy learning about space and the solar system.
Our unschooling approach to learning allows them to focus on and learn about what they are interested in. They have been studying the solar system and outer space for almost a year now so it is not surprising that some of the content they had seen before. When they become interested in a topic, learning does not stop until they have fully satisfied their interest and curiosity.
Book Club
Most of the materials needed, besides some crafting supplies, are digital. The book club is an exception to this – unless you purchase the books for an eReader or Audible.
Beth recommends four books for the book club. Our local library only had one of the recommended books, which we are still waiting for our hold to become available.
Even without being able to get these books, this course still provides a lot of information.
Gravity Lab
One activity, that my children really enjoyed, was the Gravity Lab.
For this project, you are asked to try Galileo’s experiment investigating if all objects fall to Earth at the same rate, regardless of their mass.
We took this project to the next level with our GoPro. I adjusted the frame rate to be able to capture as much detail as we could. We reviewed the footage, filmed in 120fsp, on our computer. The two balls, which were dropped from the same height, of different mass, landed at the same time despite their different mass.
Final Project: Solar System Model
The final project, as apart of this Techie Homeschool Mom review, was to make a model of the solar system.
One of the videos in this course shows what a true scale model solar system would look like. They discuss how none of the images that you see about the solar system are to scale.
My boys really enjoyed this video and had actually seen it before in previous YouTube searches about the topic. Since they would not be able to replicate the immensity of that scale model, they decided to make a model of the solar system using chalk. Paper did not provide a grand enough scale for them to work with. They even included as many moons as possible around the planets – though they were unable to fit all of Saturn’s and Jupiter’s moons around them.
We really enjoyed working with this online unit study.
The videos were entertaining for all ages and the activities provided some extra hands on learning that really helps to understand what is being discussed.
Techie Homeschool Mom
Beth Napolie is the Techie Homeschool Mom. She describes herself as “Just a geeky homeschooling mom inspiring digital learning and healthy tech habits for families.”
I appreciate her approach to these unit studies because it is very similar to how I approach learning with my children. We take a concept that they are interested in and we immerse ourselves fully.
This Techie Homeschool Mom review lined up perfectly with our interests at the moment. We have been doing so much reading and studying about space, so my children were very excited and pleased to be able to take part in this review.
Her website, Techie Homeschool Mom, is full of amazing information and resources. While doing this review, I found myself getting sidetracked by her blog. She has some amazing posts and I cannot wait to go back and read more.
Beth offers many wonderful courses on her website. If you want to read other Techie Homeschool Mom reviews, check out these great reviews from the Homeschool Review Crew:
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