I am rethinking my plans for the fall for my two boys (3rd and 1st grade). I was planning on using My Father’s World Exploring Countries and Cultures, but I’ve been looking through the Teacher’s Manual and I just really don’t like it. I still want to emphasize geography and cultures this year, so I think I am going to use Expedition Earth. I think I have Bible figured out, so now I need science. My youngest said he wants to learn about space and my oldest said human body. Is there anything out there that I can do maybe some simple units on these two subjects? I really want something inexpensive and simple. Like memorizing planets and parts of the body. I don’t think we need depth at these ages. I would also like something either Christian or world view neutral, but not Apologia (I just feel like the books throw out a lot of Creationist opinions without showing HOW things point to God, more of a “it’s this way cause I said so” kind of thing). Can anyone help me with this? Does anything exist that sounds like it would fit what I am looking for?
You might look at Answers in Genesis: God’s Design for Science. They have individual units on the Human Body and one called Our Universe that focuses on the planets. We are using it this coming school year for the Universe and for Plants. Each teacher and student book set with a CD for downloading worksheets and quizzes costs around $33 and you could add library books for additional reading on the subjects. These studies are supposedly for grades 3-8 but I am gearing down the ones we are doing for my 2nd grader. We have also used Elemental Science in the past few years. Their Biology for the Grammar Stage has a 10-week Human Body component and they also have Earth Science and Astronomy which includes studies of Space. I think the price is comparable to the God’s Design for Science. You might find the God’s Design for Science listed at HomeschoolClassifieds.com for a lesser price. 
You might also be interested in allinonehomeschool.com for the Human Body here:
https://allinonehomeschool.com/science-year-1/
The first 85 “days” of assignments in the Biology level focus on the Human Body. We used this Website this past year for two ancient history studies and I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of activities and teaching notes.
This site also has a study on Earth Science. The first 120 “days” focus on weather, rocks, etc. but Day 121 begins the study on Space. This site is all free and all online for the most part (we supplemented with books to read and some lapbooks we found online). Here is that link: https://allinonehomeschool.com/science-earth-science/
One space book we found useful was The Solar System by Rosalind Mist. You can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Solar-System-Rosalind-Mist/dp/1609926889/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1469492319&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Solar+System+Rosalind+Mist
We used this a few years ago when my Kindergartner then wanted to study space. It’s full of color pictures, interesting facts and even some demonstrations/experiment type activities that you can do for each planet.
I hope these ideas help a little!
Thank you so much for all of these ideas! AIG sounds like what I’m looking for, so I will take a good look. I think I’ve avoided it because I figured I would have the same issue that I had with Apologia, which felt more like a YE Creationist sales pitch than science. I have no issues with that worldview, but I didn’t like how it was presented. Anyway, I will give AIG a closer look now. Thanks!
You are so welcome! I hope you find something that works well. God’s Design for Science does come from a YE perspective, but from what I can see so far from the materials I purchased, it seems to be presented in the introduction and not as strongly in the lessons themselves. Best wishes for a great year!
This is a seperat question from this particular question, but your answer was so thorough I thought I’d ask:) I looking for a free Christian character study, I was told about it once and can’t find it now! It’s online, has printables for numerous activities per character trait, and ties everything in with a verse or 2…I know it’s not much to go:/ but I’d love any help you could give😁
Hi there @Luvmyboys! I wish I knew the study you are referring to! I do know of two different Web sites available for free Character studies. The only thing you would need to add is a verse to go along (I wish they provided one with these studies, but I have found that searching online for verses related to Compassion or Respect, etc. are fairly easy to find, so that might be an option for you). The first link is to Character First Education which provides a host of activities to do with each Character study including several printables for each one and a full-color poster you can print if you’d like. This one is the more complete of the two I know of. The link is here: http://characterfirsteducation.com/c/curriculum.php
The family that uses this has an online post with lots of details as to how they use these materials, and it is very helpful to read. That link is here: http://www.largefamiliesonpurpose.com/2011/08/character-training-for-children-core.html
The second one is a post from a homeschool family and they describe how they do Character studies using a simple formula for each Character quality. They also offer two printables that you can use with any Character (the printable includes a worksheet and a form with numerous Character qualities to pick from). That link is here: http://www.blessedbeyondadoubt.com/homeschool-character-stud/
I’m sorry I can’t be of more help! I hope one of these two sites will provide something useful! We use Character Concepts but that, unfortunately, is not free. We have really enjoyed it though! Let me know if I can be of any more help!
@CPJess I realized I had the links in the wrong places in my reply to you so I edited my post and added the correct links to the Allinonehomeschool.com site
@erica did a 10 days of Character Studies series several years ago. It is still on her blog if you are interested in checking it out. It’s free. 
http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/category/bible/character-studies
I will definitely check it out! Thank you:)
You may be interested in the Biblical Character series by Institute in Basic Life Principles. They post free materials each month. The studies are very similar to those of Character First but they have biblical references, a Bible story to illustrate each trait, a hymn, and a coloring sheet. They also use the same animals for each character trait. Someone told me they are made by the same company, I am not really sure.
Here is the link http://iblp.org/programs/biblical-character
Scroll down to the section “Downloadable Children´s Curriculum”. They post a free character study each month. At this very moment you will find materials for Creativity, but each month they post a new character trait. There are three files http://iblp.org/programs/biblical-character/creativity Hope this helps!
You found it!!! It was the Character First study!!! many, many thanks!!!
Thank you! To just clicked over to it and liked it a lot too! I think that particular study would be a great fit for my older kiddo. I LOVE the idea of monthly themes, plus I can still see the archives. Thank you again!
I looked more into the Blessed Beyond study, and I LOVE the blank template! I’m planning on printing that and having my older kiddo use it with another study:) great resources! I hope other mamas read this thread, I think it will help a lot of families looking for a new study for the new school year! Maybe we should start a new topic and post it all?
That would be a good idea I think! Maybe just a new topic with information about what thread these links are found in? I am so glad that Character information is helpful! I didn’t now about the link @Elizabeth referenced, so I am going to bookmark that one for future use!
Hi CPJess! Have you looked at Sassafras Science Adventures or Elemental Science? These are from the same company, but are two different science curricula. They are Christian/worldview neutral. They both have options for space and anatomy! I think they are a decent price, nothing outrageous. They also have a lapbooking option which could be good for your first grader if he isn’t writing well yet. The Sassafras curriculum is very gentle and fun. I have the zoology book with the lapbooking pages and my son loves it.
For me, science is one of the hardest subjects to find, and like you, I do NOT like Apologia elementary books! I agree that science doesn’t have to be heavy at these ages. You could always buy a DK First encyclopedia on space and anatomy and grab a Dover coloring book or two from Amazon and use a simple notebooking page each day for the kids to draw/write about what was read for the day. Search out a few youtube videos and check out library books. I think its possible to make your own science very cheaply with a little time!
Some links for you!