Science was one of my favorite classes in high school, and in college. Before my motherhood and homeschooling days, I was a registered nurse. I actually still enjoy all aspects of science to this day. But to be honest, when it comes to teaching science to my kids, it’s a different story. I just don’t enjoy teaching it as much as I enjoy learning it, especially in the upper grades.
With one kid through high school, one in high school, one on the cusp, and five more in the ranks, I’ve done my fair share of research on options and curriculum for homeschooling science during high school.
I start planning for the high school years during the middle school years. Since it’s important to get in all your required and necessary credits for graduation and college admission, it’s good to have a plan in place BEFORE the high school years even start (but that’s not to say you can’t deviate from that plan if needed).
In most cases you’ll need 2-4 science credits in high school. This will be determined by your state’s homeschool laws, college admission requirements, plus your preference as the parent and teacher. We homeschool in Texas where the laws are very homeschool-friendly and ultimately the parent decides how many credits their child will need to graduate. My husband and I decided that we would shoot for each of our kids to have 4 credits of science on their high school transcript.
Now the question becomes, what courses would fill those credit slots? There are so many options to consider for high school science. I didn’t realize there were so many until I started digging. Of course there is the basic three – biology, chemistry, and physics. But what could be the 4th credit, or even the 3rd credit in some cases as physics isn’t always required for graduation or college admission.
Here is a list of science courses for homeschoolers to consider for high school –
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Physics
- Astronomy
- Forensic Science
- Health & Nutrition
- Creation Science
- Marine Biology
- Zoology
- Anatomy & Physiology
- Geology
- Earth Science
- Physical Science
- Horticulture/Botany
- Agriculture
- Environmental Science
And below you will find some top curriculum options that will help you cover the science courses for high school (the top two are our favorites)…..
Journey Homeschool Academy is a new platform for online homeschool courses and they currently offer two science options for high school – Biology and Astronomy.
These course provide a high-quality, hands-on, engaging science experience. The online courses include engaging video lessons, comprehensive quizzes, lab, project & reading assignments, research questions, and lesson outlines. An advanced track is available for each course that will allow the student to earn high school credit.
Check out this sneak peek inside Experience Biology:
Apologia offers multiple science courses for high school students. With Apologia, high schoolers can take the typical biology, chemistry, and physics courses, but also health & nutrition, anatomy & physiology, marine biology, as well as advanced science courses.
Apologia’s courses are award-winning, creation-based, that prepares students for college level courses. The rigorous textbooks are conversational in tone and easy for students to navigate.
Enhance the courses with a notebooking journal that includes a day-to-day schedule. A solutions and test manual can be added for an additional cost. Most of the course also have audios of the text and instructional videos available.
Classical Academic Press is a K–12 educational publishing, media, and consulting company for schools and homeschools, creatively teaching classical subjects like latin, logic, grammar, and much more.
They recently acquired Novare Science to provide 7th–12th grade students with academically robust science textbooks true to the Christian faith. The following courses are available for high school:
- Introductory Physics (9th-11th grade)
- General Biology (9th-12th grade)
- General Chemistry (9th-12th grade)
- Physics: Modeling Nature Program (11th-12th grade)
- Accelerated programs also available
- eBook formatting also available
MasterBooks homeschool curriculum is centered around a Biblical worldview with each of their courses being built around the Bible.
MasterBooks curriculum is engaging and fun with an emphasis on hands-on activities and real world application. It’s easy to use, as they provide schedules and pre-planned lessons, while still allowing for flexibility.
MasterBooks courses are book-based, with a majority of their resources being available as digital downloads as well.
They offer a variety of options for high school science including chemistry, biology, science history & concepts, pre-med studies, astronomy, and life science.
BJU Press Homeschool offers four different science courses for the high school years – physical science, biology, chemistry, and physics.
These courses are offered in video format where the teaching is done for you or in textbook format where you do the teaching.
BJU Press Homeschool science courses are Biblically-based and teach with a Christian worldview.
Need help planning for high school?
