Health and Nutrition Basic Set from Apologia Educational Ministries~ REVIEW

 
As most of you know Mahala graduated high school a few months ago, but when she heard that Apologia Educational Ministries had a brand new addition to their Exploring Creation series she said, "Mom, please can I get this set.... I need it."  She was thrilled that they sent her the Health and Nutrition Basic Set for her to review.  This included the hardback textbook and the consumable spiral Student Workbook.  We have been tweaking our eating habits, listening to our bodies and learning so much together in just the few short weeks we have had to use it, I can't wait to share it with you.  There is even a FREE Activity book too!!!



 
Exploring Creation with Health and Nutrition by Dr. Laura Chase can be done either throughout the whole school year or for just a semester.  Since Mahala is technically done with school we decided to just plow right through.  She did skip ahead a little some too, because we were totally excited to learn about macro-nutrients.  

I found that just like all the other Sciences my kids have taken before with Apologia the layout is the same.  The text is written in a tone that makes it easy to understand, the layout isn't cluttered or watered down with unnecessary pictures and fluff.  Speaking of pictures, they are clear, vivid and to the point.  Once again we both feel like they have knocked this course out of the park, it's a winner and it's such a needed topic that our growing kiddos need to learn.

The first few modules really dig deep into the reason why our health, both mentally and physically is so important.  We took little tests to figure out our temperaments and what that meant in our daily life, wants and needs.  We both made fun of each other trying to decide our dominate eye at 2 in the morning, please don't even ask why we were doing this at 2 am. :)  We usually gathered around on the couch a few days a week after lunch and read through the modules and completed the questions orally.  Any projects, tables or journaling she did write it out in the Student Notebook.  Normally it was just the two of us, but sometimes the topics were too interesting not to have family members linger for awhile and listen in.  Even Kaden came and listened as we discussed endocrine glands located in your brain and helped us come up with a long list of of ways to reduce our physical and emotional stress.  
These are all things I never learned growing up and I really didn't teach them to my oldest, but I have seen the difference in my personal life the past few years that I know this is extremely important to pass on to our children.  One of the projects had Mahala make a list of self-care tips.  What?!?!  I loved this so much, I do this for myself weekly, I have one for Kaden, even Mahala has her own list beside her desk.  Some things that she has now added from the module is:   

When you regret something, concentrate on what you can learn from it, don't hide in isolation, spend time with groups of people who encourage you and care for you and another one was don't waste the present moment.  

Sounds great, right?  I want to say too that I appreciated the way mental illness was presented and how to deal with pain and grief.  These are all tough to understand, especially when you feel like the only one going through these difficult times.  The Think About This sections during the 2nd module were wonderful, even Kaden was jumping in because the one was about Helen Keller.

Projects are found in the notebook too.

I also want to mention that throughout the modules in the textbook you find the Projects, On your Own questions and the Think about this.  Also in the beginning of each module you find the Powerhouse Update which gives you little facts or tidbits of History, even a scripture reference at times to prepare you for what's ahead in the module.  Mahala's favorite little part to each module is at the end of each one called the Consider a Health Profession section where you get to learn about several different health professions and what they do.  I will confess that she has went ahead and read them all. :) All of these different extra components truly make this Health and Nutrition curriculum shine above many others.

 
Module 4 is about Interpersonal Harmony, by far my favorite so far because this day and age we need a lesson or 3 or 4 on this.  You walk through what defines you based on gender, culture and family life.  We talked about birth-order and let me just say it stands true in our family as far as birth order, this gave us lots to talk about around the dinner table.  This is a high school curriculum, but Mahala even said most of these topics could be useful for even the average middle school teen.  The whole section of making friends and self worth was a personal hit for Mahala who struggled in this area until recently.  This module covers everything from peer pressure, platonic relationships, body language, social skills, how to handle conflict and even touches on pornography and how to guard your heart.
We have only completed the first 4 modules completely, but we have dabbled in modules 7 and 8, but I do want to give a brief outline of the other modules real quick. 

5~ All about the senses, you can take a color-blindness assessment and learn how to deal with swimmer's ear and relieve eardrum pressure.  Get up close and personal with your taste buds, and learn how to trust your sniffer.
6~ This is when you start getting into nutrition and you begin with digestion.  In this department you go from the mouth all the way to your two exits with multiple learning stops on the way.

7 and 8~ Consists of Food Science I and II.  You and your child will be taught about the many components of your food and things that you never knew existed.  We are still highlighting.  One thing Mahala found interesting because her Dad has Diabetes is the storage and release of glucose and the different food's glycemic index.  She learned the difference between butter, lard and tallow, as well as learned about the different omegas and what makes them important.  Something else we learned.... did you know that the body can actually make saturated fat from excess glucose?  And of course there is many pages devoted to life giving vitamins and minerals, as well as several food tips for a healthy life, package reading made simple and the true 411 on additives, preservatives and sugar substitutes.

9~ There is some fun projects in this one like assembling a food intake log, calculating your BMI and tracking all your macros.
10~ Takes us to the respiratory system where you get a behind the scenes look at your sinuses, lungs and all the other nooks and crannies in your upper body.  You will get to explore different illnesses and their symptoms, like a nosebleed, sore throat, asthma, sleep apnea to pneumonia.  Let's not forget the cardiovascular and circulatory systems and all that they do to oxygenate the body.  After learning all about the components of one drop of blood you will study all matters of the heart, both the good and the not so good.  I can't wait to learn with Mahala about the different life saving procedures that are available today for heart patients.

11~  Is all about the bones and muscles.  Learn how they work, why we have them and how to keep them strong and healthy.  Mahala did sneak peek to this chapter because she is healing a torn labrum right now from softball.

 
12~ This may be my least favorite chapter...I'll let Mahala read it solo.  Just kidding, it's actually real important...it's about physical fitness.  This module doesn't just tell you to exercise and the benefits from doing so, but it actually gives you strength training exercises.  They have divided each area of your body up into simple to follow exercises.  Not bad, right?


13~ Here we go, now we are going to talk about our largest defense mechanism....... our skin.  Everything from freckles and sunburns to cuts and sweat glands.  You will learn how to up your dental hygiene game, pump up your immunity and learn the ins and outs of your lymphatic system.  You will also go over other health concerns as well as vaccines.
14~ This chapter is really special it covers how to reset yourself in difficult times by providing logical and simple steps.  like making rest a priority, strengthening your spiritual life, improving your sleep and letting go of perfectionism.

15~  We have arrived at the last module and it is about reproduction.  This chapter was well thought out, very thorough and covered the male and female systems in depth and even once again mentions the whys and how to avoid pornography.   There are sections on modesty, self-arousal, life after marriage and even sexual misconduct.  All of this was done as a purpose of educating your high school aged child.  I thought everything was spot on and accurate.  The end of the chapter spends several pages on conception, pregnancy care and growth as well as postpartum.  And then of course goes over sexually transmitted diseases, how to protect yourself and the worthy end goal in the end, which is to stay sexually pure until marriage.

Wow, if you are still with me...thank you.  It was a ton to go over, but our health and our children's health is so important and I am so thankful Apologia and Dr. Laura Chase has put together this stellar set for our families to be aware and educated.  Just to back track I do want to mention that the student notebook goes right along with the textbook.  You have a place for notes, on your own questions, projects, study guide review questions, tests and a special place to record your thoughts on what you read and learned about in each module. 
This Health Science curriculum is extremely well rounded and may be one of my favorites from their Exploring Creation series.  

Mahala worked though the first 4 modules and most of 7 and 8, but we are looking forward to finishing the rest of it, knowing that it goes right along with our core belief system makes it even better.  Mahala said she liked that the study guide review questions were a mix of fill in the answer, vocabulary, multiple choice and the tests were very straightforward with labeling charts, multiple choice and true and false questions.  She also said that the sections are all very interesting, easy to read and most of the passages were short, so she could fit in a little extra reading time here and there.

If you asked me if this is something you should use in your homeschool I would say most definitely.  If you have teenagers in high school and would like them to learn more about their health, how to prevent illness, manage feelings, how their body works, understand the miracle of pregnancy and birth as well as encourage abstinence till marriage this is for you.  We feel so blessed to have been able to review the Health and Nutrition Basic Set from Apologia Educational Ministries.

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