Can I Use No Sweat Nature Study in High School?

I recently received a question from a longtime member asking if you can use No Sweat Nature Study in high school for science credit. That’s a great question, and I have good news!

Take a peek at the original question.

My daughters do not want to stop studying with you! We have decided that one high school credit will be nature studies, spanning over 4 years to amount to the 120 hours required for a credit. Our umbrella school asks for at least two science credits to include a lab. What can we do additionally, or what would count as lab within your program? 

Sandra V.

I have recently received several similar questions about using No Sweat Nature Study for high school, so it’s high time to address this. Fortunately, you’ll get a definitive answer and plenty of ideas for learning!

Is it possible to use No Sweat Nature Study in high school?

The short answer is…YES!

The longer answer is that high school students should take the learning beyond the video lesson itself. Fortunately, every lesson now includes a High School Extension Project designed specifically to help them do that, and there are plenty of other ways to add independent research, fieldwork, experiments, data collection, and lab experiences as needed.

The bottom line is that high school science needs to be appropriately challenging. No Sweat Nature Study classes are very in-depth through middle school. They provide a solid foundation in scientific understanding and vocabulary, while interactive nature journaling builds important skills in observation, organization, illustration, labeling, note-taking, and more.

For high school, video lessons can serve as a starting point for deeper, more independent work.

Is nature study a science?

Yes. The most obvious part of the program is the scientific understanding students gain during classes. However, as students enter high school, they need to take on more responsibility for independent learning.

A No Sweat Nature Study lesson can introduce or deepen understanding of a scientific topic, while the work that follows gives high school students opportunities to research, investigate, collect data, analyze information, and apply what they’ve learned.

If you’re concerned about titling a credit “nature study,” there are other possibilities, too. The large lesson library makes it possible to intentionally group related topics into a course of study.

For example, a student interested in animals could select lessons from mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians, invertebrates, insects and arachnids, animal science, physical attributes, and habitats to build an Animal Science course.

In the same way, families can group lessons in areas such as botany or earth and space science and add appropriate high school extension work. I wouldn’t consider No Sweat Nature Study by itself a traditional high school biology course, but it can provide substantial science instruction toward a thoughtfully planned high school science credit.

Of course, high school graduation requirements vary, so always make sure the course you design meets the requirements that apply to your student.

Notice in this picture how older students can still work alongside younger students if that’s a desire.

Important Higher-Order Thinking Skills

Higher-order thinking is one of the more unique and less obvious skills practiced in the program. This includes comparing, contrasting, analyzing, creating, questioning, examining, defending, and many more.

By the time students reach high school, it’s important that they move beyond my direction in these higher-order thinking skills and begin applying them more independently.

The good news is that they’ve already been practicing these skills during our classes together. High school simply gives them the opportunity to take more ownership of the process.

At the high school level, students can continue building those skills independently through the High School Extension Projects provided with each lesson, along with other research, fieldwork, experiments, and projects you choose to add.

How To Use No Sweat Nature Study in High School

Now, let’s get to the nitty-gritty things you can practically do to use No Sweat Nature Study in high school.

The goal isn’t simply to make students do more work because they’re older. The goal is to take the science they’ve learned during a lesson and give them opportunities to investigate it more deeply and independently.

Many of the ideas below can also provide meaningful laboratory or fieldwork hours, depending on the requirements of your homeschool or umbrella program.

Complete the High School Extension Projects

This is the easiest place to begin.

Every No Sweat Nature Study lesson has its own resource page, and every resource page includes a High School Extension Project specifically designed to take the topic to a deeper level.

Depending on the lesson, students may conduct further research, collect and analyze data, complete fieldwork, create models or diagrams, present findings, or work through another independent investigation.

These projects are especially helpful because you don’t have to figure out how to make each lesson “high school enough” on your own. I’ve already provided a purposeful next step that older students can complete independently.

You can use these projects as written, adapt them to fit your students’ interests, or use them as a starting point for an even larger investigation.

Take Purposeful Nature Walks

One of the most obvious ways to make learning more in-depth and personalized is to take a purposeful nature walk after a class.

The task is to find and examine real-life examples of the things we’ve studied.

For a younger student, finding a specimen and making careful observations may be enough. A high school student can take the same experience further by identifying species, measuring or comparing specimens, collecting data, photographing changes over time, researching questions that arise, or drawing conclusions from observations.

In other words, the nature walk itself doesn’t have to change dramatically. The level of thinking and responsibility can.

Expect “One More Thing”

To stretch a nature walk or an at-home study into more research or lab-based experiences, consider assigning tasks that hit any of the following higher-order thinking skills:

• Compare and contrast various specimens.
• Interpret observations. For example, look for signs of garden pests and use a field guide to determine which pests may be causing the damage.
• Develop a plan of action. After identifying a garden pest, for example, research possible solutions, choose an appropriate approach, implement it, and observe the results.
• Complete demonstrations. After studying xylem and phloem in a No Sweat Nature Study class, use celery, food coloring, water, and a magnifying glass to demonstrate the processes and identify the anatomy.
• Conduct field studies. After learning about macroinvertebrates, visit a creek to find, identify, and chart macroinvertebrates. Then use the collected data to evaluate the health of the creek.
• Complete experiments. For example, use a water-testing kit to collect additional data about creek health and compare the results with observations from the macroinvertebrate study.
• Collect, organize, graph, and analyze data about various specimens or natural phenomena.
• Ask a scientific question, research possible answers, develop a hypothesis, test it when appropriate, and defend a conclusion with evidence.
• Design and build models.
• Dissect appropriate specimens.
• Keep detailed records of long-term observations and look for patterns or changes over time.
• Research a topic in greater depth and present the findings in a written report, presentation, diagram, poster, or another appropriate format.

High school students don’t need to complete every type of activity for every lesson. Choose the activities that make sense for the topic, your student’s interests, and the type of science credit you’re building.

Build a Course Around an Area of Interest

There’s no rule saying you have to move randomly through the No Sweat Nature Study library when using it for high school.

In fact, older students may benefit from choosing an area of concentration and intentionally building a course around it.

A student interested in animals, for example, could work through a variety of lessons from the Animals & Animal Behavior section of the library. There are lessons covering mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians, invertebrates, insects and arachnids, animal science, physical attributes, habitats, and more.

Pair those lessons with High School Extension Projects, purposeful fieldwork, research, experiments, data collection, and other independent assignments, and you can develop a cohesive Animal Science course rather than simply accumulating unrelated science hours.

The same idea can be used with other areas of the library. Select related lessons, decide what additional high school work will accompany them, and keep records of completed lessons, projects, fieldwork, labs, and time spent.

This approach also gives high school students a sense of ownership. They can help choose an area they’d genuinely like to study more deeply.

What About Lab Science?

This is an important question, especially because requirements vary widely.

Many of the activities I’ve mentioned can involve genuine scientific investigation: field studies, experiments, dissections, specimen examination, data collection, testing, observation, measurement, and analysis.

However, whether those activities satisfy a specific requirement for a “lab science” depends on the rules you’re working under.

If you’re homeschooling independently, you’ll want to follow your state’s requirements and your own plans for the student’s transcript. If you work with an umbrella school, charter school, or another program that has specific lab requirements, ask what they expect before building the course.

Once you know those expectations, it’s fairly easy to choose No Sweat Nature Study lessons and extension activities that provide appropriate opportunities for laboratory and field science.

And don’t forget to keep records! A simple log of lesson topics, extension projects, experiments, field studies, books and research, completed work, and hours can be extremely helpful when documenting a high school course.

In this picture, notice the depth of learning from older students while nature journaling during class time.

One More Thought

Another longtime member sent me this (rephrased) not too long ago.

I’ve been wondering whether we can continue using No Sweat Nature Study at the high school level. My parents and I have been watching the classes alongside my daughter every time she takes a class recently. We have determined that the classes are definitely worthwhile to use all the way through high school. I honestly think you should advertise them as useful for kindergarten through high school because they are so versatile, especially considering the supplementary resources for further investigations.

Jennie

I love hearing that older students want to continue learning with me!

No Sweat Nature Study is designed for grades 1-8, so I don’t advertise it as a complete high school science curriculum. But that doesn’t mean students have to leave it behind when they enter 9th grade.

The depth of the lessons, the variety of science topics in the library, the High School Extension Projects, and the ability to add independent research and investigation make it very possible to continue using No Sweat Nature Study as part of a high school science plan.

If you’re already a member, spend some time browsing the library with your high school student. Look through the categories, choose an area of interest, and start thinking about how related lessons could work together.

If you haven’t tried a class yet, you can watch a sample class to see how I teach and decide whether it’s a good fit for your family.

No Sweat Nature Study now includes more than 200 recorded science lessons covering animals, plants, ecosystems, earth science, weather, oceans, space, physical science, and much more. Each lesson has its own resource page with additional learning opportunities, including a High School Extension Project for older students.

There’s plenty of science waiting for your high schooler!