Hi, I'm planning for my daughter's biology course which she will be taking in 2015/2016, so I've really just started the wheels turning...

I know I don't want to just get a textbook for her and assign things, so I've been looking at DVD sets and other interactive possibilities. One thing I found which seems really promising is the BBC's Natural History Collection (Planet Earth, Blue Earth, Life of Mammals, etc) It's over 2,000 minutes on 17 discs! Anyway, I was thinking about maybe using the series as a spine and then giving her different things to do in conjunction with the episodes she (we!) watches.

What do you think? Could we "get away with" using an entertaining set such as this, instead of a set curriculum?

Any other biology suggestions?
Thanks!
Valerie

Well, I've never seen the series, so I can't be sure. But, when I studied Biology in school we had to learn certain things. Some I still remember are: memorize the names of all the bones in the body, memorize & understand classifications (kingdom, phylum, etc), dissect some animals, etc. Nowadays, my young friends are learning about cell respiration in high school biology! (which is totally over my head!). I have trouble imagining how a video series could cover those materials so that the kid could learn them in a passive way. A video series might be a great supplement, but I have trouble seeing it as a good spine.

The drawback of entertainment-as-education is that the young person might not have the background information to truly get the MOST from the videos. If the narrator says, "This animal is a Mammal" but the kid doesn't understand classifications, and doesn't know about kindgom, genus, species, etc - does the video explain that on their level? Also, a lot of pretty pictures can distract some viewers pretty badly from understanding & digesting the content.

If I were considering such a package, I would google several biology syllabi (they're all over the internet!) and read exactly what a young person should know from the course - and see if the DVD series covers those concepts - and covers them in depth. (BTW, I've never seen any substantial difference between a well-done high school course & an introductory college course. Go ahead & look at the college syllabi)

I would also be planning some checks to make sure the material was being learned in depth - quizzes, tests, flash card reviews - whatever method you usually use. And, plan some drawing of diagrams, labeling of skeletons, etc.

I've known kids who were total junkies for the animal shows on cable - but they still had a lot to learn when they took biology. I don't deny that they were probably ahead of the game, tho.

If you don't care for dissection (I don't) - this organization offers some good biology resources - many of which they offer in a free lending library
http://www.navs.org/education/alternati ... dissection

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I haven't seen that series, but YES, you can use videos for that purpose. My kids did the Lyrical Life Science audios in grades 6-8. These are commonly known folk songs that have the lyrics changed to be science topics. At the high school level, they either did The Teaching Company videos or went straight to dual enrollment at the community college. My son took biology including lab on-line at the community college. Believe it or not, he did an on-line lab! It just consisted of watching videos where he would make a hypothesis and the video would then show what happens.

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The BBC's natural history collection seems to be a pretty good baseline to start with. But I would advise you to drop in small tests and quizzes (for instance, ten multiple choice questions based on the episode your daughter watches) after every episode... This just might help you in knowing whether the idea is actually working out or not.

I'd like to interject a prequel... also known as a prerequisite... to biology. Fearfully and Wonderfully Made and then (part 2) In His Image are a wonderful (good reads) introduction to our bodies. They explain some of the mysteries of how our bodies work and why God designed them that way - even pain. They're written by a doctor that works with leprosy patients and Phillip Yancy.