I agree with what Diana says here about the high school science curriculum.
Books available in BC schools are out of date or their information so
diluted that kids think they are 'not good at science' when it's really that
the book contains incomplete information in an effort to simplify it (eg.
the new BC Science 8 book).

You can easily, at any age, learn about Ohm's law or covalent bonding, etc.
It's much more useful to learn these fundamentals than to proceed step by
step through textbooks that are filled with fluff. (In my opinion) And then,
once you have the basics, you can go to MIT's OpenCourse classes by video
(with free workshops, now) or listen to lectures by university teachers from
The Teaching Company, and learn exciting, up to date things that interest
you. From basics to university level as soon as you're interested -- that's
my philosophy. Skip the deadening stuff (which doesn't mean skipping the
learning).

And, ditto with math. There's no reason that if your child is in Gr. 6, that
that means that Gr. 6 math is the level of math your child is 'supposed' to
be doing. As an example, one of my kids did no official math and then he did
Math 10, 11 and 12 for credit in less than a year and a half. And now he is
continuing his math studies, using university textbooks and MIT and the
Teaching Company, by himself with no instruction, planning to write the AP
Calculus exam. If he were in school, he'd be taking Math 9 -- a course he
skipped entirely.

If your child wants to do something for credit, she can sign up for online
senior high school courses even while she is in elementary school or is the
age of an elementary school student. There are no prerequisites. All it
takes is a little advocacy! (And a kid who wants to do it.) Succeeding in
these courses is easier than you'd think, even by an ADD kid with bad
handwriting. We have become too accustomed to thinking of learning in terms
of grade levels.

Somebody here asked about home learners becoming scientists. I think that
for all students, one of the main obstacles to becoming a scientist is
surviving the K-12 science program. All the good stuff is at the top end
(and even that is often out of date), and along the way kids are exposed to
a lot of very de-motivating classes that substitute for science. (Some kids
are lucky and have better experiences, even with the usual textbooks.) You
can opt out entirely and apply to university as a home schooled student; or
you can skip most of the K-12 program and just take the senior secondary
courses required for a program or diploma (at any age, even 12). (Students
who enter university with school credits and a diploma shouldn't be
considered homeschooled, though -- they're on an equal footing with other
applicants, as universities see marks on a transcript.)

On the other hand, staying home and avoiding the science curriculum won't
nuture a scientist, either, once you're past the 'baking cookies is science'
stage. I was very nervous about this with both of my science-inclined home
learners, since I have no science or math background at all, and can't even
multiply fractions. But I found that my lack of knowledge didn't matter. One
was completely unschooled (not even registered) and the other went with
EBUS, but on an individualized program that allowed us to depart totally and
radically from the grade expectations -- essentially unschooled, as he
followed his interests entirely.

Every day, there are more and more free resources out there, like the
Virtual Science Fair or Khan Academy. Not to mention less formal
opportunities, like spending a day with a guy who makes replacement teeth
for a living (lots of delightful chemicals and colours involved), or
breeding your own plecostomus catfish.

Sorry if this is a bit of a rant. As a person who grew up not even knowing
what physics was and who was math phobic, but who has come to love science
because of my kids and The Teaching Company, I am a bit passionate on this
topic. Science and math are all around us but not often in a school
textbook, particularly in the younger grades. (Although a supplementary
workbook, like Pearson/Globe-Fearon's, is adequate for teaching you the meat
and potatoes quickly.) If you are lucky enough to live near a university,
you will find that they have all kinds of outreach programs going, or
lectures, often free or with scholarships. For kids and adults. Right now,
the Mini Med School is running at Children's Hospital, open to all ages.

I support what Diana said, but add -- I think that homelearners have to be
provided with good materials, resources and information, too. If you don't
talk about science or give them the opportunity to explore science and math
(in any way that works for you and your kids) then that is no better than
giving them an outdated, dull-witted textbook and some drill sheets.
Personally, I think that exploring concepts like infinity, non-Euclidean
geometry, and probability or game theory will interest more grade six
students than a textbook about how to measure area. And so, I also recommend
Michael Starbird's university enrichment book, The Heart of Mathematics, to
kids aged about 10 and up.

With apologies,
from Maureen Bayless (who has finally figured out that calculus isn't scary,
it's just the math you need to study things that change or move)