Review: Who is God? (Apologia)

Worldview. Everyone has one. What is yours? Do your kids understand worldview?  Can they explain their worldview?  Have they actually put thought to the tough questions about their own worldview and beliefs?

Who is God?, authored by John Hay and David Webb, is an exploration of worldview for kids ages 6-14.  It is the first of four volumes in the new What We Believe series published by Apologia in partnership with Summit Ministries.  I was introduced to Summit Ministries a couple of years ago; I have really enjoyed reading and listening to their materials.  I’ve also used Apologia’s science texts over the last several years. I was excited to see the result of a partnership between Apologia and Summit.

When Who is God? arrived, I was immediately struck by the look and feel of the book.  It is a sizeable hardcover with plenty of interesting illustrations.

This first volume specifically covers the Biblical worldview of God and Truth. This includes the person and attributes of God, His provision, His design for creation, the Fall, and His plan for salvation. It isn’t just the material covered inside; there is a passcode in the book to a complete website with additional resources, including:

• Supplemental Notebook pages for each chapter
  
• House of Truth graphics
  
• Links to related websites
  
• Online Teacher Helps for each chapter.

I was surprised at the extent of the supplemental resources. For example, each chapter Teacher Help file is about 10-12 pages and includes:

• key themes
  
• lesson objectives
  
• vocabulary
  
• memory verses
  
• suggested activities
  
• discussion questions
  
• suggested reading

The text is in a conversational tone and written directly to the student.  Older students will be able to work independently through the text. I opted to read it aloud to my 6th grader, which he enjoyed as a break from more independent work. At first I was concerned at the wide age span that is considered appropriate for the text.  While the content is presented in such a way that is very easy to understand, the questions did make my son think.  I think he had gotten into the habit of taking the beliefs he’s grown up with for granted, and I really appreciated the opportunity to make him think about what he believes and why. I think the text did a great job for presenting in such a way to be appropriate for various age levels.

My son isn’t much of a notebooker, and I just went over the notebooking sections verbally with him.  The text details a 6-day lesson plan to take place over two weeks.  With an older student and the lack of notebooking, one week per chapter was sufficient. Even though this is a textbook, it was very easy to use whatever schedule works for your family.

The FAQ on the Apologia website address teaching multiple age groups, as well as general questions and information on the series. For specific material covered in Who is God?, view the Table of Contents.  There is also a PDF sample of Lesson 1 for viewing.

Who is God? is not a Bible study, abundant for this age group, but rather training in the essentials of the Christian faith. For the high school level, there are other sources for this sort of program, but I have not found the same for the younger set until now.  Younger kids are just as capable of asking big questions and understanding the fundamentals upon which to build their faith. If you are looking for a program to help teach your children the essentials of the Christian faith, the What We Believe Series is a very good place to start.  I think you’ll find it both thorough and easy to use, two of my top criteria as a homeschool mom.

Who is God? is available at the Apologia website for $39.00. Volume 2 of the series, Who Am I? is also available with Volume 3 and 4 scheduled to be released in 2011 and 2012 respectively.

Read what other reviewers had to say about Who is God? by visiting the official TOS Homeschool Crew blog.

Disclaimer: This review was provided as a result in my participation in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Crew. I was provided the product free of charge in exchange for my honest review. I have received no other compensation. I strive to give a balanced overview of each product, detailing my opinion of both pros and cons and how the product worked for my family. What works for one family may not work for another. I encourage you to read reviews of other Crew members and research sufficiently to determine if any product will be a benefit to your homeschool.