I have another great homeschool resource to tell you about today! We are reading the iWitness series of books by Apologia Educational Ministries in our biblical studies. We were sent three of the books in this series to review: Old Testament iWitness, New Testament iWitness, and iWitness Biblical Archeology.
If you have questions about the bible, the iWitness series of books will help you find answers through the investigation and study of facts. The bibles says: “Seek and ye shall find.”
What is the bible? Who wrote the bible? Where did the events take place? What is the difference in the old and new Testaments? Is the bible fact? How do we know the events recorded actually happened?
Each book presents logical layers of questions, and also facts. They take you on a journey to seek and discover the answers about the bible. The iWitness series of books were written on an 11 year old reading level, so students 11 and older should be able to independently study them. But they are a good fit for all ages. You can read them aloud to younger students, and even adults will glean wonderful truths from these books too. I think they would be a great tool in a group bible study too.
My children and I enjoyed using these books. The books are colorful and full of pictures. Each book is less than a hundred pages long, so it doesn’t take long to read through them, but you will want to keep them on your reference shelf and use them again.
I definitely see how these books will be used again and again in our home to refer back to who is who and who did what. I read these books to my kids, we discussed the information, and I was surprised by how much these reference books helped us. I think that associating a graphic with information helps you grasp it. It is no longer just some random piece of information, but instead there is a visual to associate with those facts.
Here is a little bit more details about each of these books:
iWitness
Softcover, approximately 72 Pages
Reading age range is 11 and older.
Retails for $14.00
I really enjoyed how the information is presented. Each page has lots of colorful “old world” graphics. Each of the writings on the pages are presented on a graphic of a scroll or ancient document.
I enjoyed learning about the different Prophets in the Old Testament. The books gives a lot of descriptions about who they were, when they lived, what king they served, and what their purpose was. Different prophets had different purposes.
Softcover, approximately 62 pages
Reading age range is 11 and older.
Retails for $14.00
Topics: Councils Of Hippo and Carthage; Cannon Criteria; Athenasius; Eusebius; Church Fathers; Cannons; The Gospel, Apostles, and much more.
New Testament iWitness explains how the Christian church recognized what specific writings to include in the New Testament. It introduces the reader to Apostles and leaders in the church. It explains who wrote what and how the church made decisions. It also explains how the writings were copied. I didn’t realize before that the churches shared a copy with another church and they copied it and sent another copy on to the next church and so on.
Softcover, approximately 64 pages
Reading range for ages 11 and older.
Retails for $14.00
Topics: The Flood; Noah’s Ark, Egyptian Chronology; The Exodus; Dead Sea Scrolls, Jesus Judges, New Testament Locations, Shroud, and much more.
I enjoyed iWitness Biblical Archeology the most because of the amazing photos through out the whole book. There are so many amazing artifacts to learn about. The bible contains a record of history that is proven over and over with each artifact found, each community unearthed, and each scroll that was discovered. Archeology is an amazing gift of proof in biblical facts.
Apologia Educational Ministries is a wonderful curriculum company with a mission to help your students education and your “family to learn, live, and defend the Christian Faith.” Be sure to check out their various curriculum and online class options and how they can benefit your homeschool.
You can follow Apologia Educational Ministries on their social media links for all the latest news and updates.
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/apologiaworld
Twitter – https://twitter.com/apologiaworld
Google+ – https://plus.google.com/105053356034237782125/posts
Pinterest – http://www.pinterest.com/apologia/
Be sure to check out what others on the TOS Review Crew had to say about using iWitness curriculum in their homeschool.
