There are several ways that you can approach the study of history. None of them are wrong or right. You can only decide how to approach this study by examining at the goals you have for your family and the interest/readiness of the child(ren).
Public school/major curriculum approach
K-2nd local information
3rd state history
4th American
5th ancient
6th American
7th American
8th World
9th-10th choice of American, geography, World, Economics and government
Neo-Classical
a four year history cycle that is repeated three times each time at a deeper level.
year 1--ancient
year 2--499-1600
year 3--1600-1800
year 4--1800-present day
These dates are approximate. Different curriculums divide them up differently.
Some curriculums do not start history in 1st grade but start the actual cycle in 2nd, 3rd or even 4th grade and sometimes cover a year of geography beforehand.
Classical
each year you study classical, biblical and modern history. The early years concentrate on stories, the middle years on people and the later years on reading material written at the time.
Montessori
a three year history cycle that is repeated 4 times: ancient, middle and modern.
Unit study
basically, you pick the period and study that for a period of time. You can do this out of order and pick any sort of time, culture, event, place, etc.
Unschool it
take your kids to the library and let them read and learn about history as they follow rabbit trails as they read about things that they enjoy.
Good luck on any path you decide to follow. Do what is right for your family.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Another Grapic Novel Review
I know you all probably getting tired of these but they have brought quite a bit of enjoyment into my life and I can also see what kinds of things I may not want my children to read when they get to the teen section of books.
Kare First Love by Kaho Miyasaka is a beautiful story of first love. It is tender, moody, sweet, sad, and a beautiful story with a happy ending. If you are looking for 10 good volumes to pass the time on a pleasant note then these books are worth reading. I would not let a child less than maybe 14 more like 15 read them. They do talk about intimate relationships and the pressure to have them with a serious boyfriend. It is similar "Forever" by Judy Blume but there is only one boyfriend and there is a truly happy ending.
It would be a good book to have your child read and then talk about relationship issues before the child embarks on serious relationships. So if you think your child is at risk you may want to give these books a try. Read them together and then talk. Don't preach but talk.
Kare First Love by Kaho Miyasaka is a beautiful story of first love. It is tender, moody, sweet, sad, and a beautiful story with a happy ending. If you are looking for 10 good volumes to pass the time on a pleasant note then these books are worth reading. I would not let a child less than maybe 14 more like 15 read them. They do talk about intimate relationships and the pressure to have them with a serious boyfriend. It is similar "Forever" by Judy Blume but there is only one boyfriend and there is a truly happy ending.
It would be a good book to have your child read and then talk about relationship issues before the child embarks on serious relationships. So if you think your child is at risk you may want to give these books a try. Read them together and then talk. Don't preach but talk.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Modern History
As I started researching Story of the World 4, I have heard that it is full of nothing but war or mostly war. We are sick of all the war and death in Story of the World 3. I can not find anything that I like better than Story of the World though so I decided to make some changes.
Since we just did the American Revolution, and I had wanted to do a president/state study, I have decided to arrange our history lessons around presidential terms.
For example, we would look at the years that Andrew Jackson was in office. We would read the sections in Story of the World on Nat Turner, Abolition, the Alamo, the Zulu and the Boers. We would also take a close loo at Arkansas and Michigan which became states during that time.
So basically, we will pick 1-3 presidents spanning 4 to 12 years. We will learn about the president, the states that became states and the world events of that period. We would still use Story of the World 3 and 4 but we would also focus on more of the positive of the times rather than on all the negatives.
What do you think?
Since we just did the American Revolution, and I had wanted to do a president/state study, I have decided to arrange our history lessons around presidential terms.
For example, we would look at the years that Andrew Jackson was in office. We would read the sections in Story of the World on Nat Turner, Abolition, the Alamo, the Zulu and the Boers. We would also take a close loo at Arkansas and Michigan which became states during that time.
So basically, we will pick 1-3 presidents spanning 4 to 12 years. We will learn about the president, the states that became states and the world events of that period. We would still use Story of the World 3 and 4 but we would also focus on more of the positive of the times rather than on all the negatives.
What do you think?
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Weekly Report June 18, 2009
It was a week of progress made.
Second grade:
Geography--finished up Canada
English--building sentences
Mathematics--addition and subtraction within 9
Spell to Write and Read--List B
Lapbook--France
Fourth grade:
Story of the World--the declaration and the first president
Latin--second declension masculine nouns
Classical Writing--adjectives
Mathematics--multiples and factors
Project--early animation techniques, 12 principles of animation
It was a decent week and we made a lot of movement forward.
Second grade:
Geography--finished up Canada
English--building sentences
Mathematics--addition and subtraction within 9
Spell to Write and Read--List B
Lapbook--France
Fourth grade:
Story of the World--the declaration and the first president
Latin--second declension masculine nouns
Classical Writing--adjectives
Mathematics--multiples and factors
Project--early animation techniques, 12 principles of animation
It was a decent week and we made a lot of movement forward.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
School Away Fom Home
Yesterday, we spent the day at the hospital so that my husband could have a routine test done. We decided to bring our school work to keep us busy during the wait. It actually went very well.
When we first arrived, they told us it would be about thirty minutes and then we could go back and be with him. It was actually forty-five minutes and we were able to get quite a bit of schoolwork done. We finished up while he was getting his test done and waiting on him to come back to us.
So I would have to say that it is possible to bring school work with you and get it done away from home.
So how has school away from home worked for you?
When we first arrived, they told us it would be about thirty minutes and then we could go back and be with him. It was actually forty-five minutes and we were able to get quite a bit of schoolwork done. We finished up while he was getting his test done and waiting on him to come back to us.
So I would have to say that it is possible to bring school work with you and get it done away from home.
So how has school away from home worked for you?
Monday, June 15, 2009
Theophrastus
I ran out of things to read from the library this week and pick up my copy of Norton's Anthology of Classical Literature. What do I find but a piece of work that is still very true today even though its author lived in 370-287 B.C.
The book's title translates to "Characters" by Theophrastus and it is a collection of sketches of different types of people. I think it would be worth reading the entire text and it was quite funny.
The book's title translates to "Characters" by Theophrastus and it is a collection of sketches of different types of people. I think it would be worth reading the entire text and it was quite funny.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Weekly Check-in June 12, 2009
It was our second week of school and a fairly good week. We were able to go to the pool on Tuesday, the library on Monday and had a playdate on Wednesday. Thursday we ran errands and Friday we had fun at the park.
Here is what we did with schoolwork.
First grade:
Our Father's World--we learned about British Columbia and the Rocky mountains
English--beginning and ending sentences
Math--addition and subtraction within 6 and 7 and addition within 8.
Lapbook--we finished up a nice little lapbook on Canada
Both:
Spell to Write and Read spelling list A
Third grade:
Story of the World--the American Revolution
Latin--second declension masculine nouns
Classical writing--she wrote a story about a potato chip gone bad in the mood of The Gingerbread Boy.
Mathematics--rounding
Project--we spent a lot of time with flip books this week.
I was happy with the progress that we are making so far. How was your week?
Here is what we did with schoolwork.
First grade:
Our Father's World--we learned about British Columbia and the Rocky mountains
English--beginning and ending sentences
Math--addition and subtraction within 6 and 7 and addition within 8.
Lapbook--we finished up a nice little lapbook on Canada
Both:
Spell to Write and Read spelling list A
Third grade:
Story of the World--the American Revolution
Latin--second declension masculine nouns
Classical writing--she wrote a story about a potato chip gone bad in the mood of The Gingerbread Boy.
Mathematics--rounding
Project--we spent a lot of time with flip books this week.
I was happy with the progress that we are making so far. How was your week?
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Imadoki!
Quotes for you:
"Obaitori....It means that each of us has our own personality. Every one of us was born with a different identity. We are each unique. A plum blossom can't become a cherry blossom or vice versa. You must live according to your own nature. In other words, don't let others tell you how to live. Just be yourself. If something doesn't work out the first time, keep trying and you will find your own way."
Yuu Watase from sideline commentary in Imadoki! Daffodil Volume 3
"Bloom in our own way....But it's impossible to do it alone....All of us...we should cry, suffer and rejoice together."
Yuu Watase Imadoki! Rose Volume 4
This seems like a shallow sort of fun story on the surface but there is a deeper theme running through it about being your self and that friends and people are more important than wealth, position and stuff. It is a good series of books but because of certain situations I wouldn't recommend it for children younger than 15 years old.
"Obaitori....It means that each of us has our own personality. Every one of us was born with a different identity. We are each unique. A plum blossom can't become a cherry blossom or vice versa. You must live according to your own nature. In other words, don't let others tell you how to live. Just be yourself. If something doesn't work out the first time, keep trying and you will find your own way."
Yuu Watase from sideline commentary in Imadoki! Daffodil Volume 3
"Bloom in our own way....But it's impossible to do it alone....All of us...we should cry, suffer and rejoice together."
Yuu Watase Imadoki! Rose Volume 4
This seems like a shallow sort of fun story on the surface but there is a deeper theme running through it about being your self and that friends and people are more important than wealth, position and stuff. It is a good series of books but because of certain situations I wouldn't recommend it for children younger than 15 years old.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
A Quote
"We're all looking for a peaceful and safe place...But maybe there is no such place. But we keep going no matter what's waiting for us down the road. We don't stop living."
Fuyumi Soryo from the Manga series MARS
This is a good series of books, not really for children under age 16 or so. In the later books there are things that many Christian parents would find objectionable but Kira the main character does pray quite a bit in the books.
I found it moving, disturbing and real.
Fuyumi Soryo from the Manga series MARS
This is a good series of books, not really for children under age 16 or so. In the later books there are things that many Christian parents would find objectionable but Kira the main character does pray quite a bit in the books.
I found it moving, disturbing and real.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
K-mart Doubles Coupons This Week
It is double coupons week at K-mart. My K-mart doubles up to $2, takes Internet coupons but the limit is 10 coupons and no more than 4 of the same coupon.
My deals:
Got 2 B Mouse 4.50 -2/2 coupon from All You Magazine = .50
Lysol Toilet Cleaner 2.29 -1/1 coupon = .29
Nuetra Air 3.29 -1/1 coupon = 1.29
Lime A Way 3.59 -.50/1 coupon = 2.59
Cutter spray 5.39 -2/1 coupon = 1.39
A-1 Sauce 4.49 - 2/1 coupon = .49
Velveeta Shells and Cheese 2.29 -1/1 coupon = .29
Dove ultra clean deodorant 3.99 -2/1 coupons = FREE I got these coupons in the mail.
The one that messed up for me was:
2 Easy Mac 1.09 each -1/2 coupons
instead of taking off $2 it only took off $1.09 so I paid .54 each instead of .09.
It is worth going even if you only did like I did and pick up things for cheap instead of free.
My deals:
Got 2 B Mouse 4.50 -2/2 coupon from All You Magazine = .50
Lysol Toilet Cleaner 2.29 -1/1 coupon = .29
Nuetra Air 3.29 -1/1 coupon = 1.29
Lime A Way 3.59 -.50/1 coupon = 2.59
Cutter spray 5.39 -2/1 coupon = 1.39
A-1 Sauce 4.49 - 2/1 coupon = .49
Velveeta Shells and Cheese 2.29 -1/1 coupon = .29
Dove ultra clean deodorant 3.99 -2/1 coupons = FREE I got these coupons in the mail.
The one that messed up for me was:
2 Easy Mac 1.09 each -1/2 coupons
instead of taking off $2 it only took off $1.09 so I paid .54 each instead of .09.
It is worth going even if you only did like I did and pick up things for cheap instead of free.
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