Do you remember the old song that has the line, "Don't know much about history..." ? Well, stay with me here for a bit, and I'll introduce you to a fantastic resource that our family has really enjoyed over the last few years. There are plenty of programs available, but so many feature the standard textbook. Forgive me, but... "YAWN". I'm having a flashback to my school days, when I sat at my desk while the teacher wrote out copious amounts of history facts that covered the entire blackboard. We students had the pleasure of copying down all those notes to memorize in order to spit them back for the test. Most of us then promptly forgot everything we had learned. It was boring, and there was little retention. One of the great aspects of homeschooling is that we can pick and choose curriculum and activities that can make a subject come alive. History is no exception. Home School in the Woods provided our family with the digital download from one of their Time Travelers U.S History Studies . We opted for the study Time Travelers - World War II .
Starting with the basics, the Time Travelers series are digital, hands on studies designed for grades 3-8. While there is text to read, the textbook itself has been laid aside in favor of various learning activities. Your student will create a timeline of events that includes all of the prominent events in this time in history, and likely a few that you weren't aware of. Break out the colored pencils, crayons, markers, and any other writing implement you wish, because there are penmanship pages, notebooking activities, and creative writing exercises. You'll be creating a lapbook with 3 dimensional paper projects, file folder games, and if you are a particularly crafty personality, you might even embroider your own pillow.
Parents and teachers, you'll be thrilled and wowed with the amount of content included in this resource. There are the text pages for the readings, as well as masters for every activity. Project pages provide photos and directions for the projects, and there are a good 50 of them. There are also helps for teachers, resource lists, and a lesson plan schedule, which you'll want to keep on the bulletin board or fridge. This one sheet alone has helped me tremendously, providing an at a glance look at what's coming up in the weeks ahead. You will also be putting together notebooks for this study, so there are printable covers too, in both black and white, and color. Also, there are a few different sizes of the strip that will be displayed on the spine of the notebook, so different sizes can be accommodated. The only things that are not included in this study, are the supplies, and as they are fairly basic, you may already have them in your home, like file folders, double sided tape, and binders. And really, if you purchase this digital project now, the amazing sales available for basically every school supply imaginable will keep your out of pocket cost low.
Now, as far as the lesson content, there are 25 days of material . These are the main subjects that will be covered:
- Ante Bellum
- Adolf Hitler
- War before War
- Blitzkrieg-Dunkirk
- The Battle of Britain
- The Turn East
- Pearl Harbor
- War in Africa
- War in the Pacific
- Hitler's Fortress
- Market Garden
- The Bulge
- Into Germany
- Kristallnacht and the Camps
- VE Day
- Iwo Jima and the Atomic Bomb
- Back Home
- And What Happened After?
Those subjects don't equal 25 days, but they don't include project days, which are on Fridays, or the days to put together the lapbook, and the end of the unit Victory Day Celebration. But you can see that there is plenty to work with here. We've been on a relaxed summer schedule, but we aimed for working on this for 3 days a week, on average. My 13 year old daughter particularly enjoyed the penmanship and coloring pages. She is a big history fan, as well as a craft loving girl, so combining the two meant a pretty content kid. I know that the recommended age is grades 3-8, and I suppose that as students get into the high school years, they may prefer a more, I don't know, serious study, if that's the right way to put it. But I know that there are plenty of craft liking, hands on preferring students who would still enjoy these activities even if they fall outside the range. That being said, you know your kids, and this can still work for students a bit younger and older than what is suggested. One definite thing that I cans say, is that this is a great study, and I hope you'll check it out.
Before I go, did you know that Home School in the Woods has a blog? Check out a couple of these great posts! Just click on the links.
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