Monday we got our new history curriculum in the mail. I've been waiting and waiting to get this curriculum. I wanted to purchase it at the homeschool convention in July, but none of the vendors there had it. So, I decided to wait until after we finished our old history curriculum, and then also our new science curriculum before getting the new history curriculum. (Make sense?)
I spent some time introducing the method of this curriculum to the children today at lunch. This curriculum is written for grades 6-12. So, my littles will probably have a hard time really getting into the curriculum without some help from me. But, we'll see.
This specific curriculum spoke to me two years ago when I first starting researching curriculum for homeschooling. I loved its approach. I still do. Only, last year when we started homeschooling, I went with a different history curriculum with a focus in ancient civilizations. Which was fine. It was fine. Really, it was. But, it was not like this one. I kicked myself over and over again for not purchasing Ancient Civilizations and the Bible.
So, I was determined to give Romans, Reformers, and Revolutionaries a try this year. Here's the gist of the program:
Each unit is broken up into four phases. It takes an entire week to work through each phase, and the specific phases appeal to different types of learners:
Week/Phase 1: The Feeler
Week/Phase 2: The Thinker
Week/Phase 3: The Sensor
Week/Phase 4: The Intuitor
From the book, here are descriptions of each week:
Week 1: Students will be introduced to the time period and to the Scriptures relating to the Unit.
Week 2: Students will explore topics of interest through research and reporting, learn new vocabulary, and construct a timeline relating to the Unit.
Week 3: Students will gain cultural understanding through sensory activities as they explore interrelated subject areas pertaining to the Unit.
Week 4: Students, through creative self-expression, using one or more creative activities, will present some aspect of what they have learned in the past three weeks. Areas of expression include linguistics, art, music, drama, movement, and conceptual design.
To put it in layman's terms, week one is the introductory week. It's the week in which we will discuss key concepts, read the article in the book and the scriptures related to the article, talk together about it, choose books of interest and do some internet research, and recap the material with an activity.
In week two, that's when we delve a little deeper. Each of the children will pick a topic and begin research on that topic, construct a timeline, practice vocabulary, and complete research topics. So, this week is more of a language arts week.
Week three is the "hands-on" week filled with creating maps, examining art and architecture, doing art projects, doing science projects, going on field trips, cooking food, and listening to music. I have several children who will thrive in this week alone.
The last week is about individual expression, in which they will each have the opportunity to "display" what they have learned for everyone. They do their project in any medium they want, as long as it shows what they've learned.
I think what appeals the most to me about this history book, is the way that it encourages the children to experience history, not just read about it and color a picture.
After I explained how the new curriculum would work, we took some time to read about the different learning styles. At the beginning of the book, there are charts that describe the different learning styles. As I read them during lunch time, I heard little giggles and saw my children pointing at each other, asking who learns in that specific way, and giving each other funny looks. It was so much fun to see them understanding each other, and themselves!
I think this history curriculum is an answer to prayers for my second daughter. She has struggled a lot with homeschool ... because it seems to be so boring for her. Kate thrives on things being fun ... and it uses a lot of my energy to be fun, so I'm not very fun all the time. After reading about the different kinds of learning styles, we all determined that Kate has the intuitor learning style, but also resonates with the feeler learning style. She also has a tactile/kinesthetic learning modality, and is spatial/bodily-kinesthetic/interpersonal in her intelligence.
In case you don't know what that means, it means that Kate is the one brimming over with ideas about how something might have happened or how we might put on a play for the whole city. She wants to know about people in history, not just events, and she needs to be in a good relationship with the people around her, engaging them in conversations and participating in group activities. She learns best by touching objects or moving, and she is picture smart: she sees in pictures, rather than words and has a penchant for the visual arts.
I realize there are a lot of words in this blog entry, and not enough pictures. But, I am so excited to start our new history unit ... I am just thrilled to have finally listened to my inner self and given myself the credit for knowing what may work with my children and their different learning styles.
I spent some time introducing the method of this curriculum to the children today at lunch. This curriculum is written for grades 6-12. So, my littles will probably have a hard time really getting into the curriculum without some help from me. But, we'll see.
This specific curriculum spoke to me two years ago when I first starting researching curriculum for homeschooling. I loved its approach. I still do. Only, last year when we started homeschooling, I went with a different history curriculum with a focus in ancient civilizations. Which was fine. It was fine. Really, it was. But, it was not like this one. I kicked myself over and over again for not purchasing Ancient Civilizations and the Bible.
So, I was determined to give Romans, Reformers, and Revolutionaries a try this year. Here's the gist of the program:
Each unit is broken up into four phases. It takes an entire week to work through each phase, and the specific phases appeal to different types of learners:
Week/Phase 1: The Feeler
Week/Phase 2: The Thinker
Week/Phase 3: The Sensor
Week/Phase 4: The Intuitor
From the book, here are descriptions of each week:
Week 1: Students will be introduced to the time period and to the Scriptures relating to the Unit.
Week 2: Students will explore topics of interest through research and reporting, learn new vocabulary, and construct a timeline relating to the Unit.
Week 3: Students will gain cultural understanding through sensory activities as they explore interrelated subject areas pertaining to the Unit.
Week 4: Students, through creative self-expression, using one or more creative activities, will present some aspect of what they have learned in the past three weeks. Areas of expression include linguistics, art, music, drama, movement, and conceptual design.
To put it in layman's terms, week one is the introductory week. It's the week in which we will discuss key concepts, read the article in the book and the scriptures related to the article, talk together about it, choose books of interest and do some internet research, and recap the material with an activity.
In week two, that's when we delve a little deeper. Each of the children will pick a topic and begin research on that topic, construct a timeline, practice vocabulary, and complete research topics. So, this week is more of a language arts week.
Week three is the "hands-on" week filled with creating maps, examining art and architecture, doing art projects, doing science projects, going on field trips, cooking food, and listening to music. I have several children who will thrive in this week alone.
The last week is about individual expression, in which they will each have the opportunity to "display" what they have learned for everyone. They do their project in any medium they want, as long as it shows what they've learned.
I think what appeals the most to me about this history book, is the way that it encourages the children to experience history, not just read about it and color a picture.
After I explained how the new curriculum would work, we took some time to read about the different learning styles. At the beginning of the book, there are charts that describe the different learning styles. As I read them during lunch time, I heard little giggles and saw my children pointing at each other, asking who learns in that specific way, and giving each other funny looks. It was so much fun to see them understanding each other, and themselves!
I think this history curriculum is an answer to prayers for my second daughter. She has struggled a lot with homeschool ... because it seems to be so boring for her. Kate thrives on things being fun ... and it uses a lot of my energy to be fun, so I'm not very fun all the time. After reading about the different kinds of learning styles, we all determined that Kate has the intuitor learning style, but also resonates with the feeler learning style. She also has a tactile/kinesthetic learning modality, and is spatial/bodily-kinesthetic/interpersonal in her intelligence.
I realize there are a lot of words in this blog entry, and not enough pictures. But, I am so excited to start our new history unit ... I am just thrilled to have finally listened to my inner self and given myself the credit for knowing what may work with my children and their different learning styles.
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