American History

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  • nancyg
    Participant

    Hello,

    This is my first attempt to use this venue, so I hope that I’m doing it correctly!

    I have a question regarding the suggested sequence of study for history. It looks like American History doesn’t get studied until 6th grade – is this a correct understanding? If so, it seems very different from the approach with which I’m more familiar: enjoying many of the books on this topic for younger students, sometimes including study of their own state for an extended time at some point in the elementary years, hopefully giving some understanding and appreciation of our own country as part of these early years. I would appreciate thoughts, perspectives, experience with this.

    Thank-you so much!

    Bookworm
    Participant

    Nancy, if you use the revised schedules here http://simplycharlottemason.com/planning/scmguide/history-modules-overview/

    you’ll be hitting explorers at the end of your fourth year, then moving on from there.

    But don’t let this keep you from enjoying some of the terrific American history books written for younger children. By all means, read The Matchlock Gun, or The Cabin Faced West, or Little House in the Big Woods, whenever you want to. One could even make an argument, based on Charlotte Mason’s use of English history and also history of other countries, that you could study both at the same time, although I’ve found that difficult to do with several children.

    Enjoy the good books. Take a little time and add in some study of your state. Have some of the simple books of American history stories as a bedtime reader for your children. Or, another fun way, use the holidays around the year to add in American history study–your kids should know who the Pilgrims are before fifth grade, for example–they’ve lived through many Thanksgivings by then! A D’Aulaire book for Lincoln’s birthday, a fun living book about the Declaration of Independence in July–there are a lot of sources for adding this sort of thing in. You can “do it yourself” or look here for ideas:

    http://www.rootsoffreedom.com/dnn/

    http://www.americanheritage.org/

    There is another set of plans using holidays to teach history on the Ambleside Online page but you’ll have to visit the main page to look for the link.

    Also I have a book called How to Raise an American that has lots of fun ideas.

    Hope some of these ideas help!

    Michelle D

    Sonya Shafer
    Moderator

    Feel free to do Modules 5 and 6 at any time, nancyg. They both have American History book suggestions for all the grades, so you can use the ones that apply to your children’s ages whenever you want to.

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