In planning for next year, I am looking mostly at the SCM guide and Beautiful Feet. It seems that most of the literature is from 1200 AD and up. In the SCM guide, only the first 19 lessons cover from the years 394 to 982. Is this time period so “dark” that we leave a 600 year gap in our history studies? I would like to have a better understanding of this time period for myself too. Could someone please give me a short summary? For our history next year, I would like to add some age-appropriate literature to cover this time period. Ages 8 – 12. Any suggestions?
So far I have found:
a non-fiction by Caselli called The Roman Empire and the Dark Ages
I don’t have my All Through the Ages book handy, so I can’t look it up right now. You might check out Guest Hollow’s website. She has history resources for each time period listed.
Thank you, Robin. I am looking into these. I can’t figure out why a Newbery honor book, Black Fox of Lorne, would be oop! I have King Arthur listed, but did not realize the time period.
Also by Rosemary Sutcliff is The Shining Company set in 600 AD. SCM has it listed for grades 7 – 9. I wonder if this would be okay for my 6th grader to read? I see great reviews on Amazon…except one star from an 11 yo boy and another from a homeschool student. So that makes me think it may be better for an older student. Thoughts?
And Lantern Bearers is listed for grades 10 – 12. So I thought that may be too much for a 6th grader too?
Michelle Miller lists Lantern Bearers for grades 7-12. Sutcliff is an excellent author. Some don’t like that her books can sometimes be dark but that has more to do with the time period she writes about, I think. It has been a long time since I read Shining Company. I don’t remember much, I’m afraid. I never understood why Black Fox of Lorne was OOP either. Excellent. It is longer and Viking Adventure is another don’t miss book so don’t worry if you can’t find it.
I am looking into Truthquest again…and thinking it may be a good fit for us. I am always tweaking other guides and really making my own plan anyway. I love how the books are listed like a timeline and include various grades. Do you read aloud all of the commentaries? How long does that usually take?
I read many of the commentaries or sometimes just paraphrase. Sometimes the commentaries are our whole history day because they are longer but important in setting the stage for Big 2 Beliefs to look out for which is a crucial part of studying history, IMO. Most of the time, it’s just a very few minutes spent and we get on with the books.
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