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history with 1st and 2nd graders
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I currently have an advanced 1st grader and an average k’er who doesn’t do great listening to chapter books. I am starting to think about what I want to do for history in the fall. This year I am doing landmark biographies with my 1st grader and k’er isn’t really doing history. I am reading little house in the big woods to her as history and lit combined. I am doing early american history with ds6, and had planned to continue with landmark books for later american history when he is in 2nd grade. But now I am realizing that dd5 will get little to nothing out of landmark books at this age. I am pondering doing scm mod 6 with them together in the fall. I would do family and 1-3 grade readings with dd5, and have ds6 do the 4-6 grade readings independently. He reads at about an 8th grade level and loves history. He chooses to read landmark biographies on his own during his free time. Does this seem reasonable? Or should I continue keeping dd5’s history separate using lhop books?
Its always a challenge when a little child reads at an advanced level- finding a challenge for their reading skills, and yet meeting them where they are cognitively and emotionally. I would hesitate to have my 6 or 7 year old reading books that are better suited for 10 and 11 year olds because of the more mature themes and content.
I would most likely keep at least some seperation in the studies of the two children given your situation, and I would be very careful about the readings assigned for the rising 2nd grader so I didn’t push too far with the content of the literature.
Agree with curlywhirly about being cautious not to move a young one up too quickly in the reading material. And, I am curious why you would go to Mod 6 to start with kids this young?
To me (and this is just my opinion) there are so many issues in the modern era to deal with that are just too difficult for little people to understand. I know the SCM recommendations are good and appropriate, but it will be a pretty cursory overview of the time period – without going into the World Wars, Civil Rights, etc…into much depth.
But I understand that many people do follow the schedule to a T and teach Mod 6 at the younger level, then again with more depth later on. That is okay as long as you are very careful about the content of any historical readers or books written in the 20th century that you choose for your child to read on their own. We are living in a post-Christian culture, and, unfortunately that trickles down even into children’s literature. Be selective about the minds you allow to influence your children through their reading.
If it were me, I would keep them together and just start with Module 1. Or, what we do (and are doing, this year) is to substitute a world geography year for the modern times year, going back to the Mod 1 (Creation-Rome) period the following year.
But it is really up to you where you begin – you will get around to it all again! The main thing at these young ages is that they are engaged with the reading materials and learning good learning habits (attention, obedience, orderliness, love of nature, curiosity, etc).
As long as you are keeping the lessons short, and reading a variety of living books, you should be on the right track. Don’t rush to get to the ‘older’ books – there is a lot of good literature you will miss if you are only doing the books at their reading level. I do not mean that you should skip twaddly books – but don’t overlook things like Beatrix Potter and Winnie the Pooh (the real one, not Disney!). If you want to challenge your advanced reader, try having her read some of the books written in earlier time periods when the writing was more complex.
Hope you have wonderful time learning together this year!
Blessings!
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