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Torn between Truthquest and SCM modules
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Okay, I love TruthQuest Guides and have been chomping at the bit to get started using them. I like the fact that it always keeps the students thinking about “The two big beliefs”, Who is God? and then Who is mankind? So, it looked like I would need to start my oldest in Egypt/Greece this year so that he could finish out covering American History by high school (he’s required to cover it in at least one year). In looking at the guide for Egypt/Greece, biblical history is placed within the location study where it fits, rather than taking the country history and placing it where it fits in Biblical History (like the SCM study does). I don’t know if I’m making sense. I’m a bit torn, as I would love to do it SCM’s way, but would love to still use the premise of the TQ Guides. I might be interested in starting with SCM and then moving into TQ, but then the timeline would be extended by one more year, which I don’t like. Has anyone else compared the two history studies? What is your opinion about any strengths and weaknesses? I wonder if the TQ history guide was set up to avoid controversy over creationism?
Hi, welcome to our board!
I’ve “e-known” Michelle Miller, the author of the TQ guides, for a long time. She wasn’t exactly trying to avoid any controversy, she simply didn’t feel herself enough of an expert on Biblical history to try to tackle that. She used to recommend the Greenleaf OT guide to use instead. She is an amazing lady!
I used Truthquest for several years. I don’t know how to help you with the “timeline” stuff, but it would be pretty easy to incorporate using TQ into your SCM studies. I can’t tell you how to set up your timelines.
I LOVED TQ. I don’t have the guides anymore, for a couple of reasons. 1) I tended to bog us down reading so many books that we had a hard time ever moving on (I think we once spent five months on the Pilgrims, lol) and 2) after a while of reading Michelle’s commentary and also with my increasing familiarity with the Schaeffer book I found us discussing so well without them that I sort of kept forgetting to get them out. 🙂 I learned a tremendous amount from the guides, and from Michelle, though. She is high on my list of favorite people. 🙂
So my two cents, I don’t know if it’ll help you or not. I struggle sometimes myself with how to get things to “work out”.
Michelle D
Thank you so much for your comments. I looked at the Greenleaf guide and it looks like exactly what I need. I can see where the guides could encourage too much concentration on one topic to the detriment to others. Hopefully, I will be able to avoid boring my children with too much “information”.
We’ve used the Greenleaf OT for years, over and over with various children. It is an old friend around here! I too, got a little confused about TQ. I did purchase a couple of the guides and, only because I am a person that needs all of my ducks in a row, it overwhelmed me. Having said that, I looked at them again this year because I was interesting in the commentary Michelle offers. However, I noticed that she pulls so much from Schaeffer’s work (rightfully so!), that I decided to purchase his series on DVD and have my older ones watch that with me along with some of the selections from SCM and others I have chosen.
Blessings,
Cindy
We love TruthQuest here too. We’ve kind of combined TQ with SCM book suggestions. I love the TQ commentary yet the simplicity of SCM. I’m still trying to work it all out myself. I suggest praying and asking the Lord to highlight which books He desires to have you and or your children read. I love the discussions that can flow from Michelles commentary and think/write ideas. I myself have learned so much about Gods hand in history. I think both TQ and SCM have so many pros. Only con with TQ is that you can feel like you have to read every book and discuss every topic- this is not the case, however. I’ve seen that TQ has a forum/discussion group link on the website. Maybe that will help you to decide.
Michelle, did you ever combine the time periods of TQ with SCM history modules? What Shaeffer book do you recommend? Also, do you feel that if you read the Shaeffer book and discuss with your children that it would cover most of whats covered in the TQ guides?
Cindy – Where did you get the Shaeffer DVD’s? Are there DVD’s for the different historical periods?
Thanks all and blessings to you again and again!
Heather
(Who lives in Michigan with Michelle Miller -want to come visit, Michelle D? LOL 🙂 )
Heather,
I purchased the DVD’s at the Amazon Marketplace for about $30. It’s all one set, I think 10-30 minute sessions. I am going to use them for my highschool students and then apply what we’ve learned to the younger. We have the book also and it is hard (lots and lots of meat). That’s why I’m opting for the DVDs for the time being (but I have high hopes of getting through the book someday!).
Don’t get me wrong! As I indicated in my first post, it is my own handicap that causes me to not be able to utilize TQ to the fullest; I wish that I could because I think Michelle has some good stuff in them. I am just not able to justify the cost with how much I would really use it as a resource at this time.
Blessings,
Cindy
Ok am I reading this correctly.. Do you suggest reading the Schaeffer book as a spring board of discussion with your younger children. I looked at the book on Amazon and it looked more like a book for me to read and not a book to read aloud for the children…is that right?
Shelly
Shelly, I was talking about the highschool students. My only point was that I could see where Michele was pulling from and so thought to go straight to the source for older children. As it turned out, I was not able to really sit and watch with them. They watched the DVDs, took notes, discussed, and then read their own history books as assigned by me.
I’m all for TQ! This just better suits my personality, in that I can get easily overwhelmed with the TQ book lists. You are right, little ones cannot do this; you would have to do it ‘for’ them. I do not, though. We just read books and discuss. Your post has reminded me, though, that I could pull out our What in the World’s Going on here tapes for the littles.
I do plan on watching the DVDs since I’ll have a 7th grader next year and he is quickly exceeding my intelligence in this area, but it will have to be a summer project for me.
Blessings,
Cindy
Cindy, thank you for setting me straight 😀 . I’m interested in the tapes you mentioned…What in the World’s going on here….is that a series? I will have to goggle it and see!!
Shelly
Shelly, I know I’m not Cindy but had to pipe in because we love the “What in the Worlds Going on Here” CDs by Diana waring. Imo, Diana really sheds light on Gods hand throughout history ~ in a way that really brings the bible and history to life.
You can find it here
There are also many other places that carry her products including Answers in Genesis, Rainbow resourse, Amazon, CBS, etc…
Blessings,
Heather
PS, CINDY, I hope you’re not mad at me for answering for you. 🙂
Man, I really would like to figure out a way to tie the TQ guides into the SCM modules. It would be a few weeks worth of work for me, but surely there must be a way. I’m not good at impromptu discussions. Having the guides with Michelle’s commentary are most helpful for me, but I was getting bogged down in the book lists and lack of schedule. Of course, I haven’t found a real “schedule” for where we are in history on the SCM booklist either. So, I’m not sure what I am going to do at this point! Urg!
Hi, I just got a Truthquest guide to go with Module 5 for SCM,,Im trying to put them together and its coming together. Im Using the TQ guide and taking each topic and using there main spine and adding in 1 or 2 books from her list of books for the topic,(to use like a resource, pictures, etc)then checking the SCM module 5 for which book they have that goes with the same topic (reading the whole book)and putting them in 36 weeks of school, (52 topics in TQ im using) so im covering 1 to 1&1/2 topics a week or just not using some topics…) and i have the first 8 weeks of school typed up,,,which took 1/2 my day but will go faster now that i know what im looking for,,,
I like to have a weekly schedule and to know what books i will need for the week, so to me its worth the time to pull them together…and i wanted to use them both to be sure we didnt miss some important events that i wanted to cover.
I hope this has helped you see you can choose to do them both, it doesnt have to be either or, as long as you dont think you have to do all the books…God Bless, Billiejo
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