I accidentally discovered something extraordinary.
It's not often I get to review a curriculum spanning 5,000 years of history and
know that I will use it completely - in its entirety. As much as I love curriculum, we only have so much time in a day. And I
must have stuff that's easy to implement or it will fall by the wayside.
Not only that, but whatever we use
has to be something my children enjoy or it will fall by the wayside.
And I get distracted easily and need something that will not take me three full years to finish or it will fall by the wayside.
I've had a few people asking what we're doing this summer, so without further ado...
We are embarking on a quest. A 5,000-year quest. A quest to discover [from] whence our calendar came.
This quest is a journey through time that will help
me to connect our memory work chronologically. It will help me to understand my place in time. It will help me to understand how Western Civilization has come to be what it is today. So, I am doing this study with my children so that I can become a better teacher - a better learner - a better historian. History is not my natural inclination, which is why I enjoy history unit studies so much (hands-on history)! But unit studies do not connect all the pieces of history together into one continuous story.
This does.
We are only a few lessons into it, and it all just CLICKS! {Why wouldn't it? It contains many of the elements of a classical education!}
Intended to be completed in approximately one month, this history curriculum is
only 16 lessons long. But there exists great depth within each lesson. And
continuity between each lesson.
The program uses literature as the "hook" or "attention grabber." In fact, I started reading the book
Calendar Quest before the other materials arrived (even though I wasn't
supposed to). When I told the boys that we needed to stop reading to await the arrival of the other materials, they made me fully aware of their disappointment.
Each lesson starts with a literature activity (reading comprehension questions are provided if you are still learning the skill of narration) from the
Calendar Quest book. [Note that every time I say, "Babylonians" now, David pretends to be Hammurabi shouting, "Dates! Dates! I need more dates!" (Thankfully, he is referring to the edible kind of dates.)]
Students then label and color-code a map as part of the geography activity related to the history (from
What Every Child Needs to Know about Western Civilization).
Each lesson has a History-in-a-Nutshell activity in which the students memorize and place a person into their correct date, civilization, and geographic region. Students begin their quest by placing the cards into the order they *think* they should go. This is great even for those who have previously memorized history sentences and/or a timeline because they can verify their knowledge and/or understanding of the event/person. After the first lesson, they progress through the timeline and see how far off their original timeline card placement was.
As we progress through the timeline, the student writes information onto the timeline card such as key date, time span, and place.
As the parent reads each lesson from the
What Every Child Needs to Know about Western Civilization book, the student can color in the figures in the gigantic
Color the Western World book...
...and then place the stickers that match their coloring page onto the back of the timeline card.
The final lesson in this book includes a review game activity (top right photo, in pink cardstock) to verify the students' retention of which culture did what and how those contributions tie into the overall history of Western Civilization.
What Every Child Needs to Know about Western Civilization contains a 5,000-year history (in twelve historical periods) from the Sumerians through the World Wars, from cuneiform & astrology to communism & the Cold War, and religion from ancient times to the 20th century. It fills in many of the gaps in our knowledge of ancient history - the Sumerians, Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, Romans and Byzantine empire. It touches on such people as Hammurabi and Dionysius and on such topics as the Punic Wars, Patricians & Plebeians, the Nicene Creed, the Reformation.... and more. It provides connections between history [including Biblical history relevant to the calendar and Western Civilization] and geography, and it includes the advancements each culture made in mathematics, science, and writing. All of these things... the cultures and beliefs contributing to the rise of Western Civilization... and how they all tie into the formation of the calendar we use today. The abstract made concrete for my children.
For me.
This has already helped me so much.
This curriculum does not shy away from the tough topics which have also shaped Western Civilization, such as:
- The Scopes Trial
- Darwin's Origin of Species
- Genetic Engineering
- The history of the church and the good it has done
- The history of the church and the bad it has done in the name of Christ: the Inquisition, Anti-Semitism, Persecution...
We live in a world of skepticism. Why are there so many who have turned from religion? What has contributed to the rejection of Christianity? How can we use this knowledge to better equip ourselves against this skepticism? These are open-ended questions that families may discuss as they see fit, as this curriculum does not focus on answering these questions directly. It provides the historical context of the events, and parents can use history as a springboard for Biblical or doctrinal discussions.
For younger children, some of these tougher topics can be adjusted as appropriate, but we are ultimately equipping our children to think logically about such issues; we're equipping them to be world changers in a world that has issues! Without God and His unfailing love, we end up with atrocities like the Holocaust and... just all the heartache that comes from believing life is an experience of complete futility.
How this program ties into our memory work for Classical Conversations:
Cycle 1
It references the geography (and timeline) from multiple weeks of Cycle 1.
It references topics related to Weeks 1, 2, 5, 6, 11, and 12 of Cycle 1. Actually, it touches on everything we studied in Cycle 1 except the Far East, South America, and Mesoamerica.
Cycle 2
It references the geography (and timeline) from multiple weeks of Cycle 2.
It references history topics related to Weeks 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 14-17, 21 and 22 of Cycle 2. [All of which are contained within Lessons 12-16.]
Cycle 3
It also references history topics related to United States History, which is Cycle 3.
The following historical periods are covered: Sumer rules Mesopotamia, Old Kingdom Egypt, Babylon rules Mesopotamia, Ancient Israel, Classical Greece, Ptolemaic Dynasty, Roman Republic, Roman Empire, Roman Decline & Rise of the Byzantine Empire, Early Medieval, Carolingian Renaissance, Late Medieval, Italian Renaissance, Northern European Renaissance, Reformation, Reason & Revolution, Early America, Nineteenth Century America and The Twentieth Century.
I rarely do multiple reviews of the same product, but I plan to post about our experience once again when we have finished this curriculum later this summer. But... before we embark on our other quest [our trip through the Eastern states], I just had to share this with those who are looking for a concise history program to use over the summer - one that will help them connect the history they have learned in Cycle 1 to the history they are about to learn in Cycle 2.
Or maybe you do not use Classical Conversations at all but are looking for an overview of world history before digging in deeper. No matter which way you approach it, this program is effective.
In fact, if I had known this curriculum existed before we were asked to review it,
I honestly would have purchased it.
Visit
Brimwood Press for more details on each of these products,
to download free samples, or to
purchase the set.
I received this product in exchange for a review. It is so important to me that you know I would not so highly recommend anything I did not feel was worth others' time, effort, or money. The opinions expressed herein are my own and have not been influenced by any outside source. I truly love this program and will likely purchase other products available from Brimwood Press in the future. This post contains affiliate links. Please refer to my disclosure policy.
Our preschooler's notebook is different from his brothers' notebooks! His notebooking pages include the Bible pages, geography continental blob and CC Connected maps, Skip Counting Mazes, Calendar Pages, and A-Z Number and Letter Writing Worksheets.
