Romans, Reformers, Revolutionaries Tchr Guide

Some years back while preparing to teach World History for the first time in a co-op setting I scoured bookstores and libraries to find the best of the best history resourcesThat's when I discovered Diana WaringHer curriculum is designed to be used for multi-level teaching We used Romans Reformers Revolutionaries as the cored curriculum for our classical track with great success I particularly appreciate her ability to present a biblical worldview as she introduces events and biographiesDiana combines substantial gifts in researching writing and dramatizing to deliver one of the most fascinating and powerful history curriculums available today (We never learned this "stuff" when we went to school!)As a speaker both in person and on CD she is captivatingI fully agree with the previous reviewer who said that she never wanted to turn off Diana's audio lessons Even my elementary-aged students fully engaged with her teachingThat said for the novice history student who expects to understand and retain every lesson her writing can be a bit dense-packed and overwhelming But those who adjust their expectations - and approach her material fully recognizing that learning comes in layers - will find themselves gleaning new insights each time they read and re-read her chaptersNow after several years of intensive history and philosophy study I still find Diana's work to be informative reliable and delightful She is a treasure!

History is one of those subjects where we just can't seem to find the curriculum that matches our family's style of learning I have tried so many history curriculum that our school room almost looks as if I was decorating with a "history textbook theme" Your know instead of lighthouses (or watermelons or strawberries you get the point) on the curtains and lighthouse figures sitting on the shelves I have history textbooks lying here and there! Story of the World ~ I have it at least Volume One We liked it for a year ~ but didn't like the mix of fiction thrown in with facts Mystery of History you ask? We have volumes one and two of that ~ we found that the little chapters just left us with a choppy viewpoint of history but mainly we were bored; however I did like the timeline suggestions and we used the books (still do in fact) mainly for that! We have several different history spines and a couple Greenleaf Press books ~ again? My kids found them boring! We embraced the living book approach (which we still mainly stick to) but wanted to have more of an overall sense of what was going on throughout history and just how all of these great books were connected So we tried Truthquest ~ I thought the blurbs in between the living books would be useful to give us a sweeping look at history ~ again every time I had to read one of those blurbs I was met with blank stares and complaints from my kiddos! So this last school year I purchased Answers in Genesis' history curriculum "History Revealed" by Diana Waring I purchased "Romans Reformers Revolutionaries" since we were in the midst of studying the Middle Ages I bought the entire curriculum; the Teacher's Manual the Student Book the Children's Activity Book all three sets of CDs the tests and the music CD I wish I could say that we absolutely loved the curriculum! Instead I can say that we have been happier with this curriculum than with any other history curriculum we've tried and that we find it to be a delight The book has 9 units and each unit has 4 phases During Phase 1 of each unit I read aloud the unit article found in the Student's Book and Teacher's Guide (the Teacher's Guide actually has each and every page from the Student book only in a smaller size so as to include teacher suggestions tips etc) and we begin listening to the recordings for that unit from each set of CDs My kids don't love the CDs (so they don't go over well if I choose to play them in the vehicle where they would rather listen to something more exciting) but we have all found them to have interesting information and we're glad to listen to them and reap the information I usually play them while the kids quietly color complete arts and craft activities and while we are preparing lunch They are difficult for little ones to follow along with and a little deep and sometimes dull for my older two (ages 13 and 11); therefore I don't expect complete attention while they are playing I have been amazed at the little nuggets of information each child has obtained from the CDs from a relaxed listening approach During Phase 1 I also decide what living books I intend to read with that unit and begin our first read-aloud There are interesting books listed for each unit (along with grade level) and I chose from that list as well as from the Simply Charlotte Mason website and the book "All Through The Ages" Phase 2 includes a list of topics for each student to choose from for an individual research project intended for them to report to the family/class (either oral or written) vocabulary words and timeline construction I have to say that I wasn't too enthused with the individual report piece of this phase as this wasn't something we would typically complete However I was surprised to discover what great depth this added to our history study! For example in the recent unit we studied (Seeds of the Reformation and the Late Middle Ages) I assigned my 8 year old daughter to read a few articles about Johannes Gutenberg and the printing press my 11 year old son to read about the Black Plague and my 13 year old daughter to read a book about Joan of Arc After reading my 8 year old completed a "History Scribe" notebook page about Gutenberg and read this to us my 11 year old son wrote and illustrated the meaning of "Ring Around The Rosey" (which we were surprised to find came from a game played during the Black Plague) and then shared it with all of us and my 13 year old printed a picture of Joan of Arc and wrote out interesting facts about her on the reverse side which she then shared out loud This part of Phase 2 has allowed us to experience learning with a different approach and has even surprised the kids because initially they were not happy with the assignment but in the end they were very proud of their work and contribution to our family learning Phase 3 of each unit includes mapping art science experiments music suggestions and cooking We have not done a lot of these activities due to our own time constraints but the few we've completed have been enjoyable and worthy of our time Phase 4 has a list of activity suggestions for each student to select from in order to show what they've learned in their own way (puppet show drama interpretive dance art newspaper articles etc) For example for one unit my kids chose to use their K-Nex blocks to make castles and cathedrals This was fun! Honestly each unit has many many possibilities ~ you can't (and shouldn't) do them all! So although I don't love everything about this curriculum; finally I have found a history curriculum that I'm going to stick with (well that's if Answers in Genesis has the third volume ready when we are done with this volume) The Pros for our family are: 1 This curriculum is taught from a truly biblical basis 2 Some of us have enjoyed the addition of audio CDs 3 We have enjoyed the independent research projects and end of the unit creative projects 4 The curriculum allows for varied learning styles (which is great for larger families with kids who all learn differently) 5 We like the music activities and are glad to add this to our history study 6 We like the Children's Activity book and find the activities in that book to be fun as well as great additions to our history notebooks What is it that our family doesn't like? 1 Well not that we don't like it but we don't do the mapping because we already do map drills and geography study and don't need more of that activity (same is true for the science experiments) 2 We don't always complete the creative project because sometimes we are just ready to move on to a new unit 3 The audios are a great addition but some of the kids dread them and find them boring 4 Probably the biggest con for this curriculum is that it is rather expensive; you get a lot for your money but if you find it not to be a great fit ~ it would be a costly mistake! One other thing I'd like to note is that we don't ever complete a unit in four weeks ~ living books are still the primary means of our history study and therefore we take plenty of time to read the books of interest for each unit The book's introduction states "our intent is to keep learning delightful even if demanding and challenging We have endeavored to present a rich variety of creative activities for you to access for your students" This curriculum has truly been a delight for us and I'm glad to finally have a curriculum that I'm happy to stick with!