The name BiblioPlan is synonymous with
classical chronological world history. Through years of tweaking and revision, however,
what is available now is a full-bodied, full-color curriculum rather than a
mere lesson-plan framework (its original format). Comprehensive and thorough
while providing ease of use and minimum teacher prep, BiblioPlan allows
students of all ages to work in the same era at the same time at their own
level. There is also flexibility. You can still use just the framework (Lesson
Plans Plus) or you can add some or all of the components. You can take a
general approach and incorporate multiple ages at once or you can use material
that targets particular grade levels. Older children can help younger children
and children of all ages will be making memories as they work together. BiblioPlan
puts you in the driver's seat with full controls.
BiblioPlan
Lesson Plans Plus
BiblioPlan
Lesson Plans Plus, formerly known as the Family Guide, provides the
structural framework for the program – a full year's worth of history and
literature readings. The Lesson Plan Plus is necessary. There are four
guides, one for each of the four classical (chronological) time periods:
Ancient, Medieval, Early Modern, and Modern. This is the core of the whole
program (and once WAS the whole program). Designed by a group of homeschooling
moms, these guides provide a 34-week, comprehensive lesson plans with annotated
reading lists, audio options, video suggestions, and additional resources for
each grade level. With a goal of integrating quality historical literature with
biblical and secular history, these moms put together an easy-to-follow plan
covering the historical topic (Classtime Reading), intentional
scriptural study, References and Resources for textual information about the
topic, Literature Selections of the Week (for all grade levels), a Family Read
Aloud suggestion, Writing Ideas, weekly Memory Work, Optional Fiction &
free online resources, movies, and suggested Activities. Introductory
information in each guide includes the usual "how to find books" and
"how to use the plan" information as well as the book lists for both
the scheduled and the optional literature. Each Unit also includes an annotated
book list specifically for that unit’s course of study for 6 weeks.
If it sounds
like the Lesson Plans Plus might be all you need you would be correct. They're
comprehensive and thorough; well-constructed plans. You could complete four
years (plus four more if you wanted) of interesting history, absorbing
literature, and engaging activity possibilities using just these guides. If you
go this route, you will need to use the frequently referenced "spine
resources." These include Story of the World, Mystery of History,
The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia, The Usborne Encyclopedia of
World History, or History of US and several others.
There is,
however, an alternative route. If you like to have perfectly coordinated,
quality material at your fingertips rather than scrambling for it then you can
incorporate one or more of the following BiblioPlan text (Remember the Days
or Consider the Years) components to use alongside the Lesson Plans
Plus.
BiblioPlan Text Components: Remember the Days, Consider the
Years and Companions
- Remember the Days - textbooks written
specifically for Grades K-7 in a storybook narrative, and
are available for Ancient, Medieval, Early Modern, and Modern.
- Consider the Years - textbooks written
specifically for Grades 7-12 are available for Ancient
and Modern. It is a reworking of the older Companions and
part of the 2nd edition material now available. Grade levels are
determined by the students’ reading level.
- Companions are currently available for
Medieval (two-book set) and Early Modern (two-book set). These are 1st
edition texts and are being replaced with the Consider the Year text.
For Ancients and Modern the Companions are only compatible with the 2012
edition of Cool History.
With options for each time period, these are full-color
historical textbooks that provide textual information (world history, U.S.
history, church history, biblical history, and geography) in a narrative prose
style interspersed with all sorts of intriguing factual and cultural anecdotes.
They are color-coordinated so you know instantly if you're reading history text
(black & white) or about people, special events, or biblical quotes
(various colored backgrounds). These are books which beg to be pored over. As
an example, in random pages from the Medieval Companion, there is a section on
Muslim food laws and their rituals for newborns, a description of a tughra (Ottoman
sultans’ signature) with gorgeous, artistic examples, and a Turkish paper
decorating technique ebru. In the Giants
of the Faith section, this particular biographical sketch is of Saint
George and the Dragon which continues onto the next page and includes a large,
glorious artwork reproduction.
There is a pattern to the information provided for each
chapter (each volume has 34 chapters – one for each week): Geography Focus, Church History Focus, Fascinating
Facts, Mystifying Myths, Interesting Individuals, Scripture Spotlight, Fascinating
Foods, Critical Concepts, Giants of the Faith, and so much more. The alliteration
abounds when it comes to section headings throughout the readings. Just in case
there's any doubt, Remember the Days, Consider the Years,
and the Companions as well as all the BiblioPlan materials
have a consistent biblical and Christian worldview. These books provide all the
necessary textual information for Classtime Reading and
greatly reduce, or even eliminate, the need for any outside historical
reference books or spines. Families may still choose to use the suggested spine
readings to provide even more historical perspective and textual information.
BiblioPlan Cool History
These provide weekly assignment sheets at four
different grade level groupings that correspond to appropriate textual readings:
- Littles (K-2) [Remember the
Days]
- Middles (3-8) [Remember the
Days]
- Upper Middles (8-10) [Consider
the Years]
- Advanced (10-12) [Consider the
Years]
It is easy to surmise that the goal of Cool History is
to allow a family to study the same era and the same topics but at their own
distinct level of comprehension. This is where you find your students' work and
in upper levels their assessments also. There are subtle grade-appropriate
variations in the levels. These pages include reading assignments and questions
taken from the Remember the Days and, Consider the Years or Companion readings.
·
The Littles book
includes questions referencing the Remember the Days readings;
these reading assignments are found in the Lesson Plans Plus. Also
included are fun hands-on activities and Globe Fun (introductory map
activities). The "Giants of the Faith" section provides biblical
figures associated with the times and places of study. Answers are intended to
be done orally in these full-colored workbooks.
- The Middles book
includes questions referencing the Remember the Days readings;
these reading assignments are found in the Lesson Plans Plus. Also included are “Giants of the
Faith” suggestions, Challenge Questions for older students, plus an
Optional Bonus Question/Activity. These are consumable, full-colored
workbooks.
- Upper Middles book
includes questions referencing the Consider the Years or Companion
readings; these reading assignments are found in the Lesson Plans Plus. Also included are Challenge
Questions, Optional Bonus Question, and pdfs of periodic (about every six
weeks) exams. These are consumable, full-colored workbooks.
- Advanced assignment sheets have
assorted questions (fill in the blank, short answers, short essays) all
taken from Consider the Years or Companions. Reading
assignments are found in the Lesson Plans Plus. Also included are research
essays (outside of the text readings), and pdfs of periodic (about every
six weeks) exams. These are consumable, black-and-white workbooks.
BiblioPlan Hands-On Maps
These provide one or two full-color maps each week that
correspond to the week's lesson content. Instructions for the maps are printed
directly on the map. These are intended to be consumable workbooks for each
student. While students may need to gather a little helpful information from a
world map and/or their textbooks, they will be able to complete the
maps at their level more-or-less on their own. The same set of maps are
included in both books with more identification and instruction provided for
the younger students.
- The Middles maps
set has suggestions for 2nd - 8th grade students or
those students using the Remember the Days text. These maps include
some prompts and partial information that makes them easier to complete. Each
map also includes a Challenge question to promote further learning. Each
map is labeled to correlate with the Lesson Plans Plus and student’s
readings.
- The Advanced maps
(8-12) set includes a geography scope and sequence as well as a Challenge
activity for each of the maps. Six exams for this level are included in
the Answer Key pdf. These maps and activities correlate only with the
Consider the Years text for Ancients and Modern, and the Companions for
Medieval and Early Modern.
PDF Exams and Answer Keys
If you're concerned about answers to all the Cool
History questions or the exams, they do exist, but they aren't in
the Cool History books. An Answer Key pdf is sent from our office via
email after your order has been processed. The Hands-On Maps Answer
Key pdf is sent from our office via email as well after your order has been
processed. If you do not receive your answer key email, or the answer key does
not line up with the workbooks you have received, please reach out to our
office for assistance.
BiblioPlan Timelines & Figures
Is a well-crafted supplement with one distinct
advantage over many other timelines – they're in color! The spiral-bound books can be used "as is"
or the pages removed, and the timeline mounted on a wall. If planning to mount
your timeline on the wall, you will need approximately 20 linear feet of wall
space. The timeline consists of one or more colored strips (color varies with
the time period) plus dated notes on particular events. The student cuts out
the graphics and pictures (located in the back of the book) and inserts them in
the appropriate place in time.
- The Ancient Timeline includes
two timelines: one for Biblical history and one for world history. The
timeline is set-up as facing page timelines. Biblical history on one side
and World History on the facing page.
- The Medieval, Renaissance
and Reformation Timeline includes two timelines, one for church
history and one for world history. The timeline is set-up as facing page
timelines. Medieval on one side and Church History on the facing page.
- The Early America and the
World Timeline and the Modern America and the World
Timeline each feature facing pages; one for the Americas and one
for the World.
As mentioned earlier, the Timeline Figures are mostly
in color (some 19th and 20th century figures are prints of original black and
white photos) and are eye-catching. Figures include portraits, artifacts,
geographical features, monuments and buildings, photos or drawings of events,
and much more.
BiblioPlan Craft Books
These provide over two hundred (200+) activities that
correlate with the Lesson Plans Plus. These are cultural crafts, food, and fun
referenced in the Lesson Plans Plus and Cool History Littles (three to five per
week). The books are impressive – a well-illustrated, well-explained variety of crafts and projects. A few
require materials from other sources, but most include directions and
full-color pictures. Here's a random selection from one book: Porcelain
Painting (buy a kit), Hold a Japanese Tea Ceremony (get details from internet),
Make a Kharbuja Sharbat Drink (directions), Make a Flying Dragon Head
(directions), Make a Chinese Dragon (directions), Make a Yurt (directions),
Make a Chinese Cricket Cage (directions). Patterns, where needed, are provided
in the back of the book. This book is fully integrated with the BiblioPlan
program but could also be used as a supplement to another world history study.
The BiblioPlan Coloring Books
These provide coloring sheets to accompany the lessons.
Pages are referenced in the Lesson Plans Plus guide. Utilizing the talents of
present and former homeschooled students, multiple artists have produced a variety
of styles and details in the drawings making them suitable for younger and
older students. There is at least two and often three pages per week.
Reproducible for families.
The BiblioPlan Family Discussion Guide
This is for families who want some help in broadening
their history studies into thoughtful family discussions. These Guides provide
discussion starters that will help you guide your students into a better
understanding of the connections between secular history and their Christian
faith. One of the advantages of the Guide is that they allow you to lead
discussions without having to study everything in the textbooks yourself.
The new edition (available for Ancients) has received a
major facelift and shift in scope and sequence. Detailed out with Grammar,
Logic, and Rhetoric questions for each appropriate age level, there are also
geography and general review questions for each week of study. Consider the
Years specific questions are clearly identified. Other volumes will follow suit
in this format.
BiblioPlan Cool History Classic
This is a republished version of an older edition of
the Cool History books. In this version (no grade level grouping designations),
questions are based on the textual content of Susan Wise Bauer's Story of
the World rather than on the BiblioPlan Texts. This provides
student work (no test or assessments), for all grade levels, if you choose the
BiblioPlan path of using just the Lesson Plans Plus and Story of The World
approach.
BiblioPlan Hands-On Notebooking
These are only found as digital eBook purchases from
the publisher. Biblioplan.net offers digital notebooking options to add to your
studies and are geared to grade levels. Giants of the Faith adds
Bible characters' study and composition writing to their work. There is a Giants
of the Faith notebook for each volume. Countries of the World have
a different country focus for each volume of study. The U.S. States and Presidents is
for volume three, and four studies and breaks the presidents into their
appropriate era of service. These eBooks are templated and include intentional
spaces for students to document their findings.
In conclusion, if your whole family is ready to dig
into world history and you want a Christian perspective that provides
flexibility, an excellent road map, comprehensive textual information, and
colorful, engaging reinforcement with enrichment possibilities, then look no
further than the new, reconstructed BiblioPlan. ~Rebecca