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If you follow a 4 year history rotation ala WTM do you include state history?


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My in-laws asked me about this recently and honestly I hadn't given it too much thought. I know that all states have a unique history but here in Texas we think ours is pretty special since we were at one time our very own nation! :D

 

Anyway, I am thinking long-term a bit and wondered how others might do this.

 

TIA

Edited by Jennefer@SSA
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Nope--doesn't belong in high school. Should've been covered in elementary.

With Texas, however, it's easy to slip in the early history during high school, since it's part of the Mexican war stuff and was actually independent--its acceptance as a state is important for many reasons, of course, but a biggie is in the context of the whole slave state v. free state thingy.

 

(Using the big technical explanations here...:D)

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I didn't include state history when my oldest two were in high school. We had just moved to Michigan and somehow, I just wasn't attached enough to want to bother. I'm actually thinking of doing a state history with my son when we do the years that include American History.

 

ETA: My son did do a co-op class on Michigan history when he was around 4th grade- but that was a LONG time ago, it seems!

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Nope--doesn't belong in high school. Should've been covered in elementary.

With Texas, however, it's easy to slip in the early history during high school, since it's part of the Mexican war stuff and was actually independent--its acceptance as a state is important for many reasons, of course, but a biggie is in the context of the whole slave state v. free state thingy.

 

(Using the big technical explanations here...:D)

 

In ps I did one year of Texas History in 7th grade sandwiched between a year of world geography and US History. So would you include it in the middle school years? I asked on this board rather than the K-8 Curric. Board not b/c I thought I wanted to add this course in high school but rather I was hoping for btdt advice. Should've been more clear about that. :)

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The public school in North Carolina covers state history extensively (imo):

 

4th grade - they spend the entire year on NC history which an emphasis on geography and history

 

8th grade - they spend another entire year on NC history but this time with an emphasis on the creation and development of the state

 

Before 4th grade, there is very little history. Fourth grade is the first history really.... So 9 years of what I would consider history (even if it isn't the way that I would do it) and they spend an entire 2 years on just North Carolina. I find that mind-boggling!

 

I folded our NC course of study into American History. My daughter did a unit study on NC that year so she knows stuff like "the state flower", "the state crops", "the state's regions"....

 

For the kids after her, I will probably use these and have them fill in the info. They are geared for mid-elementary use

http://www.clp.org/product/state_study_lightunit_1638

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We used the A Beka State book when each of my kids was in 4th grade. It worked well. We weren't able to fill out everything in the book, but it was a colorful and fun way to do state history, I thought! We added other things to it.

 

Another thing we did with other homeschoolers from a homeschool site I was on then: We asked people from that board if they wanted to participate in a geography "thing". We had about 12-13 paraticipants, I think it was. We got a stuffed animal, named him, went to Seattle on the ferry, since we're near there, and took pictures with the stuffed animal on the ferry, with the Space Needle in the background, one near the Pike's Place Market, one near Mariner's stadium, etc. The next day we took pics around our own smaller town a bit. We wrote some on our area, and had a couple of brochures people could look at. We put it in a large notebook witha bunch of page protectors and pocket sheets for people to write about their area. We sent it to the first person on the list. They took the same stuffed animal around their area and took pics with it, wrote some about and included a couple things from their area, then sent it on to the next person. I kept up with the list, and e-mailed people to tell them it was coming to them next...... 9 months later we got the stuffed animal back, with TWO (somebody was kind enough to add another large notebook!) large notebooks stuffed full of info., and lots of pictures with that stuffed animal and the different places he went. I think he was in 9 states and 2 places in Canada.

 

I called the newpaper and asked if they'd be interested in something like that for a "Local Interest" story and they sent out a photographer and reporter! They put a very positive light on homeschooling, and had a picture of the kids holding the stuffed animal and some of the stuff we got back. That was soooo fun! I was thrilled that everyone followed through and sent it on! I recommend something like that for some part of geography/state history!

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State History is a requirement around here for public schools, and the state universities look for it on the transcript. It is usually done in 9th grade: .5 credit State Studies, .5 credit World Geography. My plan right now is to do it as a one-semester elective rather than as one of our history classes.

 

Yes, but what about those who apply to state colleges from out of state? I'm not sure Mississippi really cares if someone knows about some "other" state--so I still wouldn't bother.

Just to be clear, schools do it here, too, but in fourth grade.

 

I think you can easily fold it into other history studies.

'Course, it might also lead to some fun areas of interest...teho!

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I'm not planning to cover state history outside the boundaries of U.S. history. We've lived in six different states in the past 10 years and have lived in border communities (within 20 miles of 2 states) for more than half that time. To me, it makes no sense to teach one state's history out of the context of the whole and to spend an entire year on it... nope, I don't have the time or the interest.

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In ps I did one year of Texas History in 7th grade sandwiched between a year of world geography and US History. So would you include it in the middle school years? I asked on this board rather than the K-8 Curric. Board not b/c I thought I wanted to add this course in high school but rather I was hoping for btdt advice. Should've been more clear about that. :)

 

Honestly, I think that's adequate. You cover the Alamo and Texas' statehood (with accompanying slave state issues), the Mexican-American War, and Texas' later secession.

 

I also took 7th grade Texas history, and I do think Texas history is fascinating. We talk a lot about Texas history, but I don't have any desire to spend a full year studying it.

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State History is a requirement around here for public schools, and the state universities look for it on the transcript. It is usually done in 9th grade: .5 credit State Studies, .5 credit World Geography. My plan right now is to do it as a one-semester elective rather than as one of our history classes.

 

Texas doesn't require it in high school and neither do the Texas state universities.

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We do 2 weeks of Virginia history at the end of our modern history year. Virginia is so tightly interwoven into US history that I don't think it's necessary to do more. But I do think it provides a nice recap of all that we've learned, and gives us an opportunity to appreciate the history surrounding us.

 

If I lived in a state that wasn't covered quite so thoroughly in our regular history studies I would probably devote more time to it. But even then, I doubt that I'd give it a whole year.

 

However, if I lived in another country, I would take time as we moved through history to cover significant events that might not come up in our regular studies. This could result in the 4-year cycle turning into 5 years. But I still don't think I would set aside a year for that specific study. I like to see how things fit together. It's for me to keep that mental timeline in place if I jump around too much. :)

 

Blessings!

Edited by Suzannah
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