Story of the World not working. Now what?

[jens2sons]

I have been using SOTW 1 with the AG for my 8yo son and even though I go over the comprehension questions and have him narrate and review with him, he's just not retaining anything from this book.  I have even printed up and laminated review cards from the AG and he really doesn't remember the stories.  I have used AO's year 1 stories and he did better.  I am just so frustrated when it comes to finding something that is chronological and at a 2nd/3rd grade listening interest when it comes to history.  SL and AO have great reading lists but I just don't have the time to read all day long.  My son is doing a lot better on his reading but still needs me to read-aloud to him.  i am looking for chronological history that uses real literature (not text books) that has a Christian slant and is not necessarily grade specific (meaning "1st grade", "2nd grade" etc.)  I am not interested in  unit studies because I don't have time to complete a bunch of projects.  I also want continue implementing note booking (I have a lifetime membership to notebookingpages.com).  I have been considering the Beautiful Feet Study guides but they don't have much for younger elementary.  I have looked at SCM but it seems like it is really geared for kids that are older even though it says you can use it for K-12.  I am thinking about tossing out the history spine and just using books from my collection and library that go in order more chronologically.  The problem I have with that is always wondering if I am missing something.  But with my son being young still, I'm thinking that it really won't matter because he will go over it later when he gets older.  I guess I'm just looking for something that doesn't take so much time to do.  Using a spine takes a lot of time because I first have to read the spine book, then I have to go find the other books to follow up so that the subject is remembered and enjoyed.  Ugh.  I want to have a variety of books (not just use history as literature reading) so as to not get burned out with the subject matter.  I'd really appreciate your input.  Thanks!

[HomeAgain]

At that age I find the projects really do cement the stories for them.  Not necessarily projects....activities?  We tend to use SOTW backward: I introduce an activity either from the guide or an online resource that can be done independently AND goes with the story as it's being read.  The hands on really works to help get them more interested.

 

 

[SparklyUnicorn]

At that age I don't worry about retention (for history).

 

 

Edited January 7, 2016 by SparklyUnicorn

[prairiewindmomma]

I wouldn't worry about it. For real.  At age 8, you are just kind of nailing up a peg board of a general framework of things that you will revisit twice more. History at this age is more about the exposure of ideas than about the memorization of information.

 

Work on the skills of narration.  That is a foundation point for writing. You don't have to narrate every time, or whole chapters even.  A few paragraphs here and there work (a subsection of a chapter is great!)

Work on the comprehension questions. It helps you gauge how well he processes auditory information. If there is a weakness, the answer is to build strength there--not abandon the material.  I'd check to see how well he comprehends other material.

 

Read the material. Do a bit of narration or comprehension questions here or there. Slow down the pace if necessary. Grammar aged children are building skills.  What you teach in content material is less important.

 

---the mother of two kids who have struggled and one who hasn't with SOTW

---p.s. try the activities in the activity guide; they've been a hit with my boys and a better review than any book we read from the library

---listening to the audio cds in the car is fine too!

[lacell]

Have you tried a history timeline? You can do it in book form or a wall type. I had trouble understanding dates as a child, so history was hard for me. I think the timeline would have helped a lot!

[lacell]

I would also suggest reinforcing it with the CD's while he colors history coloring pages or plays with legos or whatever. Sometimes kids need to hear things more than once. My library has all the CD's.

[jens2sons]

At that age I don't worry about retention (for history).

 

 

I wouldn't worry about it. For real.  At age 8, you are just kind of nailing up a peg board of a general framework of things that you will revisit twice more. History at this age is more about the exposure of ideas than about the memorization of information.

 

Work on the skills of narration.  That is a foundation point for writing. You don't have to narrate every time, or whole chapters even.  A few paragraphs here and there work (a subsection of a chapter is great!)

Work on the comprehension questions. It helps you gauge how well he processes auditory information. If there is a weakness, the answer is to build strength there--not abandon the material.  I'd check to see how well he comprehends other material.

 

Read the material. Do a bit of narration or comprehension questions here or there. Slow down the pace if necessary. Grammar aged children are building skills.  What you teach in content material is less important.

 

---the mother of two kids who have struggled and one who hasn't with SOTW

---p.s. try the activities in the activity guide; they've been a hit with my boys and a better review than any book we read from the library

---listening to the audio cds in the car is fine too!

 

Why read a book that he isn't remembering then?  I'd rather read a book that keeps his interest and he remembers.  I get the whole memory peg thing, but the problem I have with that is I may as well be reading off of Classical Conversations timeline cards and that was NOT a good fit for my son.  Bored. To. Death.   

[lacell]

Some people also swear by unit studies for history. It's too all over the place for my taste.

[sweetpea3829]

I agree with others that retention isn't the goal for this age. Exposure, cultivating an interest, etc are primary goals. A lot of folks feel their elementary kiddo isn't retaining, but then are surprised when they cycle back through and the kids remember more than they thought and/or pick up and retain better on that second cycle.

We use SOTW as our "spine", add in some of the recommended books from the teachers guide, complete the maps, and we keep a continuous timeline. Each chapter, we add the corresponding timeline figures. Most of those I got from History Through the Ages. I print them on label paper, color them in and attach them to the timeline as needed.

When mine are older, I am considering ToG.

 

 

ETA: contiNous.  Not contiGous.  

Edited January 7, 2016 by Sweetpea3829

[EKS]

IMO, your goal for this age should be exposure and enjoyment.  For us that meant reading the chapter, doing the mapwork and coloring page, reading some supplemental books, and doing a project if it looked like fun.  I did have my son narrate each chapter, but not as a test.  I did it to see what he retained and found interesting and important.  

[mom2kando]

I was feeling the same a few months ago. Then I came across this article http://bfbooks.com/Why-Teach-American-History-First and it made sense to me. I LOVE SOTW, but we did make the switch, plus we have a trip planned for Williamsburg this spring...LOL!

[jens2sons]

IMO, your goal for this age should be exposure and enjoyment.  For us that meant reading the chapter, doing the mapwork and coloring page, reading some supplemental books, and doing a project if it looked like fun.  I did have my son narrate each chapter, but not as a test.  I did it to see what he retained and found interesting and important.  

 

This is what I have been doing too.  I NEVER test.  I have him narrate and when we review, that tells me where he is.  (I guess that is a sort of test :P)

[jens2sons]

I was feeling the same a few months ago. Then I came across this article http://bfbooks.com/Why-Teach-American-History-First and it made sense to me. I LOVE SOTW, but we did make the switch, plus we have a trip planned for Williamsburg this spring...LOL!

 

Yes!  This is what I have been thinking about doing :D  How is it going for you?  SOTW just doesn't make sense to me.  It jumps all over the page and I think that might be why he's not retaining.  

[mom2att]

The other day my high school son pointed to the SOTW books still on the shelf and mentioned that he really liked it when we read those. He couldn't name anything specific that he learned, but they left a positive "taste" of history with him. All we ever did was read through the books together.

 

This year he is studying U.S. History in depth and learning a ton, because he's at a developmental level to not only retain the info, but also draw conclusions and inferences from it. It's really rewarding to see that happen, but it isn't because we "did" history a certain way when he was younger, it's just because he's ready for it now.

 

IMO history study in the elementary years is to set the stage and cultivate interest. Period.

 

And I say that with all certainty, having gone to the opposite extreme with my oldest. The projects, the narrations, the timelines . . . we did it ALL. And her retention by the time she got to high school history was no better than that of her brother, who got by with just reading through SOTW. It was familiar when she got around to studying it in depth in high school, but it wasn't like she remembered everything, or much of anything specific.

 

It's the "story" that makes SOTW so great. Treat history like the fascinating journey it is and just enjoy the ride.

[Hilltopmom]

My kid loved to listen to the audios while building with lego or playmobil. Over & over & over. We never tested or did the AG book. He did choose library books on castles, Egypt, etc over the years.

 

We also did lots of American History laid back: Liberty's kids DVDs, read alouds, Charlie brown USA videos, trips to historic places & festivals, we became involved in living history...

 

All that stuck.

 

When he got older, he re read SOTW and then the SWB high school books.

 

We didn't do any " formal" textbook history till grade 9 & it's mostly been review for him. Mainly real books & lectures.

He can hold is own at living history events when the men start going on, & on, & on about obscure history topics around the campfire.

[mom2kando]

They love it so far (Leif the Lucky) and all of the books are available at our library so it was minimal investment. They enjoy adding to the composition book too.

[prairiewindmomma]

If American history appeals to you, go for it.  I shared what I did only because a lot of people give up on SOTW without understanding the methodology.  If the methodology flat out doesn't work for you, and you would like to skill build in a different way---run with it.

 

 

[jens2sons]

If American history appeals to you, go for it.  I shared what I did only because a lot of people give up on SOTW without understanding the methodology.  If the methodology flat out doesn't work for you, and you would like to skill build in a different way---run with it.

 

 

It's not the American history that appeals to me particularly.  It's the chronology.  The problem that I personally have with SOTW is that it jumps back and forth and it is hard for me to follow.  I have also read on many reviews written by history majors that they believe SOTW to be inaccurate at times.  This also concerns me.  I can't name specifics, but I haven't read that about other books so far.  

[SparklyUnicorn]

Why read a book that he isn't remembering then?  I'd rather read a book that keeps his interest and he remembers.  I get the whole memory peg thing, but the problem I have with that is I may as well be reading off of Classical Conversations timeline cards and that was NOT a good fit for my son.  Bored. To. Death.   

 

Do you remember anything you read when you were 8?

 

To me the idea is exposure, enjoyment, etc.  If he is bored with it that is another thing though.  I'd switch for that reason.

 

He is going to go over history every year until at least 12th grade. 

[prairiewindmomma]

Well, my background is in international relations and law--I haven't had problems with SWB's grasp of history. I've read fairly extensively in certain areas of history--would never claim to be an expert in it all--but I've read consistently for 20+ years now over a broad range of topics. A true chronological history isn't possible. Her organization of material by geographic area makes sense.

 

Some people have reorganized chapters focusing on one geographic area at a time---all of asia, all of europe, etc.--perhaps that would be more appealing to you?

[Haiku]

We enjoyed SOTW, but looking back, I think a lot of the stories had way too much detail for kids in 1st-4th grades.

 

I also found that my kids remembered very little specific detail when they cycled through history again in 5th-7th (we dropped the WTM cycles of history sometime in dd's 7th grade year).

 

Don't put pressure on yourself over history. It's a content subject, not a skill subject, so you don't really need to have an in-depth study of history at your son's age. Just do stuff he likes. I wouldn't even worry about a chronological study until he's in 5th grade, if you want to go chronologically. Studying topics of interest is fine in the primary grades.

[almondbutterandjelly]

What I'm hearing is:

You don't want projects.

You do want chronological order.

You are bored by SOTW.

You don't want history to take up a lot of time.

 

Okay, here are my suggestions:

I think the chronology is most important in the idea of the four year history cycle:  Ancient, then Medieval, then Early Modern, then Modern.   Inside of each of those, a lot of overlap happens chronologically, and it seems really natural to divide it up by culture.

 

For your year of Ancient, I would divide it into Ancient Egypt, Ancient Mesopotamia, Ancient Greece, and Ancient Rome.  Spend a quarter (9 weeks) on each.  Every day, just read a picture book or excerpt from a non-picture book.  Maybe occasionally watch a relevant video.  That's it.  If you want to notebook or whatnot, go for it.

 

If you really can't stand not to have a spine to guide you, I really like Usborne's First Encyclopedia of History.  http://www.amazon.com/First-Encyclopedia-History-Usborne/dp/1409522431

 

 

[texasmama]

At that age I don't worry about retention (for history).

This.  It's all about exposure.

[texasmama]

Also, if a person went to college having never studied history a day in her life, she could take a history class and do just fine since it is a content rather than a skill subject.  I do not do any "comprehension" or "retention" work with history in elementary. 

[Guest]

I agree with everyone saying don't sweat it. Do you remember everything you read???

 

But it sounds to me like you just need to get away from trying to do narrative history since you're adamant it's boring (agreed) and you don't want to "spend all day reading."

 

If I were in your shoes, with your goals  I would have him read a page from a good history encyclopedia two or three times a week, and draw a picture and write three sentences about whatever grabs him from the page in a history notebook. Then have him show and explain his history pages to Dad or Grandma once a fortnight; have a conversation about it. He'll be revisiting the material thrice this way, in different ways.

[SparklyUnicorn]

It would be so fantastic if everyone remembered a good deal from history starting at age 8.  We'd all be history experts by the time we were 18.  That is definitely not typical though.

 

And you'd be surprised.  For awhile I figured my kids weren't remembering much, but there have been times where they have said oh yeah I remember reading about that, etc.  The projects helped a lot.  Adding in library books (especially picture books) helped. 

[redsquirrel]

your goal at that age, is that when you return to ancient history (or whatever) in 5th grade, your kid says "Oh, I like history".  That is the for real goal with grammar stage history. For them world history might look like this: Pyramids, greek gods, Rome, knights and castles, explorers, then a bunch of wars.  My kids did have some memorization of specific dates but that was just me, and it was minimal.

 

You are using the content of history to practice the skill of narration, because that is an easy twofer. But you don't have to do it. I think it's important b/c it is a writing skill, but YMMV. You don't have to work on it at all.

 

You can get through all of a SOTW book in one school year very efficiently. Two or three days a week you read a section and on the third you do the map work.  If an activity looks fun or easy for you to put together then do it. If not, skip it. I could go for weeks at a time not doing any activities.

 

I didn't feel like I was spending 'all day' reading. I didn't make them do the review cards, I hardly did any outside reading.  It didn't take much time and the kids liked it.  How much did they 'retain' well, I didn't really care. We are in 5th grade and back with the Ancients, using different materials for older kids and it's going fine.

 

My older boy did the same thing, two times through the history cycle in years 1-8, and then he chose public high school for 9th grade. He's done very well in history and is taking an AP class. But now, it's not my problem, lol.  The only difference I can see between him and his public school peers, is that for ds1, this isn't the first time he's been exposed to the material. He's not a history ninja, but he does seem to be able to place events etc better than his peers. I think this is because he's gone through it twice already, each time with more expected of him.

 

 

[SparklyUnicorn]

your goal at that age, is that when you return to ancient history (or whatever) in 5th grade, your kid says "Oh, I like history".

 

 

Absolutely!  I hated hated HATED history as a kid.  I enjoy it now and in large part because of SOTW.

 

I sometimes used the review questions, but sometimes they just didn't remember the details.  So we just discussed it.  Both of my kids enjoy history so I think I was successful on that point.

[EKS]

It's not the American history that appeals to me particularly.  It's the chronology.  The problem that I personally have with SOTW is that it jumps back and forth and it is hard for me to follow.  

 

This is interesting, because my experience with SOTW was that the narrative was a bit muddled *because* it was trying so hard to preserve the chronology at the expense of the narrative thread--and this only got worse as the books went on (so much worse that by the middle of the third book we jumped ship to K12.

[MerryAtHope]

How much reading aloud is too much? I used Sonlight, but the early cores took about 20 minutes for a spine, and another 20 for the read-aloud. I did the literature-based read-alouds at night, and they didn't even feel like "school." And if SL does get to be too much reading, split it up or drop some books. You can do a core over 1.5 or 2 years, or you can pick and choose from their booklists. 

 

Anyway, I mention it in case it's not as much reading as you think, or if you can adapt it to more of what you want. 

 

For narration--I think narrating a chapter is difficult for one so young. Some kids might be able to pull out a few points, but others get lost in all the details. I found it more helpful at this stage to use pictures. "Tell me about this picture?" They'd say what they knew, I might add something or ask a question, they'd tell more, etc...

 

My child who had the most trouble with narration in the early grades had a lot less trouble with writing than my one who could narrate easily, btw. Like anything, it's a skill to work on.

 

Enjoy good books together--pick books you enjoy too (if you don't enjoy it, he probably won't). I wouldn't sweat the retention part. That will come in time, if you are cultivating an interest. I also find that kids usually retain more than they know how to express. It's hard to break down what you heard into just a few things to say.

 

Also audios--my kids loved audios (and learned a lot of history from Adventure's in Odyssey).

 

 

[Janeway]

I would not expect him to retain everything. Even if he remembers the story word for word, he is only a 2nd grader. He will forget it in the years to come. The point here is to give him the jist of history, not to master it.

[Janeway]

I would not expect him to retain everything. Even if he remembers the story word for word, he is only a 2nd grader. He will forget it in the years to come. The point here is to give him the jist of history, not to master it.

[jens2sons]

How much reading aloud is too much? I used Sonlight, but the early cores took about 20 minutes for a spine, and another 20 for the read-aloud. I did the literature-based read-alouds at night, and they didn't even feel like "school." And if SL does get to be too much reading, split it up or drop some books. You can do a core over 1.5 or 2 years, or you can pick and choose from their booklists. 

 

Anyway, I mention it in case it's not as much reading as you think, or if you can adapt it to more of what you want. 

 

For narration--I think narrating a chapter is difficult for one so young. Some kids might be able to pull out a few points, but others get lost in all the details. I found it more helpful at this stage to use pictures. "Tell me about this picture?" They'd say what they knew, I might add something or ask a question, they'd tell more, etc...

 

My child who had the most trouble with narration in the early grades had a lot less trouble with writing than my one who could narrate easily, btw. Like anything, it's a skill to work on.

 

Enjoy good books together--pick books you enjoy too (if you don't enjoy it, he probably won't). I wouldn't sweat the retention part. That will come in time, if you are cultivating an interest. I also find that kids usually retain more than they know how to express. It's hard to break down what you heard into just a few things to say.

 

Also audios--my kids loved audios (and learned a lot of history from Adventure's in Odyssey).

 

When it comes to reading aloud, I guess I'm thinking more about how 'many' books I have to read through.  My son is always asking "Why can't we just read the same book?  Why do we keep skipping around"?  I like most of the SL choices, just not too keen on skipping around. And when it comes to skipping around, I'm not good at trying to figure out where we are in the IG.  My husband doesn't want to read the SL choices.  He wants to read his choices of literature at night.  If I read aloud to my son, it's the last thing we do for the school day.

As for narration, I have been having him draw a picture about what we read and then write a sentence about what the picture is.  He does fine with this.

I'm not enjoying SOTW.  I'd like to read some real literature.  Not just a history spine.  I think that's why I have been eye-balling the Beautiful Feet guides.  They seem to incorporate Bible, lit, science (to a point), geography and biography and character studies all in one.  I'm just wondering if it's the right timing for us though since it's the beginning of 2nd semester.

[Guest]

Jens2sons have you read the Circe threads?

 

You can just read. For real. If you don't want to skip around, don't. If you don't want to wrap your life around history, don't.

[jens2sons]

I agree with everyone saying don't sweat it. Do you remember everything you read???

 

But it sounds to me like you just need to get away from trying to do narrative history since you're adamant it's boring (agreed) and you don't want to "spend all day reading."

 

If I were in your shoes, with your goals  I would have him read a page from a good history encyclopedia two or three times a week, and draw a picture and write three sentences about whatever grabs him from the page in a history notebook. Then have him show and explain his history pages to Dad or Grandma once a fortnight; have a conversation about it. He'll be revisiting the material thrice this way, in different ways.

 

I'm not expecting him to remember everything from now to when he's an adult.  But what I think should happen is that he should be able to remember what we read last week or even last month if we are spending time on the subject.

[jens2sons]

Jens2sons have you read the Circe threads?

 

You can just read. For real. If you don't want to skip around, don't. If you don't want to wrap your life around history, don't.

 

I have not.  Is this on the forum here somewhere?

[Guest]

I have not.  Is this on the forum here somewhere?

 

It's a monster!

 

http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/359457-how-does-one-provide-a-classical-education-circe-institute-lovers/

[MerryAtHope]

When it comes to reading aloud, I guess I'm thinking more about how 'many' books I have to read through.  My son is always asking "Why can't we just read the same book?  Why do we keep skipping around"?  I like most of the SL choices, just not too keen on skipping around. And when it comes to skipping around, I'm not good at trying to figure out where we are in the IG. 

 

I didn't skip all around or read as many different books per day as SL schedules. They have a 1-page guide that lists all of the books in order of introduction, and for the most part, I followed that instead. So, we would read one spine or one biography or one alternate history book, and then one read-aloud. We read them mostly in the order SL suggested, but sometimes I moved things around to have us not jumping from book to book. (It's mainly the early cores that do that--they jump around less as you move on in cores.) Eventually I just started making up my own one-page guide, listing the books in the order I wanted to read them. 

[sweetpea3829]

We primarily just use the SOTW for our assigned reading.  The suggested books from the guide?  I check out books that cover our previous, current and next weeks' subjects.  They are in a large basket that is in our family's common room.  Whenever, I'll tell them, "Guys...go read a history book."  They pick what they are interested in and read it (or look at it, depending on which kid we're talking about) themselves!

 

Occasionally I might assign a passage from a book other than SOTW, but its pretty rare.  

[sweetpea3829]

It's a monster!

 

http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/359457-how-does-one-provide-a-classical-education-circe-institute-lovers/

 

 

I...can't....NO!  I won't get sucked into the philosphy part of all of this!!!  NOOOOO!!!!

 

 

 

*sigh*  

 

Tomorrow is our last day of winter break...guess what I'll be reading?  

[forty-two]

I'm not expecting him to remember everything from now to when he's an adult.  But what I think should happen is that he should be able to remember what we read last week or even last month if we are spending time on the subject.

 

What kind of review are you doing with him? 

 

(I subscribe to the school of thought that initially learning something is only the beginning - long term retention takes review done over time.  I don't bother with history, but for where I *am* working on long-term retention, I use Simply Charlotte Mason's review system (it's focused on memory work, particularly Scripture memory work, but I use it to schedule review of *anything* I want to get into long-term memory.)

Edited January 8, 2016 by forty-two

[jens2sons]

What kind of review are you doing with him? 

 

(I subscribe to the school of thought that initially learning something is only the beginning - long term retention takes review done over time.  I don't bother with history, but for where I *am* working on long-term retention, I use Simply Charlotte Mason's review system (it's focused on memory work, particularly Scripture memory work, but I use it to schedule review of *anything* I want to get into long-term memory.)

 

SCM memory box is wonderful.  I have used it it the past for memory verses.  As for history, I had been using the review cards that I copied off from the back of the SOTW AG.  

[ByGrace3]

You sound just like me a few years ago. SOTW ended up just not being my cuppa. What I found for awhile that worked well was using Truthquest guides and choosing many of the Sonlight books to read. Just picture books about topics with notebooking pages and "binder builders" from TQ. My kids loved it. We are now using vp self paced for time purposes mainly. (I need the independence with schooling 3) but I think TQ with SL books was our favorite...

[LindaOz]

Maybe you would enjoy doing history the way it was outlined in the first edition of WTM: read a double page spread from Usborne history, talk about it, draw and write, then find a book to read that goes along with something covered on the page. Read and enjoy that book(s) then, when ready, move to next page of Usborne.

[Another Lynn]

I do think all the details in SOTW can get to be too much for some.  Why not conitnue to study ancients (if you want to), but use Hillyer's CHOW as your spine instead.  It hits the high points (less detail) which might make it easier for him to hang on to something.  If you don't have time to do other read alouds, why not look at Jim Weiss CDs for stories related to the Ancient time period or even just classic children's stories and let him listen while he plays, colors, builds legos, whatever.  Win-Win. 

[Storygirl]

When my kids were younger, I took a look at SOTW but didn't use it, because I thought it jumped around too much (for them). I wanted to study the Egyptians, then the Greeks, then the Romans, etc., culture by culture. I cobbled together my own lessons with library books.

 

I found that the Magic Tree House Fact Tracker nonfiction guides were perfect. If you are not familiar with these, they are nonfiction guides that give factual background about the historical periods that the characters visit in the Magic Tree House chapter book series.I believe there were books corresponding to all of the cultures we wanted to study. They were perfect for the age level, easy to read aloud, and contained the right amount of information. Although they are not Christian in viewpoint, we are a Christian family and didn't find anything objectionable.

 

I paired the Fact Trackers with craft activities using History Pockets and a few other resources, because my kids enjoyed hands-on projects. You wouldn't have to, but it made history enjoyable for my kids.

 

That was by far our most successful and enjoyable year of history. It wouldn't be hard for you to put this approach together on your own: just buy or borrow a copy of the MTH  Fact Tracker book of your choice, open it, and start reading. Do narrations as you are used to doing. When you get near the end, order the next book you will need. (There is no need to read the actual Magic Tree House fictional chapter books, unless desired).

[jens2sons]

Maybe you would enjoy doing history the way it was outlined in the first edition of WTM: read a double page spread from Usborne history, talk about it, draw and write, then find a book to read that goes along with something covered on the page. Read and enjoy that book(s) then, when ready, move to next page of Usborne.

 

I am leaning more toward this idea at this point.  I am also looking in to tweaking AO to make it work for me since I can do so much of it inexpensively.  I don't have much faith that my library has the books that I need.  Most of the books I need I have to either download or buy.

[J-rap]

At age 8 we didn't do a lot book-wise.  And we stayed pretty focused in what we covered.  For example, we probably spent 3 months studying the pioneers in America.  We read one or two Laura Ingalls Wilder books.  We cooked "pioneer food", made cheese, and imagined what it was like in the winter on the prairie.  They would write journal entries pretending they were there.  We watched some children's movies or TV shows on pioneers.  Things like that.  It made more of an impression on them doing it that way.  They actually remember a lot of it!  

[pitterpatter]

I'm not sure your particular unicorn exists. The first round of the history cycle is hard because there is so little quality curriculum available for this age set...especially ones wrapped up nice and pretty with shiny red bows.

 

Over the years, I've tried to hit topics in multiple ways for maximum retention. In other words, I hit a topic once with our spine, once with a picture book(s) read aloud (these may be fiction or non-fiction...just depends), once with a historical fiction short novel/chapter book (either an audiobook or a Kindle book that our Fires can read aloud or something on the short side that I can read at bedtime), and if I can find it, once with a DVD (or YouTube segment, etc.). We also complete projects here and there...I prefer paper crafts (read Evan-Moor History Pockets or similar) or very low-key hand crafts.

 

My advice...throw the comp questions and narrations out the door. Save those for Language Arts time. If you have a full schedule in core subjects, you really don't have time to do these things anyway. Save the SOTW AG for book/media/craft recommendations.

 

Grab a copy of Usborne Ancient World to use as your spine. (This is a unit from the larger Usborne World History encyclopedia.) Divide the material in a logical way that fits your schedule. Pull up your library's digital card catalog and search for topics and keywords represented in the spine. Just skim the pages of each section and note headlines and what's been pulled for pictures and such. Compile a list to order/check out from the library.

 

This is what we've more or less been doing for four years. DD does not retain it all. That's an unrealistic expectation. She does remember a good deal, though...more than enough for her age. But, she loves history and is always excited for whatever is next. This week, she's all about the Titanic. She says she's going to be the one to pull it up from the depths of the sea.

 

http://bluehouseschool.blogspot.com/search/label/Ancient%20History - What we did for Ancients. Scroll back to the beginning. (This is from 2012-2013...I would use/add a lot more audiobooks and Kindle books now.)

 

Be sure to dive into your library's digital holdings...can't beat free audio books and Kindle books. Also, look to see whether your library has subscriptions to Hoopla Digital, etc. OpenLibrary.org can be your friend for out-of-print picture books. Check into History Pockets. Relax and enjoy.

[teachingmy3]

My older two (11 and 13) loved SOTW. But my 7 yr old, that's working a year ahead, hates it. She has amazing reading and comprehension skills, but I think she just lacks a love of history. It makes me sad because I believe that SOTW encourages a love of history. I don't think the purpose of the curriculum is to have kids memorize dates, names and facts. When I used it with the older 2, I just wanted them to have a general understanding of major events and when they took place. And what do you know, they love history!

 

I agree with the PP about doing more of the projects. Kids always remember the project!