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Ancient Weapons Curriculum/books


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I have several boys who are very interested in ancient weapons - and they want me to offer a class at our local co-op on the topic.  While I am not opposed to research, I would rather not reinvent the wheel if someone else has already put something like this together.  Does anyone know of a book or curriculum specific to ancient weapons (Greco-Roman to Medieval)?  I can simplify and/or edit as necessary - again, just didn't want to start from scratch if someone knew of something already.  

 

And before anyone decides to write a nasty comment - yes, I am so very thankful we homeschool!  :)  

 

Thanks for any helpful suggestions you can offer!

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The Warfare by Duct tape books are pretty awesome. Maybe not what you are looking for but you get to recreate weaponry and armor. They have a Greco-Roman one that my kids have enjoyed.

 

The Children's History of Weapons is also an interesting resource but mostly surface information.

 

Medieval Knight Science is also a book my DD has loved. It is about the science behind why the weaponry works or is constructed a certain way.

Edited by nixpix5
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The Warfare by Duct tape books are pretty awesome. Maybe not what you are looking for but you get to recreate weaponry and armor. They have a Greco-Roman one that my kids have enjoyed.

 

 

The Warfare by Duct is actually what spurred the beginnings of this long voyage!  They are great books! 

 

Thank you for the other suggestions - I will look into them!

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The Warfare by Duct is actually what spurred the beginnings of this long voyage! They are great books!

 

Thank you for the other suggestions - I will look into them!

Haha :) yep, it became an epidemic here as well. They are really fun.

 

We also found a book at the Goodwill that was all about making medieval machinery such as catapults and things. It is quite neat and has a ton of info. I will dig it off my shelf today and come add the title.

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I don't know of any curriculum, but DS was really into ancient warfare for a while, and one of his favorite books at around 11-12 was Warfare in the Classical World: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Weapons, Warriors, and Warfare in the Ancient Civilizations of Greece and Rome.   It doesn't cover the Middle Ages but it's cheap ($15) if you are planning for the students to buy a text.

 

Osprey publishes books on ancient and medieval warriors and weaponry (here are some examples) that are beautifully illustrated and accessibly written. They are slim books and not cheap, but you could check to see if your library carries some. They would be a good source for research reports or presentations, e.g. each student could choose one of the books and report on the weapons, equipment, tactics, etc.

 

DK publishes several books on the topic (e.g. Warrior, Weapon: A Visual History, Arms & Armor, etc.), but like most DK books they are quite lightweight (and according to DS not entirely accurate).

 

For older kids, the Teaching Co./Great Courses offers several courses on ancient warfare. DS particularly liked Great Battles of the Ancient World; the lectures are kind of dry but they are packed with information and it was one of DS's favorite courses. There are several really good courses on Greek warfare as well.

 

It's hard to recommend resources without knowing the age of the students or level of the course — a short course for middle schoolers who mostly want to look at pictures of weapons, with a bit of cultural/historical background thrown in, and make replicas as "output," is going to be totally different from a course for high schoolers that will require research papers and will count as a HS history credit. If I were going to design a course like this,  I'd start by deciding how to approach the topic and how to divide it up: by time period? by culture (e.g. Hittites, Egyptians, Mycenaens, Minoans, Classical Greeks, Romans, Goths, Vikings, etc.)? by type of weapon/equipment (knives & swords, spears and spear-throwers, bows & arrows, catapults & ballistae, chariots & cavalry, etc.)?

Edited by Corraleno
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It's hard to recommend resources without knowing the age of the students or level of the course — a short course for middle schoolers who mostly want to look at pictures of weapons, with a bit of cultural/historical background thrown in, and make replicas as "output," is going to be totally different from a course for high schoolers that will require research papers and will count as a HS history credit. If I were going to design a course like this,  I'd start by deciding how to approach the topic and how to divide it up: by time period? by culture (e.g. Hittites, Egyptians, Mycenaens, Minoans, Classical Greeks, Romans, Goths, Vikings, etc.)? by type of weapon/equipment (knives & swords, spears and spear-throwers, bows & arrows, catapults & ballistae, chariots & cavalry, etc.)?

 

Thank you for all the recommendations!  Great information.  The boys are between the ages of 9 and 13, but I don't mind presenting higher level information to the younger set.  We certainly want replicas with pictures and brief histories, and no need for credit (yet...might decide it is worth it later!)  I will start collecting all the books listed here and in some of the other posts!  

 

Thank you ALL!  I am excited and know my boys will be too! 

 

Grateful to each of you!

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I incorporated Decisive Battles of the Ancient World as we studied Ancient history. We read some portions of The Art of War and used The Encyclodedia of Military History from 3500 B.C. to the Present. B&N sells numerous military coffee table books, so I picked up many of those.

 

You could check out Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction: Build Implements of Spitball Warfare and pick up various models.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Mini-Weapons-Mass-Destruction-Implements/dp/1556529538/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1520949029&sr=8-1&keywords=Spitball+weapons&dpID=51Ifh2W1wWL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

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https://www.amazon.com/Art-Catapult-Ballistae-Trebuchets-Artillery/dp/1556525265/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1521392792&sr=8-1&keywords=art+of+catapult

It has instructions for making tabletop models that work and has a short historical narrative about famous battles with each one.  The one where King Richard and Saladin battle it out is pretty cool.

My brother used the book to build a full scale trebuchet at our mom's farm.  It was fun.

Edited by Homeschool Mom in AZ
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