[Geography suggestions]

For geography, we really enjoyed taking a "world trip", including recipes, music, and art from different countries around the world.  I have a list of books that we used for 20 countries; let me know if you want a copy of that.  Also, these two books are absolutely AMAZING: tons of full-color photos, and really memorable:

Hungry Planet - What the World Eats

Material World - A Global Family Portrait

[Typing program for 7th and 4th graders]

My kids, 9yo and 12yo, really like typingclub.com, and it is free!!

[Science curriculum for 3rd and 5th grade]

My kids (currently 9yo and 12yo) have done well with read-aloud based science units.  I try to keep it all light and engaging, rather than rigorous and forced. We just a unit for Earth Science, and there is a free full book list here (plus field trip and project ideas):https://www.nourishedandnurturedlife.com/post/earth-science-unit-study

I also have a free list of books and simple projects for Astronomy here: https://www.nourishedandnurturedlife.com/post/astronomy-unit-study-resources

I hope this helps!

[Science for 6th Grader]

My kids (currently 9yo and 12yo) have done well with read-aloud based science units.  We just finished one for Earth Science, and there is a full book list here (plus field trip and project ideas):

https://www.nourishedandnurturedlife.com/post/earth-science-unit-study

I also have a list of books and simple projects for Astronomy here:

https://www.nourishedandnurturedlife.com/post/astronomy-unit-study-resources

I hope this helps!

[Middle School Literature]

Chapter books that we've enjoyed that show American culture and sites:

• Stuart Little by E. B. White 
• The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden 
• Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• Brooklyn Bridge by Lynn Curlee 
• The Brooklyn Bridge by Elizabeth Mann
• My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George 
• Dr. Beaumont and the Man With the Hole In His Stomach by Sam and Beryl Epstein (great for both history and science)
• Children of the Longhouse by Joseph Bruchac
• Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry
• Rascal by Sterling North (C, Y, YA)
• Inside Out & Back Again by Thanha Lai 
• The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (with a warning that there will be death and loss in the book)
• The Story of My Life (Unabridged) by Helen Keller 
• Flying With the Eagle, Racing with the Bear by Joseph Bruchac 
• Indian Shoes by Cynthia Leitich Smith 
• Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs by Betty Birney 
• Black Gold by Marguerite Henry 
• Dewey the Library Cat: A True Story by Vicki Myron 
• Indian Boyhood by Charles Eastman (this is the original book upon which the picture book version was based) 
• Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry
• Hoover Dam by Elizabeth Mann 
• Little Britches by Ralph Moody 
• Man of the Family by Ralph Moody 

 

I have also found that there are many great, more advanced picture books for that age. For the USA, besides history (which you've already got covered), I like to include books about Native American culture as well as folk tales.  Here are some of the ones about the USA that we've enjoyed:

• The Blue Hill Meadows by Cynthia Rylant
• Appalachia: The Voices of Sleeping Birds by Cynthia Rylant 
• When I Was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant
• Muskrat Will be Swimming by Cheryl Savageau
• Rainbow Crow: A Lenape Tale by Nancy Van Laan 
• When the Shadbush Blooms by Carla Messinger and Susan Katz 
• Time of Wonder by Robert McCloskey
• Island Boy by Barbara Cooney
• Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney 
• The Star Maiden by Barbara Esbensen
• From the Land of the White Birch by Shirley Neitzel 
• The Legend of the Lady Slipper: An Ojibwe Tale by Lise Lunge-Larsen
• The Story of Light by Susan Roth 
• Sequoyah: The Cherokee Man Who Gave His People Writing by James Rumford
• The Opossum's Tale by Deborah Duvall 
• Dancing Drum by Terri Cohlene 
• Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw Tale of Friendship and Freedom by Tim TIngle
• Iktomi and the Berries by Paul Goble 
• Indian Boyhood : The True Story of a Sioux Upbringing by Charles Eastman, edited and adapted by Michael Oren Fitzgerald 

 

[FREE EARTH SCIENCE UNIT STUDY GUIDE]

I like to follow the WTM 4-year science cycle, but I use it in a more relaxed way by focusing on inspiring my kids to be interested and engaged, rather than requiring them to do specific academic things. In this way, I'm working on creating a love of learning in my kids. We recently finished our unit on Earth Science, and it was a lot of fun! 

In case any of you are interested, I posted about how to do an Earth Science unit study here. My kids (9yo and 12yo) loved this unit! The post includes a book list for lots of read-alouds, plus project and field trip ideas.
https://www.nourishedandnurturedlife.com/post/earth-science-unit-study