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Any Aussies on here? Advice needed!


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OK it's a long shot, but I'm just wondering whether anyone can help me out with reading suggestions for history. We have started on Susan Wise-Bauer's books The Story of the World. My 6yo and 4yo love it, and I think they are wonderful as a starting point for children to learn where famous historical people and events fit in with each other. But Australia barely rates a mention (which is fair enough for an American who is trying to cover all of human civilization in such a relatively short work!) So I am looking for something in a similar style to cover indigenous history plus Australian history from the First Fleet to now. I just can't seem to find anything like that at all.

 

Any ideas please?

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hi - i'm not an aussie, but we spend a month a year there. (this year it was darwin and the red centre : ). we did listen to the aussie parts of SOTW as background, but for our older dds (mid-late teens when they read them), what stuck was the historical fiction series "the australians". it isn't suitable for younger kids, but i enjoyed it. the treatment of women in that time period was not good, so some of the reading was hard. they remembered more history after that than they ever did before. i think having a story line and people to relate to helps them remember.

 

i'll be watching the thread to see what else is out there. maybe there are some documentaries? australian geographic produced some great dvds about each section of the country, and some of those go into aboriginal and early settler history as it relates to the landscape.

 

hth,

ann

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi, I'm sorry I haven't seen your post before now. I don't make it down to this forum very often.

I am looking for similar for a year of Australia and New Zealand history in 2011.

This site has some fabulous Australian products and somewhere on there is a rather good book list:

http://www.downunderlit.com/

 

Now if I could only find something similar for NZ. Downunder lit seem to be adding to their range all the time so I certainly have my fingers crossed :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

We lived in Australia 10 years ago, so my memory may not be right - but there's a book called Sunburnt Country or In a Sunburnt Country - something like that.

 

Are you living in Australia or elsewhere? If elsewhere, you may find it a challenge to get your hands on a copy of the book.

 

There's a yahoo group for Aussies and Kiwis, if you go to Yahoo groups and search for Charlotte Mason Australia I'm sure you'll find it.

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we just added in some living books on Australia. and read some sections from non- fiction books on Australian history.

I also changed their reading lists to have more Australian books.

I swapped gone with the wind, to for a term of his natural life, O'Henry books swapped to Jabaroo road. etc.

 

I just noticed the age of your children. sorry, my suggestions were for a child slightly older. when mine were younger I read them heaps of dream time stories , then Australian classics like Binky bill, and snuggle pot and cuddlepie.

 

 

I have always found Australian History to be fairly short. Aboriginal history, then the first fleet and convicts, then the gold rush and bush-rangers. squatters and droughts etc. not much else exciting at all.

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I have always found Australian History to be fairly short. Aboriginal history, then the first fleet and convicts, then the gold rush and bush-rangers. squatters and droughts etc. not much else exciting at all.

Um, that's the problem with the average history book ;)

 

We have got plenty of wonderful Aussie stories, I'm just really looking for a

'spine' for the history bit. Anyway, we're going to try Our Sunburnt Country and just add on the bits it doesn't cover. I want to include some history local to our state and our area as well, as suggested in TWTM I think. (We live in Tasmania, and our culture and history differ a little bit from mainland Australia.)

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  • 2 weeks later...
Guest joyangel75

Maybe you could look at www.australianhistorypictures.com (Diana Waring is an australian homeschooling mum) or www.homeschooling.com.au (homeschooling supplies - a homeschooling family business in aus)... they have history and social studies curriculum needs. I haven't had a close look at anything yet as my kids are younger.. but have come across info whilst idling away hours researching different curriculum ideas!!! If anyone has used them it would be great to let us know what you think!

Cheers - from Angela

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