Kfamily Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 (edited) I'm trying to sort out which books I might like to use for high school history. I have found the Dorothy Mill's books and I really like them for the middle school years. I have Spielvogel's Western Civilization (I found it really cheap so, if anything, it can be just a resouce) or maybe SWB's book on the Ancients and by the time we get to it the Middle Ages or the Churchill books (4 volumes)-though I might need to supplement these? or .....? What texts or books do you prefer for teaching highschool history? I need one for American History and one or two for at least two years of world history. Would you consider Democracy in America a government, economic or history book? I haven't read this as you can tell....:D I think I need to pick one or two I might like and get started with reading it. Any advice is appreciated. I will be adding to these spines with documents, essays, literature, biographies, etc. Thanks! Edited October 8, 2009 by Kfamily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 what I am using is SWB's history of the world ancients, + spielvogel's western civ. We do 3 chapters of SWB's book each week. and every 4 weeks or so, we do a section of western civ. that corresponds with HOAW. I really like the discussion questions in western civ, and use them for writing assignments. we are only doing 4 writing assignments from western civ this year. so far we have done assignments answering these questions.;1, What are the basic features of the three major periods of Egyptian history,?and what elements of continuity are there in the three periods? and what are the differences? 2, What did the Greeks mean by democracy, and in what ways was the Athenian political system a democracy? we are also doing Ancient lit. this year as recommended in WTM. this really ties in nicely with the history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in MD Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 For my son's high school history program, we used BJUP for 9th grade for world Geography. It was easy to use, well planned out and thorough. It is Christian-Evangelical in content and at times a bit heavy handed on the missions emphasis in my opinion (and I consider myself to be an evangelical). BUt...it is really easy to skip over the parts that you feel are over the top, should that need arise. For 10th grade we skipped social studies all together because ds really doesn't like most history type stuff. For 11th we did American History. We used Notgrass American History for the History portion only with a heavy addition of Teaching Company videos, which I will happily share if you are interested. We originally thought we would use Notgrass for the AM Lit side as well, but had the opportunity to sit in a homeschool class academy class that was doing AM Lit so we went with that instead. For senior year ds wanted to do Ancients for 1 semester and ren/ref for the second. So we used Spielvogel for the spine and married it up with The Teaching Co video lectures that matched up....again I'll share if you would like. Doing it on your own is not as hard as it may seem. My son loved the Teaching Co.Vids...I thought that he would find college level lectures boring but he actually liked them. They were a great answer for us. HTH Sharon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted October 7, 2009 Author Share Posted October 7, 2009 Thanks ladies! Sharon, I would love to know the Teaching Co. DVDS you matched with the text. We (dh and I) love the Teaching Co. and always laugh and say we would buy all of them if we could afford it.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted October 7, 2009 Author Share Posted October 7, 2009 bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhudson Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 The plan as of right now ( since I only have a 7th grader and twin 4th graders) is to use MFW's high school curriculum as a base and then add WTM methods and books to that. I like to start with a base and work off that first, it saves me time and energy and on off days (or weeks) when I don't have time to plan I can always say, "Go to the TM".:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cedarmom Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 I used Spielvogel's Western Civilization. Last year we used America: The Last Best Hope for American History;it was very interesting. If SWB's history books had been out at the right time, I think I would have used those too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted October 7, 2009 Author Share Posted October 7, 2009 Thank you! It looks like I would be okay with the Western Civilization. I may use the SWB books too and then choose an American history. Would the Western Civ. book be okay for a modern study? I also have The Greek Way and The Roman Way but I thought they might be good books to end with and should use these in 12th or so. Hmmm...still thinking. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cedarmom Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 Spielvogel would work fine for modern. We used something differant for modern mainly for a change. I had planned to do SPielvogel as well, as Lat Best Hope, but that was too much and didn't get done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laboroflove Posted October 8, 2009 Share Posted October 8, 2009 For our history spines, albeit a younger level, I looked through the Greenleaf Press website, Sonlight catalog, and Tapestry of Grace resource list (available to anyone on their store site), then made a list in advance of which ones I thought we would like to use. If a book made the list on more than one of these lists, then it definitely went into the pile. After that, I began hunting the books down looking for them used on Amazon or at our local Half Price Books (if you have something similar to this in your area). SOTW is possibly to0 skimpy for high school, but their resource list in their activity books are wonderful. Also consider buying All Through the Ages (perhaps by Christine Miller, not sure of the author and can't find my copy). This is a spectacular resource book for history spines and living books for each time period divided into age groups. I've used it for 3 school years now. Good luck!:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted October 8, 2009 Author Share Posted October 8, 2009 Thank you! Interestingly, I just picked up All Through The Ages at our local Goodwill and have always wanted it. Yeah! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted October 8, 2009 Share Posted October 8, 2009 Last year my hs'er used SWB's Ancients text. This year she'll be reading Cantor's Civilization of the Middle Ages. Haven't decided what after that - when doubts beset me I stick to the recommendations in the newest WTM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in MD Posted October 10, 2009 Share Posted October 10, 2009 Thanks ladies! Sharon, I would love to know the Teaching Co. DVDS you matched with the text. We (dh and I) love the Teaching Co. and always laugh and say we would buy all of them if we could afford it.:D I need you to pm me and give me an email address...the file is too big to upload here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted October 10, 2009 Share Posted October 10, 2009 I think you will be fine with Spielvogel until you get to 20th c Moderns. I found it very light in that time period and supplemented with DK's 20th Century Day by Day (was using Sonlight 300, which used to use this as a spine) and another set of books specifically for the 1900-1933 period--I think the author was Martin; it was British, and went year by year thru World History of the 20th c. There was little analysis, but it was quite readable (narrative style) and it was easy to see connections between events--causes and effects. I also tied our lit to our history, and I highly, highly recommend doing this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted October 10, 2009 Author Share Posted October 10, 2009 Thank you so much! Chris, thanks for additional info. for the modern time period. That was very helpful. Thanks again Sharon for sharing your info. about The Teaching Co. DVDs. You ladies are wonderful! I am very nervous about attempting high school and feel very alone with this sometimes but I'll just have to take this one year at a time. It is comforting to know that Spielvogel with take me most of the way. Our American history choice is another topic, I know.:001_smile: I have a couple in mind and will get to that soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted October 10, 2009 Share Posted October 10, 2009 (edited) It is comforting to know that Spielvogel with take me most of the way. Our American history choice is another topic World History = Spielvogel's Human Odyssey This is the high school text (Spielvogel's Western Civ. is the college text). H.O. is definitely secular; where is does mention religions (not often) it is either neutral in tone, and occasionally slightly negative. We take into account the book's bias (and ALL history books have a bias) in our discussions and we also balance it out by reading from other sources, too. We went with the H.O. for several reasons: 1. includes some excerpts from source documents or authors "of the time" 2. lots of illustrations and photos 3. more coverage of the non-western cultures (China, Japan, India, Middle East, Africa) than the Western Civ. It has been a fine history "spine" for us, and we will end up using most of the text, broken into 3 years: 9th gr. = ancients (planned for and completed chap 1-6) 10th gr = 20th century (attempted chap. 22-34, but didn't get to the last few chapters) [11th gr. = currently doing American History with a completely difference text] 12th gr. = medieval (chap. 7-21; doubt we'll quite make it, but we'll do as much as we can) We have also matched up our Literature for the most part with the history period, ala WTM; that has worked very well. We've also included lots of other resources - videos/DVDs from our library or Netflix - historical fiction (see Sonlight Curriculum for book list ideas) - other books/resources (what we had; library; etc.) American History = Notgrass American History A 3-volume set; Volume 1 covers Explorers, Colonies, Revolutionary, Western Expansion and Civil War. Volume 2 covers post Civil War through 9-11. The third volume is actually a separate book of lengthy excerpts from source documents, quotes, poems, essays, speeches, excerpts of writings, etc. from the actual people/documents throughout that whole time period. The program is written in a less formal tone than a textbook by Ray Notgrass, who states up front what a worldview is, that every history book is written from the bias of the author's worldview, and that his worldview is Christian. We went with Notgrass Amer. Hist. for several reasons: 1. for volume 3, all of the original writings, documents, etc. 2. a break from the secular viewpoint 3. a break from the textbook tone/style Also using: 1. American Gov't textbook for separate gov't. credit 2. doing American Lit. for a separate lit. credit 3. reading various historical fiction books and lighter/shorter non-fiction works on specific events (from younger Sonlight cores) 4. enjoying from library/Netflix feature films set in various time periods We are in the midst of the Notgrass Amer. Hist. this year and are loving it. The Notgrass also includes an American literature reading list, and schedules reading various books; we made our own Amer. Lit. to go along with American History, and many of our books overlap with those in the Notgrass, but many also differ. As with all the literature we've done throughout high school, we use lots of lit. guides We are also currently using the Great Source American Government textbook for our government credit and it fits in with the Notgrass incredibly well. Encouragement for you: high school seemed big and scary when we getting ready to start, too. But you take it just one decision at a time, one step at a time, one day at a time -- and it has been SO enjoyable! Welcome to "The Big Board"! :tongue_smilie: Warmest regards, Lori D. Edited October 10, 2009 by Lori D. added info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted October 10, 2009 Author Share Posted October 10, 2009 Lori, that was sooo helpful! Thank you! I'm going to subscribe to this thread (now that I know how to do that...:D)so that I can keep all the info. available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted October 10, 2009 Share Posted October 10, 2009 (edited) Lori, that was sooo helpful! Thank you! I'm going to subscribe to this thread (now that I know how to do that...:D)so that I can keep all the info. available. I like to copy and paste threads like this (and then add in other responses from related threads) into a text file, cut out extraneous graphics etc. and reduce to a smaller point size to save space, then print out the whole thing, and keep it all in my giant 3-ring binder of high school info. I LOVE the ladies on this board! They have given me so MANY great ideas, direction, encouragement, etc! The ladies here have made high school SOOOO much more "do-able" -- my giant 3-ring binder is stuffed and almost overflowing; guess I'm ready to start "volume 2" LOL! Thanks everyone! :) Warmest regards, Lori D. Edited October 10, 2009 by Lori D. added info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelBee Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2paul Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 We're doing Notgrass American History. I'd be interested in your book list for American Lit. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 We're doing Notgrass American History. I'd be interested in your book list for American Lit. Thanks! Timeline with literary movement/works: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americannovel/timeline/index.html AMERICAN LIT 1810s Washington Irving - "Rip Van Winkle" (short story) -- set before & after Revolutionary War - "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (short story) -- set c. 1790 1820s James Fenimore Cooper - The Deerslayer (novel) -- set in 1744 - Last of the Mohicans (novel) -- set in 1757 1830s Nathaniel Hawthorne - Twice-Told Tales (collection of short stories) - "My Kinsman, Major Molineux" (short story) -- set pre-Revolutionary War - "Young Goodman Brown" (short story) -- late 1600s - "The Minister's Black Veil" (short story) 1840s Nathaniel Hawthorne - "Rappaccini's Daughter" (short story) -- set in medieval Italy Edgar Allen Poe - "Fall of the House of Usher" (short story) - "The Black Cat" (short story) - "The Tell-Tale Heart" (short story) - "The Raven" (poem) 1850s Harriet Beecher Stowe - Uncle Tom's Cabin (novel) Henry David Thoreau - Walden (essays/journal) Herman Melville - "Billy Budd" (short story) -- set in 1797 - Moby Dick (novel) - "Bartleby the Scrivner" (short story) Nathaniel Hawthorne - The Scarlett Letter (novel) -- set in 17th century - The House of Seven Gables (novel) -- set mid-19th century - Tanglewood Tales (short story collection) - "Feathertop? (short story) -- set in 17th century 1860s-70s Bret Harte - "Outcasts of Poker Flats" (short story) -- set in 1850 - "Luck of Roaring Camp" (short story) -- set in 1849/1850 Ralph Waldo Emerson - Self Reliance (essay) Mark Twain - "Celebrated Jumping Frog" (short story) - Adventures of Tom Sawyer (novel) -- set in 1830s-50s Louisa May Alcott - Hospital Sketches -- her letters while a Civil War nurse - Little Women (novel) -- set during Civil War - Little Men (novel) -- set in the years after Civil War 1880s Mark Twain - Prince and the Pauper (novel) -- set in 1547 - Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (novel) -- set in 1830s-50s - A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (novel) -- set in 528A.D. 1890s Stephen Crane - "Bride Comes to Yellow Sky" (short story) - "The Monster" (short story) - "The Open Boat" (short story) - The Red Badge of Courage -- set in Civil War Ambrose Bierce - "Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" (short story) -- set in Civil War Fredrick Douglass (1818-1895) - A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (autobiography) -- set in last half of 1800s 1900s Jack London - Call of the Wild (novel) - White Fang (novel) - The Sea Wolf (novel) - "To Build a Fire" (short story) O. Henry - "Gift of the Magi" (short story) - "Ransom of Red Chief" (short story) Edith Wharton - Ethan Fromme (novel) - The House of Mirth (novel) Upton Sinclair - The Jungle (novel) -- set early 1900s Booker T. Washingtony (1856-1915) - Up From Slavery (autobiography) -- set in last half 1800s 1910s Willa Cather - O Pioneers! (novel) -- set at turn of 20th century - My Antonia (novel) Booth Tarkington - Penrod (collection of comic sketches) -- set in pre-WW1 1920s Edith Wharton - Age of Innocence (novel) -- set in the 1870s Willa Cather - Death Comes for the Archbishop (novel) -- set in the 1840s-1890s F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby (novel) -- set just after WW1 - "Bernice Bobs Her Hair" (short story) - "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (short story) - "Babylon Revisited" (short story) -- set in post 1929 Stock Market Crash 1930s - 1940s Ernest Hemingway - Farwell to Arms (novel) -- set during WW1 - For Whom the Bell Tolls (novel) -- set in Spanish Civil War (1930s) - "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" (short story) - The Old Man and the Sea (novella) Zora Neale Hurston - Their Eyes Were Watching God (novel) -- set pre-WW1 20th century Thornton Wilder - Our Town (play) -- set in 1901-1913 William Faulkner - a short story??? John Steinbeck - The Grapes of Wrath (novel) -- set in the 1930s - The Pearl (novella) 1950s - 1960s Arthur Miller - Death of a Salesman (play) set in 1949 - The Crucible (play) -- set in 1690s Salem witch trials Ralph Ellison - The Invisible Man (novel) John Howard Griffin - Black Like Me (biography) -- set in 1959 J.D. Salinger - Catcher in the Rye (novel) Lorraine Hansberry - A Raisin in the Sun (play) -- set in 1950s Flannery O'Connor - "A Good Man is Hard to Find" (short story) - "Revelation" (short story) Shirley Jackson - "The Lottery" (short story) Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) -- set in the 1930s Chaim Potok - The Chosen (novel) -- set in the 1940s Margaret Craven - I Heard The Owl Call My Name (novel) Ray Bradbury - Fahrenheit 451 (novel) - Something Wicked This Way Comes (novel) - "There Will Come Soft Rains" (short story) N. Scott Momaday - House Made of Dawn (novel) -- set in post WW2 1970s-1980s Ursula LeGuin - Earthsea trilogy: Wizard of Earthsea; Tombs of Atuan; The Farthest Shore (novels) - The Left Hand of Darkness (novel) - Lathe of Heaven (novel) - "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" (short story) Amy Tan - The Joy Luck Club (novel) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom31257 Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ValRN Posted February 6, 2010 Share Posted February 6, 2010 Sharon, I'm considering using Spielvogel Western Civ. for ds history next year. Will you share which TC lectures you used? For my son's high school history program, we used BJUP for 9th grade for world Geography. It was easy to use, well planned out and thorough. It is Christian-Evangelical in content and at times a bit heavy handed on the missions emphasis in my opinion (and I consider myself to be an evangelical). BUt...it is really easy to skip over the parts that you feel are over the top, should that need arise. For 10th grade we skipped social studies all together because ds really doesn't like most history type stuff. For 11th we did American History. We used Notgrass American History for the History portion only with a heavy addition of Teaching Company videos, which I will happily share if you are interested. We originally thought we would use Notgrass for the AM Lit side as well, but had the opportunity to sit in a homeschool class academy class that was doing AM Lit so we went with that instead. For senior year ds wanted to do Ancients for 1 semester and ren/ref for the second. So we used Spielvogel for the spine and married it up with The Teaching Co video lectures that matched up....again I'll share if you would like. Doing it on your own is not as hard as it may seem. My son loved the Teaching Co.Vids...I thought that he would find college level lectures boring but he actually liked them. They were a great answer for us. HTH Sharon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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