Okay, I love SWB, but this is what bothers me w/ SOTW

[Alicia64]

You know the "extra reading" that SWB mentions in the workbook? She calls it "Corresponding Literature Suggestions" or "Additional History Reading."

 

I end up salivating over all of her book suggestions for each chapter and order them at the library. Then these books arrive that are densely written and would simply take me forever to read to the boys. I read aloud at least an hour every day, but there's no way to accomplish all of that extra reading for 7 year olds. (Even one of those books would be our "read aloud" for the entire week.)

 

I wish she'd made a note next to each book suggestion saying something along the lines of, "easy reading picture book" or "very, very long story about Pandora that could easily take 3 hours of straight reading." :D

 

How do you guys handle this? I have the most giant stack of library books on my table and -- while I wish there were time enough in life to read these to my boys -- the time simply doesn't exist.

 

And I can't tell from her descriptions if the books are easy, fun picture books or super long, wordy books.

 

And this is not a criticism of SWB or SOTW -- I otherwise love the curriculum!

 

Alley

[Snickerdoodle]

I sometimes look at them at amazon first to get a feel and usually only pick books from a theme my kids want to spend more time learning about. Also, my library doesn't carry most of the books, believe it or not, so that also cuts out a lot right from the get go.

[EJCMom]

I think that's a really good suggestion. I'm sure that the list is meant to offer a variety of material from which the parent may choose. But, given the fact that we often have to put the materials on hold at the library, it would be nice to have some sort of idea of what each book is so that it would be easier to narrow down the selections before checking them all out.

[RhondaM.]

Alley, there are just too many good books out there! :)

 

If you order your library books online, the library website should tell you what type of book it is (picture book, chapter book), how many pages it is and a description of the book.

[Guest]

And I thought my problem was hard. Mine is finding books my kids HAVEN"T read on that topic yet.

[Aubrey]

Sometimes we skip the extra reading. Sometimes I pull whatever I have on the shelf. Sometimes I get stuff from the library.

 

Now, w/ what we've got any given week, whether from the library or home, we pick & choose. I might order everything my library's got off of a list & leave it in a basket for the kids to choose from. What gets read gets read; what doesn't gets returned. No big deal.

 

Or I'll pick one to read aloud over several weeks. Or I'll assign certain ones that are great. Whatever. No big deal. :001_smile:

 

I AM glad to hear, though, that others have a similar problem. Sometimes I feel like the library is such a waste because there's not a book in the stack that we could feasibly read in a week. And we *read.* A lot.

 

Another thing--if I've got time the summer before--for ex, too pg to do anything but sit on the sofa & read--I'll order as many books for next yr's list as I can. I don't preread exactly, but I preskim. Then I make my own notes of what I want to buy, what I want to make sure we get to, & some of it, I just mark out. I also make my own table of what books go w/ what chapter (sometimes I do), & I mark what the library has; sometimes I add the call # for easy finding. That way, I know ahead of time what we've really got to choose from. Now that my books are in Library Thing, this should be (I hope) even easier. I feel so dumb when I bring something home from the library & then look at it & go, "Gee. That looks familiar." (Because it's already on the shelf.)

Edited July 20, 2010 by Aubrey

[melissel]

Yes, definitely check on Amazon first--they're just meant to be a starting point for additional reading. Also, if your interlibrary loan is easy and user-friendly (i.e., no fees, no limits, etc.) you might make a book basket with all the books you get. When I'm ordering (or picking out at the library) books for a SOTW chapter, I get everything that sounds interesting. Then I put them all in a big basket that sits on the floor in my living room, right in front of the bookshelf. DD7 (and occasionally DD4) just picks and pokes through the books at her leisure--and so can you. Sometimes she's more likely to read something because I haven't deemed it "school reading." However, you might want to take the books that you actually want to do as readalouds OUT of the rotation. I've been caught so many times when DD7 has already read the book(s) that I wanted us all to do together because I left them out!

 

Book basket are great for so many purposes :D

[monalisa]

I had the same problem with SOTW 1, now that you mention it! I'd reserve a bunch of books and then realize they most were too much for my then 6 year old. I'm probably going to order Biblioplan for Middle Ages, because they break the reading list for each week down kind of like you described and have an easy reader reco for each chapter (using SOTW and Usborne ILE as spines, plus a few other key resources for each year of SOTW). I just read in a thread that the newest Middle Ages version is coming out in August, however, so I'm waiting until then to order it. I've been looking at it online for 3 months debating.

[Tam101]

You know the "extra reading" that SWB mentions in the workbook? She calls it "Corresponding Literature Suggestions" or "Additional History Reading."

 

I end up salivating over all of her book suggestions for each chapter and order them at the library. Then these books arrive that are densely written and would simply take me forever to read to the boys. I read aloud at least an hour every day, but there's no way to accomplish all of that extra reading for 7 year olds. (Even one of those books would be our "read aloud" for the entire week.)

 

I wish she'd made a note next to each book suggestion saying something along the lines of, "easy reading picture book" or "very, very long story about Pandora that could easily take 3 hours of straight reading." :D

 

How do you guys handle this? I have the most giant stack of library books on my table and -- while I wish there were time enough in life to read these to my boys -- the time simply doesn't exist.

 

And I can't tell from her descriptions if the books are easy, fun picture books or super long, wordy books.

 

And this is not a criticism of SWB or SOTW -- I otherwise love the curriculum!

 

Alley

 

:iagree:

 

I do the same thing. I spend an hour at the computer placing holds for the next three or four chapters just to end up with a stack of books we never get to. I feel like I'm wasting library resources! :tongue_smilie:

[Cranberry]

agreed that sometimes I have a stack that goes unread. But I appreciate all the choices that are in the AG. Personally, I'm glad she doesn't put her own description in there because sometimes I might shy away from a book that my son would actually take to if I just get it out and put it on the stack. I never know what he will be drawn to at any given time.

 

From my library, it's easy enough to see the book description, # of pages, etc. I don't think there's much harm in getting a bunch of books out that you end up not using. The alternative is worse, IMHO.

[mcconnellboys]

I started trying to find beautiful picture book versions of longer stories for my kids when they were younger. My library used to post (and now does again, thanks to much complaining) the number of pages for all books on the book's description page. So when I am getting ready to check out books, I can compare lengths, choose what my son can read on his own (even now) and what will take longer, etc. Even for logic stage, we continue to try to do a mix of longer, well illustrated "picture" books, as well as long chapter books.

[Laboroflove]

Evaluating the book on Amazon is a great idea. Another thought is to buy All Through the Ages History through Literature Guide by Christine Miller. There are lists for chronological history as well as geographical history. Literature is recommended by grade level under topics such as resource book, historical fiction, literature, and biography. It also gives abbreviation to let you know if it is a book used by Sonlight, Veritas Press, Newberry Award, Books Children Love, etcetera. After the title and author, a short note about the book follows. I use this book weekly, but then like you, we read a lot of literature to coordinate with history. Happy hunting - too many books, not enough time!!

[Hedgehogs4]

it's hard learning from a genius. that's all i have to say.

[Jennefer@SSA]

I used to do what the others have suggested - check Amazon first and/or get all the books I can from the library and put them in a huge basket. I pulled what I want to cover in read-alouds and left the others for self-discovery and free reading time.

 

Now I spend time each summer pre-reading SOTW and deciding the one or two books that will cover for each chapter. Most of those I purchase and/or make sure my library carries. I still get as many other titles as I can to keep in a basket for DEAR time (Drop Everything And Read).

[Nestof3]

I agree, but I am guilty of the same. For my recent earth science supplemental reading lists, I contemplating writing a short blurb about whether it was a picture book or a longer piece of nonfiction. I was too lazy. (Not calling her lazy, but it is just one more thing to do).

 

This is why I spend the summer choosing which books I would like to read. We end up skipping some, and if there are longer ones we didn't get to, I file them away for the next cycle.

 

If you have a question about a particular book, do mention it here, because one of us has bound to have read it. I also look at Amazon to see samples if they are available.

 

 

You know the "extra reading" that SWB mentions in the workbook? She calls it "Corresponding Literature Suggestions" or "Additional History Reading."

 

I end up salivating over all of her book suggestions for each chapter and order them at the library. Then these books arrive that are densely written and would simply take me forever to read to the boys. I read aloud at least an hour every day, but there's no way to accomplish all of that extra reading for 7 year olds. (Even one of those books would be our "read aloud" for the entire week.)

 

I wish she'd made a note next to each book suggestion saying something along the lines of, "easy reading picture book" or "very, very long story about Pandora that could easily take 3 hours of straight reading." :D

 

How do you guys handle this? I have the most giant stack of library books on my table and -- while I wish there were time enough in life to read these to my boys -- the time simply doesn't exist.

 

And I can't tell from her descriptions if the books are easy, fun picture books or super long, wordy books.

 

And this is not a criticism of SWB or SOTW -- I otherwise love the curriculum!

 

Alley

[Colleen in NS]

You know the "extra reading" that SWB mentions in the workbook? She calls it "Corresponding Literature Suggestions" or "Additional History Reading."

 

I do the same thing. I spend an hour at the computer placing holds for the next three or four chapters just to end up with a stack of books we never get to. I feel like I'm wasting library resources! :tongue_smilie:

 

I don't use the AG, but I use the WTM book lists and then use our history/science spines to find related library books. I do reserve a lot and bring them home, but I long ago gave up on trying to read them all to my kids, even when they were around 7 (they are 9 and 12 now). I pick some to read aloud, and we get through them when we get through them - the rest are there for their daily reading time (two or three hours a day). They browse at their leisure, and they pick up whatever info. they pick up (which ends up being a lot). I don't feel it's a waste of library resources, because that's what the library is there for. And once a librarian told me that my high book counts help that branch to stay open and get funding, my last remaining guilt about reserving so many disappeared.

[robsiew]

I find that usually the "Additional History Reading" are more dense and the "Corresponding Lit Suggestions" tend to be more of the stories. This is our first pass through history so I tend to keep it lighter. I choose mostly from the "Corresponding Lit Suggestion" list. Sometimes we'll get dense books and that's okay. I usually have my library card maxed out at 100 books anyway! :D

 

One idea for yourself would be to mark the ones that are beyond your child right now so next time you go through (if you reuse SOTW) you would know the more difficult books so you could try them then.

 

Also, be sure to pay attention to her RA and IR grade levels. That might give you a hint as to if it's a more complicated book. If it's a RA 1-3 it's probably on the more dense end...

[jec3113]

At least your libraries have the books. Rarely can I find any of the suggestions in our local library system. :crying:

[Mom-ninja.]

Evaluating the book on Amazon is a great idea. Another thought is to buy All Through the Ages History through Literature Guide by Christine Miller. There are lists for chronological history as well as geographical history. Literature is recommended by grade level under topics such as resource book, historical fiction, literature, and biography. It also gives abbreviation to let you know if it is a book used by Sonlight, Veritas Press, Newberry Award, Books Children Love, etcetera. After the title and author, a short note about the book follows. I use this book weekly, but then like you, we read a lot of literature to coordinate with history. Happy hunting - too many books, not enough time!!

 

I've never heard of this book. It sounds wonderful. Actually, I just looked this up. According to Amazon the book is from a Christian worldview. How much does that influence the book suggestions? I want books from other perspectives and not only from Christian perspective.

 

I also usually check out all the books my library has. Then I bring them home and decide which I'm going to read. I agree that by checking these books out, it helps keep the library running and receiving money. One librarian told me she was glad when she saw that I request books and CDs especially from other branches and ILL because it helped the library system get a higher budget from city council. Demand and supply. Since she told me that I do my part to try and help the libraries get more funding. :D

 

As it is due to budget cuts they no longer accept recommendations for what to purchase.

 

Also, they lowered the limit to 15 books per card. 15 books. Sigh.

Edited July 21, 2010 by Kleine Hexe

[LizzyBee]

I wish she'd made a note next to each book suggestion saying something along the lines of, "easy reading picture book" or "very, very long story about Pandora that could easily take 3 hours of straight reading." :D

 

Alley

 

Which level of SOTW are you using? I know the book suggestions are notated this way in at least some of the activity guides. Well, maybe not quite that detailed, but more along the lines of "easy reader" or "read aloud for 1-2 grader or independent reader for 3-4 grade" or "this book has a section on ____'s ancient history." I will have to look at which ones have those notes - I thought they all did, but maybe not.

[Nestof3]

There's a difference between reading level and length of the book, though.

 

For example, Corn Grows Ripe would take several sittings to read through; Rain Player is a picture book which could be read in one quick sitting.

 

I think that is more what the OP is talking about. Or at least it is what I was agreeing with.

 

Which level of SOTW are you using? I know the book suggestions are notated this way in at least some of the activity guides. Well, maybe not quite that detailed, but more along the lines of "easy reader" or "read aloud for 1-2 grader or independent reader for 3-4 grade" or "this book has a section on ____'s ancient history." I will have to look at which ones have those notes - I thought they all did, but maybe not.

[Laboroflove]

It's definitely written by a Christian. I see no references using Usborne books and there's mention in the front about her creationist viewpoint, but most of the books are secular in content so I think it could be used as a reference book for anyone, much like some use Sonlight from a secular perspective. Perhaps you can find a homeschooler who owns this book near you to see if you would like it for yourself or Barnes and Noble could order it for you to look at it? It's made life easier for me because I don't have to research the different lists from curriculum that I don't plan to buy. My dream job, to own a book store - heaven on earth. Hope this helps.

[mom31257]

I sometimes look at them at amazon first to get a feel and usually only pick books from a theme my kids want to spend more time learning about.

 

What she said!

[LizzyBee]

There's a difference between reading level and length of the book, though.

 

For example, Corn Grows Ripe would take several sittings to read through; Rain Player is a picture book which could be read in one quick sitting.

 

I think that is more what the OP is talking about. Or at least it is what I was agreeing with.

 

Oh, I see. Our library website lists the number of pages each book has.

 

OTOH, what I didn't like about the book suggestions in the activity guides was that so many of the nonfiction books were BORING because they were written in a very similar manner to textbooks. We ended up reading only a fraction of the nonfiction books we checked out.

[Nestof3]

Yes, so does ours. I have had that turn out differently than I expected because a 25-page picture book is much different than a 25-page, small print text-y book like you mentioned. I find this to be the case with biographies quite often -- they're short, but they can be very full of info.

 

That's why I try to preview either on Amazon or by going in the library. I write down a list of books for each chapter on a sheet of paper downloaded from Donna Young's site.

 

sample: http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/2063426/sotw-sample-pdf-july-12-2010-8-31-pm-452k?da=y

 

This makes the school year go so much more smoothly.

 

Oh, I see. Our library website lists the number of pages each book has.

 

[artchristie]

I just have to say this is my favorite part of SOTW! I love staying up, looking through the activity guide, looking at samples on amazon, putting books on hold at the library, picking them up, and looking through them. Sometimes we will read them, sometimes we won't. That's the fun of it! Sometimes we will investigate the library ourselves and find our own books, too. We all love to read, though, hubby and kids included. History is our favorite subject and dd is a HUGE SWB fan...