SOTW questions

[naturegirl7]

I know many people prefer Christian based curriculum - but I am one of those that actually prefers the opposite. And I am wondering where SOTW falls into this spectrum?? does it do history with a Christian slant??

 

I want a history program that is based in historical and archeological evidence, not biblical history. I want a program that is steeped in the culture, daily life, and mythology of the various peoples and time periods. I want it to include classic pieces of literature too...

 

Also can you get by with just the Usborne World History book or do you need the other suggested readings? And do you find that you do many of the activities in the activity book?

 

thanks!

[5LittleMonkeys]

I have read SOTW 1 and the first 3 chapters of SOTW 2. I have found it to be secular in view.

 

I want a history program that is based in historical and archeological evidence, not biblical history. I want a program that is steeped in the culture, daily life, and mythology of the various peoples and time periods. I want it to include classic pieces of literature too...

 

 

This, to me, so far, is SOTW. It is literally the story of the people that make up the history of the world. One of the first chapters in SOTW 1 was about a little nomadic girl and some of the things she encountered in the course of her day. Just recently we read about Beowulf and then we read a sort of "day in the life" of a monk in a monastery.

 

We use the KFH but we usually always get several of the additional history book recommendations and literature recommendations. Right now we are reading Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and a book about Anglo-Saxons. IMO you wouldn't have to have the additional books but they help to flesh out the stories in SOTW. If you only use SOTW and the Usborne I would consider that doing "SOTW Light". (If that makes sense to you.) You wouldn't have to do the extra books for every chapter; you could just supplement the chapters that really pique your interest.

 

We do use the activity guide. I have found the review and narration questions invaluable in helping my dc focus on the main things that they learned. We usually try to do atleast one activity per chapter. Sometimes I might find a different type of activity on the internet though. Some of the activities are too involved or require supplies that are too expensive but we can almost always come up with and activity that we can do cheaply and in a short period of time. My dd likes coloring the pages while I read and enjoys the mapwork as well.

 

Hope that helps!

[naturegirl7]

Thank you! We have a ton of books on the shelf already cuz DS is OBSESSED with ancient cultures at the moment. So I know we have a bunch of resources, even if they are not the ones listed inthe SOTW book.... He is only 5 so I don't want to get too crazy - but at the same time I can't ignore the pull he has towards it either; especially not when he step-by-step playacts mummifying his cabbage patch kid LOL

 

Just saw that they also have a CD with Jim Weiss narrating - we love him!! Anyone know if you can burn the MP3 file onto a CD that would be playable on a regular CD player in teh house or car??

[mazakaal]

I think SOTW sounds perfect for you. I love it for teaching the younger set because it is stories of people and very engaging. It only touches on a few of the stories in Biblical history (Abraham, Moses, birth of Christ) and also covers the beginnings of other religions. I added in Biblical history, but you don't have to by any means.

 

I prefer the Usborne Internet Linked World History, but the Usborne Book of World History is good too. And if you have other resources or some books from the library, you'll be fine. You don't need to have the exact books that are in the AG.

 

We did many of the activities, but not all by a long shot. But we did use the coloring pages and maps and definitely found the AG worth the money.

 

Hope that helps.

[Kate in Arabia]

does it do history with a Christian slant??

I think it would be more fair to say it has a Western slant, than a Christian slant, imo. There are parts I disagreed with but it is quite easy to edit or supplement those areas that may not work for you. The Biblical stories, as I recall, are limited to one or two specific chapters that could be redone or removed as you liked; for me, we skipped the chapters on Islam and did our own studies in those parts.

 

Otherwise there have been a few places where the wording wasn't what I would have chosen, but we simply glided over that and moved on. I think I would be hard pressed to find any history curriculum that was a complete fit in every way, kwim? And I have yet to find one that is as accessible for children yet moves through such a broad scope of topics.

 

Also can you get by with just the Usborne World History book or do you need the other suggested readings? And do you find that you do many of the activities in the activity book?

I actually did not use a history encyclopedia much at all until my oldest started outlining, and we use it for that. My kids have much more enjoyed extra readings -- I generally use the list in the activity guide as a starting point, and look for other things as well. My kids also enjoy the coloring pages and mapwork, and I appreciate having the review questions and summaries. We did more of the activities with vol 1, I find as we go along that we are doing fewer activities (we're starting vol 4 in a month).

[Carrie12345]

I actually did skip and adapt a few chapters (or pieces of chapters) in SOTW1. I don't have it in front of me right now, but I know the parting of the Red Sea was something I had to add a lot of commentary to.

 

My one and only "beef", if it could even be called that, is the fact that some bible stories are presented as stories, while others are presented as fact. I just don't think it's a big deal to work around that, and I DEFINITELY feel that the overall program (book, AG, suggested reading, our own additional reading) is more than worth the tiny effort of rephrasing some parts.

 

I would love to see more on the other religions of the world (and we do seek the info out in other books), but I also appreciate the Christian aspects that are included, because I believe it does (and will continue to) help my kids understand how today's religious climate came to be. I definitely consider it socially relevant.

 

We're on volume 2 now, and have ever intention of completing the series, and then moving on to the adult volumes!

[NanceXToo]

So far as a secular jew I find SOTW to be pleasantly neutral when it comes to religion, and fun to do. But we're only on like Chapter 11 of volume 1 so far.

[MaMa2005]

Just saw that they also have a CD with Jim Weiss narrating - we love him!! Anyone know if you can burn the MP3 file onto a CD that would be playable on a regular CD player in teh house or car??

 

I don't know about the MP# file, but we bought the CDs and love them. We just take them from the house to the car and vice-versa.

[naturegirl7]

Great - thank you so much! I was reading some of the exerpts last night, and it did seem fairly balanced. And the AG looked great - my DS is such a map freak that he might finally get into a workbook this way...

 

Anyone else know anything about the CD??

[Satori]

We use SOTW secularly and are very happy with it. I've since even welcomed learning biblical history parts, you can't deny that it has shaped our culture. I also have come to believe learning all this is socially relevant. We've had a blast with the Egyptian myths, and look forward to learning the Greek myths, and will explore all the other religions, beliefs, myths as we get to them in history.

 

We didn't start off using the Usborne Internet-Linked World History book too much, but now we enjoy reading it for review. I have tried to get a few related literature books if I get the time. I try to do at least one activity per chapter, and even blog with tons of photos about our experiences (see my sig).

 

We own the CD and I've done the opposite, converted it to MP3 and play it on my iPhone/iPad in the car. Next time, for SOTW2 I'm going to just buy the mp3 version.

[5LittleMonkeys]

I haven't converted the Jim Weiss mp3s to a cd but I have converted the SWB mp3 writing lectures to a cd so I could listen to them in my car. I don't know why you couldn't convert the Jim Weiss ones.

[FairProspects]

Just saw that they also have a CD with Jim Weiss narrating - we love him!! Anyone know if you can burn the MP3 file onto a CD that would be playable on a regular CD player in teh house or car??

 

We buy all our audiobooks on MP3 and burn them to CDs. It works best for us and has worked just fine with SOTW 1.

[naturegirl7]

Great! I am sooo not tech savvy LOL I wasn't sure if it would work or not.