SOTW2 activity book

[Penny_P]

What exactly are the activities in the book? Is it just coloring pages?

 

Can SOTW stand alone? It seems like most people use it as a spine (ala History Oddysey) and have other things that go along with it. Isn't this a lot of time to spend on history? Last year I just did read alouds with MOH1 and called it a day without incorporating many extra readings or activities.

 

Just a little confused here. :confused::)

[Tam101]

The AG has maps for each chapter so you can incorporate some geography, review questions, sample narrations, lots of coloring pages, craft ideas, recommendations for additional reading, page# corralations for King Fisher and Usborne encyclopedias, the occasional game, review cards (which we glue onto our timeline)...I'm sure I'm forgetting something. We enjoy it and my son loves the maps!

[Deniseibase]

What Tammy said as far as what the Activity Guide covers :)

 

You COULD use SOTW stand-alone and just read a section of it aloud every day and do nothing else. But there are only 40-45 chapters (I forget the exact number) and each chapter averages two sections, so you'd be done in 90 school days, about half a year. Which I suppose would be fine if you want an abbreviated course, but if you want to cover a full year you'll need to supplement with something.

[whitestavern]

I can't imagine not using the AGs for SOTW. My kids and I get so much out of them. They love the maps and coloring pages. We also do a lot of the additional readings (I do some read alouds, and they each do independent readings). We don't do many of the crafts, but there aren't a ton of them anyway.

[oldskool]

I can't imagine not using the AGs for SOTW. My kids and I get so much out of them. They love the maps and coloring pages. We also do a lot of the additional readings (I do some read alouds, and they each do independent readings). We don't do many of the crafts, but there aren't a ton of them anyway.

 

 

Us too! I can't believe what we missed out on when we did SOTW without the AG. It has a lot of fun extras and made our history lessons much more interactive.

 

Lesley

[abbeyej]

Yes, SOTW can absolutely stand alone. How you choose to use it is up to you. You can simply read a section a day 2-3 days per week for the year. Or you could use parts of the Activity Guide as well.

 

For each chapter in SOTW, the AG offers:

 

-Coordinating pages from Kingfisher or Usborne (these are useful for the color illustrations they offer of many of the topics covered in SOTW -- you don't need to use both, and many younger kids use Usborne while older ones use Kingfisher, and, of course, you could do neither)

 

-Comprehension/discussion questions for each section in the chapter, complete with sample answers

 

-Sample narrations (I want to say at least three?) for each section in the chapter, so you can see what you're to be working toward with your students

 

-Booklist: nonfiction books that cover topics related to the chapter -- you aren't meant to read all of these, but use them as a starting point for your library trip for any related reading

 

-Booklist: literature and fiction related to the period or topics covered in the chapter -- again, pick and choose based on what sounds interesting, appropriate, available...

 

-Map work: A simple outline map that goes with the chapter and instructions for marking it according to important locations and events from the chapter

 

-Coloring pages: Usually 1-2 per chapter.

 

-Activities: Always a number to choose from. These might include making a model or board game (from printed templates in the back of the AG), cooking, instructions for making a costume, doing a simple science experiment, etc, etc, etc relate to the chapter.

 

 

No one is expected to do ALL of the things in the AG. It's a marvelous resource even if you only use a few aspects. For my family, we use the Kingfisher/Usborne page numbers pretty regularly. I usually use the questions for the chapter and pretty much always use do the map work. I find the booklists a useful starting point, but often substitute books I already have in the house or books written for older kids, etc. Still, it's helpful when a good extra reading isn't immediately obvious to me or for suggesting things I might not have come across on my own. My kids like the coloring pages generally. Occasionally we do an activity, but not regularly.

 

The great thing is that you can pick and choose what works for your family.

 

Usually families using WTM pick many of their read-aloud or read-alone books for the kids according to the time period they're studying. Some stick to the time period almost exclusively, but many of us just allow the subjects to overlap a bit so one reinforces the other.

[Penny_P]

Thank you! This is such useful information. I guess I'm sold! :tongue_smilie:

[HopeFox]

Yes, you absolutely can use SOTW as a stand-alone program. But it can be so much more!! The AG is worth the maps alone - doing mapwork with every topic over the years builds an understanding of Geography that is naturally integrated with the history of those areas. I also appreciated her literature suggestions. Many families never get to the supplemental activities - but for us, they are key. They can be a lot to keep up with on your own, so I have chosen to turn SOTW into a class with other homeschooling families - it ensures that I follow through and actually make it happen. I have found that the hands-on experiences become an excellent memory aid. Years later we still remember Fort Necessity, because we built it and acted out the battle! I remember the Gordian Knot & Alexander the Great because we learned how to tie trick knots, we chopped down a British Flagpole when we were learning about New Zealand, we burried a heart under a tree when we were learning about Livingstone... many of these activities were things that I came up with myself, but the Activity Guide was a good starting point. We also have a themed snack and learn more about the culture of these areas with song, dance, games, etc. Now that we are heading through the cycle again, we will incorporate a lot more supplemental reading, and integrate it into our writing program. History was never very interesting to me as a subject in PS, it is now my son's favorite subject and I am passionate about it too! I will admit that I am Type A about this program, and not everyone wants to put that much energy into it... but it can be so much fun and very rewarding. I think that the Activity Book is a great product for parents that want more enrichment but may not have the energy to come up with it all themselves.