Orthodox6 Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 (edited) Hello. Haven't been around here for months. We're bringing a son back home from "outside school." He would like a year of world history for this next year, as he never was given one. (He will be a senior.) Forgive me, but I don't want a religious-based text, because I don't have time to rewrite it. Public school type texts are inexorably dull. My hands are full with an LD student. Fortunately, the son under discussion is very self-motivated and self-directed. Should I just give him a copy of J.M. Roberts and require a slew of essays ?? Thank you for any suggestions! Edited June 18, 2011 by Orthodox6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquinas Academy Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 SWB's History of the Ancient World and History of the Medieval World could be good fits. Unfortunately, she doesn't have the whole series out yet so you'd have to find something else for more modern time. I used HOAW this year with my eldest and we both really enjoyed it. It's very readable and interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janice H Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I didn't mind Roberts for ancients. http://www.amazon.com/World-History-William-H-McNeill/dp/019511616X For about $5.00 you can get the edition I have, a hardback from 1979. I checked out the "new" 1999 book from the library and it was substantially the same. He's excellent for the big picture, yet gives interesting info about the important threads of each civ. and when and how each civ. eventually interacted/influenced other civ's. From the Amazon "look inside" feature you can see the TOC. I really like the way it's laid out. Check out page 5 where he has 6 major civ. across the top and a kind of conceptual timeline corresponding to the time period up to 500 BC. It's somewhat easier to read in the actual book. I had thought dd could make her own enlarged version of the chart, but we never got to it. Here's McNeill's wiki bio http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_H._McNeill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I like the text that Oak Meadow uses for world history. If you order the Oak Meadow syllabus and TM, you won't have to worry about figuring out assignments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calandalsmom Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 http://www.amazon.com/Western-Civilization-Jackson-J-Spielvogel/dp/0534646026 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 http://www.amazon.com/Western-Civilization-Jackson-J-Spielvogel/dp/0534646026 Yep, Spielvogel. I bought it for Ancient History, and my dds read the rest of it for fun. :001_smile: It is not your usual textbook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyfaithe Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I am using Sonlight Core W which can give you some good reading suggestions....and then I purchased Patterns in World History off a recommendation on the Sonlight Forum as an older kid spine. http://www.amazon.com/World-History-Patterns-Civilization-1990/dp/0139686452/ref=sr_1_22?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308492029&sr=1-22 I bought an old edition because it was totally cheap! Lol. I am sure a TM is available too..... Good luck! Faithe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Thank you, Janice! I'll look into this one. I mentioned Roberts only as a representative volume with which I am familiar. I don't like stepping on loyalist toes, but I don't care for Dr. Bauer's [adult level] books, so didn't plan on that solution. I didn't mind Roberts for ancients. http://www.amazon.com/World-History-William-H-McNeill/dp/019511616X For about $5.00 you can get the edition I have, a hardback from 1979. I checked out the "new" 1999 book from the library and it was substantially the same. He's excellent for the big picture, yet gives interesting info about the important threads of each civ. and when and how each civ. eventually interacted/influenced other civ's. From the Amazon "look inside" feature you can see the TOC. I really like the way it's laid out. Check out page 5 where he has 6 major civ. across the top and a kind of conceptual timeline corresponding to the time period up to 500 BC. It's somewhat easier to read in the actual book. I had thought dd could make her own enlarged version of the chart, but we never got to it. Here's McNeill's wiki bio http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_H._McNeill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Core W = ? I'll have to look up that one. I remember Core 300, which we disliked intensely, so "W" must be something else. Not familiar with the "Patterns" book you reference, but am grateful for the thumbs up. I'll go read about it! I am using Sonlight Core W which can give you some good reading suggestions....and then I purchased Patterns in World History off a recommendation on the Sonlight Forum as an older kid spine. http://www.amazon.com/World-History-Patterns-Civilization-1990/dp/0139686452/ref=sr_1_22?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308492029&sr=1-22 I bought an old edition because it was totally cheap! Lol. I am sure a TM is available too..... Good luck! Faithe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 http://www.amazon.com/Western-Civilization-Jackson-J-Spielvogel/dp/0534646026 Thank you to you, as well as to Angela. Don't know why, but I had been assuming that Spielvogel was one of the "religious" texts. [ :confused: ] Now I have a third title to learn about ! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 I like the text that Oak Meadow uses for world history. If you order the Oak Meadow syllabus and TM, you won't have to worry about figuring out assignments. WHAAT? No link ??? [teasing you, please recognize!] Thank you, and I'll go investigate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calandalsmom Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 I am using Sonlight Core W which can give you some good reading suggestions....and then I purchased Patterns in World History off a recommendation on the Sonlight Forum as an older kid spine. http://www.amazon.com/World-History-Patterns-Civilization-1990/dp/0139686452/ref=sr_1_22?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308492029&sr=1-22 I bought an old edition because it was totally cheap! Lol. I am sure a TM is available too..... Good luck! Faithe This is an excellent resource and I would recommend it too. It's better for early high school tho! I used it with my 7 th gr son. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnTheBrink Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Thank you to you, as well as to Angela. Don't know why, but I had been assuming that Spielvogel was one of the "religious" texts. [ :confused: ] Now I have a third title to learn about ! :) Spielvogel's texts are used in colleges for western civ. That's how I first found out about him; I used the text myself. It wasn't until I came to these boards that I found out that people use this text for high school. The text is pricey, so you might want to check college bookstores for used copies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asta Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 How do you teach Western Civ w/o religion? Do you skip the crusades, the inquisition, the reformation, Henry VIII and the formation of the Church of England, the religious forays and subsequent subjugation of native peoples in S. America, N. America, etc. and the mass exodus to the colonies? The Salem Witch trials? For World Civ, what about Mao and the reeducation camps? Lenin, Marx, Stalin? An integral basis there was the stomping out of religion. I'm not trying to be snarky - I honestly thought I would/could do secular history in 8th grade. Do public schools skip all of that? Or do they start at the Industrial revolution and go forward from there? I mean, I can see observing it all from an objective viewpoint (given that everyone's viewpoint has its own objective), but it still has to be IN there. a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otter Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 For us it's not teaching without religion, but with a respect to all religions. This definitely means trying to be objective. It also means analyzing the cause of religious struggles by studying them from more than one viewpoint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Thank you to you, as well as to Angela. Don't know why, but I had been assuming that Spielvogel was one of the "religious" texts. [ :confused: ] Now I have a third title to learn about ! :) Definitely ot religious. (We supplement fro BJU World History for that aspect, in fact. :001_smile:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Trisms is not religious and is easy to expand (or not) with additional readings and assignments. My daughter did a Trisms course first semester last year with no trouble, though she did not do the literature components. She could easily have done two courses in a single year, or we could have beefed up the one she did and made it more suitable for a full-year program. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 20, 2011 Author Share Posted June 20, 2011 Trisms is not religious and is easy to expand (or not) with additional readings and assignments. My daughter did a Trisms course first semester last year with no trouble, though she did not do the literature components. She could easily have done two courses in a single year, or we could have beefed up the one she did and made it more suitable for a full-year program. Terri I absolutely love TRISMS ! It just is so never-ending with details and alluring "bunny trails" to follow via research. I think think that, in this case, I need something more tightly pulled together, such as a spine text. Excellent suggestion, though. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchel210 Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 WHAAT? No link ??? [teasing you, please recognize!] Thank you, and I'll go investigate. http://www.oakmeadow.com/curriculum/highschool.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 I mean, I can see observing it all from an objective viewpoint (given that everyone's viewpoint has its own objective), but it still has to be IN there. I'm assuming she meant a text or resource that doesn't advocate a specific religious viewpoint. There are lots of lots of homeschool curricula that do so. I read the query as meaning they wanted to avoid books that push one religion, not books that leave out religion entirely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 20, 2011 Author Share Posted June 20, 2011 Hi, Asta. Thanks for pointing out the confusing way in which I presented the question. You are not at all "snarky" ! There is no such thing as a "values-free" history book. I chose my original (murky, it seems!) wording because I don't have any problems with the existence of differing religious viewpoints and have no inclination deliberately to sound at odds with fellow educators. But your fair question forces me to clarify what I meant. . . . My situation is that we are an Eastern Orthodox family, so cannot possibly feel satisfied with the viewpoints of Protestant or Catholic history curricula (which dominate the homeschool market -- or did so for most of my fifteen teaching years). Non-religious textbooks' slants can be equally non-useful to us, but I feel more comfortable with correcting them to correlate with our Orthodox worldview. That's all! :) How do you teach Western Civ w/o religion? Do you skip the crusades, the inquisition, the reformation, Henry VIII and the formation of the Church of England, the religious forays and subsequent subjugation of native peoples in S. America, N. America, etc. and the mass exodus to the colonies? The Salem Witch trials? For World Civ, what about Mao and the reeducation camps? Lenin, Marx, Stalin? An integral basis there was the stomping out of religion. I'm not trying to be snarky - I honestly thought I would/could do secular history in 8th grade. Do public schools skip all of that? Or do they start at the Industrial revolution and go forward from there? I mean, I can see observing it all from an objective viewpoint (given that everyone's viewpoint has its own objective), but it still has to be IN there. a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asta Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Well, it isn't what you're looking for, but it's free and way cool. History and Praxis of Eastern Orthodoxy, a Textbook And it goes up to 1917. a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 20, 2011 Author Share Posted June 20, 2011 How thoughtful to share the link! Thanks! I just downloaded the file to read at leisure. The publishers/authors are Roman Catholic, but the topical range is good. Thanks again! Well, it isn't what you're looking for, but it's free and way cool. History and Praxis of Eastern Orthodoxy, a Textbook And it goes up to 1917. a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LilBlueMouse Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 I've heard good things about this book by William Mcneil - might be worth a look at. http://www.amazon.com/Human-Web-Birds-Eye-World-History/dp/039305179X Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 23, 2011 Author Share Posted June 23, 2011 I've spent a lot of time on this by now, with GREAT appreciation of all the good suggestions ! Today I shot off in an unanticipated direction, but suspect that I may do this in the end. http://wps.prenhall.com/hss_kagan_westheritage_9_OA/51/13207/3381043.cw/index.html No charge for these supplements, which include quizzes and essay questions. http://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html No charge to view these videos, correlated to the 9th edition. In fact, one of my older boys watched these videos as part of his own high school course. The 10th edition of the text is available from Amazon. I came very close to purchasing Spielvogel. Placed it in the Amazon cart. Then I remembered to check Annenberg for ideas. Goodness, I want this purchasing period to end quickly for all subjects ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ks-sunflower Posted June 25, 2011 Share Posted June 25, 2011 This survey is noted for its brevity but excellent coverage - also has free lectures, essay questions and quizzes on-line isbn 0534642365 A Brief History of the Western World (with CD-ROM and InfoTrac) by Thomas H. Greer and Gavin Lewis (Paperback - Jul 15, 2004) amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=0534642365&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3A0534642365&ajr=8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted June 26, 2011 Author Share Posted June 26, 2011 I chose Spielvogel in the end. Read more reviews of both it and the Kagan. Our personal inclinations make us sticklers for accuracy regarding Byzantium and Russia. The latter topic is mangled by almost everybody. So full as is our plate, we'll just take Spielvogel and do as well as can be done with it. Again, my sincere "Thank you!" to everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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