Pat in MI Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 My ds would like to study knights and castles next year. Do you have any suggestions for books and activities that you have enjoyed? Any on-line sites that you really liked? Are there any already made up unit studies that you know of? Thanks so much! Blessings, Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat in MI Posted January 29, 2008 Author Share Posted January 29, 2008 I should add it would be for an 11 year old. So upper grammar / early middle school level. Thanks! Blessings, Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philothea Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Pat, if you are travelling any time during this time of study... there is a beautiful castle in upper state NY, called Boldt castle (I believe). There is also a castle in MA, right on the coast, Hammond Castle, brought over brick by brick from Europe by an eccentric inventor. It is one of my favorite places to visit. I'm am sure there are more places all over the US. I know you were looking for books, but seeing one in person is so much fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lorna Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Our two love http://www.bellerophonbooks.com/shopsys/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=25&cat=Medieval You can buy their books on Amazon too. Their particular favourites are Castles - to cut out & put together and Paper Soldiers of the Middle Ages, Vol. 1 (The Crusades). With the former, we had the opportunity to later visit one of the castles, King Richard the Lion Heart's Chateau Gaillard , in Normandy. With the latter, well they still make and colour these and it is six months since I gave them them. They are firm favourites. Each knight has details at the base of the dates and context. We haven't used any other of these marvellous books but I shall certainly get some more in future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karenciavo Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 We are going to build a castle out of appliance boxes after it warms up here in NJ. How to build a cardboard castle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trivium Academy Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 The Knights Treasure Chest It has a castle to build, catapult, games, etc. We used a few elements for dd7's 2nd grade year but I'm saving the rest for the next cycle. I love self-contained activities! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 My two favorite resources for activities for knights and castles are two of the books found in this link--Knights and Castles (the kaleidoscope book) and Days of Knights and Damsels. They are a blast! Amazon link to those books and more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Oops, forgot to include these links--really great info How Castles developed British Castles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Surfside Academy Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Where do you find the Knights Treasure chest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Castle Diary is good, if a little young. I also recommend The Sword in the Stone by TH White - it's about King Arthur but is set in the knights and castles period. The other books in the Once and Future King cycle are quite dark, but the first gives a delightful picture of castle life. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Rainbow Resources has one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lorna Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 Where do you find the Knights Treasure chest? We got ours on Amazon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chai Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 These are some of the links I found when we studied the Middle Ages/Renaissance. I haven't been to them lately, so hopefully they are still good links. On-Line Resources Hyper History: great timeline of events Hyperhistory.com National Geographic: Nationalgeographic.com Thinkquest: http:/tqjunior.thinkquest.org/4051/titlepg.htm Fordham http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook.html History for Kids http://www.historyforkids.org/ ProTeacher: lots of activities and lesson plans http://www.proteacher.com/090074.shtml Mr. Dowling: Links http://www.mrdowling.com/index.html Shakespeare for Kids: coloring pages and activities http://www.folger.edu/education/kids/kidshome.asp BBC: Anglo Saxons http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/anglosaxons/index.shtml Ben Turner’s Robin Hood: general information www.benturner.com/robinhood About.com: Great links and activities http://homeschooling.about.com/cs/medievaltimes/ Castles for Kids: See parts of a castle, people who live there, coloring pages—awesome http://www.castles.org/Kids_Section/Castle_Story/index.htm Cybrary Middle Ages: lots of good info on legends, crusades, plague, castle, etc.; Kids’ Castle—cool http://www.cybrary.org/medieval.htm Enter the Middle Ages: Mostly text—looks at life through four different people http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/ Maya Adventure: by MN Science Museum—mostly pictures of sites plus some activities http://www.sci.mus.mn.us/sln/ma/ Medieval World: very extensive site, but still in progress. Lots of artists and art. http://www.geocities.com/MedievalWorld/ Vikings Network Web: links and info http://viking.no/e/index.html 1492: An Ongoing Voyage by Library of Congress—lots of text http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/1492.exhibit/Intro.html http://www.iwebquest.com/middleages/medievalbooks.htm Renaissance Connection: shows how the Renaissance affected the way we live today renaissanceconnection.com? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BritAnnia Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 This has been one of my ds favourite studies. I had him study types of castles, how they evolved, specific building materials, etc. He then made his own castle with his choice of defences. (Painted cardboard on a sturdy base) I used this lesson plan as the foundation for his study. http://score.rims.k12.ca.us/activity/castle_builder/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat in MI Posted January 30, 2008 Author Share Posted January 30, 2008 I just came back to check my post. Thank you so much this is great! I guess ds is going to have a wonderful study next year. Oooh, I'm off to check these things out. Blessings, Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lux Et Veritas Academy Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Thanks for posting Hammonds in MA - I am going to visit that!:o Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAR120C Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 I just came back to check my post. Thank you so much this is great! I guess ds is going to have a wonderful study next year. Oooh, I'm off to check these things out. Blessings, Pat One quick thing to add to the list -- we have really enjoyed a board game called Knights and Castles, which is sort of like Parcheesi, but with a medieval trivia component. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda in NM Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Jack Hammond was quite a character--I'm not sure if he was involved in the Lafayette Espadrille or not, but he was part of that whole group (Isabelle Gardner, too--she of the art museum in Boston and the salons). There's a whole set of fascinating houses up along the "Gold Coast"--from Manchester-by-the-Sea (to Beverly-by-the-Depot, as Oliver Wendell Holmes replied).. can't you tell I miss being home? I grew up in Nahant, which was the first resort colony (yes, before Newport) in the Northeast... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 Some books we like related to this time period: Life in the Middle Ages, The Church, Kathryn Hinds The King Who was and Will Be: The World of King Arthur and his Knights, Keven Corssley-Holland Charlemagne and the Early Middle Ages, Miriam Greenblatt The Battle of Hastings, William Lace The Tower of London, Leonard E. Fisher The Middle Ages, Jane Shuter Knights, Philip Steele Castle at War, Andrew Langley (DK) A Medieval Feast, Aliki In the Time of Knights, Shelley Tanaka A Samurai Castle, Fiona Macdonald Saladin Noble Prince of Islam, Diane Stanley Great Events that Changed the World, Brian Delf (read about the Crusades) The Story of Britain: Magna Carta, C. Walter Hodges Masada, Neil Waldman Kids in the Middle Ages, Lisa Wroble Life During the Black Death, John Dunn Women in Medieval Times, Fiona Macdonald The Middle Ages, Jane Shuter A Medieval Cathedral, Fiona Macdonald Otto of the Silver Hand, Howard Pyle Favorite Medieval Tales, Mary Pope Osborne (used this book several times during year) Young Arthur, Robert San Souci Lancelot, Hudson Talbott The King's Chessboard, David Birch Castles in Spain: From the Alhambra, Jane Watson Castle Diary, the Journal of Tobias Burgess, Page, Richard Platt Till Year's Good End, a Calendar of Medieval Labors, W. Nikola-Lisa Saint George and the Dragon, Margaret Hodges The Reluctant Dragon, Kenneth Grahame The Making of a Knight, Patrick O'Brien The Samurai's Daughter, Robert D. San Souci The Inch-High Samurai, Shiroka Samatsu Sir Cumference and the First Round Table, Cindy Neuschwander Three Samurai Cats, Eric Kimmel (good) Knights of the Round Table, Gwen Gross The Dragons are Singing Tonight, Jack Prelutsky The Gargoyle on the Roof, Jack Prelutsky The Braggin' Dragon, Bill Martin, Jr. The Saracen Maid, Leon Garfield The Legend of Robin Hood, Dami Editore Beautiful Warrior: The Legend of the Nun's Kung Fu, Emily McCully (good!) Bestiary: an Illuminated Alphabet of Medieval Beasts, Jonathan Hunt The White Stag, Kate Seredy (I LOVE this book!) Day of the Knights, Christopher Maynard Robin Hood, Angela Bull Regena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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