Time Travelers Civil War - how did you do it?

[MamaChicken]

Just arrived yesterday and the kids are so excited to start it...but I don't know where to start. My plan was to take 6 weeks of SOTW 4 when we get to the Civil War and use it, but looking at the lesson plan summary I'm pretty sure there's no way I'll fit it in that way, so now I'm thinking we'll just start the school year with it.

I'd love to hear how other families used this. Did you do all the activities? Did you print it all out at once or as needed? How long did it take? Which read alongs and readers did you use?

Thanks so much!

[MamaChicken]

How about other Time Travelers? Anyone?

[Woodland_Mom]

I have not used Time Travelers Civil War, but I have used the packages for The American Revolution and The 19th Century. Each pack is structured essentially the same.

 

First of all, let me say that I absolutely love these resources! When I purchased them, I had intended to use them to supplement the history in MFW Explorers to 1850's. I have two boys who love hands on activities, so Time Travelers seemed like a great add-on.

 

As I became more familiar with Time Travelers, I discovered that it is actually quite complete! When we read our SOTW section and looked up the assigned info in an encyclopedia, I usually found that the text that I read to the boys from Time Travelers was already presented in our other reading materials. However, I continued to use all three (TT, SOTW, UILE) because it really helped to cement the material for my kids. I explain this because I want you to know that if you chose to *just* do TT for your civil war studies, you could. In fact, the TT Civil War program will have a lot more detail that SOTW. You guys will end up learning A LOT (and have fun while you're at it)!

 

I'm a planner, so when I used TT, I printed everything I intended to use before we even began.

• Print your text pages and put them in a binder.
  
• Print the project pages for each lesson. Put the corresponding project page after each text lesson in the same binder.
  
• Print the project calendar/schedule
  

Once you have the basics printed, you'll be able to see what kind of projects/activities you want to do. You'll need to decide if you want to do a lapbook or if you want to do the notebooking pages. I don't recommend you do both. I personally like the lapbook pages best.

 

Circle the projects/activities that YOU want to do. Don't plan on doing everything! We didn't do the handwriting pages or the memory cards. We sometimes skipped the board games, especially if it required LOTS of printing. :)

 

Then . . . go through all the projects in detail. Print the masters that you need for each project and insert them behind the corresponding lesson.

 

Finally, make a list of all the supplies you'll need to complete your unit study.

 

Last year we had SO MUCH fun with Time Travelers. The text is just enough for reading aloud, and the projects help to really bring the time period to life. Have fun! HTH!

[3peasinapod]

I'm thinking about doing this next year with our American history studies. Glad to hear some advice from someone who has used it. :001_smile:

[MamaChicken]

Thanks for the reply! That is very helpful. I was thinking that we probably wouldn't do the handwriting. Maybe I should have my younger do the lapbook and my older do the notebook pages. It looks like fun. I guess I better get printing and organizing.

 

I have not used Time Travelers Civil War, but I have used the packages for The American Revolution and The 19th Century. Each pack is structured essentially the same.

 

First of all, let me say that I absolutely love these resources! When I purchased them, I had intended to use them to supplement the history in MFW Explorers to 1850's. I have two boys who love hands on activities, so Time Travelers seemed like a great add-on.

 

As I became more familiar with Time Travelers, I discovered that it is actually quite complete! When we read our SOTW section and looked up the assigned info in an encyclopedia, I usually found that the text that I read to the boys from Time Travelers was already presented in our other reading materials. However, I continued to use all three (TT, SOTW, UILE) because it really helped to cement the material for my kids. I explain this because I want you to know that if you chose to *just* do TT for your civil war studies, you could. In fact, the TT Civil War program will have a lot more detail that SOTW. You guys will end up learning A LOT (and have fun while you're at it)!

 

I'm a planner, so when I used TT, I printed everything I intended to use before we even began.

• Print your text pages and put them in a binder.
  
• Print the project pages for each lesson. Put the corresponding project page after each text lesson in the same binder.
  
• Print the project calendar/schedule
  

Once you have the basics printed, you'll be able to see what kind of projects/activities you want to do. You'll need to decide if you want to do a lapbook or if you want to do the notebooking pages. I don't recommend you do both. I personally like the lapbook pages best.

 

Circle the projects/activities that YOU want to do. Don't plan on doing everything! We didn't do the handwriting pages or the memory cards. We sometimes skipped the board games, especially if it required LOTS of printing. :)

 

Then . . . go through all the projects in detail. Print the masters that you need for each project and insert them behind the corresponding lesson.

 

Finally, make a list of all the supplies you'll need to complete your unit study.

 

Last year we had SO MUCH fun with Time Travelers. The text is just enough for reading aloud, and the projects help to really bring the time period to life. Have fun! HTH!