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7th grade history for a kid who just wants to get it done?


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My DD will be 7th grade in the fall. She did History Odyssey, level 2 Ancients this past year. I liked it. It was solid and all laid out for us (no planning!). Sometimes it felt like a lot of work, but I just modified on those days. She however, hated it and does not want to use the same curriculum in Fall. She's kind of a "get it done quick" girl, which is part of the problem. She also likes being mainly independent with all of her schoolwork. Any suggestions? I'm trying to figure out if I should pick something different for her or just make her do it anyway. Anyone not like History Odyssey? I'd be curious as to why.

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My soon-to-be 12 yo son is much the same way.  We had some gems from this year's history studies where he was really interested and wanted to learn more about certain topics so I've decided for next year to ditch the curriculum and do month-long studies on some of our favorites.  We brainstormed together and came up with King Arthur, major world wars, evolution of weaponry, inventions that changed the world, great battles of the ancient world, to start.  Yes, my son loves to study fighting and everything that goes along with it :)  So I am going to use that to my advantage that he will actually be interested in the topic and want to study it.

 

I will incorporate IEW writing lessons into each topic and we will probably read a classic book each month that corresponds to the time period we are studying so I can introduce literary analysis.

 

After our first year of homeschooling I have decided that it isn't as important to teach history in chronological order, nor is it important to study EVERYTHING about history.  Focusing on a few topics in depth that he is actually interested in will work much better for us.  

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Do you mind using Christian materials? BJU's World Studies for 7th grade would be a good option. It covers the rest of world history after Ancient (6th grade), and the student activities manuals are great. They include source documents, outlining, mapping, graphic organizers and charts to summarize information, etc. I plan to use all of their materials for middle school, which will cover all of world and US history. I will be adding in some historical fiction, too. 

 

 

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Thank you for the suggestions. I looked at the Memoria Press, I like it, she might think it's boring though. Bob Jones is a good idea too. I was thinking that since she's getting older, I might let her have more input in our curriculum choices. Maybe that would help.

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After several years if History Odyessy, Dd13 was burnt out in it. So this year for 7th grade, she did World Geography. We used a ps textbook and she did it independently - read the chapter, wrote out the answered to the review questions and took the quizzes It was quite successful. When she finishes that book early, she did a few weeks of US presidents - looking them up in order and making a little power point in each one with pictures and dates and important facts.

 

For my "get it done" girl, this was the best history year yet.

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My son (almost 12) doesn't like HO either. We did Middle Ages HO 2. I eventually cut it down to doing just the maps and timeline. The outlining and summaries was too much on top of a regular writing program. I think it might work if you used it for writing, reading, history and geography.

He also wants something quick this year. We have access to Calvert through the virtual school here, so we may be using that. Otherwise, I planned to look for a textbook.

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Thank you for the suggestions. I looked at the Memoria Press, I like it, she might think it's boring though. Bob Jones is a good idea too. I was thinking that since she's getting older, I might let her have more input in our curriculum choices. Maybe that would help.

 

I wanted to add that a nice thing about BJU is testing. I feel that as my kids get into middle school, they should be getting used to regular tests. They are going to have some of it in high school, so why not get used to it while the grades don't matter as much. I have a friend who did a Charlotte Mason approach throughout the years, and her son ended up going to high school some. He was very unprepared for that kind of assessment of what he knew. She's glad she used that approach, but she told me she wished she had used at least a few regular textbooks along the way.

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My son (almost 12) doesn't like HO either. We did Middle Ages HO 2. I eventually cut it down to doing just the maps and timeline. The outlining and summaries was too much on top of a regular writing program. I think it might work if you used it for writing, reading, history and geography.

He also wants something quick this year. We have access to Calvert through the virtual school here, so we may be using that. Otherwise, I planned to look for a textbook.

 

You know, you are right. It's just too much with all her other writing. Duh. I never thought about it like that. No wonder she doesn't like it. 

 

Geography would be a good idea. We haven't done that yet and she has done a full cycle already.

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  • 2 weeks later...

My soon-to-be 12 yo son is much the same way.  We had some gems from this year's history studies where he was really interested and wanted to learn more about certain topics so I've decided for next year to ditch the curriculum and do month-long studies on some of our favorites.  We brainstormed together and came up with King Arthur, major world wars, evolution of weaponry, inventions that changed the world, great battles of the ancient world, to start.  Yes, my son loves to study fighting and everything that goes along with it :)  So I am going to use that to my advantage that he will actually be interested in the topic and want to study it.

 

I will incorporate IEW writing lessons into each topic and we will probably read a classic book each month that corresponds to the time period we are studying so I can introduce literary analysis.

 

After our first year of homeschooling I have decided that it isn't as important to teach history in chronological order, nor is it important to study EVERYTHING about history.  Focusing on a few topics in depth that he is actually interested in will work much better for us.  

 

I LOVE this idea, but feel ill equipped to do so.  Are you using something as a guide...The Timetables of History, All through the Ages? 

My ds (12yo/7th gr) loves history (or use to) but has gotten bored.  I want him to learn to appreciate great literature (as I myself need to understand as well.)  Any thoughts?  I need a teacher's guide to discuss any book..I'll read with him, but I'm not a deep thinker by nature.

thanks,

Kriss

 

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We're using Seton's american history this year, for my gal who doesn't care much for history. Next year we'll use Catholic Schools Textbook Project for modern world. We're just going textbook/worktext to "get it done". I am going to add in some government and civics related literature this year as well.

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