Help with a 10yodd who does not like any history program... ugh

[michaeljenn]

We started the year off with HOD Preparing.  She seemed like she liked it at first, then is saying she doesn't now... so I decided to try Mystery of History, and she does not like that either... we have tried SOTW in the past, and nope... didn't like that one too!  I am starting to think that maybe she knows I will switch if she does not like it.  She has asked just to do a textbook history, but I am pretty certain she will not like that once we get started on one.

 

What should I do??  I DO think HOD Preparing is simply not engaging her, as it seems a bit babyish.  I have HOD CTC, and thought about just starting her on that instead.  But, here is the deal... she will probably complain that it is boring, or that it is too much reading.  Should I just buckle down and tell her that she is doing it no matter what?  I am so tired of spending money and switching!!!  Has anyone encountered this?  Of course I feel bad forcing her to do something she clearly hates, but sometimes it just has to get done.  We made it to 4 weeks on Preparing, 2 weeks in MOH, and about 3 chapters of SOTW.  HELP!!!   

[Chris in VA]

Which year of SOTW did you use?

Did you have her read it, or did you read it to her?

Did you do a whole chapter at once (in one sitting) or did you break it up by section?

Did you use the Activity Guide at all?

Did you supplement with any literature or movies or activities or field trips?

Did she do a notebook/narration or a map or a timeline?

 

Just gathering information. :D

[Aurelia]

Have you asked her specifically what she doesn't like about the programs you've tried? I think if she's not able to articulate why she doesn't like them, you need to offer her the choices you already have, let her pick one and make it clear that there will be no switching if she doesn't like it. Don't buy yet another curriculum just because she doesn't like the subject.

[Farrar]

Maybe she just doesn't like history? Might she enjoy doing something more targeted like history of science or art history? Maybe she just needs to have a really pared down history and do the basics. Maybe just reading a central text and doing weekly narrations. Or reading from a list. Or maybe she needs a program with lots of hands on activities.

 

Agreed that knowing more about what went wrong and how you used these programs would help. Also, what are your goals for history?

[michaeljenn]

She just says it is boring, or does not understand it.  I think she is trying to get out of doing the work.

 

When we did SOTW we would read a section... then do the Activity Guide, maybe look up youtube videos and read a few books.  But, isn't she to old for SOTW now??

[Chris in VA]

Not necessarily. At logic stage, you can add in a bit of Kingfisher and require more writing/outlining. Still plenty of meat for 4-5 grade.

[Farrar]

But what do you mean by "did the Activity Guide"? Did you read all the book suggestions, do the mapwork, do the coloring pages, do the activities, do the narrations? Most people don't do it all (nor should they). And did she gravitate toward the reading end or the doing end? If you did narrations, how did she do? Is her assessment that she doesn't get it fair?

 

I think SOTW is simplistic for logic stage, yes. It's not that there's not a ton of meat in there. It's a really detailed series. It's just also without a lot of room for analysis or deep thinking of the kind that logic stage kids are ready for. On the other hand, not all 10 yos are ready for deeper thinking - some need to practice with something simpler or something simpler with some extra resources or maybe the focus isn't the history so much as the skill work of outlining or narrations, in which case SOTW could be fine.

 

There are plenty of other history programs out there. Maybe just take a break and do American history. The Hakim series has a really different tone so maybe that would suit her better? Or as I suggested above, maybe looking at history through a different lens like history of science or art or something would help her.

[hearts4homeschooling]

Maybe this would be a good time for Prairie Primer.  It is a gentle approach yet very complete.

 

Also, never underestimate how important it is for you to still be really alongside your children at this stage.  I stopped working with my kids far too early and expected them to just do their schoolwork.  This really kills their love of learning quickly.  One of the results was they hated their curriculum, so they wanted to switch which I did, thinking the curriculum was the problem when it really was me not spending the time with them that they needed.  I hope I said this gently.  I have been exactly where you are now.

 

[michaeljenn]

Thank you for the replies:)  For SOTW, we would read a section, then read the Usborne and Kingfisher, do the mapwork and do activities occasionally. She is not a hands on person at all.  She would rather just get the work done:(

 

Myra.... I think you may have just hit the nail on the head.... this gives me a lot to think about. I was seriously thinking about getting her a textbook, and just letting her do it on her own, but I think that it would backfire on me.  I think your are right.  She does enjoy me teaching her still, and I hear so much about children need to be independent, ect...  This just is not her at all!  She is on the verge of being ready for deeper thinking, but is just not quite there yet.  I am not quite sure what I will do with her yet, but we may stick out HOD Preparing.  I will drop some of the stuff she does not care for.  Any other suggestions are very welcome!!

[hearts4homeschooling]

You're welcome.  Sometimes we just need a nudge back to our center of gravity. 

 

One of the programs we used was HOD CTC.  I loved it all, the concept of CM with classical, the notebooking, the living books, having it all planned out; she hated it because I didn't work alongside her like I should have.  I could easily envision using HOD for the rest of our years, but she will not go back to it because I botched that year so badly.  Every time I mention it she groans rather noisily. This DD is in 8th grade now and still doesn't enjoy school very much.

[MeAndTheBoys]

My boys don't love history.  We did Sonlight up through Core D and I felt like we were all going to grow to hate it.  We switched to My Father's World, and they are still not history fans, but it's enjoyable for them now--and like others said, the time together is a big draw.  It has much smaller chunks of history--

 

I don't think they would "love" any history program, so I guess I wouldn't pay too much attention to what they like or dislike, but we have found a way to enjoy our time together and get a little history out of it too.

 

One thing--there are SO many homeschoolers who love history and spend a ton of time on it, and that's great for them.  Maybe you are feeling the pressure to be a super-history-homeschooler :) like I used to feel.  Let it go.  Less is more, and enjoying a little bit is better than hating a lot of it. :)

 

B--

[michaeljenn]

YES..... I DO feel like everything must center around History!  It is so annoying!  ugh!!  History is the ONLY subject that causes us issues, and I wonder if it is because most curriculums center EVERYTHING around it?!?!?!

 

I vented to my 15yo dd who attends a Christian school, and she told me that she thinks my 10yo hates history because all it is is reading, reading and more reading all about history.  She suggested just doing a textbook program with her, and maybe assign a few novels with it..... but just a few, like 4!  She felt like I assigned WAY too many history novels and she never had time for fun reading.  She said she feels like she is learning plenty of History at her Christian School with using a textbook.. they use BJU for History, but then use Veritas Press Omnibus in English.  She encouraged me not to over do history!! She feels like a good over view, and even memorizing the Veritas Press timeline would be good, so she has an idea of what came when ect..  LOL  It was good to hear her opinion:))   Don't you love it when your children give us parents a bit of wisdom??  

 

My 10yo dd loves Rod and Staff English, Spelling and Math... she has looked at the samples of their history and loved the simplicity of it.  I may let her do R&S history for a few years, then switch her over to Notgrass or BJU later.  I am seeing that she just needs an overview of it all! 

[KrissiK]

History is tough. I tweaked Pandia Press's History Odyssey until I thought it was a very interesting and doable program. It had interesting biographies, not too much writing, I thought it was a great program. My son hated it. So, instead of fighting him. I bought A Beka. And he likes it. He doesn't salivate over doing history, but it's a better fit for him. I don't know. Some kids just don't like history. Period. I don't understand it. I love history

[sixpence1978]

My DD is also one who just doesn't like history.  I have also tried many approaches, and none of them are a great fit.  I'm not one to complain because history was always the subject I didn't like the most when I was growing up.

 

I think MeAndTheBoys really hit the nail on the head.  So many homeschoolers and homeschool curricula tend to center around history, and it is a great idea...if it works for you.  I always thought that maybe the reason I didn't like history was because I learned for a textbook.  It was dry and boring.  So, I tried to remedy that with my DD and we did a lot of readers and read-alouds, videos and projects.  Guess what, she still doesn't dig it.

 

This year I really pared it down.  I replaced nearly all of our read-alouds with books we WANTED to read.  I switched to a quick, get it done history textbook.  We will sometimes add to a timeline or do a worksheet or watch a video, but not all the time.  Sometimes we just read the section, talk about it for a few minutes, and then move on.  I wouldn't say we enjoy it, but we now have a lot more time to get to the things that we do enjoy.

[Ellie]

You don't have to have A Program.

 

Go to the library and check out some of Jean Fritz's American history books and read them aloud for enjoyment. Or books like "HItty's First Hundred Years," or "Sara Plain and Tall" or "All-of-a-Kind Family"--books set in an earlier time period. Watch a couple of historical-fiction-type movies, whether they are accurate or not. Go to a Living History Day or something similar near where you live. Don't make her write reports or produce any kind of output. *Next* year, do a more formal history; *this* year, just let her learn to enjoy history.

[marynamo]

Maybe look at Horrible History the books and videos as super funny and gross at times. That really gets the kids going.

 

If you want something more formal what about History Revealed by Diana Waring.

 

I would not change curriculums so much, I make something work and financially we just can't do it. Kids need to understand.

 

I had history at school, in SA it is an optional subject - I hated it. Today I realize it is the way the teacher present it that got all to do with it. Now I love it and learn with the kids.

[solascriptura]

I suggest Veritas Press self paced classes. You can view two free weeks on the website.

[michaeljenn]

We decided to go with Veritas Press.... Except we are not doing the self paced classes.  So far, my history hating 10yo is loving VP! They love the memory song, and actually do not complain about the worksheets in the manual.  We read the card, discuss, and read a book or a chapter about the topic.  It is just enough and not too much.  We spend about 30m a day on history.  Quick, simple, and effective:)

[hornblower]

My dd never liked history. She said it was depressing. For her, what helped was focusing more on historical fiction.
She doesn't 'do' dates (she can't remember her own phone number so dates were never going to really stick). She has a good sense of history though, of the flow, of trends, of the big picture, of social issues etc.

Shows like the old Connections TV show which traced inventions through time were also a hit.

You could also try the Horrible Histories series though my dd wouldn't have like it...

There's a YouTube channel that's sort of similar to Connections, but rather than focusing on an invention, it tackles a concept. It's called Art of the Problem https://www.youtube.com/user/ArtOfTheProblem

Also, what about looking at history of fashion? Or focusing on art history? 

[Hunter]

I've been reading a lot of vintage books on teaching children, lately. History usually was not started until grades 4 or 5, and those were sometimes attended by much older students than 9 and 10 year olds. Geography was considered much more important than history, and was considered a precursor to history.

 

All of this early history and history-centered is quite a new thing. Vintage teachers would be shocked to see what we are doing now in many areas, but the history teaching just might have shocked them the most. That doesn't mean that what is happening now is wrong, and the 1800's and early 1900's were correct. I'm just pointing out that history-centered, for the early years, is not the ONLY way to go.

[PagesandFields]

I have no experiencing HSing yet to help you... but when I was a kid I HATED history class.  Hated.  I was bad at it, never wanted to do it and it was really hard for me.  But every time I read a historical novel I was then enamored by the period and would research it and learn so... soo... much.  Would there be any way for you to take a "curriculum" break... and just read some novels and maybe living books type non-fiction or biographies about the period?  I literally remember nothing from my history "lessons"... but I have actually always been a history buff who loves history.  

 

Just an idea if things really aren't working.  Hope you find a solution! :)

[Heather in VA]

I have one who adore history, one who thinks it's 'eh' and one who hates it... they are really like Biblioplan. The Companion is really interesting - you can download a three week sample of any of the years from their website. It's definitely not babyish, in fact I use it as an overview for my 11 year old and she'll read and really learn the whole thing for high school.