Aurelia Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 I'm planning DD's school subjects for 7th grade (I usually buy used curriculum, so I have to plan super early) and I keep going round and round on what to do for history/geography/social studies/what-have-you. As a background, next month she starts Oak Meadow's 6th grade, which covers ancient times through the middle ages. We've done SOTW1, SOTW4, CHOW and a year of US history. I can't seem to decide if I want to try to continue the history rotation, skip to world geography, focus on US history, or even do a year of state history (7th grade PS here usually does state history and I thought it was pretty cool). For 7th, my plan looks like this:Tabletclass math Lightning Literature 7 Grammar of Poetry (maybe) CAP W&R Ellen McHenry science curricula Latin Prep 1 These are the things I have on hand: Mapping the World with Art Trail Guide to World Geography (I plan to use the trail guide and MWA together for world geography at some point, just not sure when) SOTW 1-4 Kingfisher Illustrated History of the World A few things I'm considering: Connect the Thoughts Revolutions and Nations (maybe too advanced for a 7th grader? I don't know) SOTW 3 (beefed up somehow, maybe?) Oak Meadow World History (not really thrilled with the looks of this, and it's expensive, but it was originally my plan when I bought OM6) Trail Guide to World Geography + Mapping the World with Art (I don't know if I want to do this for middle school or save it for a high school credit. Opinions?) From Sea to Shining Sea (I really prefer secular texts, but it looks good) I know I absolutely don't want to do ancients again. We've done ancients to death. Please, please help, I can't get this sorted in my head, and DD isn't much help because she usually says "ugh, it's school. Can I just not do any of it?" whenever I ask. If it helps, she's a creative, visual, social type who likes to be doing things and talking about them and is not a fan of writing or worksheets. I'd like her to enjoy history or geography, at least a little. So far the only enjoyment seems to come from Horrible Histories (she prefers the show to the books) and the occasional vaguely-history-related graphic novel. What do you suggest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 So it sounds like maybe you haven't done the Early Modern period much? That would link in nicely with using Mapping the World With Art. You could use some of the Oxford University Press Medieval and Early Modern World series: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-medieval-and-early-modern-world-9780195221572?cc=us&lang=en& They are perfect for 7th & 8th grade, each book is slim with short chapters, very readable. There are student guides and teacher guides if you want to add that in, too. Another option - we are loving the Big History project. It's a great thing to do at this age too, although definitely high school credit worthy as well: https://www.bighistoryproject.com/home Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 (edited) . Edited May 23, 2023 by SilverMoon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted January 1, 2015 Author Share Posted January 1, 2015 We have barely glossed over the early modern period. The middle ages are in the same boat, currently. And, the more I look over the OM6 syllabus, the less I want to do it. I think it has something to do with half the year spent on ancient history. Again. It's pretty bad when you're already burned out and haven't even started the book. DD thought the Big History Project looked cool, although now she says she'd like to learn state history (which, of course, I don't have ANY materials for). :willy_nilly: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Have your dd any preferences? If my dd would have I would follow that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted January 1, 2015 Author Share Posted January 1, 2015 Have your dd any preferences? If my dd would have I would follow that. Her preference is not to do history, ever. Is there something project-y, but short term so we could cover different units, even if it's not necessarily chronological? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Yeah, definitely don't do something you aren't excited about, if she isn't excited about anything in particular. I agree with going with what she finds interesting. The nice thing about using the OUP Middle Age & Early Modern World books is that they are short, so you can treat them like units - go through a book, which focused on a geographical region or particular time period, and do some related reading, maybe some geography and mapwork. If it's interesting, stick around, if it's boring, move on. And you could just get them book by book, so it isn't a huge investment. You might be able to find them at your library. This can make it feel more like a unit study. Similar with Big History. It is divided into 10 units. You can just go through all the included material, covering each unit in 2-3 weeks, or if a particular unit is interesting, you can do some extra reading, documentaries, etc. on that topic and stretch it out longer. The cost is zero, the time commitment to plan is really low - I just make a plan for each unit a week or so before we get to it. And you can cover both science and history together, which can be way more interesting for a kid who doesn't love history. Anyway, it's not that i"m trying to push these programs! I say go with whatever she shows a glimmer of interest in, and that you don't hate the idea of. But I do think either of these options could be turned into a low-commitment unit study type thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 How about a completely "out of the box" non-curricula type of History for the next two years, tying in with what activities she does enjoy? For example, does she like reading about people? Focus on a series of biographies of people from different time periods/nations with feature films, documentaries, non-fiction and historical fiction, and recreate clothing, inventions/experiments, art, etc. by those people. How about sewing or hand crafts? Maybe focus on involvement in a History Recreation group or Medieval/Renaissance group. Is she interested in science, or art? Is there a homeschool co-op nearby doing something interesting and hands-on with History this next year that you could join in with? Does she enjoy participation in activities? What about making it Social Studies, not History, and focus on Civics and involvement in a model legislative or judicial group (Mock Trial, Model UN, Youth & Government, etc.). Or spend a year exploring resources available to you -- especially historical fiction, hands-on projects, feature films and documentaries -- on a topic of interest. Examples: - Native Americans/First People tribes - famous women in history - if a science lover, then enjoy history tied to science: scientific discoveries & famous scientists (Joy Hakim's Story of Science) - if an art/music lover: history connected to art/music movements through time, artists/musicians etc. (Beautiful Feet guide: History of Music) - if she enjoys adventures/exploration, then focus biographies on explorers and their times Or go for a Social Studies topic that is completely different from all the History you have been doing: - State History/Geography/Culture study - Philosophy / Worldviews - Comparative Religions - Politics / Current Events / Contemporary Issues - Psychology - Sociology - Anthropology I personally LOVED that we took a break from History in those middle school years and did a year (and you could do both 7th & 8th grades :)) of cultural geography and worldview/comparative religions. That laid a fabulous foundation for our high school History studies. :) We pulled together our own materials, using ideas from several different programs, plus what was available through the library, plus other resources. It can be helpful to plan middle school grades by working backwards from what is likely to be covered and when in high school. That way you don't repeat too much, and you have the opportunity to do something unusual that you might not be able to do in high school when you start having to accomplish specific types of credits. For example, the traditional high school Social Studies progression looks like this, with some states also requiring a credit or half credit of World Geography in there. 9th or 10th = World History (also possible World Geography) 11th = American History 12th = Government/Economics Think about what you MUST do and WANT to do for History/Social Studies for the 4 years of high school -- and then work backwards for the middle school years: - What would best prepare your student for those 4 years of high school History/Social Studies? - What would you want to do in 8th grade that would best "flow" the student into the 9th grade History studies? (and then, of course, what would best be done in 7th grade to "flow" the student into 8th grade) - What might the student NOT get in high school that you want to make sure to get in during middle school? - What will the student do first in 9th grade History/Social Studies, so DON'T do the same thing or something similar in 7th or 8th grade so that it's a repeat... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Another idea. . . You've used FUFI before right? My DD/9th used Where the Brook and River Meet in 7th and thoroughly enjoyed it. If you take the time to flesh out the history more it would cover plenty. We skipped most of the Susy homemaker stuff, but the handicrafts were fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Another idea. . . You've used FUFI before right? My DD/9th used Where the Brook and River Meet in 7th and thoroughly enjoyed it. If you take the time to flesh out the history more it would cover plenty. We skipped most of the Susy homemaker stuff, but the handicrafts were fun. :) I was going to suggest WtBaRM, but had the impression from 8FillTheHeart that it really was designed for, and best for discussion with high school age?? Two more ideas for programs: Moving Beyond the Page social studies units - age 11-13 = Africa Today, Australia & Oceania, Asia Today, Age of Discovery -- and others - age 12-14 = Civics, History of Your State -- and others Intellego's World Religions unit study of 14 major religions, for gr. 6-12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted January 1, 2015 Author Share Posted January 1, 2015 Another idea. . . You've used FUFI before right? My DD/9th used Where the Brook and River Meet in 7th and thoroughly enjoyed it. If you take the time to flesh out the history more it would cover plenty. We skipped most of the Susy homemaker stuff, but the handicrafts were fun. I looked at that before, but it's been awhile. I'll have to look at it again. Hmm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 :) I was going to suggest WtBaRM, but had the impression from 8FillTheHeart that it really was designed for, and best for discussion with high school age??I think 8's DD used it as a seventh grader the school year before mine used it as a seventh grader. I may be rusty, but I'm sure it was her posts that made DD and I consider it. We would have skipped the Schaeffer/homemaking stuff at any age. Not our cuppa. Art of Poetry from CAP was a great compliment for WtBaRM, fwiw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 I think 8's DD used it as a seventh grader the school year before mine used it as a seventh grader. I may be rusty, but I'm sure it was her posts that made DD and I consider it. We would have skipped the Schaeffer/homemaking stuff at any age. Not our cuppa. Art of Poetry from CAP was a great compliment for WtBaRM, fwiw. Thanks! That helps me for future recommendations. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa in the UP of MI Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 Your dd sounds a lot like my oldest except that mine loves history (minus writing about it). What doesn't she like about history? My dd could read, watch, discuss, and do history craft projects all day long, she just doesn't want to write about it. One thing we've started doing recently is watching Teaching Company lectures together. She also really enjoys reading books together so that we can discuss them as we go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted January 2, 2015 Author Share Posted January 2, 2015 Your dd sounds a lot like my oldest except that mine loves history (minus writing about it). What doesn't she like about history? My dd could read, watch, discuss, and do history craft projects all day long, she just doesn't want to write about it. One thing we've started doing recently is watching Teaching Company lectures together. She also really enjoys reading books together so that we can discuss them as we go. She says it's boring, doesn't like answering questions or doing paperwork (maps, outlines) about it. She doesn't really like reading about it, unless it's in something like Horrible Histories or historical fiction (and even then, it's not much). I think it's been too impersonal, also. She can't really relate to it, because she can't go see or touch it. I'm seriously considering doing state history so she can do that. We also don't do a lot of projects because it takes so much time to get all her school work done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 My ds learns history pretty well from documentaries (Connections was especially good as a start), audio books, and has also enjoyed a focus on current events--looking back at history behind current events, and geography related to them. I have not required papers, mapwork etc. by and large, in order to try to leave history interesting instead of turning it into something despised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa in the UP of MI Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 She says it's boring, doesn't like answering questions or doing paperwork (maps, outlines) about it. She doesn't really like reading about it, unless it's in something like Horrible Histories or historical fiction (and even then, it's not much). I think it's been too impersonal, also. She can't really relate to it, because she can't go see or touch it. I'm seriously considering doing state history so she can do that. We also don't do a lot of projects because it takes so much time to get all her school work done. Is there anything you could drop/slow down on to make time for the projects? I'm not great about doing the projects myself, but now that dd is older she can do them herself as long as we have the supplies on hand. She even does her other work more quickly if she knows that there is a history project or science exploration to do when she's done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 You can go for thematic history: History of clothes, history of ballet whatever might interest her. Also history of well known people might be interesting. You can also use current events to dig in history. This way history can come alive. If she is interested in certain countries/cultures you can study that history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted January 4, 2015 Author Share Posted January 4, 2015 Thank you for all of your help, it's helped clarify quite a few things for me. What do you think of this plan? Skip the first semester of OM6, just do the middle ages portion and Mapping the World with Art in a semester, then do either a full year of state history or a semester of state history and a semester of etymology (Excavating English) and/or interest-led history. Finish Mapping the World with Art alongside state history, then decide on 8th grade history when we get there (maybe the Big History Project). I gave DD several options and she picked state history so she could go visit some of the historical sites, and I think she'd like etymology, since she likes to know how things work and are connected. I added the MtWwA because DD likes to do art and projects, but if they're not on the master schedule, they don't get done (plus I already own it). I thought this way she could get more "fun stuff" with history instead of filling out maps and outlines. I decided to save civics/government and economics for high school, and probably US history and world geography as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyBC Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 You could beef up SOTW 3 with a Sonlight Core. Or at least a list of historical fiction titles to help her connect with that time period. It seems like Lightning Lit might be enough writing anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.