ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 I keep trying to implement history in a more WTM style, but the fact is that it's not happening here, no matter how much I try and tweak it. I own so many great history materials, and they're just not getting used because I need something that's pre-planned for me. I don't want it to be that way, because I LOVE history and would bury myself in it if I could. Unfortunately, oldest DD doesn't feel the same way, so something more straightforward will benefit us both. We are secular homeschoolers, so I'm looking for something that is accommodating to that perspective. It's been so long since I've looked for history materials that DD is older now (6th/7th grade), so I don't know what's out there for this age level anymore. I would love to hear any recommendations anyone has. Thank you! Oh, ETA that we're (theoretically!) studying the Middle Ages right now. I own the K12 Human Odyssey books, the Oxford University Press books for this time period, and TOG Year 2 (way too much tweaking, but I was so hopeful!). So if anyone can suggest an open-and-go lesson plan for those materials--even plans that another HSer created--that would be great too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 19, 2015 Author Share Posted January 19, 2015 Pandia Press History Odyssey Level 2 maybe. They have 10 weeks worth of samples so you could check it out and see if it is open and go enough for you. Thank you! I also just came across a thread on the Logic Stage board where people are saying they use the K12 HO books with the Pandia Press plans, which would be wonderful. I haven't looked at the Pandia Press stuff in years, but I do remember liking it (we just decided to go with SOTW instead at the time). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nannyaunt Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Memoria Press has history that is secular. I don't know if they have what you want, but you may find it worthwhile to check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Thank you! I also just came across a thread on the Logic Stage board where people are saying they use the K12 HO books with the Pandia Press plans, which would be wonderful. I haven't looked at the Pandia Press stuff in years, but I do remember liking it (we just decided to go with SOTW instead at the time). We do that, and it's worked out well! It's not very time-consuming to match up the k12 chapters with the Pandia plans, and then it's very open and go. Unfortunately, Middle Ages Level 2 is the only Level 2 I don't have, so I don't have a match-up to share with you. I really find Pandia's plans to be very easy to implement. I spend a few minutes before the start of the year, marking what I consider to be a reasonable day's worth of work, and then I just check the work. Any tweaking I do on the fly, like if DD complains that a full essay is too much, I might tell her to take two days to do it, or I might have her skip it or shorten it, depending on how else the week has gone, but that I can't know in advance. And I was looking over her first semester work this weekend for seventh grade (early modern), and I'm really pleased with how her skills are coming along, regarding picking out important details and getting to the "why" of things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Def use the 10 lesson sample. I think it is a great program for the right kid/parent combo, but it wasn't for us. It took us almost exactly 10 lessons to realize it just wasn't going to work for us. But I really appreciate that the publisher gives a big enough of a sample to really get a good feel. I had very good luck doing history as suggested in the most recent edition of TWTM. Because I used my own materials it was totally secular and it was very workable. I used the K12 HO books as well as the Oxford Press books (for years 1-part of 3) and the Hakim History of US books and a few other things. After trying to make Pandia press and a few other things happen, it was easier to just follow the steps in TWTM. History went beautifully after that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusyMom5 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 I'm using HO w/ k12 HO, it's working really well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ondreeuh Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 We use Human Odyssey (K12's books) with the teacher guides, which has discussion questions. We read and discuss, and sometimes I use the content for a writing assignment. We used he online component last year and it was too much. He is now back to loving history and his comprehension and retention are excellent, so I can't ask for more. After we finish HO2, we'll probably do Hakim's History of Us series, using the Hewitt syllabus for discussion questions. I plan to use the K12 history books for high school, but is wish there were teacher components available for those. I might use the k12 books to supplement another program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Can you tell me where you got the Human Odyssey teacher guides? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 19, 2015 Author Share Posted January 19, 2015 Memoria Press has history that is secular. I don't know if they have what you want, but you may find it worthwhile to check it out. Thank you, I'll look at it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 19, 2015 Author Share Posted January 19, 2015 We do that, and it's worked out well! It's not very time-consuming to match up the k12 chapters with the Pandia plans, and then it's very open and go. Unfortunately, Middle Ages Level 2 is the only Level 2 I don't have, so I don't have a match-up to share with you. I really find Pandia's plans to be very easy to implement. I spend a few minutes before the start of the year, marking what I consider to be a reasonable day's worth of work, and then I just check the work. Any tweaking I do on the fly, like if DD complains that a full essay is too much, I might tell her to take two days to do it, or I might have her skip it or shorten it, depending on how else the week has gone, but that I can't know in advance. And I was looking over her first semester work this weekend for seventh grade (early modern), and I'm really pleased with how her skills are coming along, regarding picking out important details and getting to the "why" of things. Yours was the post that caught my eye in the other thread! I think someone posted a link to a matchup, but I'm not positive. I need to go back and look to be sure. It doesn't sound difficult to do though. I really do love those K12 books and would be so happy to use them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 19, 2015 Author Share Posted January 19, 2015 We use Human Odyssey (K12's books) with the teacher guides, which has discussion questions. We read and discuss, and sometimes I use the content for a writing assignment. We used he online component last year and it was too much. He is now back to loving history and his comprehension and retention are excellent, so I can't ask for more. After we finish HO2, we'll probably do Hakim's History of Us series, using the Hewitt syllabus for discussion questions. I plan to use the K12 history books for high school, but is wish there were teacher components available for those. I might use the k12 books to supplement another program. I do have the teacher guides. I think that's part of what made it worse for me! I was trying for a WTM-style history study, but then the teacher guides had even more stuff in them I felt like we should be doing ("You're staying at a medieval monastery. Write a letter to a friend describing monastery life in detail!"), so I was trying to hit it all. And then there were things that were only in the online class that I didn't have access to, and I felt like we should somehow be doing those too, and my lesson plans just kept expanding (for a kid who doesn't even enjoy history!), and I just ended up throwing up my hands and pretending it didn't exist for awhile :lol: Thankfully this kid is like a sponge, so she's learned quite a lot just from the world around her. I just found her in her room watching history videos on YouTube from the CrashCourse guys. BTW, great videos on loads of subjects, if anyone's looking. One of the guys is the author John Green! (Maybe I'm the last to hear about this, but I was amazed :lol:) happypamama, I bought one of my teacher guides on Amazon, and one on eBay. You have to search differently--they're not called "Human Odyssey": http://www.amazon.com/Intermediate-World-History-Teacher-Semesters/dp/B002AVQYSE/ref=pd_sim_b_6?ie=UTF8&refRID=1QBYVQV9K7AN4WB496FG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 The Oxford University Press books have student guides and teacher's guides - that seems pretty open and go. Read the chapter, answer the questions, discuss. I haven't seen the teacher's guides, but the student guides are fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 I do have the teacher guides. I think that's part of what made it worse for me! I was trying for a WTM-style history study, but then the teacher guides had even more stuff in them I felt like we should be doing ("You're staying at a medieval monastery. Write a letter to a friend describing monastery life in detail!"), so I was trying to hit it all. And then there were things that were only in the online class that I didn't have access to, and I felt like we should somehow be doing those too, and my lesson plans just kept expanding (for a kid who doesn't even enjoy history!), and I just ended up throwing up my hands and pretending it didn't exist for awhile :lol: Thankfully this kid is like a sponge, so she's learned quite a lot just from the world around her. I just found her in her room watching history videos on YouTube from the CrashCourse guys. BTW, great videos on loads of subjects, if anyone's looking. One of the guys is the author John Green! (Maybe I'm the last to hear about this, but I was amazed :lol:) happypamama, I bought one of my teacher guides on Amazon, and one on eBay. You have to search differently--they're not called "Human Odyssey": http://www.amazon.com/Intermediate-World-History-Teacher-Semesters/dp/B002AVQYSE/ref=pd_sim_b_6?ie=UTF8&refRID=1QBYVQV9K7AN4WB496FG Ah, that was the catch; thank you! I might get those if I find them for a cheaper price than that (since one of those, used, is listed at more than I paid for all three texts!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Ah, that was the catch; thank you! I might get those if I find them for a cheaper price than that (since one of those, used, is listed at more than I paid for all three texts!). Just keep looking, you will find a good price. Be aware that there are only teacher guides for the first two books. The third K12 HO book (modern history) doesn't have a printed teacher's book or student book. It is all done online through K12 with the student only having the textbook. I think K12 got sick of people buying the materials (from them or second hand) and not buying the online class. The only thing I used the teacher's book for was the page assignments and they discussion questions. Well, I think the student is supposed to be writing down the answers as part of a written assignment, but we always did that part orally. They were nice to have, but not necessary. I have one student guide, but didn't find it useful to me. It looked like a lot of worksheets and busywork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Just keep looking, you will find a good price. Be aware that there are only teacher guides for the first two books. Oh. Well, darn. I'd have liked it for modern for eighth grade. Oh, well. Pandia has her digging a lot anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 I just wanted to add that for secular history there is also Oak Meadow, Bookshark ( a secularized Sonlight), Connect the thoughts, ...and a few other ones. I have a friend who uses some all in one secular curriculum that I can NEVER remember the name of...but her kids love it and they are doing very well with it. I do know that you can just buy one component, so only history, but I can't remember what it is Just to put it out there that there is more than Pandia Press and K12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ondreeuh Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 I bought mine on Amazon. They are called Intermediate World History (HO1 is level A and HO2 is level B). All of the extra stuff would be cool if we had nothing else to do and if my son loved to write, but it was overwhelming to him and felt like drudgery. Sometimes I note things that are a taught in the online component and have my son look it up on Wikipedia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyoustxmama Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 I have my eye on these for later years. It's not a text, but the series seems to cover most of history, and it looks very interesting to teach history with. As far as I know, they are secular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aras Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 I have my eye on these for later years. It's not a text, but the series seems to cover most of history, and it looks very interesting to teach history with. As far as I know, they are secular. I purchase the first two volumes of those books on the advice of someone here at the hive. The text is teeny-tiny and very dense. There are some nice pictures but there aren't a lot of them compared to the k12 Human Odyssey and the white Kingfisher History Encyclopedia that I own. I thought the books were nice, but I felt they were meant for adults or maybe high school age. Eta: They are secular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Oh. Well, darn. I'd have liked it for modern for eighth grade. Oh, well. Pandia has her digging a lot anyway. I still used the K12 HO book for 8th grade and it was fantastic. I just made my own assignments and created my own assignments. It wasn't exactly difficult. Read and discuss or read and narrate or read and outline. Not a big deal. And the text is very easy to work with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyoustxmama Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 I purchase the first two volumes of those books on the advice of someone here at the hive. The text is teeny-tiny and very dense. There are some nice pictures but there aren't a lot of them compared to the k12 Human Odyssey and the white Kingfisher History Encyclopedia that I own. I thought the books were nice, but I felt they were meant for adults or maybe high school age. Eta: They are secular. Thanks! It's impossible to see inside them since they are oop now, so that is very helpful. Highschool is what I had in mind, or maybe just for me (I have a weak history background) :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AHASRADA Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 I have a friend who uses some all in one secular curriculum that I can NEVER remember the name of...but her kids love it and they are doing very well with it. I do know that you can just buy one component, so only history, but I can't remember what it is You are probably thinking of Moving Beyond the Page. They have separate history, literature and science units, so you can buy them individually, but the topics are integrated with each other if you want to use it as a complete curriculum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murrayshire Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Yours was the post that caught my eye in the other thread! I think someone posted a link to a matchup, but I'm not positive. I need to go back and look to be sure. It doesn't sound difficult to do though. I really do love those K12 books and would be so happy to use them. Here is the link showing the book matchups for level 2 Middle Ages History Odyssey, K12 Human Odyssey, SOTW, Usborne, Kingfisher..... http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/539770-massive-middle-ages-renaissance-line-up-spreadsheet/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aprilleigh Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 The new curriculum director in our new school district told me about The Big History. It's online, and the description seems targeted for logic stage students, but I haven't explored it more in depth yet. It might also make a nice break from constant bookwork given its format. Use google - it's pretty easy to find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 You are probably thinking of Moving Beyond the Page. They have separate history, literature and science units, so you can buy them individually, but the topics are integrated with each other if you want to use it as a complete curriculum. ZOMG, you are totally right! I recognize the website. I am totally in awe that you could figure it out based on one sentence. Anyway, she, and more importantly, her kids, like it very much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 This is the closest I've seen to open and go logic stage history. I bought DS The 13 Colonies and the Great Republic, and it seems very manageable and open-and-go, 'tho we haven't used it yet. History Odyssey isn't really open and go, but it's so organized that it comes close. Memoria Press has history that is secular. I don't know if they have what you want, but you may find it worthwhile to check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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