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Modern History resources


Minerva
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We will be studying modern history next year and I am having a hard time narrowing down resources. There are just so many! What were your favorite movies (Netflix and Youtube) and read alouds for elementary aged kids? We like biographies and accurate historical fiction. 

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I'll be doing Moderns next year as well.  While we've been doing TOG the last few years, and I have their Y4 plans, I'm just about wiped out doing it. For example, TOG Y4 has about 5-6 main spines for the year -- all of which are very expensive even at the used price.  In addition, it really goes into great depth and detail, but I want DD to just get a basic overview at this point because she really hates reading about wars (and Moderns is the mother of wars), and she will be covering this again in high school. Therefore, I've decided to be a little more relaxed next year. 

 

In that regard, I've been looking a lot at the Wayfarer's curriculum by Kathy Joe Devore.  I really like what I see and the fact that everything is included in the schedule - math, science, Bible, history, art, music...everything.  The great part about Wayfarers is that I can easily substitute core books without disrupting the program unlike TOG.  So, with that in mind, I'm planning to purchase Wayfarers Modern (3 terms of 12 weeks each @ $25/term for the PDF book) and integrate some of the TOG books I have.  For a spine, I'll be using either SOTW (as suggested by Wayfarers) or Human Odyssey 3 which I got at a great price used.

 

Supplemental books to be used: (Thankfully, many of these are available at our public library.)

 

The Pop Culture Series

The Wright Brothers

Kids at Work: Lewis Hine and the Crusade Against Child Labor

Bully For You Teddy Roosevelt (finish it; we've already read some this year)

The Crash of '29 and the New Deal

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

The Great Depression

 

 

WWI:

World War II:

Korean War:

Civil Rights:

Vietnam:

Cold War:

 

Mao Tse-Tong & His China

Red Scarf Girl

 

Middle East Conflict:

We also have several books for the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, space exploration, Scopes Monkey Trial, September 11th, and Y2K!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I am in the midst of planning this for next year for fourth grade.  I made a list of resources from sites such as Sonlight, BF and TOG, and then I will plan in six week increments throughout the year depending on library availability, schedule, etc.  I am using SOTW and this US History book as our spines.  http://www.christianbook.com/childs-first-book-of-amercian-history/earl-miers/9781893103429/pd/313042?event=ESRCG It's from BF Books. 

 

I am adding emphasis on specific unit studies for more US and state history.  We will only do extras on these unit studies, and just read the spine for everything else.  I just can't fit in everything, and we can focus on different things the next cycle through.  My units/rabbit trails will be state history, Civil War, The Frontier, Industrialism, WWI, Roaring Twenties and Great Depression, Civil Rights, Communism and the Space Race, and then we will spend a week or so on each decade from there getting a flavor of some of the culture and world events.  I also plan to highlight certain inventors and inventions.  We plan to take a little more than a year on this.  Aside from some frontier crafts, I plan to spend less time on daily projects and crafts and focus more on some larger projects.  For example, for the Civil War, we will make an Abe Lincoln costume and memorize the Gettysburg Address.  We will do a state history notebook and a President's timeline, and some sort of display of inventions.  

 

For books, I have really liked the D'Aulaire books (but not so much the BF guides.)  My son is a voracious reader, so I tend to have a book basket from the library and get literature from that time period.  

 

Here are some top literature picks from that time period (not a full list of resources...just literature):

 

Frontier Living/Late 1800's:

Little House books

Buffalo Bill

Davy Crockett (although technically a little earlier than late 1800's)

Tom Sawyer

Little Women

 

Industrialization/Victorian era/turn of the Century:

Mary Poppins

Anne of Green Gables

Around the World in 80 Days

Pollyanna

Sherlock Holmes

Peter Pan

Secret Garden

Black Beauty

 

WW1:

A Little Princess

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Helen Keller

 

WW2:

Corrie Ten Boom

The Von Trapp Family Singers

A New Coat for Anna

The Story of Anne Frank

Where the Red Fern Grows

 

There are several other titles I got from TOG, BF, Sonlight and others, but I am unfamiliar with them still.  

 

As for movies, there are so many!  We are big movie people as my husband is a major film buff and have so many films we can't wait to show our kids.  Our children are very sensitive, and there are several films we are waiting to show them until they are older because of this.  But here are some we are looking forward to showing our ten year old next year in no particular order:

 

Zorro

Amazing Grace

Scarlet Pimpernel (French Revolution)

I would show Three Musketeers as well, but I don't think he is ready for some thematic elements.

Gone with the Wind

Maverick ??  have to review for sexual content

John Wayne movies and other fun westerns

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Grapes of Wrath

Newsies 

Around the World in 80 Days

Meet Me in St. Louis

Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken

Davy Crockett

Huckleberry Finn

Tom Sawyer

Little Women

Father Goose

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

Annie, Get Your Gun (has some sexism...we have conversations about it but do not censor)

Little House

Flyboys (haven't previewed yet)

A League of Their Own

Mrs. Miniver

The Rocketeer

Apollo 13

October Sky

Fiddler on the Roof

Chariots of Fire

Scarlet and the Black 

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (MAYBE...might be too much for him)

The African Queen

Casablanca

 

Not all of these are directly tied to history but give a sense of the culture of that time period.  

 

When I get things more planned out, I will be happy to share.

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