A review of K12 Human Odyssey for studying world history

[stupidusername]

These are textbooks from educational publishing company K12 that we have been using to study world history during the past 17 months. There are three volumes:

• Volume 1: Prehistory to the Middle Ages
• Volume 2: Middle Ages through 1914
• Volume 3: 1914 to the present

We found out about these books from Well Trained Mind. We are just about to finish Volume 2.

 

The books are comprehensive and very readable. One volume can be covered in 5 to 9 months -- more if you supplement with outside books and movies. There are a few threads here on Well Trained Mind about supplemental materials. We baked a Greek meal, read excerpts from the Oxford University Press history books, and watched the movies "Spartacus," "Gladiator," and "Roots," but otherwise have not done much supplementing so far. We will do more in Volume 3. (I am a World War II history buff.)

 

I only have two complaints. First, I would have liked more coverage of prehistory before Sumer. Second, Volume 1 states that Muhammad al Khwarizmi invented Algebra, which is not true. These, however, are quibbles.

 

The books are affordable. Right now you can buy a used copy of Volume 1 on Amazon.com for $4.00. You can buy a used copy of Volume 2  for $3.47. You can buy a full online course through K12 for several hundred dollars, but the books are all you need. We purchased the full online course last year and rarely used it.

 

The books are secular, but can be used by anyone. All the major world religions are covered.

 

For us, pedagogy is simple. I have my son read about 4-5 pages per day (one chapter per week, usually); every day I quiz him on what he has read. I ask simple questions such as "Who is so -and-so" or "What was such and such?" If he hasn't absorbed the material, I have him re-read the entire section. I then quiz him again. If he still hasn't absorbed the material, I have him read the section a third time. Nowadays, he almost never has to read a section more than once.

 

During our lessons, I often will ask my son to point to a particular location on the globe or in an Atlas. This enables him to simultaneously learn about both history and geography.

 

We use Anki (a free flash card app) several times per week to boost retention. We have created thousands of world history flash cards. I back up our Anki cards about once a month.

 

The reading level of Volumes 1 and 2 is appropriate for kids from about 5th grade and up. I would not recommend them to children younger than that unless they are unusually strong readers or have a passion for history. It looks like the reading level of Volume 3 might be a little more advanced.

 

Not only are these great books for kids, they are also excellent for adults. I knew little about world history before starting these books.  My knowledge has increased enormously. Recently, I got a perfect score on a SAT World History prep test.

 

In short, these books provide an excellent and affordable way to learn about world history. Highly recommended.

 

 

 

Edited December 13, 2015 by stupidusername

[Minerva]

Thanks for taking the time to write this. I am thinking about what we will do for History next year and this is helpful.

[SeaConquest]

I recently picked these up used on Amazon for super cheap. I agree that they are great. I only wish they came in audio versions! One thing that I would add is that, if you plan to use the student and teacher's guides, they are under a different title. Volume One is Intermediate World History A and Volume Two is Intermediate World History B. There are no guides for Volume Three.  

[Sunshine State Sue]

Thank you for the review.  I discovered these, alas, after we had already tried other paths.  I think they would have been useful.

[8elbows]

Would you mind sharing your anki deck? We are using volume 2.

 

These are textbooks from educational publishing company K12 that we have been using to study world history during the past 17 months. There are three volumes:

• Volume 1: Prehistory to the Middle Ages
• Volume 2: Middle Ages through 1914
• Volume 3: 1914 to the present

We found out about these books from Well Trained Mind. We are just about to finish Volume 2.

 

The books are comprehensive and very readable. One volume can be covered in 5 to 9 months -- more if you supplement with outside books and movies. There are a few threads here on Well Trained Mind about supplemental materials. We baked a Greek meal, read excerpts from the Oxford University Press history books, and watched the movies "Spartacus," "Gladiator," and "Roots," but otherwise have not done much supplementing so far. We will do more in Volume 3. (I am a World War II history buff.)

 

I only have two complaints. First, I would have liked more coverage of prehistory before Sumer. Second, Volume 1 states that Muhammad al Khwarizmi invented Algebra, which is not true. These, however, are quibbles.

 

The books are affordable. Right now you can buy a used copy of Volume 1 on Amazon.com for $4.00. You can buy a used copy of Volume 2  for $3.47. You can buy a full online course through K12 for several hundred dollars, but the books are all you need. We purchased the full online course last year and rarely used it.

 

The books are secular, but can be used by anyone. All the major world religions are covered.

 

For us, pedagogy is simple. I have my son read about 4-5 pages per day (one chapter per week, usually); every day I quiz him on what he has read. I ask simple questions such as "Who is so -and-so" or "What was such and such?" If he hasn't absorbed the material, I have him re-read the entire section. I then quiz him again. If he still hasn't absorbed the material, I have him read the section a third time. Nowadays, he almost never has to read a section more than once.

 

During our lessons, I often will ask my son to point to a particular location on the globe or in an Atlas. This enables him to simultaneously learn about both history and geography.

 

We use Anki (a free flash card app) several times per week to boost retention. We have created thousands of world history flash cards. I back up our Anki cards about once a month.

 

The reading level of Volumes 1 and 2 is appropriate for kids from about 5th grade and up. I would not recommend them to children younger than that unless they are unusually strong readers or have a passion for history. It looks like the reading level of Volume 3 might be a little more advanced.

 

Not only are these great books for kids, they are also excellent for adults. I knew little about world history before starting these books.  My knowledge has increased enormously. Recently, I got a perfect score on a SAT World History prep test.

 

In short, these books provide an excellent and affordable way to learn about world history. Highly recommended.

 

[MistyMountain]

Thank you for your review! I was going to use this so it is helpful to hear.

[MistyMountain]

I recently picked these up used on Amazon for super cheap. I agree that they are great. I only wish they came in audio versions! One thing that I would add is that, if you plan to use the student and teacher's guides, they are under a different title. Volume One is Intermediate World History A and Volume Two is Intermediate World History B. There are no guides for Volume Three.

I thought they were the student and teachers guide because they came up when I was looking on amazon but I was not 100% sure because the title was different so thanks for sharing that.

Edited July 18, 2017 by MistyMountain