OUP for average 9th grader?

[Aras]

I have one semester left before we get into high school, eek!

 

My son is has average comprehension skills and speed of reading. We are planning for college, but I don't think this kid will ever be a candidate for an AP History class. He likes history, but doesn't love it- he would rather spend his time building one project or another. So I don't want to bog him down with too much history. 

 

Would the OUP's World in Ancient Times series and The Medieval and Modern world series be appropriate for 9th grade world history? I would include a couple of documentaries, discussion, and some essays. 

 

Thanks in advance.

[maize]

I think it would work great for 9th grade, way more comprehensive than what I did in history class in 9th grade.

 

I'd assign some essays and maybe a term paper to go along with it.

[maize]

Actually, I didn't see you were planning to use all three series; that would be a lot.

[Julie of KY]

For high school, I think you need to follow some passions and do those as well as you can. I think it is fine to back off and not do the hardest history or whatever else if that is not your student's interest. Of course I don't think you should back off everything just because they don't like learning though.

 

Follow your instincts of what is best for your son.

[Corraleno]

I think it would be fine — but it's a lot of reading, and a lot of little details for a kid who's not that into history. Between the two series, that's 12 or 13 books (not counting the Primary Source volumes), of around 180 pages each. Granted there are a lot of illustrations, and larger type and more white space than in a typical textbook, but that's still a lot of reading.

 

Another option might be the K12 Human Odyssey books. He could do Volumes 1 & 2 this year, and Volume 3 next year. The first two volumes are written at a lower level and are a quick read. Actually Volume 3 is a quick read, too, but it's written at a HS level and since it covers the 20th century there are tons of great documentaries and books to supplement with.

[Aras]

I wasn't thinking of doing all three series on one year, probably just one.  I wasn't sure if the content was enough for a freshman high school class. It's been so long since I was a high school freshman myself :laugh:  Maybe I should call the local high school and ask what text they are using so I feel better about my choices. 

 

I have both Human Odyssey I and II. We didn't get around to using them because there was always something else we wanted to do instead. I will have him take a look at it. 

 

I don't want to bog him down because I am planning a challenging year of algebra, conceptual physics, and writing. 

 

Thanks for your input  :thumbup1:

Edited January 17, 2017 by Aras

[Corraleno]

I think one problem with using the OUP series as the spine, instead of as a supplement, is that each volume is basically a collection of individual articles on separate topics, so it's easy to get bogged down in lots of little details while missing the "big picture" overview. I think the Human Odyssey books do a better job of that, with a lot less reading. The OUP books make a great supplement to the HO books, when a student wants to delve into more detail about a specific topic (which is really what they were designed for).

[Aras]

I think one problem with using the OUP series as the spine, instead of as a supplement, is that each volume is basically a collection of individual articles on separate topics, so it's easy to get bogged down in lots of little details while missing the "big picture" overview. I think the Human Odyssey books do a better job of that, with a lot less reading. The OUP books make a great supplement to the HO books, when a student wants to delve into more detail about a specific topic (which is really what they were designed for).

 

I didn't realize that, thanks for pointing it out. I would rather stress historical trends and big picture ideas than details.