Core Knowledge History - Anybody use this?

[mykidsrmyjoy]

I was all set to use SOTW this coming fall, but then someone mentiond Core Knowledge History and my interest has been piqued. If you've used this, can you tell me more about it? 

[Zoo Keeper]

I use the American History portions of the What Your ___th Grader Needs to Know as a spine for American History in elementary.  I also use The Artner Readers' Guide from Memoria Press to flesh this out.  I also use SOTW alongside of this to cover world history. Yes, there is repeat and overlap, but I see that as a bonus.  

I have used some of the newer books (available on the CK website--download and print out for free!) to fill in gaps.  They were nicely done, and especially good for one of mine who had reading comprehension struggles.  The texts had clear writing, not overwhelming, and the teacher materials (also free to download) were excellent.  

[monalua]

I am super curious about this as well after reading about it in the other thread. SOTW isn't working for us. I really like the Core Knowledge "What Your _____ Grader Needs to Know" and the way history is covered in them (both world and American). I felt like I needed more to go with it though, maybe this is the answer!

[mama25angels]

I wish I knew how to use the search feature on here now because there's been a ton of discussion in the past on using these books. 

[Clemsondana]

We haven't used any lesson plans from them, but we do use the 'What your...' books as a topic guide for elementary school.  Older kid would read that book first, and then read from a stack of other books that I had bought or checked out about the topic - picture books, Usborne, Magic Treehouse, historical fiction like Sonlight suggests, excerpts from Joy Hakim's series for late elementary, videos or documentaries, etc.  Younger kid prefers more projects, so there is more hands-on, crafty work.  Younger also doesn't happily read more than what they have to, so my 'giant pile of books' method doesn't work as well.  For science, we added the Critical Thinking Company's Science Detective workbook, and Simply Charlotte Mason's 'Visits To' series for geography - with older kid, just looking up the history on the map was enough practice to know where most countries are.  

[Sarah0000]

I'm just now looking at these. I like the looks of the geography readers on Rivers, Mountains, Lakes, and Deserts at the beginning of each unit respectively. The reading level appears to go up but I think it could work next year for my first grader as a read aloud, discussion, and narration with added picture books. I like how it discusses how these landforms affect human geography.