U.S. History Detective ?

[BakersDozen]

I lead a co-op with students who just want a get-it-done U.S. History 2 course. I structure my classes such that I have a spine that is on the easier side and I supplement with oodles of movies and literature. I have used the BJU text but am not overly impressed with the saturation of Christian content/focus, I also have Paul Johnson's book but will only assign that to my Honors students. So now I am eyeing U.S. History Detective for its brevity and Written Response Questions. The students I have usually need a good nudge as far as going beyond the most basic work; having them write and actually have to think beyond the basics is a very good thing.

I was also looking at Teaching U.S. History Thematically: Document-Based Lessons (Rosemary Metro). I like the idea of using historical documents in the way she advises however I'm not sold on her presentation ideas.

Thoughts?

[BakersDozen]

Re-edited my already-edited post. ?

[RootAnn]

I've only had one kid use US History Detective (Book 2). I liked it for what it was - and it sounds like it would serve your purposes of a get er done with options for a bit more. I used it as a written-work output for year 2 of our US History.

[Kassia]

We used the first one when dd was in 8th grade (the second one wasn't out yet).  Dd hates history but she really liked this curriculum - she liked it so much that she kept the book when she was done with it (we usually sell everything).  If it were a high school course I would have supplemented with more material/writing.