Elizabeth86 Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 What are your favorite American history book? This is for my 10 and 12 year old sons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScoutTN Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Chapter books, picture books, or textbooks/spines? Or all of the above? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth86 Posted January 21 Author Share Posted January 21 9 minutes ago, ScoutTN said: Chapter books, picture books, or textbooks/spines? Or all of the above? Well…we just finished up going through a full history cycle. I thought we would do a year of geography next, BUT life is busy right now, so I thought I’d hold off until the start of the school year. My boys really enjoyed American history so I thought I’d get a stack of books for them to read through for the rest of the year. Heavy on something enjoyable. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brittany1116 Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 I pulled up my kid's list from last year to see what he liked then (at age 11). He loved all the History Smashers graphic novel style books. A Lion to Guard Us, Guns for General Washington, Noah Webster: Master of Words, and I think I recall him liking Hattie Big Sky. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desertflower Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 The War that Saved My Life and it's sequel, The War That I won by Kimberly Bradley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraClark Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 5 hours ago, desertflower said: The War that Saved My Life and it's sequel, The War That I won by Kimberly Bradley We loved those too, but I think they take place in England. Matchlock Gun, Witch of Blackbird Pond, Sign of the Beaver. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Favorite fiction here: Blood on the River, Jamestown 1607 Ransom of Mercy Carter (Deerfield, MA massacre and kidnapping) Streams to the River, River to the Sea (along with Lewis and Clark and Me) Some of the Dear America books The Ballad of Lucy Whipple- Gold rush from the point of view of those who didn't strike it rich. Turn Homeward Hannalee / Be Ever Faithful, Hannalee - two books: one during the civil war about how mill hands were kidnapped to shut down productivity and the other about the aftermath and dealing with split families, reconstruction, and big feelings Lions of Little Rock (the year after school integration) There are some fabulous picture books out there, too: An Inconvenient Alphabet - how Ben Franklin wanted to change the English language The Remarkable Ride of Israel Bissel (As Told By Molly The Crow) - a great companion to Paul Revere's Midnight Ride The Taxing Case of the Cows - suffrage, court case of sisters taxed unfairly The First Step: How One Girl Put Segregation on Trial - Boston, 1855. You'll recognize her lawyer's name in regards to Lincoln. Separate is Never Equal - forced segregation in CA between Latinos and whites in the school system And some compilations: Vicki Leon has two sets: Outrageous Women of ______ Times and a shorter story version. We liked the Outrageous Women better. Usborne's Tales of WWI and WWII: Many of the stories are told from the POV of Americans 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth86 Posted January 22 Author Share Posted January 22 3 hours ago, LauraClark said: We loved those too, but I think they take place in England. Matchlock Gun, Witch of Blackbird Pond, Sign of the Beaver. It’s ok too. I just chose American history because it has been their favorite overall, BUT they just enjoy history in general. We already read Matchlock Gun and Witch of Blackbird Pond, but not sign of the Beaver. I will get that one for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth86 Posted January 22 Author Share Posted January 22 I wanted to add , I asked them their more specific favorite parts and my 12 year old said westward expand and my 10 year old said he liked learning about inventors such as Edison and the Wright Brothers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 8 minutes ago, Elizabeth86 said: I wanted to add , I asked them their more specific favorite parts and my 12 year old said westward expand and my 10 year old said he liked learning about inventors such as Edison and the Wright Brothers It's underrated, but Skitterbrain is an interesting story taking place during the Westward Expansion and early cowboy days. A 12yo girl ends up going in search of her family's cow and ends up enlisting the aid of a similar aged boy to help her get it back from the mega herds being driven across the prairie. Your youngest might like a book on Benjamin Banneker. We used a simpler book called What Are You Figuring Now for this after the picture book Molly Banneky, but it sparked an interest in ds in engineering and surveying. When we went to DC he was thrilled to see how Banneker's work still lived. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desertflower Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 3 hours ago, LauraClark said: We loved those too, but I think they take place in England. Matchlock Gun, Witch of Blackbird Pond, Sign of the Beaver. Oh sorry OP! Good to know. I didn’t read them, my son did. 😃 Thanks for pointing that out Laura. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Drama of American History. Christopher Collier. they are wonderful series of books written for middle schoolers. I have bought them inexpensive on Amazon and own the entire set. My kids still pick them up and read them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScoutTN Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 My history reader liked many Landmark books. The ones about Lafayette and the Gold Rush were favorites. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ting Tang Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 We're doing This Country of Ours and The Story of Canada. They pair well together. For TCO, I use a guide from Mater Amabilis, which helps us discuss the way our history is told in a more modern way. It points out bias and offenses that may be present in the writing. It's a great way to discuss how things were perceived then and how we view them now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 (edited) Not a book, but you might check out the units from icivics. They have some really good units that are really very easy to implement, just print out a couple of things and otherwise click the link and follow the slideshow. They get kids looking at what you can learn from primary sources. My 10 and 12 year old boys really enjoyed several of them earlier this school year. We did one that looked at what you could learn from the contents of someone's pockets, and some others about various parts of the bill of rights and how they applied to certain court cases. Another year, I printed out some of their general US-based infographics, and we talked about things like peaceful transfer of power when a new president takes office. My kids also enjoyed a book about Lewis and Clark, told from the dog's perspective. I think it was Seaman's Journal. Edited January 22 by happypamama 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 We enjoyed The Complete Book of U.S. History. There are 10 units, with each unit covering a variety of topics occurring in the time frame of that unit. A number of the topics were really interesting -- little-covered/more unusual topics. The book covers from pre-history through about 1990. Also the Holling C. Holling books + the geography map pack from Beautiful Feet publishers. The Holling titles that overlap with American History: - Paddle to the Sea - The Tree in the Trail - Minn of the Mississippi A few U.S. historical fiction books we enjoyed in the upper elementary years: - 1769 = Sign of the Beaver (George) -- colonial and Native American boys - 1800 = Naya Nuki: The Shoshone Girl Who Ran (Thomasma) -- true teen Native girl who was friend of Sacajawea and escaped her Native captors and traveled on foot 1000 miles back to her tribe - 1849 = By the Great Horn Spoon (Fleischman) -- Gold Rush / clipper ships - 1860 = The Great Turkey Walk -- based on a true person/event; teen boy who bought and herded a giant flock of turkeys 1000 miles west - Civil War = Rebel Spy (Reit) -- Civil War; true teen girl who dressed as a boy and spied for the Union - Civil War = The Battle of Bull Run (Fleischman) -- the Civil War battle told in short bites from 16 different perspectives/characters Biographies we enjoyed: - Bully for You, Teddy Roosevelt (Fritz) - Freedom Train: The Story of Harriet Tubman (Sterling) - George Washington Carver (Collins) And a few other titles that might be enjoyable: - 1831 = Longwalker's Journey -- based on the author's real great-great-grandfather who blazed a trail for his Choctaw people into Indian Territory - Civil War = The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg (Philbrick) - The Oregon Trail: An Interactive (You Choose History series) - Presenting Buffalo Bill: The Man Who Invented the Wild West (Fleming) Some of Steve Sheinkin's nonfiction: - Wild West: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About Westward Expansion - Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World's Most Dangerous Weapon - Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team - Two Miserable Presidents (Lincoln & Jefferson / Civil War) - The Notorious Benedict Arnold (Colonial / Revolutionary War) Or Albert Marrin's nonfiction: - Cowboys, Indians, and Gunfighters: Story of the Cattle Kingdom - A Time of Fear: America in the Era of Red Scares and Cold Wars - The Great Adventure: Theodore Roosevelt 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraClark Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 (edited) 20 hours ago, Elizabeth86 said: I wanted to add , I asked them their more specific favorite parts and my 12 year old said westward expand and my 10 year old said he liked learning about inventors such as Edison and the Wright Brothers Have you read any Holling C Holling books? Those are packed with history. Tree in the Trail is about westward expansion. Eta: Oh, nevermind, I see Lori included it in her list 😉 Edited January 23 by LauraClark 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth86 Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 20 hours ago, Lori D. said: We enjoyed The Complete Book of U.S. History. There are 10 units, with each unit covering a variety of topics occurring in the time frame of that unit. A number of the topics were really interesting -- little-covered/more unusual topics. The book covers from pre-history through about 1990. Also the Holling C. Holling books + the geography map pack from Beautiful Feet publishers. The Holling titles that overlap with American History: - Paddle to the Sea - The Tree in the Trail - Minn of the Mississippi A few U.S. historical fiction books we enjoyed in the upper elementary years: - 1769 = Sign of the Beaver (George) -- colonial and Native American boys - 1800 = Naya Nuki: The Shoshone Girl Who Ran (Thomasma) -- true teen Native girl who was friend of Sacajawea and escaped her Native captors and traveled on foot 1000 miles back to her tribe - 1849 = By the Great Horn Spoon (Fleischman) -- Gold Rush / clipper ships - 1860 = The Great Turkey Walk -- based on a true person/event; teen boy who bought and herded a giant flock of turkeys 1000 miles west - Civil War = Rebel Spy (Reit) -- Civil War; true teen girl who dressed as a boy and spied for the Union - Civil War = The Battle of Bull Run (Fleischman) -- the Civil War battle told in short bites from 16 different perspectives/characters Biographies we enjoyed: - Bully for You, Teddy Roosevelt (Fritz) - Freedom Train: The Story of Harriet Tubman (Sterling) - George Washington Carver (Collins) And a few other titles that might be enjoyable: - 1831 = Longwalker's Journey -- based on the author's real great-great-grandfather who blazed a trail for his Choctaw people into Indian Territory - Civil War = The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg (Philbrick) - The Oregon Trail: An Interactive (You Choose History series) - Presenting Buffalo Bill: The Man Who Invented the Wild West (Fleming) Some of Steve Sheinkin's nonfiction: - Wild West: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About Westward Expansion - Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World's Most Dangerous Weapon - Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team - Two Miserable Presidents (Lincoln & Jefferson / Civil War) - The Notorious Benedict Arnold (Colonial / Revolutionary War) Or Albert Marrin's nonfiction: - Cowboys, Indians, and Gunfighters: Story of the Cattle Kingdom - A Time of Fear: America in the Era of Red Scares and Cold Wars - The Great Adventure: Theodore Roosevelt What a list! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 On 1/22/2024 at 12:31 PM, happypamama said: icivics. Thanks, that looks like an amazing resource! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 (edited) My youngest read these in fifth grade. Sees Behind Trees The Kidnapped Prince Game of Silence Dreams from Many Rivers (poetry) Never Caught: The Story of Ona Judge I Thought My Soul Would Rise and Fly How I Became a Ghost Coolies Sugar Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet Esperanza Rising Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom Ninth Ward Towers Falling Finish the Fight They Called Us Enemy An Indigenous People's History of the United States for Young People would cover westward expansion. We read this one along with the young reader versions of Different Mirror and A People's History of the United States, and the kids Stamped. Edited January 24 by SilverMoon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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