Alana in Canada Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 We have all long lamented a decent history "spine" available for our kids. There's "The Story of Canada" by Donalda Dickie for the littles, "The Story of Canada" for slghtly older kids. There's Donna Ward's "Courage and Conquest" which is essentially a reading list and a workpage for each area of history. There are surely others, too. But while there may not be one "spine fits all" out there for us to use, there are enough resources available to pull together a decent reading program. What I have noticed missing are MAPS!! And worksheets. Activities. Anything and everything which would accompany a reading list and turn it into a curriculuum. So, I'm wondering: is there a market for something like the SoTW activity guide: student pages (only expanded to include worksheets, the occasional picture study, etc)? Would such a thing be useful to you? What would you like to see in it--and how much would you be willing to pay for it as a pdf downloadable file? (Given the price of using our one pony express in this country, I think this is the best way to distribute it!) Anyway, what do you think? tia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dawn of ns Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 I would LOVE something like this. I would also be willing to pay between $20 or $30 for a PDF. Get 'er done Alana!! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HootyTooty Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 I'm a Canadian living abroad, do I still count? I would love, love, LOVE something like this. I have been piecing together book lists but I keep coming up empty on things like map work and activities we can do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 $20 to $30--are you sure? That seems like a lot--but then all of Cdn history would be a Lot! Anyone else? If you don't think it is necessary I'd like to know that, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 I'm not sure that I would be interested. Most Canadian resources don't cover what I want to cover when I want to cover it. I like to do my Canadian history when it occurs in the four year cycle. Plus, the Apple Map books are fantastic. They've even got one for early exploration of Canada. And they teach actual mapping skills. If there was something that pulled it altogether I'd want it to include activities for my little people, fantastic read-alouds, and meaningful assignments for my older kids. I'd be looking more for a Mystery of History type of resource (minus the actual written history part) than a SOTW activity guide. I love SOTW activity guides, but I only use them for grammar stage and I'd want something I could use for all of my kids. It would have to go into sufficient depth as well - which is why it would likely be something that would be spread over a number of years instead of a one year resource. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 Excellent, Sarah. I like the Canada Map series as well: I wasn't aware they had one for early explorations as well. I'll have to hunt that down--do you have an ISBN number you could share for me? I have tried to find their stuff on the web before and it can be extremely frustrating to find. TIA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dawn of ns Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 $20 to $30--are you sure? That seems like a lot--but then all of Cdn history would be a Lot! For something akin to the SOTW activity guide I don't think that price wouldbe out of line. $19.95 would be the sweet spot. I know prices under $20 catch my eye. And you've got to keep in mind that what you'd be offering simply isn't availible. You'd have a niche to yourself for a bit so price accordingly. Don't devalue what you're offering. I think what I'd want in a package like that is crafts, maps, some worksheets, writing activities, some games, reading suggestions, timelines and such. If it were something even more intensive, like the History Odyssey series then I think you could even ask considerably more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 (edited) Perhaps I should start a separate thread for this--but has anyone seen or used The History of Canada Guide by Roseanne and Bethany Eising? I found it in the Tree of Life catalogue. It looks promising (and only $24.95): by Rosanne and Bethany EisingThis is a literature-based guide to the history, geography and government of Canada. In 36 lessons, done over one year, this course takes you through a broad sweep of Canadian history with students of all ages. Each lesson includes terms and people, dates, map, current events, reports and activites/ writing assignments and discussion questions. Test are also included. The main resource required is "The Story of Canada". Almost all the other suggested resources are found in this catalogue or at your local library. The "broad sweep" worries me--and the fact that there's the promise of it taking no longer than 36 weeks. That's not very much time, really. Oh--and I found the map book, thank you. I'll have to see if I can find a copy locally. Edited February 20, 2009 by Alana in Canada Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainforest mama Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 Right now we're working through Courage and Conquest and an Apple Map book. They are fine, but C & C is just giving us a taste of Canadian History. I do like the map book though, and will buy the next one for next year. I picked up Courage and Conquest because I felt that DD (Grade 4) wasn't getting enough Canadian History with SOTW. (We're doing both SOTW and C & C right now.) I'd love a more in-depth history of Canada. I think I paid $29.95 for C & C, but I don't think it's worth the price. I'd easily pay the same for a more in-depth course akin to History Odyssey. HTH, Lana. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 Oh my. I just looked at HO. Why did I think it was merely a reading list? It's amazing! I think I may have to reevaluate SoTW--at least for my 11 year old. And Mystery of History is fantastic as well: thank you both for "showing" me these. If I attempt anything similiar, you can bet it will be a while coming! Yikes. Yet, we really do need something, don't we? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyBC Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 Excellent, Sarah. I like the Canada Map series as well: I wasn't aware they had one for early explorations as well. I'll have to hunt that down--do you have an ISBN number you could share for me? Ditto! We like apple press and would love more info on the early exploration book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHZNS Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 Kathy, I think this is the map book you are looking for: http://www.treeoflifeathome.com/miva5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=treeoflife&Product_Code=CAH0085&Category_Code=canadian_history_map Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 (edited) So, I've narrowed it down to this: 1) Literature Lists 2) Blank-Line maps. If these are totally blank here would have to be a "teacher's copy" with the information filled in. I'm not sure if these should be avalable in separate "levels" or not, but I suppose it makes sense. 3) Activities: Elementary/Lower Grammar: colouring pages, craft type activities, summaries. Beginning outlines. Logic/Middle Grades: projects and worksheets which require analysing, synthesising, and comparing information. More advanced outlining skills. Using them to write up information. High School: Deeper analysis and discussion topics, questions and exercises. This is difficult to do without a spine: but one could certainly include generic outline maps and one activity per level per topic. Oh I don't know anymore. Tests, specific review questions and so on are impossible without the spine. But that could be quite limiting in terms of individuals using the materials, I'd think. (For example, if you don't like xyz spine, then you wouldn't use these activity pages/lesson plans and I'd want them to be useable with a wide variety of sources.) Feedback? Edited February 20, 2009 by Alana in Canada Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainforest mama Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 I don't know about being limited by a spine. HO uses KHE and The Story of Mankind as its spines, and I'm okay with that. I think you could use a popular Canadian History book (Story of Canada, maybe?) that can be found in most libraries. BTW, I'm still looking for the end-all Canadian History book. If you find it, let me know. :001_smile: Lana Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 HO uses the Van Loom and KHE only in its Middle school or Level two materials--as far as I could tell. It uses SoTW for Level One. That's partly my difficulty: Would I Use Dickie for Level One? Story of Canada for level 2? There are already TWO such "companion" study guides for the Story of Canada (which I don't like all that much. Beautiful, but much too light on information and rather strangely organized). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyBC Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 Looks very interesting - thanks for the link, Rebecca! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 21, 2009 Author Share Posted February 21, 2009 Oh--and another question: would you want this to fit into one year--as in, you'd take a year off in the History cycle and do it (though 3 x 4 is 12, so I've never figured how that would work in an ideal world) or is it something you would do liesurely, alongside something else (like History Odyssey's, Early Modern which spends 8 weeks--8 weeks (out of 36) on US history! and you'd just sort of speed up on the Cdn stuff for those couple of months--but otherwise, just do something once a weekish? Pacing is crucial, too, IF what you want is everything laid out for you, topic by topic, week by week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkiMom Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 Hi Alana, I certainly would have bought a guide like this if was available last year when I was planning our grammar stage Canadian history year. I spent many, many hours pulling together materials to have a Canadian history year that was similar to our SOTW years. There is a real need for a resource like this! Doing Canadian history at the same time as world history, or taking a year off the cycle was a dilemna for me. I opted to take a whole year to cover it, but not everyone will want to do that. Personally, I would want a guide that treated it as a separate year study...for grammar stage. If someone preferred to study it at the same time as world history they could use Modern History through Canadian Eyes to help them line it up. When my dc are in logic stage I am going to have them study Canadian history at the same time as world history because they will be able to make connections better at that age. For rhetoric stage I am not sure yet...it depends how many years I have left with each of my dc, and how much other stuff we have to cover in those years. I really would LOVE to see something available for our future years...especially high school! The only high school resources I am aware of are a few textbooks from Donna Ward. Good luck with all this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 21, 2009 Author Share Posted February 21, 2009 Thanks for your encouragement, SkiMom! I appreciate your input, very much. As for highschool--look for the resource I mentioned above--I think that's what it is geared for. For highschool, though, I'd expect a child to ick a topic within Cdn History and research it and write it up. That's why I'm rather eager to get in a whole lot of exposure BEFORE the pimples break out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kellycbr Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 I'm a dual citizen of Canada, and know very little about its history. (shame, shame, shame on me....) We just applied for citizenship for our DC, and I'd like to teach them a bit about their other homeland. I've been unable to find the Canada Map series you mention. Can anyone provide me a link? Also, any recommendation on a book for DC ages 5 and 8? Thanks! Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Once Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 Alana, thanks for starting this thread. I am always looking for new Canadian resources. Could someone please tell me if there is a place with a sample of the Apple Press Map books? I would like a peak inside to see if it is something we would like to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 21, 2009 Author Share Posted February 21, 2009 Tree of Life on the East coast has wonderful resdources for Canadian History and Geography. http://www.treeoflifeathome.com/miva5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=treeoflife&Category_Code=canadian_history That's where I've found the Canada Map series by Apple Press, but alas, no way to look at them on-line. We do them as our "geography." We just started with the first one and breezed through until we reached Grade level. I have also seen them occasionally at scholar's choice. Like any Cdn. resource they are expensive (about $15/book). The other exceelent resource is "Cheer" in the West. They have a lousy website, though. They also never mention who authored the materials! Drives me nuts. http://www.canadianhomeeducation.com/index.asp Hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 I just wanted to thank Sarah CB for recommending: "Map Book 6: Exploring Canada's History." by Apple Press. I was able to purchase a copy today. On the front it says it is for Grades 6-8: and I'd think that's actually accurate! It is an absolutely fantastic resource! I was looking for resources on Port Royal today: and here they are in this book! (The student is to label a plan view and a drawing of the fort. An inset map shows its location in N.S. on the east side of the Bay of Fundy. Too exciting!) I'm still working on pulling something together. In fact, today I asked my husband about how he'd like to draw stuff for a colouring book! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CLFR Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Hi, I'm new here and am interested in this thread on Canadian history. I'm not sure if this would work, but the Ambleside Online Canadian people recommend Canada in North America Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 (both OOP) by George Brown for Grades 4 to 9, I think. If someone would print them again, they would be useful up to the end of the 1800's. Carol in Canada Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 I would pay up to $9.99 for a shortened version for U.S. citizens. I've always felt that Canada is neglected in U.S. written world history books, and I love L.M. Montgomery's books but always felt a bit confused when political or governmental topics came up. I know more about Mexico's history than Canada. Also, I occasionally find out that a movie star or scientist that I assumed was an American is actually a Canadian, I'd be interested in a list of famous Canadians (although more interested in Scientists and Inventors than movie stars.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 Hey, did you know the Blackberry was invented by a Canadian? :thumbup1: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Hey, did you know the Blackberry was invented by a Canadian? :thumbup1: No, I did not! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cherrie Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 could you have it ready soon please :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brill123 Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Hi friends, I searched alot on Internet for buying kindlefire in Canada but I think it is not available for shipping from States.so how is blackberry playbook for e reading content of kindlefire books (outside US) and web browsing videos plus skype? Is kindle e books available on blackberry play book? Kindly guide me which e reader or tablet (not iPad as it is expensive) In Toronto ESP. From Canada Homeschool moms. Hope anyone will guide me . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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