Jennefer@SSA Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 What are the must-have books to go along with SOTW 2? My ds6 has loved SOTW 1 and we got wonderful recommendations from the board about the must-haves for the ancients. Can you all help me again with medieval history? Also, what books would you want to purchase b/c you use them again and again and which books are one-time-check -them-out-from-the-library books! Thanks so very much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennefer@SSA Posted February 23, 2008 Author Share Posted February 23, 2008 Okay, trying to move this up to the front to give it another try! Anyone willing to share their favorite books for medieval times? There are millions of suggestions in the SOTW 2 Teacher's Guide but I am looking for the best of the best!!!! :) Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 So far we/ve enjoyed: Augustine Came to Kent First Empress of China Science in China Art of China Art of Japan Sword in the Tree Arabian Knights Shadow Spinner The Vikings Beorne the Proud EyeWitness Vikings Beowulf - I did 2 different versions of this this - one illustrated and another. I have others planned but havent gotten that far. We keep getting bogged down in history fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trivium Academy Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 Marguerite Makes a Book Johann Gutenberg and the Amazing Printing Press Across a Dark and Wild Sea The biographies from PeaceHillPress.com/ Acrobatic Princess, Forgotten Explorer, etc. The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor The Minstrel in the Tower How to be a Medieval Knight How to be a Samurai Warrior Eric the Red, Leif the Lucky Marco Polo Overland to China Favorite Medieval Tales The Squire and the Scroll A Medieval Feast As many readers as you can get for your child's reading level, there are leveled readers by DK Publishing and Usborne about Joan of Arc, Knights and other medieval topics. There are many books about knights and castles- so that is relative to what your boys would like. We really enjoyed Philip Steele's book about castles and the How to be a Medieval Knight book. It spurred great converstaions for us. There are a lot of wonderful books to choose from, I would try to stick to the ones that are indicated as IR (independent read) for your grade level in the AG, that really helps. Even if your boys don't read them, it will be books for their age, some of the books in the AG are too heavy (read: boring) for younger kids because they are too dense in information. There are plenty of picture book biographies out there to help with fleshing out material from SOTW. Also to keep from reading double- consider whether to read the stories that are in SOTW or to use books. For example reading about Sinbad in SOTW or reading a book about Sinbad. This will help you trim the budget if you need to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trivium Academy Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 Jennefer, I just wanted to say that you might mention what age you need. The titles Holly posted are great but are for older kids. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Another Lynn Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 We weren't using SOTW yet when we did yr 2 of the history cycle, but my ds enjoyed The Little Duke and Howard Pyle's Robin Hood as read alouds. We also got enjoyed a book called Coat of Arms that explained coats of arms, shields, heraldry symbols. It included a template for making your own too. (Don't know if something like that might already be in the Activity Guide or not). My kids still get our book out to make new shields even though we're way past that part of history. (Reading Narnia might be part of the reason, LOL). I'm sure others will give more recommendations than this. I also like to browse the Veritas Press catalog for good reading suggestions. HTH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrianne Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 We also bought a few Treasure Chests on the Vikings and DaVinci as a supplement. We also like Discovering Great Artists to go along with SOTW 2 Our library has many books with great access so we did not purchase many. SOTW 2 is a great book. Enjoy! Adrianne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennefer@SSA Posted February 23, 2008 Author Share Posted February 23, 2008 You are right. I should have mentioned that ds will be 7 next year. Thanks to all who have responded so far. It's so helpful to have a list to start from! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 Jennefer, I just wanted to say that you might mention what age you need. The titles Holly posted are great but are for older kids. :) I used these with my 11 and 8 year old Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basketmaker Amy Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 Anything with knights was a big hit here! They loved any and every story dealing with King Arthur. They also loved Jim Weiss' King Arthur CD. Robin Hood was also a big hit...they loved the old Errol Flynn movie version. Have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABQmom Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 This is a great read aloud and remains our favorite so far for this year. My son is 7, and he loved it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamato3 all-boy boys Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 Jennefer: I guess I didn't buy a whole lot of books for SOTW2 -- my shelf is pretty bare for that period of history:eek: -- but, our library had a ton of books and I got good at working the interlibrary loan system too, so it helped stretch our budget. One thing I did invest in, though, was Jim Weiss. The boys absolutely loved several of his CDs which fit nicely in this time period: King Arthur and His Knights Robin Hood Shakespeare for Children I could go broke at his site!:D I also picked up a "Shakespeare Can be Fun" book by Lois Burdett, who is really fabulous at teaching Shakespeare to elementary aged children. I had gotten A Midsummer Night's Dream for Kids, and it was great to read it and also listen to Jim Weiss' version as well. Another book that I had picked up was a See Through History book called Medieval Knights. Seriosuly, the boys looked at it for HOURS and HOURS at a time. And, I've read it I-can't-even-begin-to-know-how-many-times! I think that type of book is a great book to keep on hand during an extensive study of a subject because it can captivate a child's imagination for ever. Another thing that was super important for our studies (from one mom of boys to another) was having lots of play knights and castles on hand (We even used them to act out the Battle of Hastings)-- and foam swords and shields. Have fun -- it is a period of history just made for little boys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Testimony Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Saint George and the Dragon Patrick: Patron Saint of Ireland by De Paola Saint Nicholas by Tompert Viking Adventure by Clyde Bulla The Reluctant Dragon by Grahame(read aloud) Leif the Lucky Knights of the Round Table by Green Robin Hood by Howard Pyle (read aloud) The Empty Pot by Demi Clown of God by De Poala Pirates by Anastasio The Secret of Roanoke Island by Hubbard-Brown Suleyman the Magnificent by Greenblatt Some of these are read alouds. I did not label all of them because I did not mark it on my list. I got all of these books from the library. Blessings, Karen http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/testimony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarheel Heather Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Days of Knights and Damsels- great crafts to do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 I second Days of Knights and Damsels--I like all the "Days of...." books, even tho I think SOTW AG has plenty of activities. I also would be sure to read Castle Diary. It's about an 11 yo boy who spends the year with his uncle, learning to be a page. He goes to a tournament, gets sick and sees the dr., goes on a hunt, etc. It's a painless way to read about the facts of medieval life. The illustrations are beautiful, and it's a large format book (maybe 8x15?). I don't think you'd have to purchase it, but I renewed it at the library! lol We also enjoyed the Viking Treasure Chest. We didn't use the Runes for fortune telling, just to see the letters they used. I also liked Adam of the Road, but dd thought it was a little too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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