Let’s be honest. In the ocean of children’s books, there’s a whole lot of flotsam and jetsam. Just because a book is popular doesn’t mean it’s worthwhile. On the flip side, just because a book is decades old doesn’t mean it’s a classic. Parents, particularly homeschooling parents, need someone whom they can trust to help them guide their children toward high-quality literature.

A superb resource that has directed me for years is Honey for a Child’s Heart: The Imaginative Use of Books in Family Life, by Gladys Hunt. Familiar to many homeschooling families, this excellent book makes a strong case for a life of literature. Hunt writes:

“Children and books go together in a special way. I can’t imagine any pleasure greater than bringing to the uncluttered, supple mind of a child the delight of knowing the many rich things God has given us to enjoy. Parents have this wonderful privilege, and books are their keenest tools.”

Honey for a Child’s Heart is divided into two parts. The first part, “Using Books to Help Children Grow,” offers many good discussions and much food for thought. Hunt underscores the extreme importance of reading and offers suggestions on how to foster a literary atmosphere in our homes. She challenges us to consider who or what we allow to influence our children. Moreover, Hunt discusses aspects of good literature and how to discern the quality of books our children read.

Part two, “Best-Loved Books for Children,” is an annotated book list for children up to age 14. Hunt divides the lists into groups such as classic picture books, books for beginning readers, classic children’s novels, historical novels, and animal lovers’ books, among others. She also offers a chapter on poetry.

Hunt’s writing style is rich and vivid, and her love for literature is reflected in every chapter. Moreover, I appreciate her Christian perspective, her awe of God as Creator of all things lovely, her expansive tastes, and her cautious stance on wholesale censorship. Every time I pick up this book to read, I find myself nodding in agreement with her. Yellow highlighter glows on so many pages of my copy!

Books are a powerful medium, engaging our imaginations, emotions, spirits, and understanding. As informed parents, we want to guide our children through the murky waters of children’s literature and help them select worthwhile books instead of twaddle. With Honey for a Child’s Heart in hand, you’ll be better equipped to help your children make the best literary decisions.

Ellen stays busy home educating two middle-grade daughters, chasing two corgis, managing the family’s busy household, reading as much as she can, and writing about life at Bluestocking Belle.

Ambleside Online has influenced our family in many ways, not the least by introducing us to great books.  One that we’ve been using for many years is English Literature for Boys and Girls by H.E. Marshall, written in 1909.  We are blessed to have a century-old copy for our children, complete with roughly cut pages and sturdy binding.

In 85 delightful chapters, H.E. Marshall traces English literature from the ancient Irish legend “The Cattle Raid of Cooley” to Tennyson. She includes excerpts of stories and poems, summaries of larger works, and many interesting biographical and historical tidbits. She expresses strong opinions about authors and works, and occasionally makes some disparaging remarks about various branches of the Christian faith.

English Literature for Boys and Girls is a solid book, full of information.  Since history and literature are so closely entwined, it includes numerous references to kings and queens, to the changes in the English language, and to cultural innovations such as the rise of newspapers.

As a random sample, in chapters LVII and LVIII Marshall discusses Milton, “a cold and lonely man.”  She begins with his childhood, quotes 14 lines of On his being arrived to the age of twenty-three, and continues, discussing his life and his poetry as well as venturing into the conflict between Puritans and Royalists.  While Milton became more embroiled in politics, his personal life suffered. He lost his sight, his wife died, “his children ran wild,” his second wife died, and he began to write Paradise Lost.  Several pages and excerpts later, Cromwell died, Milton married again, and the blind poet wrote Samson Agonistes, the tragic story of Samson in his blindness.

Don’t let the “Boys and Girls” part of the title fool you; this is not a childish book at all and shows just how far educational standards have slipped in the last 100 years. In fact, Ambleside Online, a rigorous Charlotte Mason curriculum with classical leanings, recommends English Literature for grades 7 to 10.  The subject matter is not too easy for today’s teens, but occasionally Marshall’s intended audience causes her to write in a somewhat patronizing way.  As I’ve come to expect from old authors, the English would be considered advanced today even though it was written for boys and girls, but no well-read modern teen would have difficulty with it.

All of our teens have read significant portions of this book over the course of several years.  Each week they studied a chapter or two and I would ask for either an oral or a written narration.  They have become familiar with early English literature and I am amazed at the history they know.

English Literature for Boys and Girls is a brilliant work, ideal for introducing modern teens to both literature and history.  It is fascinating, lively, thorough, and eminently suitable for young people since no ‘adult’ topics are included as is often done nowadays.  Of course, modern literature is not covered (and Jane Austen was left out, a serious flaw in my opinion). Even so it is an excellent book for homeschooling families, especially those interested in classical education or Charlotte Mason’s methods. 

It is available online at Project Gutenberg  and The Baldwin Project.  You can also buy a book here.

-Written by Annie Kate, a Christian homeschooling mom of five, who reviews and blogs at Tea Time with Annie Kate.  You can read her other Curriculum Choice reviews here.

Disclosure:  As usual, I am not paid for my reviews and my opinions are my own.

A Bit of Background: For the 2011 school year my family decided to make a change in our curriculum. If you’ve read my blog before you’ll know we’re Five In A Row fans, and after 4 years of their curriculum with my eldest it was time to move forward to give him something a bit meatier for his grade level.

After some prayerful research and web surfing I discovered there’s a lot of curriculum out there that a homeschooling mama can choose from. In fact there’s so much that at times I felt truly overloaded with choices. In the end I wrote down my needs on one side of a sheet of paper and my wants on the other side. From there I was able to quickly weed out curriculum that would be of no use to me and finally settle on ones that would work. From that very short list I settled on Winter Promise All American 1.

I chose to use All American 1 because it covers your needs from grades 1-7. This does not mean that you can use this particular core for seven years, rather it means that if you have students ranging from first through seventh grades it’s a good fit for you. If you have students older than that and wish to keep them all together, you can also purchase a high school add on pack.

How We Use It:

This was our very first year using an “out of the box” curriculum. {Out of the box simply means everything you need to use is included and you’re off and running.} We basically used it exactly as it’s laid out. I ordered the core {All American 1; AA-1}, as well as the accompanying Character Supplement, Art Study, and I even picked out a science pack to round everything out.

All but the science is scheduled right in your main core. All I have to do is open to the week and day I’m on and we’re off and running. I will confess, that at times we didn’t use it exactly as it was laid out. Some weeks were incredibly light and we wanted more so we did two weeks in one. This isn’t too hard if you have a couple of back to back light weeks. Winter Promise cores are only mapped out for a four day school week.

Our core also came with Student Planning Pages that I chose not to use. I had high hopes of using them for my 4/5 grader to learn to be a more independent learner. However because his younger brother was also doing the core, it limited how much I could permit him to do on his own.

This core also came with plenty of web links to enhance the study. We did not check most of these out. We did visit a few and they were so-so. Eventually we found we were fully satisfied with the vast amount of crafts and notebooking that we were doing.

I also chose to use some of the read-alouds as audio books because our family adores having a book playing in the car. During one of our long journeys this year I purchased Fever {our current read aloud} as an audio and plugged it in the car and were able to enjoy the story while we traveled.

What I Loved:

I loved, loved, loved, the fact that this particular core decided to use Homeschool In The Woods Time (HSITW) Traveler Packs {worthy of a review all their own!}. My family happens to be HUGE HSITW fans and these packs are nothing short of fantastic. The fact that Winter Promise chose to use them in this particular core was one of the deciding factors in our purchase!

I loved the fast array of historical fiction we read this year. Many of the books I was none the wise for and wouldn’t have chosen had I not used this curriculum. We learned so much from the good quality literature that we read and my children still refer to these characters {some fictional some real} as life-long friends.

I can not stress how amazing it was to have our school year laid out for us, all 36 weeks, 180 days worth. I suffer from chronic migraines and there are times in my life where planning out our school is nothing short of a miracle. We also had to abruptly move in September and helped a family member move.. twice! It was such a relief to know that despite all of that we were not going to be held up because I hadn’t had time to finish planning the final bits of our school week. Instead, we grabbed some of our books and hit the road!

Customer Service! Living overseas I have an overseas mailing address and a US address. When the company accidentally mailed something to the wrong address, they quickly refunded my shipping so that I could then pay to have it forwarded to the right place. Anytime I contacted them they were quick to answer my questions in full. I was grateful for that.

The Timeline. Oh. My. I’ve never met a timeline I’m so in love with, and we’ve tried a lot! Over the years I’m pretty sure we’ve used no less than four timelines, but this one is the best! It’s a notebook timeline separated by years. You then glue timeline figures to the separating pages and place all notebooking, lapbooking, maps, etc. behind these pages. My children equally love these huge notebooks. They are a beautiful portfolio of the work they’ve done all year! Even if you use nothing else from this company, I assure you their timeline is worth purchasing all on it’s own!

What I Don’t Love:

I didn’t love the price of shipping for overseas users. Check out my tips at the end of this post for help in reducing the cost of shipping!

I was disappointed to see a few typos in the Core. Only a couple, but they did throw me for a loop for a minute.

I found the Character study to be a bit weak for my family. The prints of the artwork were small and dark compared to the large copies we found online.

To be totally honest and fair with my review I must admit my children loved the art portion and requested it frequently! I would also like to have seen the prints turned into coloring sheets for the children. I never asked my children to try their hands at drawing the pictures we studied. I knew my eight-year-old would have been quickly overwhelmed and frustrated with his attempts. Had the art prints been coloring pictures it would have allowed him to try it and critique his art in a positive way.

Their resale policy. I was unaware when I purchased from them that they had a strict request that you don’t resell their exclusive material.

I was also disappointed to see that if I had not included the Bible Character Supplement there would have been no “Christian” reference to their curriculum. I admit to being disappointed because it’s considered a Christian curriculum and I would have loved to see that better integrated.

Geography. In the AA-1 core there was geography worked into it. We ended up only doing a few weeks before leaving it alone and only doing the geography that applied to our stories {mapping the Lewis & Clark trail, Mapping the Erie canal, finding the places specific battles took place, etc.}

Tips I’d Like To Share:

I want to offer up a few tips for anyone trying to decide about Winter Promise.

• Try ringing them directly to place your order. While I ordered online, I did ring them later that week to confirm that my order had taken place and to find out exactly when it would be shipped out. If you have your order shipped to an overseas address you must ring them anyway.

• Only order Winter Promise Exclusives from them. That means the Core Manual, Bible, Art, Timeline, etc. Order all the books you’ll need from other sources. This is exactly what I did. I chose to order all my books {read alouds, readers, and go alongs} from Book Depository. They offer free shipping to most of the world and I knew exactly when they’d show up at my front door! No waiting on a middle man to get them to me. This is huge for overseas purchasers! The biggest complaint for people who purchased an entire core from this company that lived overseas was that books trickled in over months.

• Use the samples on their websites, & really investigate their website! All American 1 is not listed as a core on their Themed Humanities page, but it is available if you look at the American Story {1 or 2} as a better option if you are working with a wider range of children.

• If you don’t want to do all the crafts included, don’t! There were many I skipped mainly because we all ready had done lots and I knew my involvement would be heavily needed. For crafts that my children could do on their own I supplied them with what they needed and let them lose. For crafts that needed my involvement we only picked a few to do each week.

• Purchase your Time Traveler Packs from The Old Schoohouse Magazine.* This will greatly reduce your costs because you won’t pay shipping for them! They are shipped directly from the Pak family and arrive in amazingly quick time. You can’t go wrong there! We also purchased the Homeschool In The Woods Mapping CD to use with the geography written in the core {the same geography we chose to drop because it seemed very watery instead of rich and purposeful.} *If you live overseas you will not be able to get the free shipping mentioned above. Instead email HSITW! When I did that they offered to put them in a priority mail envelope and post them to me, up to six, for the current price of that envelope {at the time of this review I believe the envelopes cost $14 USD}

Bottom Line:

We absolutely loved our year with Winter Promise’s All-American 1! My children learned and created so much this year. They have a timeline notebook bursting with the proof of their labors and will continue to fill that over the rest of their homeschooling “careers”. I am grateful for the freedom it gave me as I dealt with life this year. Despite my initial concerns when making the switch I’m incredibly glad that I did!

Notes: The cores do not come bound as you see in the above pictures. I chose to bind my own copy! Each core comes pre-hole punched and ready to slip into a three ring binder.

*You might also be interested in Jimmie’s review of Winter Promise American Story 1 here.

I am so excited to introduce you to a fabulous, award winning unit study, A World of Adventure.

Written for grades 4-8 by Dorian Holt, a mom who successfully homeschooled her own son, A World of Adventure is the first volume in the Learning Adventures series.

If you enjoy using unit studies, or have been curious about trying them, I hope you will find this review helpful and informative.

What A World of Adventure is:

A World of Adventure is a complete curriculum, covering every subject except math, with detailed, guided lesson plans for 180 school days. Dorian designed this curriculum to use books most of us can borrow from our local library, to help lesson our financial burdens while homeschooling.

Here’s a wonderful introduction to Canadian history and literature for the whole family:  Sisters in the Wilderness. This DVD portrays the mid-19^th century pioneer life of two sisters who sailed from England expecting an easy existence in the Canadian bush.  Incorporating both contemporary artwork and dramatization, this quality film full of beauty, pathos, humanity, and history tells the story of Susannah Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill, both writers.  Their two families settled in the bush close to each other and, after years of hardship, moved to town.  Throughout their lives both Catharine and Susannah  continued to write about their experiences.  The movie Sisters in the Wilderness is based on their books.

Although not designed as a curriculum, Sisters in the Wilderness can be used as the basis for a thorough study of Upper Canada pioneer life.  It shows

• the English background of many immigrants,
• the ocean journey,
• the arrival in Canada,
• survival and adaptation in winter and summer,
• hardship and ingenuity,
• the Rebellion of 1837
• and so much more.

Each element of this beautifully produced movie highlights a fascinating aspect of the history of Upper Canada in the middle of the 19^th century and beyond.

After watching Sisters in the Wilderness and seeing how real pioneer families lived, younger students understand A Pioneer Story much better.

Sisters in the Wilderness gives older students an appealing introduction to the two women’s books as well.

• Catharine Parr Traill, the optimistic sister, wrote The Backwoods of Canada, focusing on hints for new colonists and on nature.  There is a wealth of practical and everyday history in Catharine’s writing.  This book is part of our Canadian geography curriculum.
• Susannah Moodie, more gloomy and literary, wrote the famous book Roughing it in the Bush.  This sombre personal history of an upper class British gentlewoman trying to survive in the woods was written as a warning to those ‘back home’ who were considering such a move.  Roughing it in the Bush has become one of the foundational works in Canadian literature, greatly influencing it in modern times.

In summary, Sisters in the Wilderness, available from Northwoods Press, introduces the whole family to Canadian pioneer life in a delightful way and sets teens on the path to studying Canadian literature.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of Sisters in the Wilderness from Northwoods Press.

Written by Annie Kate, a Christian homeschooling mom of five, who reviews and blogs at Tea Time with Annie Kate.  You can read her other Curriculum Choice reviews here.

While perusing the library’s database in search of books about Native Americans, I discovered a wonderful little series of Native American legends written by Terri Cohlene and illustrated by Charles Reasoner.  There are six titles in the series.  Each presents a legend and a different tribe of Native Americans.

Clamshell Boy is a Makah legend telling how a boy, born of a mother’s tear, saves a group of disobedient children from the evil Basket Woman.

Dancing Drum is a Cherokee legend that tells the story of a boy as he tries to save his people from the wrath of the sun.

Ka ha si and the Loon is an Eskimo legend that shares the tale of a sleepy boy who wakes to become his people’s hero.

Little Firefly is an Algonquian legend that relates the Cinderalla-like experiences of a young girl as she seeks to follow her mother’s advice, sent to her in a dream, to find The Invisible One and the happiness that accompanies him.

Turquoise Boy is a Navajo legend about the son of Sun Bearer and Changing Woman and his desire to make life easier for the people of his land.  He takes a quest to the corners of the world, returning with gifts that become horses.

Quillworker is a Cheyenne legend that explains how a young girl and her seven adopted brothers escape the Buffalo Nation and become stars.

I am drawn to these books by both the illustrations and storytelling.  The illustrations are detailed and beautiful, representing the people and their natural surroundings faithfully.  The legends have been rendered in powerful, direct language, creating stories that are detailed and well-told but not too long for young listeners or readers.  As a bonus, each book contains information and images sharing the lifestyles and customs of the tribe highlighted by the legend.

There are several additional titles in the series that are still illustrated by Charles Reasoner, but the author is Gloria Dominc:  Brave Bear and the Ghosts (Sioux), Coyote and the Grasshoppers (Pomo), First Woman and the Strawberry (Cherokee), Red Hawk and the Sky Sisters (Shawnee), Song of the Hermit Thrush (Iroquois), and Sunflower’s Promise (Zuni).  My library does not currently have any of these, so I am at the mercy of inter-library loan.  My guess is that they are well worth the wait, though!

I must warn you that these books are a little difficult to find.  My library carries four of the six by Terri Cohlene, and I have requested the other two on inter-library loan.  Amazon seems to have a few, too, so they must be out there somewhere.  Keep your eyes open!

Susan S. is a mama of three who loves the thrill of finding a good book.  Her third-grader, first-grader, and preschooler learn in a sort-of classical, Charlotte Mason-y, a bit of traditional kind of way.  The family appreciates the blessing of home education in all of the ways that it happens.

One of my favorite ways to teach is to take a book and put it into action. Last Thanksgiving our family read Eating The Plates: A Pilgrim Book of Food and Manners by Lucille Recht Penner. This book offers so many opportunities for learning.

You could simply read through this book each year at Thanksgiving, discussing the history with your kids. You could also take the information in it and recreate a pilgrim Thanksgiving dinner. That’s what we did last year.

I love the details the book gives about how the pilgrims lived. It goes far beyond your basic book on the pilgrims. For example, during the last few chapters we learned about the eating habits of the pilgrims. The book even concludes with a “Pilgrim Menu” that you can make.

To give you a glimpse into some of what we learned from this book please visit our Thanksgiving dinner last year.

We learned that most pilgrim families did not have silverware, plates, or bowls. The pilgrims used stale bread for plates. They put whatever soup, pudding, meat, etc. on their stale bread. At the end of the meal they would often dip the stale bread in the soup or pudding to soften it and then they would “eat their plates”.

We therefore ate our meal on bread plates and our soup out of bread bowls that I made. Corn soup is pictured in the bread bowl, above. The book includes authentic Pilgrim recipes. We enjoyed another recipe called Bannock Cakes. They are a simple biscuit-like cake made from stone ground cornmeal.

The pilgrims had many cranberries in their area they used to make a jelly. They called the jelly bearberries or bearbelly jelly because the bears liked the cranberries too. This jelly recipe is also included and oh my goodness it was so good!

• This is a great resource for your pilgrim studies!
• We had a wonderful time re-creating our Pilgrim dinner.
• There were so many other interesting things that we learned from this book.
• Authentic recipes.
• A pilgrim menu to make!
• The book is 128 pages in length.
• To purchase Eating The Plates click, HERE.

The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving. ~H.U. Westermayer

Jennifer is mom to 6 children, 2 boys and 4 girls, ages 14 down to 5. The Unsell family is in their 10th year of homeschooling and are a bit eclectic in their approach to schooling with a focus on unit studies and living books. You can find their family blog at Adventures in Unsell Land.

Have you ever pictured the perfect curriculum, and then searched high and low for it, only to come up with nothing? That was me, looking for a Bible-based, unit study approach curriculum that was Charlotte Mason friendly.

There are living book approach curricula out there, but I always look at them and feel SO overwhelmed!  And then at long last, I finally found it! I had the pleasure of reviewing Paths of Exploration, the first book in the Trail Guide To Learning series by Geography Matters. 

Written by homeschool veterans Debbie Strayer and Linda Fowler, not only does this curriculum use living books, but it tells you exactly which books you will need. The book list is not left up to my imagination, which can run wild.

The age range for this curriculum in grades 3-5. However, I am using it with my 7-year-old, who is in second grade, and she is doing well. I also have added the optional Middle School Supplement  for my 6th and 8th grader.

We just finished up the first six-weeks, which were all about Columbus. The lessons didn’t get into the darker side (consider the age range) but we did discuss as a family some of the things we didn’t agree with as the study progressed.

What’s included-

Two, beautiful hardback books- filled with guided curriculum, including History, Geography, Science, Grammar, Reading, Art, Nature Study, and Spelling which cover an entire school year, with CD-ROM of different levels of student notebook pages.

What I love about Paths of Exploration-

• There are extras that you can add-on for even more learning  like lapbooks, Bible supplement, Middle School Supplement.
• It is rooted in the education philosophies of Dr. Ruth Beechick.
• POE marries nicely with Charlotte Mason.
• Encourages engagement with dictation, discussion, and writing.
• The kids love it. There have been no complaints about school with Paths of Exploration. They love the readings, enjoy the maps and activities, and clamor for the Nature Study. They even enjoy the copywork and dictation! And, they finally get regular art in each week.
• The living books chosen as the base for this curriculum are wonderful. You even get to cook, using the cookbook, Eat Your Way Around the World, by Jamie Aramini.
• I finally have a guide to incorporate Nature Study into our homeschool.
• Geography Matters is a home-based company, located in Kentucky.
• The cost- If you have a good library, you can spend as little as $150.00 {which is for the textbooks and CD-ROM}. You can also buy the Paths of Exploration curriculum, and all of the books you will need for the year for $375.00. That is for all subjects except Math, for an entire year. For me, I am using POE with 4 children this year, which is an amazing deal in my book.
• This curriculum is non-consumable! The student pages are printed from the included CD-ROM, so everything else is reusable year after year. }

What I don’t love-

• Nothing! This curriculum has been an answer to prayer!

Right now, there are two more titles in the Trail Guide To Learning series, covering American History, with three years of World History planned. The World History is going to be geared for grades 6,7, and 8.

You can also preview the other two years that are available, Paths of Settlement and Paths of Progress. Other helpful information, and families who are using the Trail Guide To Learning series, as well as an updated reading schedule can be found in the Yahoo Group.

If you are still looking for “the one”, I hope you will give this curriculum a try!

My beginning readers are children who have been raised on a wide variety of literature, from Dora the Explorer books (which do not really count as literature) to classics like Heidi and everything in between.  As they have begun learning to read one thing I have tried to find are beautiful books on their level.  I’m sorry, I’ve seen those beginning readers where the whole story is 3 or 4 words repeated in different combinations with varying punctuation.  You know, ones that say:

“A cat?
A cat.
A mat.
A cat sat.
Cat on mat.
Cat sat.”

My children very quickly made it clear that those insipid readers were not worth their time and effort.  I heartily agreed.  On the other end of the spectrum you find beginning readers that include a whole list of ‘sight words’, words the child is simply expected to memorize by sight so they can read a story.  Most of these sight words are, in fact, able to be decoded once you learn the spelling rules, but with a beginning reader I want to find beautiful stories that do not depend on a list of sight words outside the child’s reading level.  Imagine my excitement two years ago when I discovered the readers put out by All About Learning Press, publishers of the All About Spelling curriculum.

We own all the readers available at this point.  They are beautiful!  The illustrations tell an often funny story, one that goes beyond the beginning reader text.  Even at this very early level a story is not limited to 3-5 words repeated over and over.  Currently there are 3 readers for level 1 and two available for level 2.

Our most recent purchase is the Run, Bug, Run! reader.  In the 157 pages the only words that were not ‘short vowels’, and therefore completely decodable for my beginning readers, were “the” and “A”.  A quick talk about open syllables and closed syllables explained why the vowels had long sounds.  My 5 and 6 year old both love these readers.  Even the 3 year old is beginning the sound out letters from this reader.  The artwork is simply beautiful, and the stories are original and sweet.  (You can read a sample story HERE.)

Every family has different tastes in reading material.  Finding books for beginning readers can often be frustrating.  If you are looking for beautiful books for a beginning reader be sure to check out the samples for each book in this series!

Tristan is the happily homeschooling mother to 6 blessings age 9, 6, 5, 3, 1, and 2 months old.  You can drop in and visit anytime over at her blog, Our Busy Homeschool.

It is very difficult to find living math books that present complex topics in an accessible way.  One math author whose books we have learned to love is Mitsumasa Anno.  Anno believes “that mathematics is more than merely manipulating numbers, it is a way of thinking, and that it has bearing on all scholastic subjects, indeed on all forms of creative thought.”  Children throughout the world have enjoyed his award-winning picture books.

We regularly borrow Anno’s books from the library and indulge ourselves. When very young, my children enjoyed the whimsical illustrations while the older children are intrigued by the puzzles and concepts.  As a math-loving mom, I’m delighted at the way advanced concepts such functions or factorials are presented.   Children comprehend much more than they are given credit for; having enjoyed a concept with Anno, they will be able to understand it so much better when it is introduced in math lessons.

Anno’s many math books include:

Anno’s Math Games

In four pictorial chapters of games and puzzles, Anno presents the ideas of

• same and different
• combining and assembling
• numbers, ordering and coordinate systems
• more and less.

In an afterword, Anno discusses the concepts presented in each chapter.  Our children have always loved tall Kriss and tubby Kross as they work, ponder, and experiment.

Anno’s Math Games 2

Full of mathematical ideas, this is a fascinating book of games for children.  Anno’s whimsical drawings illustrate ideas such as

• cause and effect (functions)
• differences and similarities
• dots and pixels
• counting and tabulation
• volume and units.

Anno’s Math Games 3

This book was every bit as good as the others, but I cannot tell you the details since it is no longer available in our library.

Anno’s Magic Seeds

 An old man gave Jack 2 large golden seeds.  “These are magic,” he said.  “Bake one seed in the oven until it is red and then eat it.  You will not be hungry again for a whole year.”  The other seed was to be planted and would produce two more seeds.  How Jack fared with his seeds, the big decision he made, and what happened next is a fascinating story driven by math, but representing much of history as well.  While children can understand it, adults can continue to ponder it for a long time.

Anno’s Counting Book

With a growing column of cubes on the left side of the page, and a large number on the right, Anno shows the development of a small village.  On each successive page, spread throughout the year, the village increases by one child, one building, and one tree.  Each picture is full of small stories such as building a railroad, photographing a wedding, or fishing, as well as many examples of the number.  There are opportunities for adding, such as when three of the geese on the number 4 page lag far behind the other one, and for thinking about sets, and other concepts.  Though it is a counting book, it is also much more.

Anno’s Mysterious Multiplying Jar

Inside the jar there was water, and there seemed to be just enough wind to set the water rippling…and suddenly we are inside the jar, on a sea, sailing toward 1 island.  On it there are 2 countries.  Fascinating pictures tell the story of factorials in the first half of the book, and Anno explains them explicitly in the second half.

Besides math books, Anno has also created many other amazing volumes, and we’ve enjoyed each one we’ve seen.

Disclosure: As always, I am not compensated for my reviews and I give my own honest opinions.

-Written by Annie Kate, a Christian homeschooling mom of five, who reviews and blogs at Tea Time with Annie Kate. You can read her other Curriculum Choice reviews here.

What immediately drew me to My Father’s World is that the curriculum is the fact that it is fairly stand alone. You purchase either the basic set or their deluxe set, and you are ready to go!  I adore this as our little library in this rural community really doesn’t have the variety or selection of books that we were used to in San Diego. This means filling in blanks or filling out a curriculum is a challenge now so a curriculum with most of the absolutely necessary books included was a huge plus to us.

However, like the true bibliophiles that we are, I wanted the option of having more, should we be able to find them. True to the Charlotte Mason element, the curriculum is surrounded by the “living books” concept so the usage of books is completely up to you.  I love that they include this in every year.

About My Father’s World 

My Father’s World isn’t just a Charlotte Mason style offering but rather a unique fusion of sorts, merging both “the best of Charlotte Mason, classical education, and unit studies with a Biblical worldview and international focus.”

My Father’s World offers grades K-2nd grade as a more independent, semi-stand alone element and then moves into a family 5 year cycle that works around a central theme. The 5 year cycle is specifically geared for multiple ages, for grades 2nd-8th so there is savings to be found as families with more than one child use the same program to teach all children in 2nd – 8th grade.

They also offer a bridge year called Adventures in My Father’s World, which is geared for families 2nd or 3rd graders who have no siblings in 4th – 8th grade.(We will be doing this program next year as I have a 4year old and a 7 year old.)

Our Adventure

Currently we are working our way though My Father’s World, 1st grade.  I adore this program as it is laid out in an easy to follow, daily workbook fashion.  It’s easy for me to combine the integrated social studies, science, art and Bible elements with both kids, while focusing independently on the phonics and math.  My boys love that they are learning together, doing the same things, despite their age and grade differences.

The curriculum does include a 1st grade phonics-based reading program that focuses on the Bible and more fun, hands-on math activities.  We include our own K4 phonics and and additional math program (Math U See) for both boys as I found their math not as intensive as I think it needs to be for the grade.

One major element we always seemed to miss with our previous years curriculum was the arts; we simply didn’t always make time for them.

With My Father’s World, art, music, crafts,hands-on learning is a major part of the curriculum. Everything is planned out and outlined for you to see the day before so you can prep easily, using common household items most of the time.  My boys have enjoyed this more consistent addition to our learning and I have found they have better attitudes and have better lesson retention.

The only cons that I have experience thus far is that the 1st grade teachers book is only formatted with a daily lesson plan. It lacks the easy, one glace, weekly grid that their latter versions offer.  I also felt the math that is included is a bit weak for the age group so we needed to supplement an additional math program. Ultimately, minor things that we easily rectified.

For a full curriculum, It’s fairly affordable, especially when you compare it to larger, more known companies. For the 1st grade curriculum, you can elect to get their basic package for only $136.oo or their deluxe package for $239.00.  As the years grow in complexity, so does the number of books included which will contribute to a steady raise in the overall costs. However, remaining competitive and within reach for most families.

Overall, My Father’s World, or MFW, has been a blessing to our household. It’s affordable, fun, engaging and the children really do learn.

“I dwell in Possibility/A fairer house than Prose,/More numerous of windows,/Superior of doors.”                                                     Emily Dickinson, “I dwell in Possibility”

Poetry is a flexible area of study.  It can be studied on its own, and for its own merit.  On the other hand, born of cultural, historical, and personal experience, poetry can enhance the study of any subject.  For me, the trouble with poetry is how to narrow it down.  There just seems to be so much of it to choose from.

The Poetry for Young People series provides an excellent introduction to a number of poets.  Each volume contains the poetry of a specific poet or area of poetry.  The poems are chosen for their suitability to a young audience, and as poetry representative of the poet’s body of work.  Illustrations accompany the poems.  A short biography, also sensitive to the needs of a young audience, opens each book.

I have found this series useful in two ways.  It has been a simple task to browse these pages to find a poem to enhance a particular study.  As the poems have been chosen because they are appropriate for children, I need only choose the poem that best suits my needs.

More often, however, I choose a poet to study for a month or six weeks.  As a family, we read several poems each week until we have finished the book.  The Poetry for Young People series makes this process very simple, as each volume contains a nice number of poems.  Each book serves as a gentle introduction to the work of a poet.

This may be the year for poetry study at your house!

Raid your local library for the Poetry for Young People series.

-Most days find Susan on the couch reading to her children, in the floor “playing” math, and generally in the middle of a
good-sized mess.  A love for the Lord, a love for her little ones, and a love of learning have led Susan and the  wonderful man she married to an educational philosophy that is Well-Trained Mind-inspired classical and Charlotte Mason,
with a touch of the traditional.

What’s taken me so long to try TruthQuest History???  I have had the mistaken impression that TruthQuest guides were only glorified book lists that I could develop myself.  While it’s true that I could come up with an appropriate list of living literature for a specific time period, these guides are SO much more!

1. First, you get a complete look at the era, covering all of the important people, places and events in a general order of occurrence.
2. Second, you get a full listing of appropriate living literature which will immerse your child into the era, its people, and its events.
3. Third, and most important to me, Michelle Miller offers deliciously written commentary throughout the guide to give you an overall picture of the era, as well as tying seamless transitions from one important event to another.

Using a living literature approach to history as a Charlotte Mason style homeschooler, I have often felt a slight disconnect in moving from one thing to another in a particular era.  In other words, when we’ve read a wonderful book about Martin Luther, another about the Holy Roman Empire, then another about King Henry VIII, I haven’t always known how to give my children the “whole picture” about how they fit together.

With TruthQuest guides, I now have the “missing ingredient” I’ve been searching for – a living literature approach to history PLUS a non-textbook, complete overview in between the living literature to tie everything together for me! (Boy, was that a long, drawn-out description!)  Michelle Miller’s writing style is living itself -  sometimes humorous, sometimes tongue in cheek, always interesting.

Don’t get the impression that you are totally off the hook as the teacher using a TruthQuest guide. You will still be responsible for attaining all the living literature and may want to occasionally throw in a project or two.  However, there are open-ended question sprinkled throughout the guide called ThinkWrites which can be used for discussion and/or writing assignments.

Speaking of the literature, each section includes several book choices, many of which should be available at your library.  Your child isn’t expected to read everything on the list, but instead you choose one or two, then move on to the next section of the era.  Additionally, since many of the guides can be used with various age levels, the book lists not only include brief descriptions, but appropriate age levels, too.

To give you a picture of how in-depth and thorough the guides are, I’ll give you the table of contents from the TruthQuest History – Renaissance, Reformation & Exploration guide I am using.  These are just the main headings, as each contains several specific lessons with literature choices and overviews.

• John Wycliff and Jan Hus
• Growth of Towns
• Northern Art Begins to Change
• Dawn of the Renaissance
• Early Renaissance Art
• Exploration Begins
• Fall of Constantinople
• A Visit to Italy
• The Princes of Prints
• War of the Roses
• Think Like a King
• Artists of the High Renaissance
• Ferdinand and Isabella
• Holy Roman Empire and France
• Christopher Columbus and Other Early Explorers
• Church Leaders
• Machiavelli and His Prince
• Reformation Rumble
• Francis of France
• Charles V and His Spanish Holy Roman Empire
• Ottoman Empire
• Spain’s New World Empire
• Early Native Americans of the Southwest
• King Henry VIII
• Reformation Spreads
• Science Takes a Leap
• Russia and Ivan the Terrible
• The French in the New World
• The Counter-Reformation
• Later Renaissance Art
• Queen Elizabeth
• John Knox
• Mary, Queen of Scots
• England Gets into the Race for the New World
• Spanish Armada
• Walter Raleigh
• William Shakespeare
• Later-Counter-Reformation Figures
• The idea War
• Holland Yearns for Freedom
• Battle of Lepanto
• El Greco
• Scien-a-rama
• Mystery of the Roanoke Colony

Wow.  See what I mean?  You might not be able to tell from the list above, but a focus on Christianity is prevelent throughout the book.  The author strives to make God’s Providence a main focus, as history is HIS story.

This particular guide is appropriate for grades 5-12, but TruthQuest guides are available for all grades in all eras of history.  Check them out! If you’re a living literature, Charlotte Mason or Classical kind of mom, you’ll be glad you did!

-Written by Cindy, eclectically Charlotte Mason mom of three from Kentucky.  You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward and see her NaturExplorers curriculum at Shining Dawn Books.

(Cindy received TruthQuest History: Renaissance, Reformation & Exploration free for review.  As always, she only writes her honest opinions.)

Congratulations to commenter #12, Dawn!

Our winner was chosen using the online Random Number Generator.

Dawn, please email me at songofmyheartblog at yahoo dot com within three days for info. on how to claim your set of Arithmetic Village books. I know that and your children are going to enjoy them!

Thank you to all who participated in our giveaway!

written by Shannon from Song of My Heart

I am always on the lookout for living math books, and when I stumbled upon Arithmetic Village, I knew I had to read this new series of books with my children. The five books arrived, and after one reading we were hooked. Ever since then my children, ages 5, 7, and 9, have chosen to read these delightful stories again and again. (Yes, even the nine-year old boy enjoys them!)

The Arithmetic Village series, written by Kimberly Moore, is set in a lovely, magical village nestled in a fairytale countryside where glittering jewels fall from the sky. The reader is gently introduced to place value, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, as the children in the village collect, lose, and share the jewels with others.

The series includes:

Arithmetic Village – This first book of the series introduces the five main characters: Polly Plus, Linus Minus, Tina Times, and King David Divide. The concept of place value is introduced through the use of jewels, velvet sacks (ten jewels go in a sack), and treasure chests (ten sacks go in a chest). You can read the story in its entirety here.

Polly Plus – This story demonstrates the concept of addition as Polly goes about the village collecting jewels and adding them in her neat and precise manner.

Linus Minus – Described as “an adorable mess”, Linus shows us how to subtract by losing and scattering jewels everywhere he goes.

Tina Times – Speedy Tina demonstrates multiplication by quickly and efficiently counting groups of jewels as she gathers them.

King David Divide – The wise and fair king of Arithmetic Village, David Divide shares jewels with everyone. He distributes them equally, but if some are left over they go to his pet dog, Rover. (I love the idea of Rover receiving the remainder.)

My favorite things about this series:

• Rhyming text
• Engaging and whimsical story line
• The characters’ demonstrations of sharing, kindness, and other noble qualities
• The use of fun props – jewels, sacks, and treasure chests – that bring the math concepts to life
• The Arithmetic Village website. The author offers free hands-on activity ideas and downloads to accompany the books. She has posted several videos showing how to easily make (or buy) your own set of jewels, sacks, and treasure chest and how to use them with your children to reinforce through play the concepts taught in the stories. This website is a valuable resource and is not to be missed.

To purchase any or all of the books in the series, visit Arithmetic Village’s shop page where you can receive an online discount.

I am excited to announce that Kimberly is graciously giving away a set of Arithmetic Village books to one Curriculum Choice reader.

Two Ways to enter the giveaway – you can do both:

1. Browse the activities at the Arithmetic Village website. Leave a comment here at CC telling us your favorite activity!
2. Follow Arithmetic Village on Twitter, and leave a comment here at CC to let us know that you did.

Please make sure to leave a separate comment for each of your entries, as well as an email address or blog url where you can be contacted should you win. Entrants must live in the continental U.S.

**Deadline for entries is Monday, June 14th, 10:00 pm (EST).

Good luck, and enjoy your time in the Village!

(Disclosure: The Arithmetic Village series was provided to me for free for review purposes. The views and opinions expressed in this review are purely my own.)

Written by Shannon, who blogs about living books and other homeschool-ish things at Song of My Heart.

Our journey through time with Susan Wise Bauer’s children’s history texts, The Story of the World, brought us to the Middle Ages this year.

It was quite the exciting romp:  We watched as Rome fell, sat entranced as the barbarians invaded, learned about the rise of Islam, discovered exciting events happening in China, Japan, and Australia, sailed the seas with the Norsemen, established the English throne, were scattered with the Jews and new Christians, felt the terror of the Black Death, travelled to Africa to see the great kingdoms there, explored new worlds with Henry the Navigator, Columbus, and others, viewed the America kingdoms—the Maya, the Aztec, and the Inca—in all of their glory, entered into a time of rebirth and reform with da Vinci and Martin Luther, and finished the year with Queen Elizabeth I and the Bard.

Our primary text was The Story of the World:  The Middle Ages, the second text in the series.

I supplemented Bauer’s storytelling with an extensive list of books from the library.  Some of them were recommended by the activity guide that accompanies the main text, and others popped up in searches of our library’s holdings.  The children and I were delighted to find a vast body of work discussing early England and the Celts, knights, castles, and Robin Hood, and the Norsemen and their gods.  Even Joan of Arc was amply represented.  Other areas were lacking.

It is simple to find additional books for children in some historical subjects, but others are woefully slim.

Peace Hill Press is working to fill that void with a series of children’s historical biographies published under the title Who in the World? There are currently four titles in the series.  Each correlates with a chapter in The Story of the World:  Middle Ages.

Who in the World Was the Acrobatic Princess?  The Story of Theodora accompanies Chapter 4, which discusses the Byzantine Empire.  Emperor Justinian and Empress Theodora are not on the list of historical topics widely covered by the local library’s children’s department.

Who in the World Was the Unready King?  The Story of Ethelred accompanies Chapter 15, the tale of the early kings of England.  King Ethelred and the heavily bearded Viking king Sweyn Forkbeard who defeated him are not popular picture book topics, either.

Who in the World Was the Forgotten Explorer?  The Story of Amerigo Vespucci accompanies Chapter 31, which is entitled “Exploring New Worlds.”  While Vespucci finds his way into a few children’s books, it is only for a mere mention.

Who in the World Was the Secretive Printer?  The Story of Johannes Gutenberg goes along with Chapter 35, the story of the Renaissance and the beginning of the printing press.  There are a surprising number of children’s texts about Gutenberg.  Unfortunately, little is known of his life, making him something of a mystery.

In our homeschool, we simply used the Who in the World? biographies as they came up.  Each was a welcome addition to our study, adding valuable historical information in a manner appropriate for children.  A simple search for additional information about several of these historical figures reveals information that is not child-friendly.  The Who in the World? series handles these issues by discussing only the parts of the each person’s life that can be readily understood by an early elementary-aged child.  This is not to say that the historical figures are made to seem perfect.  As in The Story of the World, the historical narrative is balanced—the positive lives alongside the negative in these real people of history.

The integrity of the history is not compromised, and children are allowed to learn in a manner that safeguards them.

We are wrapping up the Middle Ages at our house.  It has been fun and informative to spend a little bit of time alongside the saints, sailors, kings, queens, scientists, and artists that make up this period of history.  Thanks to the Who in the World? series we have had the pleasure (or pain depending on the character) of making the acquaintance of Empress Theodora, King Ethelred, Amerigo Vespucci, and Johannes Gutenberg as well.

The Who in the World? biography series can be purchased from Peace Hill Press.  Each is available in book, audio, PDF, and MP3 versions.

The four books in Peace Hill Press’s Who in the World? biography series were provided to Susan free for the purpose of review.  She has reviewed them truthfully and honestly, and is delighted to be able to do so.  It would be sad (and bad manners) to have to say that you didn’t like something someone gave you.

Most days find Susan on the couch reading to her children, in the floor “playing” math, and generally in the middle of a good-sized mess.  A love for the Lord, a love for her little ones, and a love of learning have led Susan and the  wonderful man she married to an educational philosophy that is Well-Trained Mind-inspired classical and Charlotte Mason, with a touch of the traditional.

Here’s one book no homeschooling family should miss:  A Pioneer Story: The Daily Life of a Canadian Family in 1840.  It combines heartwarming stories of a busy pioneer family with the background information and hands-on activities of a unit study.  Truly, it is a winning combination.

Beautifully illustrated, this story of the Robertsons fills our hearts and minds with the life of a pioneer family in the backwoods of eastern Canada.  We follow Sarah (10), Willy(9), George(13), and Meg (15), as well as Granny, Pa, Ma, little sister Lizzy, and baby Tommy, through a whole year of maple sugaring, baby animals, milking, sheep shearing, fishing and more.

With the Robertson children we face the terror of meeting a lynx, the thrills of building a new home, the hard work of bringing in the harvest before the storm, and the joys of surviving a night lost in the wintery woods.  We trade with a jolly peddler, meet a new English boy at the school, and visit Uncle Jacob’s home for a thrillingly different Christmas.

Reminiscent of Laura Ingalls Wilders’ stories, these tales are not only the delightful story of a busy family, but also a wonderful introduction to the book’s detailed explanations and activities.

For example, in the chapter “Finding a Honey Tree,” Uncle Jacob took Sarah and Willy out to mark a bee tree in anticipation of the fall, when the honey could be harvested.   After enjoying the story, we learn about bees, harvesting wild honey, and pioneer remedies.

“Signs of Spring” shows us the family’s house, winter diet, cooking, and farmyard in such wonderfully illustrated detail that we can almost imagine their lives for ourselves.  When Sarah found the year’s first egg, the entire breadth of pioneer experience is revealed in Ma’s response:

Ma stroked the egg dreamily.  “Pudding,” she said.  “I’ll make a nice egg pudding for tonight’s supper.  There’ll be a good mouthful for each of us.”

When the peddler arrived, he brought joy and excitement to everyone in the family.  Itinerant preachers, shoe makers, peddlers, tailors, and tinkers all were welcome visitors at the farm.  Crafts in “The Peddler’s Visit” include making a punched tin picture, a pioneer water carrier, and a sand clock.

Willy spent a lot of time with his friend Neekeek, and occasionally Neekeek’s uncle would teach the boys a new skill.  Once he taught them how to catch trout with their bare hands.  When Willy came home triumphantly with the fish he had just caught, George scoffed at his story.  Granny, on the other hand, laughed, “Och, aye!  Tickling trout. Your granda was a dab hand at that. Many’s the poached fish we had from the laird’s stream.  Scooped up just that way.  Good for you, young Will!”  Of course this chapter discusses fishing, hunting, guns, and snares.

Throughout the book we learn to read the weather, make a balance scale, prepare for winter, make candles, use a bake oven, build a road, and thresh the grain while we live, laugh, and bicker with the family.  While the bickering does bother me, this book is, on the whole, happy and inspiring. The illustrations are a joy, and the stories are a treat.  My children enjoyed A Pioneer Story even more than I did both times I read it aloud, and they’ve enjoyed it on their own as well.

A free Teaching Guide is available.

-Written by Annie Kate, a Christian homeschooling mom of five, who reviews and blogs at Tea Time with Annie Kate.

Science is fun.  I want to fit it in.  In juggling the demands of this busy homeschooling household, I don’t always manage it, though.

The answer:  living books!

For me, it all starts with the books.  A topical, science-based, information-packed, well-illustrated set of books often provides the basis for scientific study at our house.  They give me the boost that I need to develop a science topic into a science curriculum.  Once I have the books, I can add in experiments and notebook pages and memory work and activities.  In the end, we have a great elementary science program.

For habitat study last year, we used The One Small Square series written by Donald Silver and illustrated by Patricia J. Wynne and Dianne Ettl.

The One Small Square series by Donald Silver uses the space of a three-dimensional square to explore the Earth’s habitats.  Each book contains around forty pages of focused information about a particular habitat, along with delightful illustrations and activity suggestions.  The books provide the reader with complete descriptions of each area, including plants, animals, and other pertinent tidbits.  Attention is given to the seasons and changes that occur in the space as the year passes.  Other topics are explained as they naturally arise:  African Savanna discusses drought, Backyard covers decomposition and life cycles, and Pond talks about microscopic creatures.

The primary purposes of the books are two fold:  information and exploration.

The information–comprised of text and illustrations–is useful and appropriate for elementary students.  The illustrations themselves are accurate and engaging.  They draw the eye and delight the mind.  At the end of each book is a picture list of all of the plants and animals covered by the text, which serves as a mini-field guide to the area being studied.

The exploration portion comes in the form of activities designed to help the young reader delve into the habitat and understand particular ideas associated with it.  When possible, the first task for the student is to go to the habitat–a pond or woodsy area, for example–and mark off a small square with an adult’s help.  This is followed by ideas designed to make the space come alive for the child.  Activities include making a home for a duck from a cardboard box in Pond, studying trees to compare them to pictures of African trees in Arican Savanna, and making a picnic to attract bugs in Backyard.  Keeping a nature journal is strongly encouraged and ideas for what to do with it are given throughout the texts.

Books in the series include:

• Backyard
• Seashore
• Woods
• Cactus Desert
• Arctic Tundra
• Pond
• Tropical Rain Forest
• African Savanna
• Coral Reef
• Cave
• Swamp
• The Night Sky

The One Small Square books by Donald Silver have been a hit at our house.  The kids love them, often pulling them off of the shelf to look at and read, and they have made this mama’s life a little easier by providing quality information and useful activities.  We get to do science!

Find the series at your local library or at lots of bookstores and on-line sellers, including Amazon.

Susan S. is a homeschooling mama of three little ones who get bigger and livelier every day. They delight in living books and hands-on math, and are nurturing a love for God and the amazing world that He created.

I love sharing great authors with you – authors that you can almost always assume will provide a wonderful living literature experience for you and your children.  Patricia St. John is one of these authors.

Ms. St. John (1919-1993) was first an English missionary in Morocco where she worked in a medical mission trying to win the hearts of Muslim people for Christ.  Second, she was the author of many books for children and young adults.  Each book is not only a wonderful story, often filled with adventure, but interweaves Christian truths seamlessly as well.

No matter the book, each main character has at least one character issue to work through, whether that be selfishness, hatred, or loneliness, among others.  The point of finding our Savior, the only One who can help us defeat our character flaws and lead us to a life everlasting is always the main point of the story, but is never the pounding point.  In other words, the message is gentle and beautiful.  And the characters always come out having learned that their lives are all about choices and how to choose the better part.

One of the books stands out as slightly different than the others because it’s a piece of Biblical historical fiction.  Twice Freed is the story of Onesimus, the slave of Philemon, who learns throughout the story what real freedom means – freedom in Christ rather than freedom from slavery. Since it’s historical fiction, there are liberties taken in the storyline, but this is a very interesting viewpoint about a section of the Bible that we might otherwise not consider.

Her picture books (of which we’ve only read A Home for Virginia) are appropriate for children from 5-10, while the chapter books seem to be most appropriate for ages 8-14.

Patricia St. John’s books are currently in print through Kingsley Press.  By clicking on the link, you will be able to see two pages full of Ms. St. John’s books available.  All the books I have personally read and recommend are included as linked graphics in this post.

WHO ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE AUTHORS OF LIVING LITERATURE?

-Written by Cindy, an eclectically Charlotte Mason mom of three in Central KY.  You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward and find her nature study curricula at Shining Dawn Books.

Do you remember elementary school social studies?  I remember a few bits and pieces—my memories are of a little American history and a lot of social studies.  It seems that we talked quite a bit about how society works.  We talked about the police, the fire department, community leaders, the library, and other societal mechanisms.  Though I have chosen a chronological approach to history, I still want my children to know how our community works.

I believe that these ideas are communicated well in their proper context through the normal activities of life.  A few living books will complement your childrens’ early social education.

Things People Do written by Anne Civardi and illustrated by Stephen Cartwright is an Usborne book that shares the general idea of community and the specific details of several occupations with preschool and lower elementary students.

Information is presented in the form of a loose story about the people who live on the fictional Island of Banilla.  Banilla has a mayor and city council, fishermen, builders, a hotel with a staff, a school with personnel, a baker, farmer, a garage, a fire department, a police department, a dance school, an airstrip, a veterinarian, and even a television station.

Each character’s job is explained in a two-page spread that includes part of the story-line and presents additional characters who work alongside him or her.  Workplaces, task details, and work schedules are included in each character’s description.   The descriptions are just right for a young listener.

Things People Do is illustrated by Stephen Cartwright.  The pictures are realistic enough to look like adults, but cute enough to appeal to a young reader.

There are two additional surprises.  Cartwright included a small yellow duck on every page, providing a bit of search and find fun.  Also, the characters’ names are puns, reflecting their careers.

Younger readers can find the ducks while older siblings decipher the characters’ names.

Things People Do has been a favorite with my children.  Though Usborne no longer sells it, Sonlight continues to carry an over-sized hardbound version.  Used copies are not difficult to locate either.

Enjoy your journey to the Island of Banilla!

Susan S. is a homeschooling mama of three little ones who get bigger and livelier every day. They delight in living books and hands-on math, and are nurturing a love for God and the amazing world that He created.

Grandpa’s Box: Retelling the Biblical Story of Redemption by Starr Meade

Looking for an overview of the Bible from Creation to Revelation in a fun read aloud?  This book might be just what you’re looking for!

Grandpa loves to hang out with his grandchildren, Amy and Marc.  He owns a trash-to-treasure shop where the children spend hours playing.  One day, he decides to show the children his very own treasure box where he keeps wooden figurines he’s carved over the years.  Each of these figurines represents a story from the Bible.

Over many visits, Grandpa tells the children chronological stories from the Bible.  Rather than just being the same old retellings the children have heard before, though, Grandpa tells them as a war story.  He first intrigues the children by telling them he’s involved in a war right now.  When they don’t believe him, he begins with the story of Adam and Eve and the war that began as soon as the serpent entered the Garden of Eden.

From there, each new Bible story is told from the perspective of how it fits into this war that still rages today.  The chapter titles are very cute.  I’ll give you a few examples which should help you see how the author ties the Bible into the war theme…

• Chapter 1o, Commander in Chief – Moses
• Chapter 15, A Foreigner Enlists – Ruth
• Chapter 19, A Guided Missile – The Death of King Ahab
• Chapter 32, Victory from Defeat – The Resurrection of Jesus
• Chapter 42, Victory at Last – Revelation

At 42 chapters and 282 pages, Grandpa’s Box is a fairly long book, but most chapters can be read in 5-10 minutes.  My children enjoyed hearing the familiar stories in this fresh, exciting format and always begged for one more chapter!

-Written by Cindy, eclectically Charlotte Mason mom of 3.  You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward and find her nature studies at Shining Dawn Books.

As a supplement for studying ancient history this year, my children and I read Adam and His Kin.

Ruth Beechick has done a fantastic job retelling the Biblical story of Creation through Abram as he leaves Ur (Genesis 1-11.) Reading like living literature, the author fills in some of her own imaginations about how the characters of the Bible might have felt and what they might have said. This may turn some people off as they decide she has “added” to Scripture, but I wasn’t turned off at all. The additions come from a well-researched background (and make for a very powerful story!)

I certainly would put the book in the category of historical fiction, though. It wouldn’t be right to read this rather than the Bible. We read this as an extension after a very solid instruction in what Genesis actually says. 

I was amazed to understand several things I never had before!  For instance, the Seed line (those who would directly fall into the geneology of Jesus later) is explained so that you see not simply a timeline of when each person was born and when they died, but you watch them walk together, teach one another and encourage generation after generation.  As the story unfolds, you see Adam living even into the time of Methuselah – they knew each other, learned together and preached together. 

I know I could’ve looked at a simple Bible timeline and seen that Adam and Methuselah lived some time together, but the story builds a picture in your mind that a simple timeline most likely doesn’t.  And this is true for so many other aspects of the book!  

I highly recommend adding this to any Bible or ancient history schedule – it was fantastic!  In fact, I’m even going to say you really SHOULD add this to your schedule – no homeschooling family should miss it!

(I read it with a 5th and 8th grader.  I wouldn’t recommend it for children younger for the simple reason that you really want the depth of the story to be able to sink in powerfully.)

Written by Cindy, eclectically Charlotte Mason mom of 3.  You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward and find her nature study curriculum at Shining Dawn Books.

One of the very best things about homeschooling your kids is that you are free to choose any philosophy of teaching you wish.  Paying attention to the way your child learns and adhering to his/her needs in the classroom is a huge benefit that homeschooled kids have.  Many of you reading this review may have chosen to homeschool for the very reason that your child could not learn the in the style being taught at a  traditional school.   There are plenty of styles of schooling your kids out there.  There’s Classical, Eclectic, Unit Study-based, Unschoolers, and more.  But the style that has most worked with our family is the Charlotte Mason approach.

In a nutshell, Charlotte Mason was an educational reformer that live in England in the late 1800′s.  She completely disagreed with how school worked and thought it could be better.  She had no children of her own, but she made it her life’s mission to improve the educational system as it was.  She set to work and started her own school.  I love a woman willing to go against the grain!

Her philosophy can be hard to adopt for homeschoolers that were brought up in public (or private) school because it is so different from “regular” school.  With a CM approach you use no text books.  Everything is taught on a literature-based standard.  Instead of having children memorize names and dates and cram for tests, you would read interesting and exciting literature to paint a mental picture that sticks with them…encouraging a love of learning.

So…pardon me for the long introduction.  I’ll get the the review now .  It can be difficult in the beginning to know how to use this philosophy, but I’ll share some of my very favorite Charlotte Mason guides that really helped me. (Please note: There are TONS of great websites and books to help you learn more, but these are my most “beat-up” CM books…meaning they are dog-eared, highlighted, “coffee-ringed”, and creased!)

Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola:  Karen Andreola is a forerunner for starting the Charlotte Mason revival in the homeschooling community.  She has written many books about teaching certain subjects the CM way, but this book is a compilation of allaspects of teaching the CM way.  The contents include everything you need to know. She includes a background about what drew her to the CM method and bumps along the way.  The book is sprinkled with personal stories about her life as a homeschool mom.  She stresses the importance of having a support system and possibly even starting your own CM group.  Each chapter ends with discussion questions and room for notes.

A Charlotte Mason Education Series by Catherine Levison:  These are the books that first got me excited about CM.  I love the way Catherine writes and her clear explanation of everything she discusses.  Her series is made of three separate titles:

• A Charlotte Mason Education
• More Charlotte Mason Education
• A Literary Education

The first book is an overview of each school subject and how to do them the way CM would have.  The second book goes a bit more in depth and gives great ideas for your classroom.  Both books have great examples, lists, and sample schedules to help you get started.

The third book in the series is  a compilation of books that CM used in her teaching and newer books that follow her guidelines of teaching.  There are many books reviewed and I use many of them in our homeschool.  This book also includes a great scope and sequence of grades K-12.  It’s a wonderful way to get started, even if you don’t follow it all the way through high school, it’s a great starting point.

Catherine’s website also includes excellent articles that I’ve read over and over.

Again, this is just the tip of the iceberg with Charlotte Mason helps.  A few others that come to mind are:

• Simply Charlotte Mason (website)
• Living Books Curriculum (website + curriculum)
• Penny Garner’s Charlotte Mason Website
• Ambleside Online (website + curriculum)
• For the Children’s Sake by Susan Macaulay
• When Children Love to Learn by Elaine Cooper

-Written by Alicia, a Charlotte Mason-loving, mom of three. You can find her blogging at La Famille.

Since I was a little girl, I’ve been an avid reader.  I remember coming home from the library, barely able to balance on my 10-speed because of my huge load of delightful reading.  Even earlier than that, I remember my mom sighing as I climbed into bed, struggling with the stack of books I expected her to read to me before bedtime.  Memories like these come back to me when I take the kids to the library and I pick myself up another couple of books from The Royal Diaries series.  I had been searching the library shelves for some good summer reading books for my (now) 3-grader when I found The Royal Diaries: Anastasia.  The story of Anastasia has always intrigued me, but as I looked further, I saw there were tons of these books!  I went home with two of them and have been reading them all summer.

Each book is based on the life of a young, royal girl.  The books are written like a diary would be.  They are fictional books, but each one is written based on facts.  These stories are all exciting, factual, and chalk-full of learning potential!  I’m pretty sure Charlotte Mason would agree

Besides the fact that there are 20 princesses in this series, such as…

• Cleopatra VII
• Isabel of Castilla
• Marie Antoinette
• Anastasia of Russia
• Elizabeth I
• Mary, Queen of Scots…just to name a few

…each book offers tons of information at the end of each exciting story.  The diaries are written when the girls are around the ages of 12-14, before they are famous.  Then the story ends right as something big in their life begins to happen, such as a royal marriage.  After the diary, each book includes:

• an Epilogue explaining how the story continues or ends
• Historical Notes, giving  more information about the royal families and the effect they had on that period in time
• A Family Tree with continuing pages explaining each person on the family tree and their role in history
• Drawings, paintings, photos, or statues of the royalty depending on the point in history
• Maps showing the area that the princess was talking about in the story
• About the author section where it explains their research for the book (there are several authors in this series)
• Pronunciation of difficult words found in the book
• Glossary of characters, which is very helpful since many of the books have lots of characters

You can purchase the entire series from Amazon.com here. There are also several VHS tapes based on the books that can be purchased here and here.

Overall, these are absolutely fabulous books to include in your homeschool curriculum.  At our house, we are studying the Middle Ages this year so I think I could use several Royal Diaries in our studies.  I think these would be great read-alouds for middle-elementary kids and then even better books to assign to upper elementary and middle-school kids to read on their own.  Of the several diaries I have read there has been some violence, but very minimal and I tend to over look some of that for the sake of history and learning.  I would highly recommend these lovely, historically-rich books!

-Alicia can be found either reading classic literature to her three busy kids or blogging over at La Famille.

As a Charlotte Mason homeschooler, teaching with living literature is imperative to me. And considering that I like to package much of our history and science learning into unit studies, incorporating living literature into our current unit makes awesome connections for my children.

The History Comes Alive books written by Barbara Greenwood fit both the CM and unit study aspects of our homeschool perfectly! Written about four major eras of North American history, the books are a wonderful mix between historical fiction, factual snippets and simple hands-on activity ideas.

I’ve used these books with my children from 2nd grade on up. They’re each well over 200 pages, but are illustrated in black and white pencil drawings to keep children intrigued. It’s very easy to skip around and only read certain parts, too, if you’d rather not go through the entire book.

A Pioneer Story introduces you to Sarah and Willy Robertson, Canadian pioneer children of the 1840′s who must be hard-working members of their family in order to survive. Breaks in the story-line turn to more factual information about such things as what a typical log house would’ve looked like, how a farm might be situated, the maple sugaring process, the process of weaving and much more. Activity breaks are also included in the story which will give step-by-step instructions for making cheese, making a homemade balance scale, stenciling and many others.

There are two smaller books available by the same author on the subject of pioneers, too – A Pioneer Thanksgiving and A Pioneer Christmas. Both are written in the same style as the above book, but only have about 48 pages each.

The Last Safe House (our very favorite) is a story of the Underground Railroad. Two preteen girls, Eliza (an escaped slave) and Johanna (a daughter in the home of a safe house) become wonderful friends. Johanna is introduced to the world of slavery, escape, fear and freedom in this wonderful tale. On the factual side of the story, you learn about famous slaves, slave labor, the Underground Railroad and even a few slave songs. The activities teach how to make corn-husk dolls, tin lanterns, gingerbread cookies, and how to spin a good story.

Gold Rush Fever is set in the Klondike in 1898. Thirteen year old Tim sets off with his older brother on the dangerous journey through the Yukon territory in an attempt to get rich during the gold rush. This book not only takes you on the hunt for gold, but starts at the beginning in Seattle where you start the trip through treacherous conditions. It’s a good view of the entire sacrifice and determination on the part of those who left home in search of gold. The factual snippets teach you about gold mining equipment, boat building, mining towns, what happened when gold was found and more. The activities introduce you to a sour-dough biscuit recipe, knot tying, playing solitaire and other ideas that are particularly boy-friendly.

Factory Girl brings you face to face with the reality of children working in factories in the early 1900′s. Meet 12 year old Emily as she works long hours in a unsafe, dark, overcrowded sewing factory where she is treated poorly by her demanding and unfriendly boss. Don’t be fooled, this story isn’t just for girls. The informational sections take you on a photographic journey through all sorts of child labor conditions of the times including coal mines, housemaids, and other factories. You will learn about immigration, living in large cities in the early 1900′s, schooling, women at work, and laws that changed child labor and working safety.

Although this books is unlike the others in that it doesn’t include activity ideas, it’s still our second favorite in the series. This is an issue that’s harder to find literature about for children, so we were very excited to dive in!

-Written by Cindy, eclectically Charlotte Mason mom of 3. You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward and you can find her nature studies at Shining Dawn Books.