10 American History Books Kids Will Love

Posted:

May

2013

I hated history when I was in school. Thanks to homeschooling, some wonderful curriculum, and these 10 American history books for kids – great biographies and living books – history is now my favorite subject to learn alongside my children.

10 great living books for studying American History

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I began using Trail Guide to Learning with my younger two kids in January 2012 and we love it! I never thought I would enjoy an all-inclusive curriculum, but after just a few weeks with Trail Guide we realized it was the perfect homeschool curriculum for our family.

One of our favorite aspects of using the curriculum is the fabulous selection of readers. Each unit there is one read-aloud and one student reader. These usually consist of a biography and a historical fiction – our favorites! We’ve progressed through Paths of Settlement and we’re halfway through Paths of Progress. I thought I’d share some of the books that we’ve enjoyed the most so far.

Abigail Adams – This biography about John Adams’ wife was one of our favorites of the biographies we’ve read. She was such a strong woman. I’m not sure what impressed me more – the fact that she didn’t run screaming from the house when the Revolutionary War broke out in sight of her house or the fact that she let her young son travel for France with his father, knowing she wouldn’t see either of them for years.

Justin Morgan Had a Horse – I think this story of Justin Morgan and Lil’ Bub might be Megan’s favorite book ever. The fact that there is lots of history subtly woven into the story was, I think, mostly lost on Megan. She just loved the great story about the little horse. I might have been right there with her.

Guns for General Washington – I love that Trail Guide includes lots of good boy books. Guns? Battles? Treacherous treks through the wilderness? Yeah, this one appealed to my boy…but Megan and I still enjoyed it.

Janie’s Freedom – Janie’s Freedom has probably been my favorite of the books we’ve read so far and it was a close second for Megan. This captivating book tells the story of five children, born into slavery, who make their way North for a better life after gaining freedom at the end of the Civil War.

Theodore Roosevelt – We have all enjoyed both biographies that we’ve read in the Heroes of History series by Janet and Geoff Benge. They’re the kind of stories that the kids and I want to keep reading longer than called for on the lesson plans. Teddy Roosevelt was a fascinating man and this biography makes the details of his life leap off the page.

As an aside, he looks very much like Robin Williams in my mind. Thanks, Night at the Museum.

Ambush in the Wilderness – This story of a young boy who witnesses his fur-trader father’s death at the hands of a group of Indians is one of the few stories for kids (to my knowledge) about the French and Indian War.

Robert E. Lee – I think I learned more about the Civil War through this biography than I ever learned in high school. I’m so glad that Trail Guide explores history through biographies and great fiction books. My kids get so much more out of them than dry facts and memorized dates.

Samuel F. B. Morse – This biography is one of the more memorable ones to me because we made so many connections between the story of Morse’s life and other people and events that we’d read about before. It’s fun for us when we start realizing which historical figures living during the times of others and how their lives intertwined.

Michael Faraday – I had no idea who Michael Faraday was when we started his biography, but I cried at the end when we experienced his death through the pages of this well-written book. The kids tease me when that happens.

Thomas Edison – We’ll be finishing Thomas Edison today. This is another Heroes of History biography. I love when a book makes us all laugh and this one did. We have determined that Mr. Edison was ADHD before it had a name.

What are some of your favorite American History books?

Disclosure: I am the social media manager for Geography Matters, publishers of Trail Guide to Learning. However, I only recommend products that my family has used and enjoyed. The opinions expressed here are my personal, honest opinions. Your experience may vary. Please read my full disclosure policy for more details.

This post is linked to Top Ten Tuesday and iHN’s Ten in Ten.

Blue Hair and Boy Bands

Posted:

May

2013

I’ve had some random thoughts floating around in my head lately. They were some things that I thought might grow into a blog post, but they never quite seemed to get there. They didn’t seem deep enough or profound enough. There were no key take-away points taking shape in my head.

Then, I remembered a post I read awhile back about getting back to old-fashioned blogging and I thought you, my blogging friends, might just enjoy some idle chitchat – that you might enjoy my random musings. The kind that I might share if we were just hanging out, enjoying some sweet tea.

One thing I’ve been thinking about lately is Megan’s room. She’s told me many times that several friends have told her that they can’t believe her mom let her decorate it like she has. It looks a little something like this:

Megan's Posters

As you can see, there is very little surface area that isn’t covered with a poster or a picture cut from a magazine. That wall of tiny individual pictures is a particular source of pride for her.

I got the same sort of questions when I let Brianna get blue streaks dyed in her hair.

The thing is, that doesn’t bother me. Megan’s wall is a reflection of her – her style, her personality, her interests and her creativity. It’s just paper and tape. She’ll get tired of them and pull them off the wall and we’ll paint.

Brianna’s hair color washed out – much sooner than she expected, just for the record. It was supposed to be permanent, but it only lasted about two weeks.

I’ve got good kids. They love Jesus and want to share Him with the people around them. They’re kind-hearted. The hold doors for people without being asked. They spend their own money to buy gifts for kids in orphanages in Haiti. They spend their own birthday money to buy each other Christmas gifts.

There are a lot worse things they could be doing than wallpapering their rooms with today’s version of Shaun Cassidy or dying their hair blue. There are probably things that they’ll want to do that I’ll say no to. But these little expressions of creativity that don’t hurt anything? I’m okay with those.

The way I figure it, if I give them a little freedom to express themselves, maybe those inevitable no’s will mean something to them. Maybe they’ll look for the heart and the wisdom behind the no, rather than just hearing a denial.

I think, sometimes, we get so caught up in looking at the surface of things that we don’t see the heart.

“But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” – 1 Samuel 16:7

Megan’s trying to decide between blue streaks and hot pink for her hair and I’m making her wait until she’s a little bit older. There will be people who will make snap judgments about her based on that…and I know that I do that to people, too. Thinking about other people coming to wrong conclusions about my kids is a strong reminder not to do that to other people.

We need to not make snap judgments based on appearance, but instead look at people’s hearts. Because maybe there’s a kind heart beating under that blue-streaked hair. There are sweet little bunnies under those boy band posters.

Any random thoughts roaming around your head lately?

Look for random thoughts about marriage and empty nests coming up soon.

Weekly Wrap-Up: The One Where I Didn’t Go to Nashville

Posted:

May

2013

This post contains affiliate links. See full disclosure policy for more details.

I’m a little bummed this Friday. I was supposed to be in Nashville at the Teach Them Diligently convention. Then, the Great Septic Tank Issue of 2013 struck. That is really not how I wanted to spend the money I was going to use to go to Nashville.

I’m choosing to look at the positives, though. First, at least I had the money to pay for the septic tank issues. Second, I got to spend the day with my husband anyway. Granted, cleaning out the garage wasn’t my first choice, but it needed to be done and we did it together. Third, I have a really nice car to drive. Yes, it would have been nice to drive it to Nashville, but driving it around town is still good.

On top of all that, we’re almost finished with school for the year! I love our curriculum and I’ve loved year round homeschooling, but I’m still looking very forward to summer break, even though it will be a short one.

Mother's Day

As I sit here, I’m surrounded by reminders of how busy next week is going to be. There is a case of water for my trip to North Carolina. I’ll be at the NCHE Convention in Winston-Salem, representing Geography Matters. Then, there is the luggage that I’m trying to ignore. It’s borrowed from my sister and will be heading to Haiti with Brianna.

I can’t wrap my mind around the fact that my first-born is going to be leaving the country a week from tomorrow. I’m excited for her, but I imagine I’ll be a nervous wreck next week.

Maybe. I might not be, though, because I know it’s where God wants her to be and if He wants her there, I’m trusting Him to take care of her. I think it will be a great experience for her. Just do me one favor…if you stop by the Geography Matters booth next weekend, don’t mention Haiti. Unless, of course, you don’t mind taking the risk that I might burst into tears in front of you.

As for now, though, I’m just looking forward to this weekend. It’s supposed to be warm and pretty. I’m going to relax and enjoy it and not worry about next week until Monday.

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