Chapter 2 deals with the re-opening of Japan for the West, as well as the Crimean War. It was fun to learn about Florence Nightingale and fill out the forms about patients’ basic health information.
Learning how to take the pulse
I became our daughter’s patient and my husband became our son’s patient. They will probably not go back to that form to fill it out every day as suggested, but at least they got started and understood the concept of medical records. Continue reading
We have made it to volume 4! Yeah! We should celebrate somehow, but we are too excited about history to stop, even for a celebration. We have built momentum and we want to keep on going.
“The sun never sets on the British Empire.”
My plan is to finish volume 4 before we start school again in August, because I would like to start the whole four-year history cycle all-over again. My son will be in fifth grade next year, so he gets to experience it on a different level than my daughter. But I think this time it will be clearer for her and I want her to start again with the Ancients so that things will make more sense. Continue reading
Chapter 42 is the last in Story of the World Volume 3. We made it! The story of the forty-niners was familiar to the kids from other books we had read, so it was easy to delve into this chapter.
“Gold” nuggets – a craft to remember the forty-niners
For our craft, we chose to paint pebbles with gold paint to make them look like gold flakes and gold nuggets. They played with them a bit afterward, but not too much. They consider them more of a collection, so they keep them proudly on their nightstands. Continue reading
New Zealand and Her Rulers is the title of chapter 41. What a difficult chapter to read! We really dislike the parts of history in which people are treated unfairly. The Maori tribes really got the short end of the stick in their treaty with the British.
Making the Maori butterfly craft zing
The map work and coloring pages kept us busy. For the craft, we decided to check out the special butterflies (purerehua) the Maori made. Continue reading
For chapter 40, we came back to North America, mainly to Mexico. We read about the Alamo and Texas independence. The kids had already heard about Davy Crockett and the Alamo from books we have studied.
My son creating his flip book about Alamo
Ironically, there is a restaurant ten minutes from our house called Alamo. It looks just like the ill-fated fort. It burned down in the 2016 wildfires, but it has been rebuilt and enlarged since. Also, there is a “Davy Crockett mini-golf course” in our town, as well. We drive by it every time we leave the city to go to Pigeon Forge on the main roads. Continue reading
In chapter 39, we traveled to China. The kids were appalled by the greediness of the English merchants and the weak character of the Chinese who got addicted to opium. It was another opportunity to talk about smoking and illegal drugs, as well as the love of money.
Gluten free, vegan poppy seed muffins
We made poppy seed muffins for our craft. Since I had to go on a gluten free diet, I have been perfecting my gluten free baking skills. I like my creations, but my children do not. Oh well. More for me. Continue reading
When you decide to start homeschooling your children, it is a huge moment – one which is bound to change the course of your own life as much as your kids’. One of the first things you will need to think about is how well set up your home is for homeschooling.
Most homes need some work before you can say that the are ready for homeschooling, even if you are the most radical unschooler. What do you really need to do in the home to prepare it for many years of homeschooling?
Finding A Dedicated Space
Although you could work from room to room, it is likely to be much more effective to simply find a space you can work in and go from there. If you have a specified space for homeschooling, your children will get in the studying zone more easily. Continue reading
Chapter 38 covered American tragedies: “The Trail of Tears” and “Nat Turner’s Revolt.” We have read about the Trail of Tears from other sources before and the children were familiar with the story. They still shuddered to think what that was like for the Native Americans.
“Girl, daughter” in American Indian Sign Language
My daughter was upset with Andrew Jackson for passing the Indian Removal Act. I reminded them that, incidentally, Andrew Jackson was one of the three presidents Tennessee has contributed to this nation. Continue reading
Chapter 37 took us back to Africa, troubled Africa, with two stories: “The Zulu Kingdom” and “The Boers and the British.” The kids colored the page with Shaka, the Zulu king. We also did the map.
Close combat African spear
For our craft, we worked on the small spear. We found it very difficult to staple the tip to the paper towel roll, but we made it work. Since I did not want to rush to the store to get silver spray paint, or make a mess painting the tips silver and waiting for them to dry, I decided to use sparkly, silver card stock I happened to have. Continue reading
Chapter 36 in Story of the World volume 3 covers the end of the slave trade. We were very happy the abolitionists succeeded in their worthy endeavor. We discussed greed and how the desire for more money makes people do horrible things.
Abolitionist Poster
For our craft, we made an abolitionist poster – a very basic one. Large construction paper instead of poster board. Where would I put a poster board? We already have too little wall space because we have so many windows. Besides, I could not even fit a poster board in their craft bins (which are rather large, mind you). Continue reading