Monday, May 30, 2016

A Review: Heroes, Heroines and Tales of Ancient History

It’s no secret that I love history.  Thankfully, Josiah has developed a love for the subject…which is a good thing, considering that I love history (did I mention that already?). A few years ago, I was blessed to review a group of history learning products from Golden Prairie Press. Amy Puetz just recently sent me her Heroes, Heroines, and Tales of Ancient History to see what I thought.



There are so many reasons to love this curriculum. For one, it can be used with different ages. For families with lots of learners this is a BIG benefit. Of course, I just have one curious and busy boy. It is still as terrific just with one student. It is also a full year curriculum. When I say a full year curriculum…I mean a FULL year of terrific hands-on experiences, terrific reading passes, songs, skits and much more!

I received the digital downloads of all the products, but there is a printed product option available, as well. One of the big benefits of the digital download is that there are unlimited downloads. 

This is what I received…

Listen To Some Ancient History – This is an audio collection of original speeches, letters and more.

Heroes, Heroines, and Tales of Ancient History Part 1 – This book contains all the lessons for the first half of the year.

Heroes, Heroines, and Tales of Ancient History Part 2 – This book contains all the lessons for the second half of the year.

Ancient Historical Skits   - Fun skits    
       
Ancient Coloring Book Bonus (coming soon!)

Sing Some Ancient History – This file has all the songs that are mentioned in the books (I LOVE THIS!)

Ancient Additional Materials  - These are some fun, extra bits that help in history learning. It has a printable timeline, beautiful artwork, and some videos.

This curriculum is intended for grades 1st through 6th. Of course, I think that you can use it with anyone who wants to learn some history (including curious and eager mommas). It’s divided up into lessons. Each lesson has 5 days of material. The curriculum begins with the study of Creation and ends with the beginning of the dark ages.

There are options every day for lower and upper grades. Some activities can be used for both. What I love is that there are options and ideas to use with each lesson. It is a very “learner friendly” curriculum.

I want to talk a bit about the stories used to tell the stories of our past. They are reprints of old and new stories. They aren’t simply dry facts, but help bring history alive. There are also writing topics and discussion questions included within the lessons. They are to help you ascertain how much the student is grasping. Of course, the writing lessons provide an integrated approach to learning.

The activities used to enforce the lessons are varied. We are encouraged not to try and use them all…we just need to do what works best with our crew.

I love it when the best of our homeschooling worlds collide. A suggested project during one lesson was to make Noah’s Ark out of playdough. Of course, Josiah had just finished an art unit on using air dry clay! How fun! Students are not only encouraged to create art, but to study it as well. Beautiful works of art are included throughout the curriculum.

The curriculum is also very “Scripture centered.” I love the verses that are included the curriculum.
There are a few items we just haven’t had a chance to try out. It’s hard to do a one-man skit. The Historical Skits has 10 skits in all. However, I’m sure that eventually we will be able to encourage a friend or two to help out.

There are so many fun activities that are included. Cooking, crafts, games…they all find their way into the lessons. Shew! I think Amy has done a beautiful job in making history leap off the pages and into our imaginations. You need to check it out! 

This curriculum is well worth investing in. I LOVE, LOVE everything about it.

 You can check it out by going to the Golden Prairie Press website and downloading a sample or two. 











Disclaimer: I received the above item for free in exchange for my honest review. I am not required to write a positive review.  The views expressed are all my own. 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *