Category Archives: History

The Secrets of the Stonehenge

Children's books, Children's fiction, History, History Books, ,

The Secrets of Stonehenge, by Mick Manning (Author) and Brita Granström (Illustrator) (Frances Lincoln Children’s Books)

This is a factual picture book aimed at older children charting the history of Stonehenge. Starting from the Mesolithic nomadic hunter-gatherers, through the first farmers to Stonehenge as a modern tourist destination. It examines how the henge was built, how it changed over time and what it may have been used for.

Each page bursts with movement and Brita Granstrom’s characteristic lively illustrations dominate each page. An information packed paragraph starts each page, and annotations, and speech weave through the pages. Packed with information, and theories about Stonehenge, but without overwhelming or being boring in way that factual books often are.

Side panels on each page clearly separate out the background information. The multi-layered illustrations and writing mean that this book can be used on many levels – as a simpler picture book by focusing on the illustrations and annotations, right up to a summary of Stonehenge for adults.

My only gripe is that I would have preferred to see the dates in the very attractive timeline at the back use BC/BCE as well as years ago. This would make it easier for younger readers to put Stonehenge into wider historical context.

secrets of stonehenge

  Find Secrets of Stonehenge on Amazon…

 

Prehistory

History, , , ,

Prehistory accounts for the vast majority of time on Earth. From the Earth’s beginnings, through the time of the dinosaurs to the first human cities. Human prehistory covers a fascinating range of different cultures across different times and places.

It is defined as being before written history, and this of course varies across the world.
In British history prehistory lasted until the arrival of the Romans. Whereas in Australia prehistory continued into the 18th century.

Stone Age – Paleolithic

Stone Age – Neolithic
Bronze Age
Iron Age

World History – our approach

History, History Books, Home education, ,

A couple of years ago after a quick run through of British history we started looking at world history.
Many home educators use The Story of the World as a basis for world history, so we began by investigating this.

Story of the World

sotw

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The first story grabbed my then eight year old daughters attention, but we soon discovered that these books didn’t work for us. We found the layout and writing pretty boring. Past the first story the tales lacked characters and everything lacked enough variation to make things interesting. The Activity book didn’t really work for us either, as we’ve found conversation and story telling to be more useful. The slight Christian bias also didn’t suit us.
I was however quite taken with the idea of the four year cycle of ancient, medieval, early modern, and modern.

Well-Trained Mind, The Story of the World

Our approach

Rather than use The Story of the World I decided on a research it ourselves and collaborate with friends approach. Here is a bit about what has worked for us.

Monthly time period

I assigned a time period to each month (around eight per year) focusing on ancient history for the first year, then this last year we have moved on to medieval history.

1. Ancient History (Up to approx 400AD/CE)

  • Prehistory
  • Ancient Mesopotamia
  • Ancient Egypt
  • Ancient China
  • Other ancient peoples
  • Ancient Greece
  • Ancient Rome

2. Medieval History (approx 400 to 1400AD/CE)

3. Early Modern
A bit about how our approach is developing this year…

  • Renaissance Europe
  • Islamic Empires
  • Russia
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Australia
    • pre-Contact Australia
  • Americas
  • England
  • British Isles

4. Modern

The schedule can also be easily changed to include times and places of particular interest or significance to your family

Resources

Rather than use a bought curriculum we have researched ourselves.
We have used lots of different resources along the way. reference books, websites,  historical fiction, children’s factual books, websites,  TV documentaries, children’s TV, board games, music videos and more. Sometimes I read adult books and shared my findings with my daughter through conversation.

  • World History reference books
  • Factual books
  • Historical fiction
  • World History websites for adults and children
  • TV documentaries
  • Children’s TV shows
  • TV drama
  • Music videos
  • History craft books
  • Board and card games

Over time I will blog about resources we found and used along the way.

Special Interests

Although this approach does require more research it has also enabled us to tailor history and has the advantage of allowing us to incorporate special interests. For us this meant focusing on mythology for some of the ancient time periods and then later on famous women in history. All sorts of interests can be incorporated in this way, from animals, transport to warfare depending on what excites the child. .

History Groups

We have really enjoyed tackling much our history as part of history groups. It helps us focus on the history and gives a deadline by which to produce something to share.
We are part of a Facebook group where home educators can share resources and ask for help and ideas. https://www.facebook.com/groups/historyhomeeducation/

Iron-age or Celtic Britain

History, ,

Moving on from the Stone Age  in the British Isles bronze technology arrives from the continent around 2500BC, and around 800BC the Celtic iron age culture begins.

Websites and online games

  • http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/celts/ – We love this interactive, animated stories and games on Celtic Wales. Also has some information, Celtic sites in Wales and craft ideas.
  • Iron Age Life – Find out whether you have the skills to make fire, bake bread and spin cloth and so survive the Iron Age. 
  • Boudicca’s revolt – Meet four characters and find out about their view of Boudicca’s Revolt (illustrated, but text/reading based)

Things to make and do

Over the years we have returned to Iron age Britain several times and have found these resources useful for things to make and do. We have dressed up, made cardboard swords and shields, and twisted wire torcs, painted ourselves with fake blue tattoos and visited Celtic Harmony.

  • Butser Ancient Farm – Downloads include how to make clothes, shoes from an educational site in Hampshire
  • Celtic Harmony Camp - Hertfordshire based education site with roundhouses, educational visits, archery and bushcraft

Places to go

  • Celtic Harmony Camp - Hertfordshire based education site with roundhouses, educational visits, archery and bushcraft

Factual Books – to come

Historical Fiction – to come

 

 

 

Minnow and the Bear

Books and Magazines, Children's books, Children's fiction, History, History Books, Nature Books, , , ,


Minnow and the Bear, by Benedict Blathwayt (Red Fox Picture Books)

A beautifully illustrated children’s book, but disappointing as historical fiction.

Minnow, the caveboy longs to be old enough to go hunting with the men, but instead he accidentally falls into the river and gets washed down river. Minnow and his new friend the bear cub survive in the wilds, until the depths of winter draw him back home.

The outstanding thing about this book is the illustration. Exquisite, detailed, studies of the natural world, laid out in full pages and smaller cartoon strip style, gentle action through the pages.

Despite this it failed to impress us as historical fiction. The words feel slightly disjointed, but most of all the characters and culture feel all wrong.

Whilst the boy appears perfectly capable of gathering food and looking after himself on his adventures the women of his community are completely useless. They are seldom seen to move from their cave, don’t gather foods or do any productive work and are unable to relight the camp’s fire when it goes out. With each re-reading these parts feel more and more patronising and unrealistic as a portrayal of a time when the whole community had to work together to survive. The sharp division between the adult male hunters and the one lone boy also grates. Rather than showing the way hunter gatherer children learn by immersion in the every day life of their community, it feels like a twenty first century boy’s day dream.

In summary a good picture book for a child that loves visual elements and tiny details, but best avoided as a means of learning about the stone age. If you want a children’s picture book that exudes the feel of the time and people then we recommend Stone Age Boy.

Find Minnow and the Bear on Amazon…

References:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/200808/children-educate-themselves-iii-the-wisdom-hunter-gatherers

 

 

Not so free of the National Curriculum ?

History, History Books, Learning, ,

As home educators we don’t have to study set subjects,  use particular methods or follow the National Curriculum. So the National Curriculum should surely be irrelevant to us unless we choose to follow it, or keep a vague eye on it as a comparison?

For most of the things we learn about this is true – we happily get on with it without a backward glance at the National Curriculum. But there comes a time when it steals into our world. It creeps into our education in subtle ways, often precisely because we aren’t following it.

As soon as you step outside the officially sanctioned topics, at the designated key stage it suddenly becomes much harder to find resources. Resources such as the BBC are, not surprisingly, geared towards the National Curriculum. Perhaps more surprisingly so are children’s book publishers, to a frustrating degree.

For our family this is especially noticeable when it comes to history. My eldest and I love history. We spend a lot of time reading and talking about it. It is the core of our child-led learning experience, because E is always looking for interesting historical tit bits, and I am always scouting ahead in order to find resources and information to feed her (and my own) appetite for more. The deeper we delve the more frustrating the droughts and the deluges become.
Some historical periods have almost nothing published for children. Try finding more than one or two books on Bronze Age Britain or the highly influential Phoenicians. Books become impossible to source from libraries, and increasingly difficult even through Amazon. Gems surface,  but are often out of print or only available from US, which has more of an emphasis on world history. Online it is a little easier as gaps can be filled in by resources created for other countries, but generally even children’s resources are wordy, and often aimed at the wrong level.

Even the favoured periods laid out in the National Curriculum are not with out problems. Here it turns from famine to feast, the kind of feast that leaves you stuffed, yet unsatisfied and regretful. The overwhelming numbers of resources and books, and the publishers’ desire to knock out more to meet the curriculum mean a flood of often poorly illustrated, incoherent and quite frankly boring books. Finding the gems is hard work, like finding the proverbial needle. And that is before we have dared to tackle a period outside the designated key stage.

In 2014 the current National Curriculum is to be replaced. One set of frustrations will inevitably be replaced by others. So publishers will fill in gaps for Bronze Age Britain, but other areas will remain or may even become poorly covered.

National Curriculum:

Primary National Curriculum until 2014 – History 
Secondary National Curriculum until 2014 – History

Changes to National Curriculum

Follow the discussions, and the controversy over changes to history curriculum

http://the-history-girls.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/the-case-of-disappearing-victorian-and.html

Other Curriculums

History teachers – a chronology

History,

We love the way music can be combined with lyrics for a truly exceptional learning experience. Some of the finest we know have have been produced by History Teachers.

Youtube Channel

History for Music Lovers, historyteachers on Facebook

So I have listed these great history music videos in order of historic chronology:

Prehistoric:

Prehistoric

Ice-man

Ancient Middle East:

Civilization

Ancient Egypt:

Mummification

Nefertiti

King Tut

Cleopatra

Ancient Greece:

Ancient Minoan Civilization

The Trojan War

The Odyssey

Greek Philosophers

Macedonia

Ancient Rome:

Viva Roma No. V

Hannibal

Gladiator

Julius Ceasar

Pompeii

Constantine

Attila the Hun

Ancient China:

Chinese Dynasties

Ancient India:

The Mahabharata

Americas:

The Olmecs

Early Medieval / Dark Ages:

Beowulf

King Arthur

Theodora

Charlemagne

Vikings

Middle Ages:

Illuminated Manuscripts

William the Conqueror

Eleanor of Aquitaine

I’m a Knight

Crusades

Thomas Aquinas

Divine Comedy

Mansa Musa

Canterbury Tales

Black Death

Joan of Arc

Battle of Agincourt

Guttenberg

Renaissance:

Copernicus

Borgias

Leonardo de Vinci

Martin Luther

The Spanish Inquisition

Henry VIII

Anne Boleyn

Mary Queen of Scots

Elizabeth I

Shakespeare

Renaissance Man

Modern world:

Catherine the Great

Marie Antoinette

The French Revolution

Napoleon

Digital Life

British History Basics – reference books

Books and Magazines, Children's books, History, History Books, Learning, ,

We started with a run through British history and have really appreciated the chronological backbone this has given us for our current world history.

A good reference book forms the backbone for studying history, not only do they provide information but they also provide a starting point from which to branch out in search of other books, Youtube videos, documentaries and crafts.

british history

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Our favourite British History reference book is:

British History: From the First Human Inhabitants to the New Millennium

Philip Steele and Fiona McDonald, Published by Miles Kelly

This book has beautiful illustrations, and the text reads and flows well, so that it can be read aloud. The text is concise, and evocative, managing to bring the important facts to life.

It has a smaller format that many of the history reference books and we find that helps keep the amount of information on the page to a manageable amount.

Each of the seven eras starts with a chart to show what is happening in other parts of the world at the over the same time. It ends with mini biographies of important historical figures.

You might also try:

I would really love to hear about your favourite British History reference book.
Which one do you use and what do you like about it?

 

Kings and Queens of England

Children's books, History, History Books, ,

To celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee we have been thinking about our favourite children’s books and a few other resources on the Kings and Queens of England.

Our favourite:

Tony Robinson’s Kings and Queens

(or The Hutchinson Book Of Kings & Queens)

This is one of my eight year old’s absolute favourite books in the whole world. It has done much to turn an general interest in people into a passion for history. It covers Kings and Queens of England, and unlike many books goes back to Anglo-Saxons rather than just starting with Normans.

Read our full review of Tony Robinson’s Kings and Queens …

Other recommended books:

See on Amazon

Cruel Kings and Mean Queens (Horrible Histories)

Horrible Histories books always go down well in this house. This is a chatty, humorous and highly irreverent book. Starting at William the Conqueror it covers the monarchs of England in bite size pieces. The cartoon strips and bullet points make it very approachable for inexperienced or reluctant readers.

See on Amazon

King and Queens, A Very Peculiar History

This mini book is absolutely jam packed with concise facts, lists and quirky stories. It includes Saxon and Scottish Kings and provides good context for the monarchy. Although maybe slightly less approachable than the Horrible Histories it will appeal to those with a love of small books, and who want to move on from the gruesome, all kings and queens are cruel and mean approach of Horrible Histories.

Other books:

A couple of other books on Kings and Queens that we haven’t got around to investigating properly:

Sticker books

Sticker books provide a fun way to approach a subject.

  • Sticker Dressing: Kings & Queens – A sticker dolly dressing up book with kings and queens from all over world. This is a firm favourite. Bold, beautiful pictures, with luxurious stick-on outfits and a simple summary of each ruler with details of their clothing. This book has a nice balance of male and female figures. Ranges from Ancient Egypt to modern day, and an interesting mix of the usual suspects (Henry VIII) and less often covered rulers that we found sparked further investigations (Theodora and Justinian).
  • Kings and Queens Sticker Book (Usborne sticker book)
    More complex sticker book on the monarchs of England and Scotland. Packed with information on each ruler, with stickers to add through out.
  • Kings & Queens Ultimate Sticker Book (DK)

Cards, games and posters

Kings and Queens of England Playing CardsHeritage Cards does some lovely playing cards with very interesting pictures. My daughter loves the Kings and Queen of England ones (they also do Kings and Queens of Scotland). These are beautifully illustrated, and simple with just the name and dates of their rule. These get hours of play in our house – both as playing cards and for laying out family trees.

Whilst researching this post I found a card game called Monarchy, which we hadn’t seen before and looks like it might be interesting. Also just wondering if anyone knows of good top trumps game with English monarchs on them?

Usborne do a set of Kings and Queens Cards (History Cards) – a picture card with a large picture on one side and facts on the back. Plus cards listing the royal dynasties and kings and queens of England and Scotland. These are a larger size than the Heritage playing cards.

Music Videos

History Teachers and Horrible Histories both cover various monarchs, including some English and Scottish ones. These are firm favourites here, and we find that an enormous amount can be learnt from a good music video.

Our recommended starting place for English Kings and Queens of England is the Horrible Histories English Kings and Queens Song – a fun way to become familiar with them and maybe learn their order! There are also songs and sketches about lots of the English Kings and Queens from the TV series. (the easiest way to find these is to search Youtube for a ‘horrible histories’ and the monarch in question).

Another favourite source of history music videos ours is the History Teachers – more grown up, less ‘horrible’ and often quite poignant. I’ve blogged a rough chronological list but here are the English and Scottish ones.

Videos

Timelines and Posters

Finding out more:

And finally a few websites for finding out more. Suitable for older children or adults.

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Do you have any favourite books on Kings and Queens of England?
Can you recommend any that cover Wales, Scotland and Ireland too?