If you are using an American history course that doesn’t go much beyond who discovered what when; who fought who when, and where; who reigned here, who reigned there, who was voted into office in 1797; who invented this, who built that, who wrote such and such a poem, or when such and such a book was written; stop here for just a minute – and let me tell you about a history course that will fill in all those blanks. This three-book course is a full year of study in 32 weekly lessons aimed at 5th – 8th grade students. It reads very well, not unlike a good story, using plain language, illustrations, and maps to retell the history of America – from the earliest explorers of America through to the beginning of the 19th century. Not missing any of the important information found in traditional history texts, students will be drawn into the exploration of history at a much deeper level and in a more diverse way. The author has emphasized the social and cultural aspects of American history to add extra life to the text – the clothes people wore, the houses they lived in, the foods they ate, the games they played, the schools they attended – all so very important to the study of history, though overlooked at times by many history courses. The chapters are well laid out, and all follow the same basic formula – a description of the atmosphere in which the events of the chapter occurred, followed by the body of the chapter in which the events are detailed and the stories told, and concluded with a list of ways the events had an impact on America’s future. In an effort to keep things simple for the parents, the three-book course is a comprehensive story of American history all by itself – the Student Reader reads like a story; the Student Activity Book is full of exercises, reviews, map work, and study questions; and the Teacher’s Guide/Answer Key contains teaching notes and directions for utilizing both the reader and activity book, answers to all the questions and reviews, games and activities, creative project ideas, timeline strategies, recommended reading lists, family fun activities, and more. However, if you want to take the study of American history more seriously and to a deeper level, the Teacher’s Guide also has plenty of options for further study. In fact, while focused mainly on grades five through eight, the Teacher’s Guide also contains suggestions for adapting this history course both for children younger than 5th grade and for high school students, using the course in a family setting, the co-op setting (which was originally how this course came into being), and the Christian school setting. Suffice it to say that this American history course by Christian author and history teacher Celeste Rakes is complete and thorough and adaptable to almost any setting a homeschooler would need. This course covers from the time of the explorers to the Jacksonians in the early part of the 1800’s. The Student Reader is hardcover, while the Teacher’s Guide and Student Activity Book are softcover. Illustrations and pictures are black and white.

Continuing the story of America, Vol. II picks up at the Civil War, with details of the prelude to the war through to the reconstruction afterward. From that point, the rest of American history is divided into three eras - the Gilded Age (also known as the Victorian Age), the period of the two world wars and the depression, and finally, the Cold War and latter half of the 20th Century.

Customer Review

 
Kelli K. from Madison, Ohio wrote the following on 08/28/2008:
This is a great, involved, highly academic, yet creative and interesting approach to American history particularly for older children. We are most definitely passionate about history and have a great interest in going beyond scratching the surface, an opportunity this curriculum provides. This curriculum is laid out well and can simply be opened and used. As a very busy homeschooling parent, I want to spend more of my time teaching my children than preparing to teach them. I appreciate this resource that covers explorers, colonies, states, presidents and so much more in such interesting detail. This truly looks like a typical textbook, and at first look, we were concerned that it would be the average textbook approach that does not fit our family. It is not your typical textbook, but reads like an interesting account of American history, providing new insights, details and perspectives. The student workbook is wonderful also. We purchased one student reader for our three children, and they each got to complete certain parts. They really looked forward to their turn to write in the book, especially the maps they have to complete and the cut and paste activities. While I would place this as an upper middle to high school level text, our younger children learn and enjoy from this as well. The reading is not captivating for the very young though. It is much more captivating for children who love history and are simply not satisfied with a quick sweep of historical persons and events. Our children learned and retained more information than I thought they would utilizing this program. We found it to be well worth the price, especially if you have multiple children using it. If your family is not history oriented, this may not be for you. However, if your family is intrigued by American history and you enjoy great reading, mapping, and creativity in learning, this may be the blessing for you that it has been for us. We are really looking forward to All American History, Part II. A note on the teacher's manual: If you are going to read and do the activities along with your child, you will not need the teacher's manual. If your child is working independently, you will really appreciate having the teacher's manual.