Posted by Cindy on April 4, 2009
Our last history unit of the year has been completed, and what a wonderfully rich unit it was! I think I mentioned in a previous post that this study was mostly literature-based. We chose really good books and learned about the life of slaves and struggles of the Civil War through the stories. Between books, field trips and hands-on projects, I don’t think there’s a much better way to learn history!
Before I go on, I’ve been asked several times how we fit in all the literature we read for our units. It’s really very easy! Many of the chapter books are checked out as books on tape and we listen to them in the car. We usually read one or two other chapter books together over the course of the unit, while some of them are reserved for individual reading time. Those reserved for individual reading time will have only been browsed ahead of time by me. We also still read a lot of picture books. I’m a sucker for picture books and I don’t think you’re ever too old to stop reading them! In all, we read together about 30-45 minutes a day. The kids read on their own 30-45 minutes each day. And we listen to books on tape almost anytime we’re in the car.
This week was project week, which means the children were assigned several projects and had all week to complete them. Friday night, all the projects were presented to the rest of the family. This is always a precious time for me! I get to see how much they’ve soaked in during the study and how creative they can be in completing projects. For those of you wanting to do “school” in ways that better meet the individual needs/gifts/learning styles of your children, projects are a great tool!
Last Friday, I handed each of the kiddos a project list that looked something like this:
- Choose one famous slave. Learn all you can about that slave and be prepared to tell us about the slave in first person. Don’t forget to create an authentic costume.
- Choose one Civil War battle. Create a model of the battle front and tell everything you can about the battle as you reenact it with the model.
- Choose one famous Civil War figure. Prepare a file folder biography about that person. Be sure to include pictures or illustrations when applicable.
- Either read or recite the Gettysburg Address.
On Monday morning, we headed to the library so the kids could find books to help them learn more about their chosen topics. The rest of the week was spent on math and completing projects.
Here’s a peek into project night!
Mahayla portrayed Harriet Tubman and Caleb became Henry “Box” Brown.
Mahayla set up this model of the Battle of Perryville – a battle that took place not to far from us in Kentucky.
Caleb chose the Battle of Bull Run. They both gave very detailed information and maps of their battles. They even found photographs of the battle sites to share.
Caleb’s Civil War figure was Robert E. Lee. He was very impressed with himself for finding pictures of all of Lee’s family, his home, his college and more. We looked at pictures for quite some time!
Mahayla’s Civil War figure was Ulysses S. Grant. You can see the file folder template we used below. It came from Easy File Folder Reports. We love that book!
Caleb practiced and practiced reading the Gettysburg Address throughout the week. He didn’t miss a word on project night!
Mahayla created little copies of the Gettysburg Address for each of us so we could follow along with her. Eli enjoyed his upside-down!
And that brings us to the end of another history unit. My wheels are already turning for next year’s units!
Next week the main assignment will be writing a children’s book. And the following week will be presenting a chemistry show. I’ll be sure to share both projects here.
So sorry if my blogging slows down for a little while. Melissa and I are working steadily on our nature study units and hope to have them completed by June. We are so excited about them and hope you will be, too!
Posted by Cindy on March 20, 2009
Words cannot adequately express our trip to the Freedom Center in Cincinnati yesterday. After spending so much time in our unit study learning about slavery in our country before and after the Civil War, we have become immersed in the sadness, courage and strength of slaves, abolitionists and those who risked their lives to help on the Underground Railroad. It may be because of this that the Freedom Center touched us so deeply, although I think it would probably touch just about anyone who walked through the doors.
Besides the emotional impact, it’s a terrific state-of-the-art museum with top-notch displays. They offer classes and tours for groups, but we chose to just take the self-guided tour – and I’m ever so glad we did! Upon arriving for a self-guided tour, they give you a map and listening devices that you wear around your neck. There are separate tours available for families with children or adults alone. We took the family tour which means we looked for the red signs near displays, pressed the number into our listening devices and listened to just enough kid-friendly information about the displays.
Not only were the listening devices a great interactive tool, there were many displays that allowed the children to listen, touch, or experience various things in a hands-on way. Above is a picture of the boys sitting in a crate similar to the crate Henry Brown mailed himself in to gain freedom from slavery. Below are just a few of the displays that were beautifully crafted and brought the stories of slavery and the Underground Railroad to life.
Best of all were the films that were interspersed between exhibits. You first meet Harriet Tubman in a simple, nearly voiceless film that is very powerful. Then, you watch a film that lasts only three or four minutes, but brings home the sadness of a slave choosing to leave his family in order to attempt an escape to freedom. But the most moving of all is a documentary introducing you to the real-life facts of two very brave abolitionists who helped slaves cross the Ohio River from Kentucky into Ohio – ex-slave John Parker and Reverend Rankin. After this documentary, you’re led down a dark path to a theater that is down by the “river”. You watch two young slaves in their attempt to cross the Ohio River with the help of conductor John Parker and attempt to make it to safety the station located in Rev. Rankin’s barn. This movie not only brings you right into the story, but helps you to understand the unbelievable courage and risk on the part of those who helped slaves.
Even after all the wonderful displays, moving films, and welling of emotion, nothing touched me more than these two actors. They weren’t even sitting on the porch of this authentic slave pen as actors. In fact, I think they were just taking a rest. But after snapping this picture, it hit me all of the sudden. Real people who loved each other dearly were taken away from one another in an instant in the name of money and power. Real people faced a life of loving, knowing that they might lose that love – whether a spouse, parent or child – without ever getting a chance to say goodbye. Real people were often treated worse than the cattle we raise on our farm. Real People. God’s children. Of course, I knew this all along, but something about seeing these actors brought floods of emotion over me. I can’t imagine how slavery was ever thought of as acceptable – and still is in many parts of the world.
And just so I don’t leave this post on a downer note – the Freedom Center is located on the Ohio River right between the Paul Brown Stadium – home of the Cincinnati Bengals – and the Great American Ball Park – home of the Cincinnati Reds. Because Caleb loves baseball so much, we took a little walk to visit the Reds’ stadium. He was overjoyed!
Posted by Cindy on February 25, 2009
Wow. We’re on our last planned history unit of the school year. It feels great to be ahead of schedule! (At least in history, anyway!)
I’ve sketched out the main topics I hope to cover in a unit on slavery and the Civil War. I think we’ll plan to make this mostly a literature and writing unit, with project choices for both parts of the study.
We’re using bits and pieces of the Slavery in North America lapbook from In the Hands of a Child. I guess you could say this is sort of our spine curriculum. All other information will be gleaned from the laundry basket full of books I’ve checked out from the library! I’ve listed some of my favorites in the side bar, but needless to say, I can’t begin to name them all. When I come across some new favorites, I’ll be sure to post them.
The basic concepts of the unit are listed below. After reading about, researching or discussing each topic, I’ll ask the kids to either make a notebooking page, complete a lapbook activity or do a writing assignment that we can put in some sort of notebook at the end of the unit.
Here’s the order in which I hope to cover the topics…
- What is slavery?
- When did slavery begin? How did it begin in America?
- What was is like to be a slave in America?
- Who played major roles in the abolition movement?
- What were major events of the abolition movement?
- What was the Underground Railroad an who were some major figures in helping slaves escape to freedom?
- What was the Civil War?
- For what reasons did the Civil War take place?
- What were several major battles and who were several major figures of the war?
- What was the war like in Kentucky (a divided state)?
- What is the Emancipation Proclamation?
- What was life in America like directly after the war?
- How did life change for former slaves after the war?
- What struggles did former slaves still face after the war and for many years to come?
- Where is slavery still taking place in today’s world?
When I come up with project ideas, I’ll be sure to post them in case they might help you, too.
