Last week we studied the Revolutionary War, this week is the Civil War. We're cramming in South Carolina state history because Ethan is spending next week in Charleston with Brian's parents and I wanted him to be able to have knowledge and context for the historical sites he'll be visiting.
For the Revolutionary War study, we watched a lot of PBS' Liberty Kids episodes. We made it about halfway through the season, and will finish them up when we backtrack through a broader look at American history later this year. The best book was Francis Marion and the Legend of the Swamp Fox. It not only told the story of Francis Marion, but also gave a broad view of South Carolina's role in the American Revolution, particularly from 1780-1782, and the major characters involved. Highly recommended.
Our Civil War study has primarily focused on a discussion of the various classes of people in antebellum South Carolina, slavery, cotton and the state's economy, and an understanding of states' rights. If you homeschool in South Carolina, you can sign up for free access to Discovery Education and United Streamin SC's large collection of educational programming. We've enjoyed so many resources there! This week the children have enjoyed the first four parts of the six part "Detective Bonz and the SC History Mystery". They've also enjoyed the wonderful storytelling on the "African Story Journey".
We have several books to read, and I'd love to get to the American Girls' Addy series sometime, but today we read a winner: Seven Miles to Freedom: The Robert Smalls Story . I'd never heard this man's story before, and not having preread it, I was on pins and needles right along with the children. Get it at the library or bookstore and read it to your kids, even if you're not studying the Civil War this year. :^)
Tomorrow we're going to skip the core subjects, take an autumn nature walk (hopefully), so an autumn craft, read some books about the Hunley, and backtrack a bit to watch a program about how Britain lost the War for Independence in the South
1 comment:
If he's going to Charleston, you need to make sure he understands the term "War of Northern Aggression" :) Because that's what they call it more often than not!!!
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