Are you looking for a homeschool history curriculum that teaches kids all the wonderful aspects of history without all the dull memorization requirements? This year, instead of forcing your kids to memorize date after date after date, why not ignite wonder with a flexible history through literature curriculum?
When I was growing up, I was one of those kids who dreaded history class. Yes, the stories and the events were interesting but in my classes at least, we didn’t focus on the fun aspects of history. Instead, we focused on names and dates. Nothing but names and dates.
Talk about boring.
And now that I’m grown up I can remember very little of my childhood history lessons.
When I began homeschooling my kids, I knew I wanted their experience to be completely different from mine. That’s why I was so excited to finally find a history curriculum that is filled with good books and hands-on activities rather than endless (and meaningless) memorization.
This article was sponsored by Beautiful Feet Books. I was compensated for my time. This article contains affiliate links which means if you click on a link and make a purchase, I might make a small commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions will forever remain my own.
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What is Beautiful Feet Books?
Beautiful Feet Books is a Charlotte Mason-inspired curriculum for homeschoolers that is designed to be enjoyed as a whole family. There are Beautiful Feet curriculum bundles that cover a myriad of subjects including science, history, geography, and more.
Each bundle comes with a collection of absolutely gorgeous books. The books are hand-picked by homeschooling experts and revolve around a certain topic. They are age-appropriate and easy to follow along to.
We love Beautiful Feet Books curriculums. If you’re interested in a Charlotte Mason-inspired curriculum that is filled with beautiful living books, done-for-you lesson plans, and the flexibility to include all the kids at once, you have got to try out Beautiful Feet Books.
A Closer Look at the Early American History Intermediate Curriculum
This year our family is diving into the Early American History Intermediate Curriculum by Beautiful Feet Books. This bundle is geared towards upper elementary-aged students but I am also including my middle schooler and my younger elementary students, just for my own convenience.
It dives into the early history of America, from the Native American settlers to the Founding Fathers to the Civil War. It’s a wonderful resource that our family is really enjoying.
This is not the first Beautiful Feet Books curriculum we have tried. We also love their early geography curriculum. One day I hope to own every Beautiful Feet Books collection.
On our first day, we went through the continents of the world. We discussed their names and their locations. We were lead to some fun resources that helped the kids memorize each of the seven continents and my kids went from not even knowing how many continents there are in the world to being able to recite the name of each one and recognize them when they look at a map.
Once we had a good grasp on the continents, we dove into early American history and focused on the early Native American settlers. Next up was the Golden Age of Discovery, the colonies, and The Revolutionary War.
We learned all about Young America and her early struggles and triumphs. And we wrapped everything up with some lessons on the Civil War.
Each lesson included guided reading (a couple of pages) as well as associated crafts, activities, or recommended videos. The kids kept a notebook where they pasted and colored pictures, wrote down thoughts, and drew out their ideas.
For being a history curriculum, this resource was nothing like the history curriculums I grew up with. It was fun, engaging, exciting, and simple. It was easy for the parent to teach and not overwhelming for the children to grasp.
Even though I used a curriculum that was recommended for upper elementary ages and lower middle school ages, my younger elementary kids had no problem following along with each lesson, but my older kids were still able to understand the complex ideas that kids their age should be expected to grasp.
I am a huge fan of Beautiful Feet Books and everybody I know who has given these resources a try has absolutely loved them as well.
Why Learn History Through Literature?
While learning through literature might not be the best way to approach some school subjects, learning through literature is my personal favorite way to learn about history.
Let’s take the Early American History curriculum from Beautiful Feet Books for example. The kids got to learn about different tribes and what each tribe was known for/good at. They had a ton of fun learning about each tribe and reading through the beautiful books.
Instead of having to memorize a bunch of random facts or listen to some boring lecture, we got to learn through engaging stories. We got to visualize and imagine the lives of these people while enjoying a family read-aloud.
There are many teaching methods and each teaching method is appropriate for certain learning styles. But one wonderful thing about learning through literature is the fact that read-alouds can grab the attention of many different learning styles.
Have a kinesthetic learner? Have them bounce on a ball or quietly doodle while you read. Have a visual learner? They’ll love looking over your shoulder and looking at the pictures. Auditory learners can listen and absorb no matter what’s going on around them. And while each kid is listening, they are visualizing and solidifying the lessons that are being taught.
Who is This History Curriculum For?
As much as our family has loved these Beautiful Feet Books resources, I know that this style of learning is not for everybody. Some homeschools will absolutely benefit from a Charlotte Mason approach to learning and others will struggle.
So which are you? Will you benefit from trying a Beautiful Feet Books curriculum? Who is this history curriculum for?
A Beautiful Feet Books curriculum, such as this Early American History Intermediate Level, might be for you if:
- Your kids love reading – or especially listening to you read out loud.
- Your kids love flipping through books and absorbing the stories inside.
- Your kids have active imaginations and can take a story and bring it to life through acting, playing, or drawing.
- You enjoy teaching the entire family all at once (as opposed to teaching every child their own individual lesson).
- You enjoy a curriculum that has everything mapped out for you. No planning or prep on your part – just open and go.
You should avoid these Beautiful Feet Books resources if:
- You prefer an exclusively online curriculum (such as CTCMath or LightSail)
- You enjoy spending hours planning a customized lesson for each individual child.
- Your kids thrive with busywork, worksheets, or textbooks.
- You hate reading out loud. (No shame!)
If you believe that learning history through literature might be a good approach for your homeschool, then I encourage you to give Beautiful Feet Books a try!
When I first began with a Beautiful Feet Books curriculum last year, I was skeptical. The honest truth is I hate reading out loud. It makes my mouth dry and my throat hoarse. And honestly? I can’t sit still long enough to read a book to my kids. I am a kinesthetic learner and I have to be moving or wiggling at all times. I was that Mom who refused to read out loud to her kids and I feel no shame.
However, I decided to give Beautiful Feet Books a try. The books were gorgeous and I know my kids love sitting and listening to me read. Thankfully the lesson plans only had me read a couple of pages from each book a day so just as I was getting tired of reading, that day’s lessons were done and I was free to go! But the kids absolutely soaked up every minute of these read-aloud sessions and I couldn’t believe how much they learned and remembered.
Do I enjoy reading out loud to my kids? No, I still don’t. But I can deal with that for these resources because it only takes about 10 or 15 minutes from my day and then I’m done. But the benefit the kids get is outstanding, especially when you consider that I only put in a couple of minutes worth of effort.
Whether you are like me and hate reading out loud or you absolutely love spending that quality time with your kids, if you are even halfway curious about a literature approach to learning in your homeschool, give Beautiful Feet Books a try. If they converted me, a fully digital, anti-read-aloud homeschool mom, maybe they’ll sway you too.
Try a Beautiful Feet Books curriculum today!
Still not sure if a literature approach to homeschooling is best for your kids? Grab the freebie “5 Ways to Know if a Book is Worth Sharing With Your Kids” by Josh Berg.
Whether you are curious about a literature-based curriculum or you just want to make sure your homeschool’s read-alouds are going to benefit your kids, this freebie should help you on your journey. Grab your free copy now!
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Beautiful Feet Books Geography Curriculum Review
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