England Week - Industrial Revolution

Like the actual industrial revolution, this book originates in England but then spreads into America. One key to that spreading thing is a man named Slater.

He grew up around the mills of England, and worked in them from the age of fourteen to twenty-one. That is when he finished an apprenticeship and wanted to open his own mill. But coming up with the money was a problem. He’d heard the United States awarded about $500 to the designer of a cloth-making machine and was sure there were opportunites for him there. However, the English, being protective of their healthy profits, made it illegal to send textile machinery, or plans for it, out of England. In Samuel Slater’s Mill: And the Industrial Revolution you’ll learn how young Slater played the part of a farmer to get out of England with all those machinery designs safely tucked away—in his head.

The book goes on to describe Slater’s partnerships, machines, workers (lots of children), and his growing business. It grew so much, in fact, that he was worth the amazing sum of $1,200,000 when he died! The effects of this sixty-year revolution are also discussed from the population’s shift from country to city and from farmer to wage earner as well as the pressure put on the south to produce more cotton with slave labor. 

Ages 9-12
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Acivity: Watch this video and then weave your own textile creation.

Learn History with the Beatles, Madonna and Lady Gaga

I stumbled across this video at the Why Homeschool blog:



Now, I’m no Lady Gaga fan — but I am gaga over this video! It was produced by a history teacher and a technology specialist. On youtube.com, where they offer over 50 videos, they go by the name historyteachers. Children will have fun learning about the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition and the Vikings with the oh-so-clever lyrics set to the tune of popular music by the likes of ABBA, Justin Timberlake, Blondie, Britney Spears and more. Hats off to historyteachers — great work!

How Globes Are Made

I have wondered about this....and now I know!

History of The World in Seven Minutes

If you have seven minutes to spare, I suggest you use it learning 13 billion years of history...

Carl’s Cosmic Calendar

Cosmos is the most watched American public television series in history, with over 500 million people having seen it. And you can add four more to that list.  

On these seven DVDs Sagan has intrigued my family as he discusses the origins of life, space, DNA, intelligent design, the diversity of life, the evolution of cities, the speed of light, constellations, terraforming Mars, natural selection and even the early explorers, the Rosetta Stone and the Alexandria Library.

Sagan had a gift for making complex scientific concepts clear, as shown by this explanation of the beginning of the universe to the arrival of humans on this cosmic calendar.




Ages 9 and up
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An Interview with Bessie Coleman

Instead of writing a report on Bessie Coleman, Shannon opted to write her own questions and answers for an interview. She had fun playing the part and learned a lot too. And without further ado, here’s Bessie...

Who Was St. Patrick?

This 59 second clip from the History Channel will give you a REALLY quick look at St. Patrick. Hope you are all enjoying your St. Patrick’s Day.

Navajo to the Rescue

Native Americans have saved pale faces from some dire situations a time or two. After all where would the Plymouth Colony have been without the aid of Squanto? Jamestown without Pocahontas? And during World War II, the United States military without the Navajo code talkers?

Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two, is a great source for learning about the later. The voice in this book belongs to a Navajo, Ned Begay, who is telling his grandchildren about his youth at boarding school and then his life as a marine.

Prior to World War II schools were organized to give Navajo children an "American" education. Talking in their native tongue was not allowed, and in fact, evoked severe punishment. The irony is that during the second World War the Navajo language that these children spoke secretly among themselves saved untold American lives.

The Japanese were decoding secret messages easily until the idea was implemented to use the unwritten, isolated Navajo language. Recruits from the southwestern reservation created their own code, substituting Navajo words for the military words they resembled. For instance, the Navajo word for “tortoise” was used in place of “tank” and “dive bomber” was the Navajo word for “chicken hawk.” Or words could be spelled out using the Navajo word for “ant” or “apple” or “ax” for an “A” and so on.

This book not only chronicles the way in which the code evolved, but also the Pacific campaign itself. The main character is involved in the invasion of Bougainville, Guam, Pavavu, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. You get a feel for what the war was like for these soldiers and the unbending determination of the Japanese to NEVER surrender. Also the specific concerns of the more than 400 code talkers; their fears of deep water, dead people and of being mistaken for Japanese, as they shared such similar physical characteristics.

It is an eye-opening book in many ways.

Ages 12 and up
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Activity: Can you break this code using the Navajo code talker's alphabet? TSE-GAH WOL-LA-CHEE CLA-GI-AIH BI-SO-DIH TSAH-AS-ZIH CHA A-KHA DIBEH-YAZZIE YEH-HES BE BE-LA-SANA TSAH-AS-ZIH DIBEH!

Untold Stories Of The Second World War: The Navajo (Part 1)

Untold Stories Of The Second World War: The Navajo (Part 2)

Untold Stories Of The Second World War: The Navajo (Part 3)

11,000 Educational Videos - See for Free

Larry Sanger, who helped create Wikipedia, launched a new site in October that makes available educational videos for students aged 3-18. These videos have been available for public viewing from different sources. What Sanger accomplishes with www.watchknow.org is a single site for free to view educational videos that are organized by topic for easy searching. Categories include math, literature, languages and of course, history. I just took a peek at The Ancient Civilizations of Mesopotamia - An Introduction produced by National Geographic, Genghis Khan Biography by BBC and The Vikings by The History Channel. Be sure to make note of this great resource.

Think Inca

Reading Baktar: A Tale From The Andes was kind of like eating a banana split. At first it was sooo yummy, then half way through it turned slightly monotonous.

The story opens with a present day husband giving his new bride a tiny kitten with a mysterious pedigree, that comes in a mysterious box, with a mysterious note, and it does mysterious things with pencils in the middle of the night. I have never seen my children in such a lather at the onset of a book! They wanted more, more, more!

But their interest waned when we were introduced to the ancestor of this cat, Baktar, living with the granddaughter of the Inca king, Pachacuti, in Machu Picchu in the 15th Century. What began as a mystery story turns into a story of two people struggling emotionally: the princess with her upcoming marriage, the king with his changing belief in Inti, the sun god. Eventually Baktar sacrifices himself to save Pachacuti by eating his poisoned food. Then the author jumps back to the present day kitten who at this point is old and dies. But not before the contents of that mysterious note are revealed.

I will say this. You might feel regret after polishing off a banana split, but finishing Baktar satisfies due to the knowledge gained about Inca life.

Ages 9-12
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Activity: Here is a link to instructions on how to make your own llama.

Memorizing the Preamble to the Constitution

In lieu of having cable during our children's lifetimes, we've created a little stock pile of DVD's. Out of this collection, the early Andy Griffiths are hands-down our favorites. And here's a scene I found on You Tube that illustrates why. In this episode titled Andy Discovers America from The Andy Griffith Show - The Complete Third Season, Barney Fife "shows off" his ability to recall what he learned in his 8th grade history class. This is a MUST SEE for any child having to memorize the preamble to the constitution. Classic!

Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor, Your Huddled Masses...

...yearning to breathe free,

the wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me:

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!

—Emma Lazarus, 1883

The story of the Statue of Liberty is the story of a patriotic dreamer, a capable artist, an ingenious engineer, a talented poet and hundreds and thousands of French and American contributors. You will meet them all in Lady Liberty: A Biography.

The author, Doreen Rappaport, begins by telling of her own grandfather's (a Latvian immigrant) shipboard arrival into New York Harbor:

"The Lady! the Lady!" awakened him. He raced up to the deck. The ship was pulling into New York, and there was Lady Liberty greeting them all. Arms reached out as if to caress her. People lifted babies so they could see her. Tears ran down my grandfather's face. People around him were crying, too. And then a wave of cheering and hugging swept over the ship.

But how did she come to be? The answer is learned with introductions to the cast of characters responsible for creating this symbolic statue. Right down to young Florence of New Jersey who donated her two pet roosters to help pay for the pedestal! This is a well researched, organized, attractive book.

Ages 8-12

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Activity: Build and paint a Statue of Liberty Kit or give this Statue of Liberty word search a try.

The U.S. Civil War in Four Minutes

All About Al Queda

Osama bin Laden's head. That's where I have been for the last couple of weeks. I finally finished reading The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11. Wow. The breadth of research and the understandable delivery are beyond impressive. Lawrence Wright apparently interviewed 1,000 people in the Muslim world and it shows. I now know how this terrorist group evolved, starting in Egypt after World War II. It is fascinating how the pieces fit together: the formation of Israel, the sudden vast wealth of Saudi Arabia, the Soviet/Afghan War and the communication breakdown between the FBI and the CIA. Even the influence of the Kinsey report, the Monica Lewinsky scandal...and so much more. I have a clearer understanding of why these Islamic extremists hate America. A highly recommended read for every American adult. "Know thy enemy," as they say.

I became curious about books available for children on this subject. A well written book by Philip Margulies is titled Al Qaeda: Osama Bin Laden's Army of Terrorists. I found it to be organized, with just the right amount of information. And the last chapter is thought provoking.

"One person's terrorist is another person's freedom fighter. After all, the rebellious American colonists were once considered terrorists by the English government."

Margulies raises great discussion questions about the French Resistance in World War II, Hamas in Israel and how terrorists come to be.

Ages 9-12

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Schoolhouse Rock!

Wanted to get you in the mood for the fourth of July. Isn't it catchy? And nostalgic. And a little goofy too, what with the guy chasing the gal to represent “the pursuit of happiness.” What were they thinking?

Fourteen of these animated short films are now available on a DVD titled Schoolhouse Rock: Election Collection. Providing children with an entertaining look at American history and American government, the fourteen songs in this collection are:

• No More Kings
• Fireworks
• The Preamble
• The Great American Melting Pot
• Mother Necessity
• Sufferin' Until Sufferage
• I'm Just a Bill
• Three-Ring Government
• I'm Gonna Send Your Vote to College
• Tyrannosaurus Debt
• Tax Man Max
• Walkin' on Wall Street
• The Energy Blues
• Presidential Minute

All Ages
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For the musician in the family you might be interested to know that The School House Rock Songbook exists.





























Now, I wonder if I can get that "Fireworks" song out of my head!