What do you use to

[Marsha]

combine everyone in history?
How many biographies and historical fiction books do you schedule for each to to read alone?

Thanks

[Rhondabee]

and it's only been since Christmas that I feel I've finally successfully combined them!

We start each chapter in SOTW by having 7th gr ds outline (or just read, or take notes on) the corresponding pages in KIHW. Usually, he will label the corresponding map (using a map in KIHW to label the map in the SOTW-AG) and put some dates in his timeline on this day as well.

ON the same day, my 4th gr ds reads the corresponding pages in the Usborne I-L History Encyclopedia, and goes to the links. If he finds something especially cool, his brother watches that, too. He sometimes does the map this day, but usually I will save the map and use the SOTW-AG map suggestions to help him "review" the stories before doing his narration.

The rest of the week is spent with SOTW. If we're not combining 2 chapters, usually we will read one story on Tuesday while taking notes. My 7th grader does this on his own. I still read the story with my 4th grader, and sometimes he takes notes, sometimes I do. (He tends to take too many, and I'm trying to get him accustomed to just finding the main ideas. I also focus his narration on a very specific part of the story rather than the whole thing.)

Then, on Wednesday, they use their notes to write a (hopefully) well organized paper. (*ETA: We all discuss the story together first. I use the questions in the SOTW-AG as a springboard.) The 7th grader is writing about a page (college-ruled), and the 4th grader writes either one or two paragraphs. I try to help him plan his topic sentence and his details, but he is more creative and will often come up with a more creative writing paper (like, pretending to be the emperor of China writing to the King of England).

Then, we do the second SOTW-story on Thursday/Friday.

Some weeks, we have to combine SOTW chapters, and then we'll usually opt to just read and discuss, and maybe do the test-maybe not.

I do historical fiction as read-alouds. I do get some history books & biographies from the library, but my kids are not big readers. Unless I make the effort to do those as Read-Alouds, too, they usually don't get read. (Yes, I feel very guilty about this, but they do get *so much* from the fictional/fictionalized biography Read-Alouds that just isn't communicated in the more text-book-y books, so .... I try to have them around, and read bits and snippets and be happy with that.)

Before I had this system, I tried to do SOTW together first, then split them up for encyclopedias and library books. That was always anti-climactic, because SOTW is just so full. This system might not work if you aren't using history to help teach writing. ;)

For younger kids, I think reading the Usborne together without taking notes, and then doing the SOTW stories followed by some of the Activity Guide would be great. My kids are older, and we aren't great at crafts, and my boys told me they didn't like making things that were just going to get thrown away so I've stopped the activities. Hopefully when dd (now 2yo) is ready for school, I'll be able to really dig in and do all the "cool" stuff!

Best wishes!
Rhonda