Ideas of beefin' up SL 3 for ds14...

[stephanie]

I'm really wanting to use SL 3 for history, but that would be too easy for ds14. In addition, it would be much easier for me to have all 4 dc on the same time period of history and the same program. I'm just needing some ideas on making it a little more challenging. Maybe another book to supplement? I was thinking of supplementing whatever I did with Famous Men of Modern Times as well.

[Rhonda in TX]

The first half of that would cover the same time period as Core 3 and is intended for that age. It uses the Hakim books as the spine.

[Caroline4kids]

We just finished SL 3 and I kept thinking it was a great education for me.:)

The spine is quite adult. If your son really digested everything in that book, he would be doing well. There are so many other early American history books you could use to beef it up. Primary souce docs would be great--like Ben Franklin's auto biography or the Constitution itself.

I think a great study would be a study between the Constitution as it was written and how it is being interpreted in this day and age.

I thought core 3 was very much an "ageless' core. My husband and I learned so many new things.

[Karen in CO]

I would add in some age appropriate literature. If you like Sonlight, then you could get the SL130 literature and the study questions for the literature. You could try adding in the first Hakim book to see if it adds value - the first 4 or 5 would cover that full time period, but I think the history is covered well with the SL3 history selections if you require some good discussion and analysis from him.

[sandalwood]

I'm really wanting to use SL 3 for history, but that would be too easy for ds14. In addition, it would be much easier for me to have all 4 dc on the same time period of history and the same program. I'm just needing some ideas on making it a little more challenging. Maybe another book to supplement? I was thinking of supplementing whatever I did with Famous Men of Modern Times as well.

I just used Core 3 and even though my son is only 11, his reading level is 9th grade. He gets bored by easy readers, because he gobbles them up. What I did was still get the regular and advanced readers let him double up on those. I also had him most of the read alouds to himself. At 14, your son would be able to do the books like the Inca book & the Landmark book on his own, and I agree that is an adult level. I learned a TON from Landmark found it very interesting. The other thing we did was get more advanced readers from the library on US history in my son's reading level. When we would study about George Wash. for example, we'd go get a bunch of readers on him. We had no problem making the core "harder" There is so much US history available at the library, etc. so it is one of the easiest cores I think to supplement without any extra cost. I also had him do a "real" report versus their mini report they give a few times a year. I think it would be easy to beef up!

[stephanie]

Thanks so much ladies! That was all great tips. I'm off to check out some other Lit. options from SL!