Friday, October 19, 2012

"History of the World" Timeline Notebook Study ~ Part 1


"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."

~ Genesis 1:1


One of the most appealing concepts (for myself at least) regarding home education, was the idea that we could teach our children world history in the order in which it actually occurred. It sounds very obvious, yet how many of us who have gone through the public school system can boast the know-how of thinking chronologically? Was Cleopatra alive prior to or before the birth of Christ (Answer: A short while before)? What was going on when Jane Austen was growing up in the English countryside (Answer: French Revolution)? To have your children understand the links of time and literally "show" them how everything unfolded since the beginning of creation appeared genius!


Main Tool to Implement Teaching History in Chronological Order?

The simple tool that pulls this study together is a history timeline. This is where you would record all your historical dates along with some brief information (as you learn about specific events in time). You are also encouraged to paste an appropriate illustration, clip art and/or timeline figure above your informational entries which provides an excellent visual aid for children. You can do your timeline on old computer-paper around the walls of your schoolroom for a daily display of your work or corral all information inside a timeline notebook. There is a *free* printable Book of the Centuries Timeline Notebook (found here) that we utilized with thankfulness! You can print one off per child or do a family timeline notebook together with mother navigating the project for younger children. Be creative and work with the needs and likes of your home! Victorian educator, Charlotte Mason, along with our modern day scholar, Ruth Beechick, confirm this approach to education…

"In order to give definiteness to what may soon become a pretty wide knowledge of history––mount a sheet of cartridge-paper and divide it into twenty columns, letting the first century of the Christian era come in the middle, and let each remaining column represent a century B.C. or A.D., as the case may be. Then let the child himself write, or print, as he is able, the names of the people he comes upon in due order, in their proper century. We need not trouble ourselves at present with more exact dates, but this simple table of the centuries will suggest a graphic panorama to the child's mind, and he will see events in their time-order."
~ Charlotte Mason

(Note: This is what the notebook printable, Book of the Centuries has already done for you.)


"For children, timelines are not for pulling together the scattered pieces of knowledge, as they do so well with adults; children haven't yet collected enough pieces to pull together. What timelines do for children is to provide a framework into which they can put pieces of knowledge as they learn them. For this framework purpose, timelines should be very simple-- so simple that children can memorize them."


Does this concept of teaching world history interest you?

History of the World Notebook Study/Part 2 (Recommended Ages and Such)


"These things children must have; but they come into the world with many relations waiting to be established; relations with places far and near, with the wide universe, with the past of history, with the the social economics of the present, with the earth they live on and all its delightful progeny of beast and bird, plant and tree; with the sweet human affinities they entered into at birth; with their own country and other countries, and, above all, with that most sublime of human relationships––their relation to God.
~ Charlotte Mason


9 comments:

  1. We each started a BOC last year, but so far this year, we've fallen behind on it. Using the AO curriculum w/ a BOC seems to be a bit harder. The dates aren't listed in the AO books like they are in a textbook. Any suggestions, friend?

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    1. The dates is something I have planned to post about, good question :) That can get tricky because a lot of them assume a "millions of years" point of view that we don't agree with in our home but you can get the idea from a World History Timeline Book such as what Usborne sells, a Google search or we get the majority of that information from LESSONS FROM HISTORY by Gail Schulz (5 book Creation-based curriculum OUTLINE series). I will go into more detail in the posts:) Hope this helps!

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  2. Wow! I wonder if it's too late to use this with my kids! Can't wait to read part 2!!

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    1. I don't think it would be too late if your children aren't high school level?! This is such a neat idea and is very versatile!

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  3. Titus 2:4-5 "Teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that The Word of GOD be not blasphemed.

    Father Help! and HE does.......

    You testified of having "three earthly weaknesses(pleasures)".

    Yes, "aliens and pilgrims while on the earth" will have weaknesses.

    Yet the primary weakness we all have is "I"!

    So it is that the "I(ego,id,self,pride)" Must Die!

    But to live, yet die, seems an impossible task,
    And so we need of "Our Father", the impossible to ask.

    Help me to "deny myself(die to "I",ego,id,self,pride)" Father!

    http://asimpleandspirituallife.blogspot.com/2009/05/i-must-die.html

    Father Help! and HE does.......

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  4. JES! we tried to do this by going from one side of the room all the way around to where we began, from earliest Creation to the present. I ran out of wall-space, but it was great! I, too, am looking forward to your second part. Sending blessings to you and yours, dear friend!

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  5. I think this is great! It's so interesting to learn the timeline of history! I will have to come back and get this info when my kids are ready for it! :)

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  6. I'm just now reading this series and I'm glad you posted it as well. I, too, felt that the idea of studying history from the very beginning (Genesis 1:1) to the present, in chronological order) was the best idea ever. We are currently in our 2nd year of homeschooling and I was educated in the public school system. So history has quickly become my favorite subject now that I get to teach it to my children. The only part that I've struggled with has been the timeline, specifically because of the dates and how to present it. This may be what I'm looking for. Thanks so much for sharing it!
    Now on to parts 2 through 5!

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    1. Oh Stacie, we are having such a blast with this study!!! I highly recommend doing one! The Old Testament has come alive as we are studying history in order and so many interesting things have been revealed to us… Happy homeschooling :) JES

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