I just got my Mystery of History Vol. 3 text and CD. My first experience with MOH was a softcover book with a ton of instructions and reading suggestions. This is a hardcover book that is more like a text. It looks great...but I am wondering if there is a list of suggested books and possibly activities?
Did you not get the student book with it? It is a wonderful, 3 hole punched binded trade paper book with PREFORATED pages! It has all the activities, worksheets, tests, maps, and resources in that book. It comes separate form the hard back book, which is beautiful huh?
Yes, I sell it at 25% off - Here is it Here is the description of the "Companion Guide" Volume III of The Mystery of History has been divided into two beautiful books! The Student Reader contains engaging lessons from the Renaissance and Reformation and more; the Companion Guide: Curriculum and Student Activities contains everything else that has made The Mystery of History an award winning, user-friendly curriculum. Pretests; Hands-on/Research Activities for Younger, Middle, and Older Students; Memory Card ideas; bi-weekly quizzes and exercises; timeline helps; maps; supplemental book lists; and more.
Okay...I have the CD...that has activities and maps..just looked at it. It's the companion guide: curriculum and student activities CD-ROM. Is that the same thing as the book? I still think I may get the book. I got the CD and text free...so I can afford the book. lol
It is the same thing. What I love about the companion guide as the book is it is already 3 hole punched (but still binded) and is preforated. I prefer to use a book over making all the copies, but that is just me.
Oh I SO agree! I do believe I will buying one to two books. Of course, I will do so from you. Not only do you have an awesome price...you are a Homeschool Spot lady..and I prefer to support my own! LOL.
One more question...the companion guide does not seem to have suggested reading lists...is that correct. I will just have to make one up myself...or ask Jackie...I know of a ton of great books but not by time period.
The book is GREAT! Not only does it have suggested reading lists, it breaks it down into categories: Art History/Music, The Reformation/Church History, Early American History,Time Period Classics, and Primary Source Materials. I think this is new for this volume too: the outline maps are included PLUS outline map keys. This really is a valuable tool! I will be doing Vol 1 next year and go through them all. They look wonderful!
So glad I read through this thread. I have been curious just what was needed and how it was set up! Thanks for all the great info. Not ready for this volume yet, but I've thought about skipping ahead....it looks gorgeous!
I just finished reviewing all 3 books for the publisher. Here is part of my review for those interested. Alot of it pertains to facts about the curr and how it is layed out. What I enjoyed most when I first flipped through the books was that the author has made it super easy for the teacher, by breaking down each main area of teaching. This will definately aid the teacher in getting the most out of this fabulous curriculum. In the beginning of the books it explains how to use the curriculum with younger students (K-2nd), middle students (3rd-5th), and older students (6th-8th & up). It provides details for the teacher regarding the layout of the curriculum, pretests, lessons, activities, memory cards, reviews, and excercises, as well as quizzes, quarterly worksheets, and tests. Suggestions for student notebooks and timelines are also included. The author has listed several sample schedules to show you how many different ways the curriculum can be adapted to fit your family's schedule and different ages of your children. MOH can be taught using a 3, 4, or 5 day schedule. Each lesson has a pretest, which will allow you to figure out if your student(s) are familiar with the upcoming material, as well as giving them a curiousity and a preview about what they are going to be learning. Each volume is a little different in regards to the length of the reading for the lessons, and I will provide details in the review of each volume below. MOH uses a cumulative review system to make sure that the material is being retained, which I like very much. Included in the lessons are historical photos, engaging projects, mapping and timeline activities, a great memory card method used for review, quizzes and tests. The Appendix in the back of the books is very useful, containing pronunciation bookmarks, outline maps, activity summplements, and suggested books and videos to accompany each lesson. Also in the appendix are the answer keys. Volume I Creation to the Resurrection Volume I is broken down into 4 quarters/2 semesters, and 36 weeks. There are 108 total lessons with 3 lessons each week with a review, exercise, quiz or test at the end of each week. There are quizzes every other week or so and tests are scheduled at the end of each semester, so in my opinion, it is not too much. I think it is good to see how much the student retains. The reading for each lesson in this volume is relatively short, in my opinion. It ranges from 1-2 pages, with the typical lesson being about one page of reading. This can be good for the child that gets bored easily and forgets what they are reading. The text is very informative and engaging and leaves room for further digging if you have an older child capable of doing so. Activites are broken down for each lesson for younger students (K-2nd), middle students (3rd-5th), and older students (6th-8th & up). Many of these activities can be done at various ages, according to the interest of your children. For instance, my 5th grader may be interested in doing a younger student's activity as well as being capable of doing the older student's as well. It is all layed out for you and makes it very easy to teach. About every 3 lessons it instructs you to make your memory cards. In Vol I there are 12 specific dates your child should memorize and these get highlighted on the memory cards. In the front of the book there are suggested ways to do your memory cards. I think this will be a favorite activity for my children. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Volume II The Early Church and the Middle Ages Volume II is broken down into 4 quarters/2 semesters, and 28 weeks. There are 84 total lessons with 3 lessons each week with a review, exercise, quiz or test at the end of each week. This volume starts lesson one at Pentecost. By then end of the first semester you have traveled through Paul's Missionary journeys, learned about the martyers of the early church, studied about Nero, Constantine, the Mayans, Attila the Hun, and so much more. I love how important places and things in History are woven into this Biblical curriculum. The main thing I notice about Volume II is the lessons are longer and "meatier" than Vol I. There are fewer lessons, but the content is definatley more per lesson, which I like. This particuliar volume will be a lot of fun due to the interesting areas of study. I have heard the names of people and places taught in these lessons, but I am sure to learn as much as my children by going through this curriculum with them. The lessons in this volume range from 1-4 pages of reading, with the average being about 2.5 full pages. There are historical photos and sketches throughout the lessons that add interest to the materials being learned. The activities in this volume are engaging and encourage the student to really think about the lesson as well as how certain things in history affect their lives now. Like all other volumes, there are mapping and timeline activities, memory cards every 3 days, and a quiz about every other week. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Volume III The Renaissance, Reformation, and Growth of Nations Volume III is broken down into 4 quarters/2 semesters, and 28 weeks. There are 84 total lessons with 3 lessons each week with a review, exercise, quiz or test at the end of each week. This volume starts at The Age of Rebirth (1455-1521). It is not uncommon for curriculums with subsequent volumes to get better and better. MOH is no exception. Vol I and II are great, don't get me wrong, but I wanted to JUMP FOR JOY when I saw Volume III. The student reader is in a beautiful, full color, hardback book. What a treasure this is! Vol I & Vol II both have student worksheets, activities, quizzes, and tests, via a downloadable file available from BI Press. Vol III comes with a separate 3-whole punched, preforated (yes, I said preforated - love it), student companion guide. Everything you need for the worksheets, activities, maps (including answer keys for the maps), are all included in this wonderful book. The lessons in Vol III are longer than both Vol I & Vol II. The amount of reading in this volume range from about 3-6 pages per lesson. Woven throughout the lessons are full color pictures, sketches, and artwork from this era. The way that the lessons are layed out are very attractive and although there is more to each lesson, it is not at all boring. I imagine each reader will be excited to keep reading to learn more. There seems to be more activities to select from in this volume, but I may be wrong. Perhaps it is just because they are in a separate companion guide. I am so excited to start this series this coming school year. Honestly, I had no intentions on doing MOH next year. Not because I was against using it, but because I had no experience with it. Upon reviewing the curriculum I am sold! I was never good in History, mostly because it bored me to tears. God truly planted the seeds for this curriculum in Linda Hobar's heart and you can tell because it is written with such clarity, vision, and passion. Upcoming Volumes are: Vol IV - Revolutions and Rising Nations (1708-1914) Vol V - The World at War and the Present Day (1915-Present Day)
HeartsAtHome, do you have that new curriculum that has the literataure that goes along with it? I was at a Ladies Tea this past week where Maggie was speaking, and she mentioned it. "Illuminations"...? Was that it? Have you seen it? Or REVIEWED it...? Ava, if you go to my website, I listed some of the books we used for Renaissance and Reformation, but there really isn't a lot there! I found books for this time frame a little difficult. There's some books about queens, but you'll want to pre-read them before giving them to your oldest one. I know I picked up an interesting book by Ann Renaldi on Catherine de Medici in the children's section. I wanted to read it aloud, but quit. I also suggested to the librarian that it REALLY belonged in the Young Adult section instead!!! ETA: Sigh, there isn't as much there as I thought!!! The ones that are listed are actually books I had my kids "review". I'll add some of the others we did!
Thanks Jackie! I will check out the site. After seeing this new MOH and understanding how to use it...I recant all negative things I felt toward it in the past! LOL. Now, that I take a literature approach to homeschooling this fits perfectly. But, as you all know, I'm fickle...it could change my winter quarter..LOL. But I doubt it...I love the set up. It sets up very close to how I set up history the past two years...but it does it for me..woohoo! lol I have heard of Illuminations...i will have to look into that also.
I have Illuminations Year One & Year Two for review. It is not available for resale through anyone. I have an affiliate link with BI Press though. I haven't dug that deep into it yet, but to ease the curiousity of your mind, it is not a "full curriculum set". You still have to purchase the items you need to go with it. It is a very well thought out program that does all of the lesson planning and curriculum lay out for you. With illuminations, it will definately simplify your school day, as long as you want to use the curriculum choices that have worked into the program. It does not include math though. Year One start with MOH Vol 1 and Christian Kids Explore Biology, English from the Roots Up, Natural Speller (which from what I saw you did not need to buy the book), The Ultimate Geo & Timeline Guide, Lit & Writing with some e-books and study guides, and the Bible. I have only started to review year 1 gr 3-8, not highschool. Oh, this means you can start year one in grades 3-8, but it is only ONE year. My first glance at everything indicates it would work wonderfully for The Ultimate Geo & Timeline Guide, which can be used for K-12 and there are no real lesson plans. Illuminations gives you the lesson plans. I haven't reviewed it thoroughly enough to give any more honest feedback. Since I am using MOH Vol 1, EFRU, and the Ult.Geo & Timeline next year I know I will for sure utilize those subjects with Illuminations. Alot of time was put into this program. There are samples online: http://illuminations.brightideaspress.com/?page_id=219 Of couse, Maggie, too is wonderful and answers questions very promptly. I hope that helps a little.
Does Illuminations have something that corresponds with Vol. 3? It seems the time periods given are the ones we already studied. I suppose I can wait until high school though. I love the way it is set up. However, it does seem that you have to buy the curriculum that goes with the guide...but it all looks like good stuff.
I THINK she says they're working on it, but am not sure. But if it isn't done yet, it WILL be! I asked when Vol. 4 was coming out, and she would not even get a projected date, just saying that Linda was about half-way through writing it. They also plan on doing an Illuminations type of thing for All-American History (which I really didn't care for particularly!)
OH!!! Then I don't think Illuminations is for me! I DO NOT LIKE the Christian Kids Explore series! I thought it was just a literature guide that went with MOH.
I had Christian Kids Explore and I didn't like it either. I had the biology and chemistry. I actually was under the impression it was about literature also. However, I do like the set up. I suppose taking out Christian Kids Explore may get weird. I don't know...I'm not in the market for that now. It would require me to scrap all the stuff I have for next year and start over. That isn't going to happen. lol.
