I just wrapped up my fifth year of homeschooling our daughters. It feels like I’m in school as well because we are learning together, and it is much more fun than when I was in school at their age. Is learning always more fun as an adult? Or when it’s the second time around? Or is it more fun because I get to choose what books we use to learn from?
Yep. That must be it!
In the great southern state that we live in, there is no mandatory curriculum that I’m required to use for homeschool. I get to use my best judgment and piece together what I think is right for my children. Because of that flexibility, I have been able to choose historical fiction novels slightly above their reading level, and we read them together several days a week.
Our first year of homeschool, our daughters were six and four. We started with my American Girl collection from my childhood about Addy, a young slave that escaped to freedom in the 1860’s. The series held my girls’ attention well, and then we were able to build upon what we read in the series through non-fiction borrowed library books about that time period.
After completing the American Girl sets, we found another series called The Magic Treehouse, and we continued to build upon what we learned from those chapter books. Each time we finish a book, we are sad and wonder if we will ever love a novel as much. Then we stumble upon one book here, one book there, whether borrowed from the library, a friend, or purchased second-hand on eBay, and we keep learning together.
We have made crafts, food, and played games based on what we have read in historical fiction novels. We have felt like time travelers because of the magical ability an author has to paint the scene, inform us, and draw us in to the book.
Some of our favorite historical fiction books are:
- Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
- Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan
- One Crazy Summer series by Rita Williams Garcia
- The Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
- The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick
- I Survived The American Revolution, 1776 by Lauren Tarshis
Reading together has been such a gift to me, and hopefully has created impactful memories that my girls will have forever.
In addition to reading historical fiction, we loved the mini biographies in Good Night Stories For Rebel Girls and Stories For Boys Who Dare To Be Different. After reading about the person highlighted, we would search YouTube for a performance or interview of them.
Reading with my girls has given us an excuse to snuggle on the couch, to unwind, to laugh and cry together, to learn, implement and improve our lives. By choosing books that are intriguing to them, it has encouraged their thirst for more knowledge, as well as a desire to read on their own. Reading together has been such a gift to me, and hopefully has created impactful memories that my girls will have forever.
Thanks, Janna
Janna is my nephew’s wife, but since we are close in age, I consider her a sister-in-law. She has a wonderful bubbly personality and is a talented, certified self-love life coach. You can find her website at coachwithjanna.com, and her videos are incredibly helpful! Janna loves reading, chocolate, minimalism, and visiting sunny beaches.
tawnyember
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