Joyful Socks Mom: 8 Reasons This Charlotte Mason Educator Loves Mystery of History {Review}

8/13/14

8 Reasons This Charlotte Mason Educator Loves Mystery of History {Review}

No Mystery here about how I feel about History!

Most of my readers know (and hopefully tolerate) that I am an unrepentant history buff. As many of you well know I have a tendency to lean toward exaggeration ... This IS NOT ONE OF THOSE MOMENTS.

History is my 'Thang!

Since we are on the topic of "my 'thangs", let me just bring up history books. Yep, I totally love them too.

As a traditionalist in the subject of history, and well, most all subjects; I prefer to teach by completely ditching the textbook. I have experienced far better results with the use of rich and vibrant living books when teaching. Reading the classic, older books is my favorite tool for feasting on history.

The Mystery of History is the exception to this rule, every time.

Bright Ideas Press publishes one of my favorite faithful history books, Mystery of History by Linda Lacour Hobar.

I had a startling revelation recently about this curriculum . . . I have used this product for over 5 years and NEVER reviewed my experience on this blog. *gasp*

Now that you have recovered from the reeling shock, I shall proceed. The Mystery of History series has many appeals for a Charlotte Mason educator, such as myself. Here are just a few:

Engaging narrative format. The Mystery of History delivers a living book-type experience with interesting and biographical story-telling focus. The author is passionate about her area of expertise and sharing these stories with her audience.

Short lessons. These history lessons are compacted into 2 - 3 page narratives making them 20 - 30 minutes total in reading and lesson time, coming in just under the "short lesson" format that our Ms. Mason recommends.

Easy to notebook alongside the engaging history stories. We use our notebooks faithfully in history, and using this curriculum has made it simpler still. The activities and appendix provide tons of jumping-off points for our notebooking time.

This was our Trade Days at co-op last year.
The project was put on by local artisans for our Middle School
students taking Mystery of History, Volume 1 - Volume 3.

Hands-on activities that require less materials & less fuss. I love that there are many activities for me, as an educator, to choose from in each lesson. The choices allow me the option of choosing the less complicated and more engaging activities. As the children have gotten older, many activities can become project based learning opportunities.
Excellent suggestions for living books to enrich the curriculum. Yes, you heard me right. MORE. BOOKS. The appendix is chalk-full of literature and history options for additional research and enjoyment.
Multi-age and multi-level lessons. Mystery of History is able to be used and adapted to virtually any grade level, providing options for "Younger Students", "Middle Students" and "Older Students".

This project was created by The Bug during her
study of Mystery of History, Volume I

Easy to customize to your teaching style & your student's learning style. The curriculum is written in such a way as to allow me the freedom to choose the activities, timelines and quizzes that best suit my children's individual learning style & our family's preferences in learning.
Unapologetic Biblical worldview. The truth is the truth. The truth of God's Word never changes & is the only "True North" for which we should ever judge the history of other people, from other cultures, in other times. Keeping a biblical worldview whilst telling the story of humankind, ensures that my children will be able to rightly relate the history they are learning, and apply what they learned to their lives through this biblical filter.

Thanks again Bright Idea Press for another great resource for this Charlotte Mason educator to love!