The Book of Centuries has been a longtime resource for many home educators. It is just not a new idea. Classical and Charlotte Mason educators over the years have utilized this notebooking method to reap untold reward of learning and knowledge. Okay, well, I don't have hard evidence or statistics to back that last statement up, but it is probably true. ;)
There are many resources across the internet to help you put together a Book of Centuries. As a Charlotte Mason educator, this is a weekly work item for my children, and I have also incorporated it in my history classes at homeschool cooperative, as well. The basic concept of a Book of Centuries is to learn, determine and record the important events of history, in chronological format.
The idea of a Book of Centuries page is to reflect, on one page, a set time period. A good page entry should depict events sequentially, adding facts and pictures to make a beautiful snapshot of history on the page. This enriching activity helps students to grasp the chronology of the time period in history they are studying.
Here are a few basic examples from our Book of Centuries:
We utilized Notebooking Pages' Book of Centuries pack for many of our entries. It is convenient and easy to print out the pages that my students need, and it gives a consistent uniform look to our Book of Centuries.
Of course, we are homeschoolers, so we don't want EVERYTHING uniform. Last year, we started adding some other creative and personal touches to our Book of Centuries that have made it an even more bright, vibrant and living collection of chronological history. Here are some creative pages to add to your Book of Centuries:
- Wanted Posters: The above photo are the Founding Father's Wanted Posters from our 1st Semester History Projects at co-op.
- Biography Pages: Learning about the life of a man or woman that lived during the time period you are studying, is a profound and important tool in history. When children connect with an individual, either by admiration or loathing, the door swings wide for true learning and loving that historical moment in time.
- Political Cartoons: Studying political cartoons and devising your own humor of historical events or persons adds fun to any Book of Centuries.
- Cover Page Contest: We actually had a competition to see who could create the best Cover Page at homeschool cooperative and the teachers voted. The picture above was our 2014 winner . . . never mind the winner just happened to be one of my kids.
Here is a list of resources for building a Book of Centuries:
Top 10 Reproducible Books for Notebooking
Remembering and Learning Through Illustrations
Notebooking Spotlight
Remembering and Learning Through Illustrations
Notebooking Spotlight
Have you tried using a Book of Centuries in your homeschool yet?
Joyfully Learning with You,
