Fun With Ancient History

We are on our 6th week with The Precious People and having so much fun. In all honesty, ancient history is not my favorite thing to teach. Many of the stories are so heavy, and it is so long ago that it can be hard for us modern families to find a connection point with ancient people. We’ve solved this problem in part by starting the year with a reading of The All Of A Kind Family, which ties the life of a 1900’s era Jewish family to stories from ancient history that relate to Jewish holy days and Ancient Egypt.

With the sweet stories and projects that I included in The Precious People, this time period is coming to life in new ways. We celebrated Rosh Hashanah with goal setting and sweet food, made mini sukkahs from graham crackers for our harvest themed celebration of Succoth, and then, for the first time in my 22 years of homeschooling, made sugar cube pyramids as we studied Ancient Egypt (I promptly threw the extra sugar cubes in a bird bath and watered them down so that children wouldn’t be tempted to eat them. I’m hoping sugar is good for birds and bees.)

I especially love the projects included in The Precious People. Projects are an amazing way to promote STEAM learning in our homes, and as we made small buckets from clay and set up a model of a shadduff, we were learning about simple machines, while being amazed at how hard it was for ancient people to irrigate a field.

Each parent guide from The Peaceful Press has a similar focus, and as we learn through great stories and projects, a much deeper intellect is formed in our children. When learning is literature based, hands on, and multi-sensory, skills are built that will enable your child to excel in many areas of life.

A Few Favorite Stories For Getting Started With Ancient History

• National Geographic Readers: Pyramids by Laura Marsh

• Hands On History! Ancient Egypt by Philip Steele

• The Egyptian Cinderella by Shirley Climo

• All of a Kind Family by Sydney Taylor

• On Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur by Cathy Goldberg Fishman

• Galen and the Gateway to Medicine by Jeanne Bendick

• The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

We will also be working on building this Roman Villa as we start studying Ancient Rome.

While studying the ancients might not be quite as engrossing as learning about American history with The Playful Pioneers last year, we are making the most of it with The Precious People.

I hope you enjoy these resources as much as our family has!

-Jennifer Pepito

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