The Kind Kingdom

We are excited to introduce the book list for our newest resource, The Kind Kingdom, which will be available in May. This resource will provide a 30 week overview of European history, using the Narnia books, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and Beautiful Storie…

We are excited to introduce the book list for our newest resource, The Kind Kingdom. This resource provides a 30-week overview of European history, using the Narnia books, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and Beautiful Stories From Shakespeare as a spine. The Kind Kingdom could be used along with Classical Conversations Cycle 2, or as a stand-alone Charlotte Mason-inspired resource.

As with our other resources, The Playful Pioneers and The Precious People, The Kind KIngdom includes Bible, language arts, science, history, art, practical skills, and cooking. We also include a monthly hymn and bi-weekly poetry selection. The student sheets include mapwork, and copy work corresponding with our Bible or poetry reading, along with quotes from inspiring people in history.

Some have suggested that we assign the Narnia readings in the order in which they were originally published, and while we researched the question, and its appropriate answer, we eventually came to this quote by C.S. Lewis,

“I think I agree with your order for reading the books more than with your mother’s. The series was not planned beforehand as she thinks. When I wrote The Lion I did not know I was going to write any more. Then I wrote P. Caspian as a sequel and still didn’t think there would be any more, and when I had done The Voyage I felt quite sure it would be the last. But I found as I was wrong. So perhaps it does not matter very much in which order anyone read them.”

If you disagree with the order and prefer to read The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe first, feel free to do so. The Narnia readings can stand alone without affecting the flow of the curriculum.

As you read through the book list, you will see that each month has a theme. This is to allow you to approach it as a block study and to give you a framework for extra reading over the time period. You can easily find all of the books on Amazon (links are included) but we hope that families will borrow books from their local library, and you are free to substitute any of the science and history books for another book on the same subject. For instance, if the subject is Gutenberg and the printing press, you can find a different book about it, or even search a Youtube video for kids about it.

While we aim to make reading the larger part of our homeschool routine, one of the benefits of living in modern times is the ability to not just read about a subject, but to actually see the workings of machines, and nature, through the many amazing educational videos available. We recommend limiting screen time to allow for reading and imagination to develop, but interjecting a few minutes a day for educational videos is a fantastic use of technology in our opinion.



Weeks 5-8

Kings and Queens of England, Homes, Seasons

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

The Holy Bible

Our Island Story by H.E. Marshall (also available free online)

A Year in a Castle by Rachel Coombs 7.50, used 2.50

Castle by David Macaulay 9.19, 1.28 used

How a House is Built by Gail Gibbons  7.99, 1.84 used

A Favourite Collection of Grimm’s Fairy Tales Illustrated by Anastasiya Archipova

The Ink Garden of Brother Theophane by C.M. Millen  14.99, 8.00 used

Joan of Arc by Diane Stanley 8.45, 2.41 used

Brother William’s Year by Jan Pancheri (Jan is a gardener at Westminster Abbey and is getting the book reprinted now, so hopefully it will be more affordable. You can choose an alternate season book until it is available). 22.95 now

Around the Year by Elsa Beskow 8.26, 4.28 used

You Wouldn’t Want To Work on a Medieval Cathedral by Fiona MacDonald 9.93, 6.85 used

The Kind Kingdom Booklist fruits


Week 9-12

Renaissance, Solar System, Gravity

The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis

Holy Bible

Our Island Story by H.E. Marshall (also available free online)

Leonardo da Vinci by Diane Stanley 7.48, 86 cents used

A Favourite Collection of Grimm’s Fairy Tales Illustrated by Anastasiya Archipova

Michelangelo by Diane Stanley 7.48, used from 1.48

Starry Messenger by Peter Sis 8.99, 1.49 used

A Child’s Introduction to the Night Sky by Michael Driscoll 16.31, 2.01 used

William Blake’s Inn by Nancy Willard 7.00, 1.12 used

World History Biographies: Isaac Newton by Phillip Steele 7.81, 3.46 used

The Moon Seems to Change by Dr. Franklyn M. Branley 6.99, 2.05

The Kind Kingdom Booklist cookies and astronomy


Weeks 13-15

Reformation, Printing Press, Christmas

Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis

The Holy Bible

Fine Print by Joan Johansen Burch  9.99, 1.25 used, this is a short chapter book about Gutenberg. I also loved this picture book version if you can find it.

Johann Gutenberg and the Amazing Printing Press by Bruce Koscielniak

Marguerite Makes a Book by Bruce Robertson  16.49, 9.47 used

The Life of Martin Luther by Agostino Traini 13.50, 4.87 used

The Legend of St. Nicholas by Dandi Daley Mackall 11.30, 1.20 used

The Clown of God by Tomie de Paola 6.21, 5.21 used

Good King Wenceslas by John M. Neale used from 3.64

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens 5.99, free online


Weeks 16-19

Exploration, Ships, Antarctica

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
The Holy Bible

The Endurance by Alfred Lansing 11.55, 3.60 used. Families with younger children can choose a simpler version such as the two mentioned here-

Shackleton’s Journey by William Gill 17.54, 3.50 used

Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World by Jennifer Armstrong 9.09, 42 cents used

DK Eyewitness Books:Explorer by Rupert Matthews 13.59, 3.00 used

Beautiful Stories From Shakespeare for Children by E. Nesbit  10.52, 1.99 Kindle, free online here

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1430


Week 20-23

Revolution, Flight, Nursing, World War I

The Silver Chair

The Holy Bible

Stone Soup by Marcia Brown 7.99, 1.65 used

The Glorious Flight by Alice and Martin Provenson 14.99, 1.99 used

National Geographic Readers: Planes by Amy Shields 3.99, 10 cents used

or- The Story of Flight by John Holcraft

A Picture Book of Florence Nightingale by David A. Adler 6.21, 3.00 used

You Wouldn’t Want To Live Without Nurses by Fiona MacDonald 9.95, 7.00 used

War Game by Michael Foreman 14.95, from 1 cent used

Where the Poppies Now Grow by Hilary Ann Robinson 12.51, 3.00 used

Beautiful Stories From Shakespeare for Children by E. Nesbit 

Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book Four edited by Edward J. Shewa 17.89, 2.45 used, available free online here


The Kind Kingdom Booklist Coffee and Books and Cookies

Weeks 24-27

World War II, The Holocaust, Invention

The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

The Holy Bible

Always Remember Me: How One Family Survived World War II by Marisabina Russo 10.49, 1.99 used

Star of Fear, Star of Hope by Jo Hoestlandt 8.99, 1.99 used

Diana’s White House Garden by Elisa Carbone 11.97, 4.38 used

Burn by Darcy Pattison 9.99, 4.53 used

The Little Ships by Louise Borden 4.39, 1.99 used

War Boy by Michael Foreman 13.40, 5.51 used

Beautiful Stories From Shakespeare for Children by E. Nesbit 

DK Eyewitness Book: Invention by Lionel Bender 9.82, 2.30 used

Mercedes and the Chocolate Pilot by Margot Theis Raven 14.86, 2.47 used

Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming 17.09, 5.13 used


Weeks 28-30

The Cold War and Communism, Spring, Baby Animals

Animal Farm by George Orwell 12.50, Kindle 1.37

Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne 12.19, 1.36 used

The Holy Bible

From Tadpole to Frog by Wendy Pfeffer 6..99, 2.93 used

How a Seed Grows by Helene Jordan 6.98, 2.92 used

Nature Anatomy by Julia Rothman 14.00, 8.48 used

Over and Under the Pond by Kate Messner 10.98, 3.98 used

The Passover Lamb by Linda Elovitz Marshall KIndle, 5.99

Spring, An Alphabet Acrostic by Steven Schnur 40.00, 12.85 used

Where Do Chicks Come From by Amy E. Sklansky 5.99, 1.94 used

So how much does the curriculum cost? Well, if you were able to find none of the books at the library, and no substitutes, you could still purchase all the books for around $300 for used copies, and build an impressive home library in the process. That, in addition to the $49 for the parent guide, student sheets, art, and recipes, plus whatever resource you are using for math or phonics would make a complete homeschool plan for the year.

However, we’ve organized the curriculum in such a way that you can easily do it with a very slim book budget. Each month has a theme and so if you are on a super tight budget, you can borrow the Narnia books from the library, read the free online version of Our Island Story, and even find free online versions of the Grimm’s Fairy Tales and Beautiful Stories From Shakespeare. Then, you just borrow books from the library that fit the theme for the month. If we are studying the Queens and Kings of England, ask your librarian for a stack of books on the subject, read those books that engage you, do the projects in the parent guide that correspond with the theme, and enjoy diving into history with your children.

Our resources are meant to bring families closer together, to spark new areas of interest, and to spread a feast of learning before your children that inspires them to dream big about how they too can impact the world for good.

Please e-mail us with questions as you get started, hello@thepeacefulpress.com.

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You may also enjoy:

ABC Books

A Day in the Life of the Kind Kingdom

The Kind Kingdom

The Sky Guide