Sunday, April 29, 2007

Revised Curriculum For Grade 1

I posted my list of curriculum choices a couple of weeks ago in the hopes it wouldn't change but, alas, I've changed my mind again! Here are my new choices and this time I'm hoping "that is that!"

The first major change is that I've stopped using Alpha-Phonics. I wasn't too crazy with the way they don't actually teach the rules of phonics. Guess I've been spoilt with the way Abeka teaches rules. But that was easy enough to supplement by adding in Abeka's rules as the phonetic sounds came along. It is the sight words that drove me crazy in the end. Nothing against sight words, there are words that just have to be learned by sight. But Alpha-Phonics' sight words are weird!

First problem I always run into is the word "a", every curriculum I've seen teaches that this is pronounced "uh". Uh, not here! We pronounce it /a/, like short "a". I can live with this. Next thing is AP introduces sight words by boxing them when they are first encountered. We reached a lesson on the short /o/ sound and the words "dog" and "off" were boxed as irregular words. Excuse me? I can't for the life of me pronounce those words without a short /o/ sound! How on earth is the author pronouncing them? So I skip ahead in the teacher manual reading the lessons and come across this sentence, to paraphrase: "Inform the student that "been" rhymes with "sin". Huh? Reading that, it might as well have said "apples rhymes with oranges"! Both are phonetic and follow normal 2 vowel and 1 vowel rules. I realize that some, maybe all?, Americans say "bin" for "been" but again, we certainly do not. It's pretty hard to tell my son that when he sees a boxed word in AP it is a sight word and then keep telling him that this boxed word is not a sight word just sound it out. Ugggh!

So to make a long story even longer, one day I followed a link to a website and from there followed another link to another website and discovered an awesome phonics program. It is very complete, Free!, and Canadian! Hallelujah!!! It is called Stairway to Reading and we've been using it for a week now and I am thrilled to bits with it. I'm skipping the writing portions (copywork and dictation) as my son isn't ready for all that writing yet.

Next change is that I've added in the Now I'm Reading readers. I also decided not to add Considering God's Creation to our Astronomy study. I was looking through my older son's Grade 5 notebook and looking over his work and decided it would be too advanced for ds#2 just yet. I'd have to do most of the fiddly notebook work for him and that would be missing the point.

Then the last change I've made is to add Spelling Workout A. I wasn't going to do spelling this early but after reading through WTM for the umpteenth time and noting that SWB recommends not skipping this book and then looking at sample pages online and seeing that it is very simple, I've decided to go ahead with it. If it ends up being too much, we'll just put it aside for later.

Now for the revised, list of curriculum:

Reading/Phonics - Stairway to Reading and easy readers ( Bob books, Dr. Maggie's, Now I'm Reading books)
Read-Alouds - Living Books from our home library, a few to tie in with history, but mostly others that do not
Language Arts - First Language Lessons 1
Handwriting - Handwriting Without Tears and copywork
Spelling - Spelling Workout A, possibly move onto B
History/Geography - History Odyssey Ancients Level 1
Science - Apologia Elementary Science Astronomy
Math - Right Start Level B
Thinking Skills - Easy Sudoku Puzzles
Art & Music - no curriculum, implement into real life fostering appreciation and enjoyment

Friday, April 27, 2007

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

We had two sessions of reading today to finish off our current read-aloud. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming, otherwise known as the author of the James Bond books. Ds6 thoroughly enjoyed it, breaking out in roars of laughter repeatedly. I first read this book as a read-aloud when my now ds18 did Sonlight 2, eons ago. Sadly, it is no longer used by Sonlight. It's a rollicking good adventure/comedy story and perfect for reading aloud with a narrative that speaks directly to the reader.

You don't believe me? All right then! You just read about this car I'm going to tell you about! - Ian Fleming, 1964, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Nature Walk and Phonics

We went for a nature walk this afternoon. We do every day, weather permitting. The Niagara River is at the end of our street and we walked down to the American Falls. Not all the way down to the tourist area but close enough to get a good view. On the way down we saw turkey vultures in a tree right in front of us! Two of them were sitting in the tree and then they took off and we saw there were several other ones flying around as well. We also looked at dafodils in a garden and saw baby pine cones growing on the pinetrees. Beautiful warm day but a bit windy.

I stumbled upon an awesome Free Phonics Program the other day and we started using it this week. What Fun! Ds6 is really enjoying it, we played Bingo today and he is really starting to take off with his reading. The program is called Stairway to Reading and it is very tactile and uses games as well as a reader and a full teacher's manual and best of all it's FREE.

I also found out about some phonics readers that are new to me. They've been around for a while but I hadn't hear of them before. The Now I'm Reading phonics readers by Nora Gaydos. I took a look at them on Amazon and splurged on the two level one sets: Animal Antics and Playful Pals. They really look good, especially for boys.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Read- Alouds

I've decided I'm going to start keeping a list of books we've read aloud over in the side bar over there. The list is what I can remember so far this year, mostly the last few months. My memory isn't what it used to be! But starting today I will keep a running list.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Oh Happy Day

Our RightStart Math arrived today!! There is nothing like receiving a gi-normous box in the mail. DH asked: "What is it? The materials to build a house?!"

Math!
You can't really tell from the picture but the box is almost as long as my kitchen counter!

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Curriculum Choices

I've been going through the angst of curriculum choices these last few months and every time I think I have it all planned out I start re-thinking and change my mind! But I finally think I have it all sorted out and below is what I have decided on. Perhaps, if it is written down here I won't change my mind again. This is for a 7yo.

Reading/Phonics - continue on with Alpha-Phonics and easy readers (Abeka Gr. 1 readers, Bob books, Dr. Maggie's, etc.)

Language Arts - First Language Lessons 1

Handwriting - Handwriting Without Tears and copywork

History/Geography - History Odyssey Ancients Level 1

Science - Apologia Elementary Science Astronomy & Considering God's Creation (astronomy section only)

Math - Right Start Level B

Read-Alouds - Living Books from our home library, some to tie in with history, others not.

So that's the plan for this coming year.!

Friday, April 13, 2007

SONLIGHT BOOKS ARRANGED BY THE WELL-TRAINED MIND 4-YEAR CYCLES

The following list was put together for my own use. Hopefully you can find some use for it whether you use Sonlight or "Well-Trained Mind" or both. Not all books used in Sonlight have been listed. What you will find is the History, Historical Fiction and Biography books used in Sonlight Curriculum arranged in the 4-year cycles used by "The Well-Trained Mind". Classic Literature has also been listed here in the cycle in which it was written unless it is of a historical nature then it has been placed accordingly. Please note that since Sonlight recommends SL8 for Grades 10-12 I have listed SL8 books under Rhetoric Level. All books in red have been removed from Sonlight Curriculum. - 2004

New 2007 Updates in Progress! As of this update, SLB to SL3 have been updated



For more information about Sonlight. Visit Paula's Archives!

BOOKS THAT SPAN THE 4-YEAR CYCLES

Grammar Stage (GR. 1-4)
Then and Now - Usborne SLB (Ancients to present)
Living Long Ago - Usborne SLC (Ancients to present)
Usborne World History - Usborne (Ancients to 1912) SL1
Child's History of the World - Hillyer (Ancients to WW1) SL1

Logic Stage (GR. 5-8)Exploring Planet Earth (Ancients to the Renaissance) SL5
Ships, Sailors and the Seas (Ancients to Present) SL5
History of Medicine - Tiner (Ancients to Present) SL5
The Kingdom Strikes Back - Winter/Holzmann (Ancients to Present) SL6
A History of the US - Hakim (Medieval/Early Renaissance to Present) SL7
The Story of Music - Usborne (Ancients to Present) SL6
Everything You Need to Know About World History Homework -Zeman & Kelly (Ancients to Present)SL6
The Story of Mankind - Van Loon (Ancients to Present) SL6
The American Republic Student Text - BJU (Medeival/Early Renaissance to Present) X SL7


Rhetoric Stage (GR. 9-12)The 100 Most Important Events in Christian History - Curtis, Lang, Petersen (Ancient-Modern) X SL8
The Story of Christianity - Collins, Price X SL8
From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya - Tucker (Ancients to Present) X SL8
How to Read Church History - Comby (Ancients to Present) X SL8
Never Before in History: America's Inspired Birth - Amos & Gardiner (Medieval/Early Renaissance to Present) SL10
30 Days to Understanding Church History - Anders & Lundsford (Ancients to Present) X SL8
Fire Upon the Earth - Langford (Ancients to Present) X SL8


Ancients (5000BC - 400AD)

Grammar Stage (Gr. 1-4) - Ancients
Egermeier's Bible Story Book X SLC (Bible Stories)
Archeologists Dig for Clues SL1 (modern but obviously appropriate for this stage)
The Greek News - Powell & Steele SL1
Greek Myths for Young Children - Usborne SL1
Detectives in Togas - Winterfeld SL1 (Rome)
The Usborne Time Traveler (Egypt & Rome sections) SL1
Tut's Mummy Lost & Found - Donnelly SL1 (King Tut)
The Great Wall of China - Fisher SL1
Awesome Book of Bible Facts - Silverthrone X SL2 (biblical history)
The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible - Taylor X SL2 (pre-history)
The Beginner's Bible - Henley X SL2 (bible stories)
The Aesop for Children - Milo Winter SL2 (Greece)
Pompeii: Buried Alive - Kunhardt SL2 (Rome)
The Trojan Horse - Little SL2 (Greece)
Alexander the Great - Green SL2 (Greece)


Logic Stage (GR. 5-8) - Ancients
Remembering God's Awesome Acts - Mortimer X SL5 (Genesis to Moses)
Ancient China Treasure Chest - SL5
The Cat Who Went to Heaven - Coatsworth SL5 (Buddha)
The Trojan War - Coolidge SL6
The Golden Goblet - McGraw SL6 (Egypt)
Mara, Daughter of the Nile - McGraw SL6 (Egypt)
D'Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths SL6
Augustus Caesar's World - Foster SL6 (Rome)
The Bronze Bow - Speare SL6 (Jesus & Rome)
The Mystery of the Roman Ransom - Winterfeld SL6
Eagle of the Ninth - Sutcliff SL6 (Rome)
Hittite Warrior - Williamson SL6 (Hittites)
Archimedes and the Door of Science - Bendick SL6 (Greece)
The Ides of April - Ray SL6 (Rome)
Eyewitness Ancient China - Cotterell SL5
The Ancient Greeks in the Land of the Gods - Descamps-Lequime & Vernerey SL6
Adventures of Greek Heroes - McLean & Wiseman SL6
Young Scientist Book of Archaeology - Usborne SL6
The Children's Homer - Colum SL6 (Greece)
Cleopatra - Stanley SL6
Ancient Egypt - Nicholson & Watts SL6
Between the Forest and the Hills - Lawrence SL6 (Rome)

Rhetoric Stage (GR. 9-12) - Ancients
The Church of the East - Steward/Holzmann X SL8 (Mesopotamia?)
Till We Have Faces - C.S. Lewis SL8 (Greece Cupid and Psyche)
The Flames of Rome - Maier X SL8

Medieval/Early Renaissance (400-1600)
Grammar Stage (Gr. 1-4) - Medieval
A Grain of Rice - Pittman SLC (Ancient China)
The Apple and the Arrow - Buff SLC (Wiliam Tell)
The Usborne Time Traveler (Medieval & Viking sections) SL1
The Viking Adventure - Bulla SL2
Eric the Red & Leif the Lucky - Schiller SL2 (Vikings)
Marco Polo - Graves SL3-5 (middle ages)
A Door in the Wall - De Angelli SL2 (Plague)
The Sword in the Tree - Bulla SL2 (Middle Ages - King Arthur)
The Minstrel in the Tower - Skurzinsky SL1 (Middle Ages)
Castle Diary - Platt SL2
Michaelangelo - Stanley SL2
Good Queen Bess - Stanley SL2
The Explorer's News - Johnstone SL2
Tales of Robin Hood - Allan SL2
Incas, Aztecs & Mayans - Holzmann SL3
The Secret of the Andes - Clark SL3 (Incas)

The Corn Grows Ripe - Rhoads SL3 (Mayas)
Walk the World's Rim - Baker SL3 (16th cent Cabeza de Vaca)
North American Indians - Gorsline SL3
Pedro's Journal - Conrad SL3 (Columbus)

The Story of the USA Book 1: Explorers and Settlers - Escher SL3
Robin Hood of Sherwood Forest - McGovern SL1
Fine Print: A Story About Johann Gutenberg - Burch SL2
Joan of Arc - Stanley SL2


Logic Stage (Gr. 5-8) - Medieval
The Kite Fighters - Park (1473, Korea) SL5
Shadow Spinner - Fletcher SL5 (Arabians)
Aladdin and Other Favorite Arabian Nights Stories - Dover SL5 (Classic)
Genghis Khan - Lamb SL5 (Mongols)
The Mongols - Nicholson SL5
Call it Courage - Sperry SL5 (Pacific Islands)
A Glorious Age in Africa - Chu & Skinner SL5 (African Empires)
Beat the Story Drum, Pum-Pum - Bryan SL5 (African Tales)
The Rat Catcher's Son - London X SL5 (African Tales)
Tales of a Korean Grandmother - Carpenter SL5
Shakespeare Stealer - Blackwood SL6
The Hawk That Dare Not Hunt by Day - O'Dell SL6 (William Tyndale)
Otto of the Silver Hand - Pyle SL6 (Middle Ages)
Adam of the Road - Gray SL6 (Middle Ages)
The Samurai's Tale - Haugaard SL6 (Japan)
The World of Columbus and Sons - Foster SL6
Martin Luther: Hero of Faith - Nohl X SL6
The Beduin's Gazelle - Temple SL6 (1302 Beduin tribes, Arabia)
The Great and Terrible Quest - Lovett SL6 (Knights)
Leonardo da Vinci - Hahn SL6
The Second Mrs. Giaconda - Konigsburg SL6 (Leonardo da Vinci)
Mary, Bloody Mary - Meyer SL6 (Mary Tudor)
History of US: Volume 1- Hakim SL7 (Native Americans)
Genghis Khan-Mongol Emperor - Humphrey SL5
The Middle Ages - Caselli SL6
Morning Star of the Reformation - Thomson X SL6 (William Tyndale)
The Monk Who Shook the World - Davey X SL6 (Martin Luther)
The White Stag - Seredy SL6 (Magyars, Attila the Hun)
Fine Print: A Story About Johann Gutenberg - Burch SL6


Rhetoric Stage (Gr. 9-12) - Medieval
The Canterbury Tales - McCaughren SL8
The Shining Company - Sutcliff SL8 (7th century Britain)
The Trumpeter of Krakow - Kelly SL8 (Middle Ages)
The Ramsay Scallop - Temple SL8 (14th century Europe)
Twelfth Night - Shakespeare SL8 (Classic)
A Murder for Her Majesty - Hilgartner SL8 (Elizabethan era)
Beowulf - Heaney SLBL (Anglo-Saxon)
Canterbury Quintet - Chaucer SLBL
Hamlet - Shakespeare SLBL
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - Winny SLBL
A Taste of Chaucer - Malcomson SL8 (Classic)
This Was John Calvin - Van Halsema SL8



Late Renaissance/Early Modern (1600-1850)

Grammar Stage (Gr. 1-4) -Early Modern
Johnny Appleseed - Holland SLC
George Muller by Benge X SL1
Peter the Great - Stanley SL2
The Apprentice - Llorente SL2 (Renaissance)
The Landmark History of the American People - Boorstin (First Volume) SL3
American Adventures 1 - Greenberg SL3 (many topics 1770-1870)

The Story of the USA: A Young Nation Solves Its Problems - Escher SL3
The Witch of Blackbird Pond - Speare SL3 (Puritans)
Pocahontas and the Strangers - Bulla SL3
Squanto, Friend of Pilgrims - Bulla SL3
A Lion to Guard Us - Bulla SL3 (1609 Virginia colony)
The Thanksgiving Story - Dalgliesh SL3 (pilgrims)
Om-kas-toe - Thomasma SL3 (Blackfeet Indians early 1700s)
The Lewis and Clark Expedition - Neuberger SL3
Naya Nuki - Thomasma SL3 (Native American - Sacagawea's friend)
The Erie Canal - Stein SL3
Imprisoned in the Golden City - Jackson X SL3 (Judsons - Burma)
The Story of Eli Whitney - Latham SL3
The Sign of the Beaver - Speare SL3 (Native Americans & frontier life)
The Matchlock Gun - Edmonds SL3 (French & Indian war)
What's the Big Idea, Ben Franklin? - Fritz SL3
Ben Franklin of Old Philadelphia - Cousins SL3
Mr. Revere and I - Lawson SL3
And then What Happened, Paul Revere? - Fritz SL3
Can't You Make Them Behave, King George - Fritz SL3
Johnny Tremain - Forbes SL3 (American Revolution)
Toliver's Secret - Brady SL3 (American Revolution)
Phoebe the Spy - Griffin SL3 (American Revolution)
Martha Washington (Childhood of Famous Americans) SL3
Meet George Washington - Heilbroner SL3
George Washington (Childhood of Famous Americans) SL3
Winter at Valley Forge - Knight SL3 (1777)
If You Were There When They Signed the Constitution - Levy SL3
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch - Latham SL3 (Nathaniel Bowditch)
Justin Morgan Had a Horse - Henry SL3
Calico Bush - Field SL3 (1743 frontier)
The Journeyman - Yates SL3 (frontier)
The Cabin Faced West - Fritz SL3 (frontier)
Meet Thomas Jefferson - Barrett SL3
Robert Fulton, Boy Craftsman - Henry SL3
Sarah, Plain & Tall - MacLachlan SL3 (pioneer life)
The Courage of Sarah Noble - Dalgliesh SL3 (frontier)
Sarah Witcher's Story - Yates SL3 (pioneer life)
Skippack School - De Angeli SL3 (1750 German immigrant)
Tikta'Liktak - Houston SL3 (Inuit)
Swift Rivers - Meigs SL3 (early 1830s)
Simon Bolivar - De Varona SL4
Wilberforce - Holzmann SL4
Diary of an Early American Boy - Sloane SL4 (1805 pioneer life)
Johnny Appleseed - Kellogg SLK
Magellan - Brewster SL2
Chimney Sweep's Ransom - Jackson X SL2 (John Wesley)
Ben and Me - Lawson SL2 (Ben Franklin)
Bold Journey - Bohner SL3 (Lewis & Clark)
Daniel Boone - Daugherty SL3


Logic Stage (Gr. 5-8) -Early ModernSeabird - Holling SL5 (America at sea)
William Carey: Obliged to Go - Benge X SL5
The Master Puppeteer - Paterson SL5 (Japan 18th Century)
Island of the Blue Dolphin - O'Dell SL5 (Native American California)
Master Cornhill - McGraw SL6 (plague)
In Search of Honor - Hess X SL6 (French Revolution)
I, Juan de Pareja - De Trevino SL6 (late Renaissance)
George Washington's World - Foster SL6 (1700s)
The Landing of the Pilgrims - Daugherty SL7
Down Ryton Water - Gaggin SL7 (pilgrims)
Wait for Me, Watch for Me, Eula Bee - Beatty SL7 (Native Americans)
Sequoyah and the Cherokee Alphabet - Cwiklik SL7 (Native Americans)
Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison - Lenski SL7 (Native Americans)
Amos Fortune, Free Man - Yates SL7
Streams to the River, River to the Sea - O'Dell SL7 (Lewis & Clark)
Guns for General Washington - Reit SL7
Traitor: The Case of Benedict Arnold - Fritz SL7
Stout-Hearted Seven - Frazier SL7 (Oregon Trail)
Rip Van Winkle - Irving SL7 (Classic)
Gold Bug & Other Tales - Poe SL7 (Classic)
A Gathering of Days - Blos SL7 (1830)
Napolean - Carrol SL6
Science Discoveries: Isaac Newton and Gravity - Parker SL6
The Scarlet Pimpernell - Orczy SL6 (French Revolution, Classic)
Calico Captive - Speare SL7 (French & Indian War Canada)
Early Thunder - Fritz SL7 (American Revolution)
On to Oregon! - Morrow SL7 (Oregon Trail)
Trails to Poosey - Cook SL7 (frontier)


Rhetoric Stage (Gr. 9-12) - Early Modern
Robinson Crusoe - Defoe SL8 (Classic)
A Parcel of Patterns - Walsh SL8 (Plague)
Pilgrim's Progress in Today's English - Bunyan/Thomas X SL8 (Classic)
The Crucible - Miller SL10 (Puritans witch trials)
Walden and Civil Disobedience - Thoreau SL10 (1845 autobiographical)
Gullivers Travels - Swift SLBL (classic)
Paradise Lost - Milton SLBL
A Tale of Two Cities - Dickens SLBL (French Revolution)

Modern (1850-Present)

Grammar Stage (Gr. 1-4) -Modern
In Grandma's Attic - Richardson SLC X (late 1800s USA)
Wonderful Wizard of Oz - Baum SLC (Classic)
The House at Pooh Corner - Milne SLC (Classic)
Mary on Horseback - Wells SLC (1920s USA)
James Herriot's Treasury for Children - Herriot SLC (pre WWII England)
Twenty and Ten - Bishop SLC (WW II)
The Story About Ping - Flack SLC (Pre-Rev. China)
Capyboppy - Peet SLC (author's true-life story)
Hero Tales - Jackson X SLC (modern missionaries)
Granny Han's Breakfast - Groves X SLC (China missionary)
Five True Dog Stories SLC (modern)
Dolphin Adventure - Grover SLC (Author's true story)
Dolphin Treasure - Grover SLC (Author's true story)
Pasteur's Fight Against Microbes - Birch & Birmingham SL1 (late 1800s)
Little Pear - Lattimore SL1 (early 1900's China)
The Bravest Dog Ever - Standiford SL1 (1925 true dog story)
The Year of Miss Agnes - Hill SL1 (1948, Alaska)
Missionary Stories with the Martins - Martin X SL1
Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie - Roop SL2 (1856 Maine)
The Secret Valley - Bulla SL2 (California Gold Rush)
Wagon Wheels - Brenner SL2 (post Civil War Black family)
Riding the Pony Express - Bulla SL2 (1860)
The Long Way to a New Land - Sandin SL2(1868 Sweden emigrate to US)
The Long Way Westward - Sandin SL2 (1868 sequel to above)
The Big Balloon Race - Coerr SL2 (1880s)
Prairie School - Avi SL2 (1880s)
Little House on Rocky Ridge - MacBride SL2 (1894 pioneer life)
Cora Frear - Goodman SL2 (late 1800s prairies)
Clara and the Bookwagon - Levinson SL2 (1905 USA)
A Child's Garden of Verse - Stevenson SL2 (Classic)
Marie Curie's Search for Radium - Birch & Birmingham SL2 (early 1900s)
Titanic: Lost and Found - Donnelly SL2 (1912)
A Little Princess - Burnett SL2 (Victorian England & India, Classic)
The House on Walenska Street - Herman SL2 (1913 Russia)
More Stories from Grandma's Attic - Richardson X SL2 (1920s)
Strawberry Girl - Lenski SL2 (1930's America)
Gladys Aylward: The Adventure of a Lifetime - Benge X SL2
The Little Riders - Shemin SL2 (WWII)
Hill of Fire - Lewis SL2 (Mexico volcano post WWII)
A Question of Yams - Repp X SL2 (modern Papua New Guinea missionary)
And the Word Came with Power - Shelter X SL2 (modern Joanne Shelter)
Catching Their Talk in a Box - Hocket X SL2 (Author's true story)
More Stories from Grandma's Attic - Richardson SL3-5 X (late 1800s USA)
Betsy & Tacy Go Over the Big Hill - Lovelace SL3-5 (early 1900s USA)
Lumber Camp Library - Kinsey-Warnock SL3-5 (early 1900s USA)
B is for Betsy - Haywood SL3-5 (1910s USA)
Emily's Runaway Imagination - Cleary SL3-5 (1920s Oregon)
Misty of Chincoteague - Henry SL3-5 (1940s horse)
Mustang: Wild Spirit of the West - Henry SL3-5 (Wild Horse Annie 1950s)
The Landmark History of the American People - Boorstin (Second Volume) SL3 (SL4)
Vostaas: White Buffalo's Story of the Plains Indians - Vostaas SL3 (modern Native Americans)
Listening to Crickets - Ransom SL3 Science (Rachel Carson 1950s)
World War 1 - Kent SL4
The Story of Thomas Alva Edison: Wizard of Menlo Park - Davidson SL4
Across Five Aprils - Hunt SL4 (Civil War)
Lincoln: A Photobiography - Freedman SL4
The Monitor and Merrimac - Stein SL4 (Civil War)
Behind Rebel Lines - Reit SL4 (Civil War)
Freedom Train: The Story of Harriet Tubman - Sterling SL4
Turn Homeward, Hannalee SL4 (Civil War)
Shades of Gray - Reeder SL4 (post Civil War)
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry - Taylor SL4 (post Civil War Black family)
The Great Wheel - Lawson SL4 (first ferris wheel)
Moccasin Trail - McGraw SL4 (native Americans Oregon)
All Sail Set - Sperry SL4 (true story)
Caddie Woodlawn - Brink SL4 (pioneer life)
By the Great Horn Spoon - Fleischman SL4 (California Gold Rush)
The Terrible Wave - Dahlsted SL4 (1889 Johnstown PA flood)
Shoes for Everyone - Mitchell SL4 (Jan Matzeliger)
Sing Down the Moon - O'Dell SL4 (native Americans)
Little Britches - Moody SL4 (early 1900s ranching)
Hero Over Here - Kudlinski SL4 (WW I)
Cheaper By the Dozen - Gilbreth SL4 (1930s)
Old Yeller - Gipson SL4 (Texas frontier)
Helen Keller - Davidson SL4
All of a Kind Family - Taylor SL4 (1900s New York)
Thimble Summer - Enright SL4 (1900s farm family)
The Wright Brothers - Reynolds SL4
George Washington Carver - Collins SL4
Miracles on Maple Hill - Sorensen SL4 (post WW II)
In Search of the Source - Anderson & Moore X SL4 (missionary)
Chucaro: Wild Pony of the Pampa SL4 (1950s Argentina)
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson - Lord SL4 (Chinese immigrant)
Bruchko - Olson X SL4 (missionary in Columbia)
A Letter to Mrs. Roosevelt - DeYoung SL4
The Winged Watchman - Van Stockum SL4 (WWII Holland)
The Great Turkey Walk - Karr SL4
The Perilous Road - Steele SL4 (Civil War)
My Book About Hudson - Miller X SLP (Hudson Taylor)
Peter Pan - Barrie SLK (Classic)
The Bandit of Ashley Downs - Jackson X SL1 (George Mueller)
Thieves of Tyburn Square - Jackson X SL1 (Elizabeth Fry)
Hero Tales III - Jackson X SL1 (missionaries)
Flight of the Fugitives - Jackson X SL2 (Gladys Aylward)
To the Top - Kramer SL2 (climbing Mt. Everest)
Mother West Wind's Children - Burgess SL3 (Classic)
America's Wars: World War I - Stewart SL4
If You Lived at the Time of the Great San Francisco Earthquake - Levine SL4
Bully For You Teddy Roosvelt - Fritz SL4
The Great Depression - Stein SL4
American Adventures 2 - Greenberg SL4 (many topics)
Dog Jack - Biros SL4 (Civil War)
The Golden Spike - Stein SL4 (1869)
Mr. Blue Jeans, A Story About Levi Strauss - Weidt SL4

Logic Stage (Gr. 5-8) -ModernEric Liddell - Benge X SL5
God's Adventurer: Hudson Taylor - Thompson X SL5
Li Lun, Lad of Courage - Treffinger SL5 (Chinese village life)
Mission to Cathay - Polland SL5 (Ambassador to China)
The Big Wave - Buck SL5 (Japanese village life)
Commodore Perry in the Land of Shogun - Blumberg SL5
Born in the Year of Courage -Crofford SL5 (Japan 1853)
Louis Braille - Davidson SL5
Wolves of Willoughby Chase - Aiken SL5 (Victorian era)
Around the World in Eighty Days - Verne SL5 (Victorian, Classic)
Daughter of the Mountains - Rankin SL5 (1900s Tibet)
Gandhi - Bains X SL5
Mary Slessor: Forward into Calabar - Benge X SL5
Young Fu of the Upper Yang Tze - Lewis SL5 (1920s China)
House of Sixty Fathers - DeJong SL5 (WW II)
Sadako & the 1000 Paper Cranes - Coerr SL5 (Hiroshima)
Torches of Joy - Decker SL5 (missionary)
Teresa of Calcutta - Watson SL5
Escape to the Jungle - SIM X SL5 (missionary stories)
Journey to Jo'burg - Naidoo SL5 (South Africa apartheid)
The Land I Lost - Nhuong SL5 (Vietnamese life)
Homesick - Fritz SL5 (life in China)
Ali and the Golden Eagle - Grover SL5 (1970s Saudi Arabia)
Betty Greene, Wings to Serve - Benge SL6 (WWII)
Hitler - Wepman SL6
The Endless Steppe - Hautzig SL6 (Russia WW II)
Snow Treasure - McSwigan SL6 (WW II)
Number the Stars - Lowry SL6 (WW II)
Escape from Warsaw - Serraillier SL6 (WW II)
God's Smuggler - Andrew SL6 (missionary Iron Curtain)
North to Freedom - Holm SL6 (Iron Curtain)
It's A Jungle Out There - Snell X SL6 (true story Amazon rainforest)
Usborne History of the 20th Century SL6
Anna and the King - Landon SL6 (1862-1867 Siam)
The Panama Canal - Roberson SL7
Cameron Townsend - Benge SL7 X
The Home Ranch - Moody SL7
Farewell to Manzanar - Houston SL7 (WW II Japanese internment camp)
Samuel F.B. Morse - Tiner SL7
The Slopes of War - Perez SL7 (Civil War)
The Red Badge of Courage - Crane SL7 (Civil War, Classic)
Rifles for Watie - Keith SL7 (Civil War)
Dragon's Gate - Yep SL7 (Civil War Transcontinental Railroad)
The Call of the Wild - London SL7 (Alaska Klondike Gold Rush, Classic)
Bonanza Girl - Beatty SL7 (1880s)
Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Twain SL7 (1880s town life, Classic)
Patty Reed's Doll - Laurgaard SL7 (Donner Party)
We'll Race You, Henry Ford - Mitchell SL7
Earthquake at Dawn - Gregory SL7 (San Francisco earthquake)
Sounder - Armstrong SL7 (1900s black sharecroppers)
After the Dancing Days - Rostkowski SL7 (WW I)
Christy - Marshall SL7 (Smoky Mountains ministry)
Blue Willow - Gates SL7 (Depression)
To Kill a Mockingbird - Lee SL7 (Depression, Classic)
Moonshiner's Son - Reeder SL7 (Prohibition)
Nothing to Fear - Koller SL7 (Depression)
Peace Child - Richardson X SL7 (Missionary in Irian Jaya)
The Cross and the Switchblade - Wilkerson X SL7 (inner city gangs)
Out of the Dust - Hesse SL7 (Depression)
White Queen: The Story of Mary Slessor - McFarlan X SL5
Eric Liddell - Swift X SL5
David Livingstone: First to Cross Africa with the Gospel - Worcester X SL6
Anne of Green Gables - Montgomery SL6 (1900s Canada, Classic)
The Good Master - Seredy SL6 (1900s Hungary)
Nothing Daunted - Repp X SL6 (missionary in China)
Dragonwings - Yep SL7 (San Francisco earthquake Chinese immigrant)
Running 1000 Miles for Freedom - Craft SL7 (slavery)
A Jar of Dreams - Uchida SL7 (Depression)
Robert E. Lee - Roddy X SL7
The Panama Canal - Stein SL7
Uncle Tom's Cabin - Stowe SL7 (slavery, Classic)
Mrs. Mike - Freedman SL7 (1900s Canada)
Called to Die - Estes X SL7
Joni - Eareckson X SL7
Franklin Delano Roosevelt - Freedman SL7
Martin Luther King, Jr: A Man to Remember - Darby SL7
Two Tickets to Freedom - Freedman SL7 (slavery)


Rhetoric Stage (Gr. 9-12) -Modern
Oliver Twist - Dickens SL8 (VictoriaN, Classic)
Going Solo - Dahl SL8 (WW II)
Little Women - Alcott SL8 (Classic)
Little Men - Alcott SL8 (Classic)
Jane Eyre - Bronte SL8 (Victorian, Classic)
A Christmas Carol - Dickens SL8 (Victorian, Classic)
Treasure Island - Stevenson SL8 (Pirates, Classic)
Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde - Stevenson SL8 (Victorian, Classic)
Pride and Prejudice - Austen SL8 (Victorian, Classic)
Our Century in Pictures for Young People - Jennings & Brewster SL9
Labor’s Untold Story - Boyer & Morais (1850-1950s Unions) SL9
Parallel Journeys - Ayer (WWII) SL 9
After the War - Matas SL9 (Jews in Palestine, post WWII)
The Hiding Place - Ten Boom SL9 (WWII)
What Everyone Should Know About the 20th Century - Axelrod & Philips SL9
Mammoth Book of the 20th Century, Eyewitness History - Lewis SL9
The DK Visual Timeline of the 20th Century - Adams SL9
The Great Brain - Fitzgerald SL9 (turn of the century)
Heart of Darkness - Conrad SL9 (West Africa)
Murder on the Orient Express - Christie SL9
The Great Gatsby - Fitzgerald SL9 (1920s)
The Metamorphosis - Kafka SL9
For Whom the Bell Tolls - Hemingway SL9 (Spanish Civil War)
Brave New World - Huxley SL9
Kon-Tiki - Heyerdahl SL9 (1947)
Cry the Beloved Country - Paton SL9 (1950s South Africa)
The Old Man and the Sea - Hemingway SL9
Robert Frost: Selected Poems - Frost SL9
Darkness at Noon - Koestler SL9 (Communist Russia)
One Day in the Live of Ivan Denisovich - Solzhenitsym SL9 (Siberian prison camp)
The Road Home - Kherdian SL9 (Turkey)
All Quiet on the Western Front - Remarque SL9 (WW I)
You Want Women to Vote, Lizzie Stanton? - Fritz SL9 (women's suffrage)
Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity - Cwiklik SL9
When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit - Kerr SL9 (WW II)
The Snow Goose - Gallico SL9 (WW II)
Winston Churchill: Soldier, Statesman, Artist - Severance SL9
China's Long March: 6,000 Miles of Danger - Fritz SL9 (1930s)
My Life in Advertising & Scientific Advertising - Hopkins SL9
Fallen Angels - Myers SL9 (Viet Nam War)
On the Devil's Doorstep - McClung SL9
Run, Baby, Run - Cruz SL9
Children of the River - Crew SL9 (Cambodian refugee)
Life During the Russian Revolution - Sherrow SL9
Red Scarf Girl - Jiang SL9 (Chinese Cultural Revolution 1960s)
Emancipating Slaves, Enslaving Free Men - Hummell (Civil War) SL10
Where the Broken Heart Still Beats - Meyer SL10 (1850s Native Indians)
Up from Slavery - Washington SL10
The Dry Divide - Moody SL10
Black Like Me - Griffin SL10 (1959 racism)
Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testament of Jim Elliot - Elliot X SL10
The Scarlet Letter - Hawthorne SL10
The Portable Poe - Poe SL10
Best Short Stories of O. Henry SL10
Moby Dick - Melville SL10
The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn - Twain SL10
My Antonia - Cather SL10 (1880s)
Bud, Not Buddy - Curtis SL10 (Depression)
The Jungle - Sinclair SL10 (1900s)
Our Town - Wilder SL10
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Smith SL10 (1900s)
The Grapes of Wrath - Steinbeck SL10 (Depression)
The Chosen - Potok SL10 (1940s)
The Adventures and Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes - Doyle SLBL (Victorian)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass - Carroll SLBL (Classic)
Dubliners - Joyce (classic) SLBL
Emma - Austen (classic, Victorian) SLBL
Frankenstein - Shelley (classic) SLBL
The Importance of Being Earnest - Wilde (classic) SLBL
Lord of the Files - Golding SLBL (classic)
A Passage to India - Foster SLBL (end of the British Empire in India)
Peter Pan - Barrie SLBL (classic)
Pygmalian - Shaw SLBL(classic)
Wuthering Heights - Bronte SLBL (classic)
William Booth - Bennett X SL8
David Copperfield - Dickens SL8 (Victorian, Classic)
Mother Jones - Pinkerton SL9 (Labor Unions)
The Permanent Book of the 20th Century - Lewis SL9
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold - Le Carre SL9
I Had Seen Castles - Rylant SL9 WW II
Exodus - Uris SL9 (Israel 1800-1940)
America's Ceasar - Durand SL10


copyright 1999-2007 Nicola Manning
List may be used for your personal use. Do not copy and distribute without permission.