History is a soaring and captivating subject that equips us to understand the world. It’s no surprise that many parents desire to impart that knowledge to their children, and homeschooling is a great way to do so. Making a free homeschool curriculum to teach history can look daunting at first, but with proper guidance and a step-by-step process, it can be done quickly and effectively.
Here are 15 important questions to ask when creating a free homeschool history curriculum:
1. What ages am I targeting with the curriculum?
When coming up with a history curriculum, it’s important to decide what age groups the curriculum is intended for. Depending on the age group, the topic and the range of materials used will differ greatly. For instance, a middle or high school curriculum would require more indepth textbooks, and might include primary sources.
Alternatively, a young elementary curriculum would use simpler authors, such as children’s books and video resources.
2. What timeline should the curriculum encompass?
When creating a homeschool history curriculum, it’s wise to take a bird’s eye view of history by deciding which major eras or movements will be covered in the lesson plan. A comprehensive history curriculum should unpack major eras such as Ancient Times, Medieval Times, The Age of Exploration, The Industrial Age and so forth. Of course, this is just a general starting point and the timeline can really be adjusted to fit the age of the students.
3. What primary sources will I use to supplement the curriculum?
Primary sources are great for enriching any curriculum, but particularly for a homeschool history curriculum. Primary sources are materials like diaries, letters, poems, artwork, and more that show first-hand accounts of peoples’ experiences of a certain time period. Incorporating these into the curriculum can really help students understand the time period better, allowing a deeper understanding of the events and developments that occurred.
4. What secondary sources should I use in the curriculum?
Secondary sources are a type of resource that usually takes the form of a textbook, novel, or other written content. These can be great for looking into deeper details and thought on specific topics.
When building a homeschool history curriculum, they can be used to provide a clearer understanding in some of the more difficult concepts and give students the chance to expand their knowledge.
5. How can I turn the curriculum into hands-on activities?
Hands-on activities are an effective way to engage students, and can be a great addition to any homeschool history curriculum. A few examples of hands-on activities are creating a timeline of a key event, creating a mini exhibition of artifacts from a certain time period, using online simulation programs to simulate the activities of a certain period in history, or visiting a museum dedicated to the time period.
6. What online resources can I use to supplement the curriculum?
In this day and age, there is an immense wealth of online resources available to supplement a homeschool history curriculum. Online tools such as Khan Academy, Brain Pop, National Geographic and TED-Ed are all great places to start.
However, there are plenty of other resources out there in various shapes and sizes, it’s just a matter of exploring the web to find the right ones.
7. What kind of assignments should I give to the students?
In order for the students to really internalize the knowledge presented in the homeschool history curriculum, it’s important to assign assignment and activities to the students in order to assess understanding. This could include creating a discussion forum on a certain topic, writing an essay, creating a digital presentation or game, or researching a hands-on project.
8. What different approaches should I use to present the information?
It’s important to use different approaches in order to keep students engaged – giving them an opportunity to explore topics and consider concepts in different contexts. This could mean incorporating elements of discussion and conversation, challenging them to reflect on questions, engaging with visual media, or playing rehearsal games.
9. How can I make the subject matter relevant to the students?
Whenever possible, the subject matter should be tied to present-day events or relatable issues, as this can help students better appreciate the importance of learning about the past. Finding ways to put the knowledge into modern relevance – such as bringing a current issue back to its historical roots – can be a great way to help students understand the importance of the subject.
10. How can I personalize the homeschool history curriculum to my students’ interests?
Chances are, not all students will have the same interests. Finding ways to personalize the curriculum to each student’s interests can help make the subject more engaging for them. Examples could be researching a topic that resonates with them, or taking part in a project where they take a role of a particular person in history.
11. How can I make the homeschool history curriculum relatable to various cultures and backgrounds?
One of the great things about the teaching of history is the opportunity to encourage students to see themselves and the world through multiple lenses. In order to ensure that the homeschool history curriculum is respectful and inclusive, it’s important to consider the various cultures and backgrounds of the students.
This could involve visiting a museum or place of education that celebrates the culture of certain students, or researching stories of influential figures from certain times in history.
12. What objectives should I have for the curriculum?
It’s important to set specific objectives for each lesson, as this will act as a structure when it comes to developing the curriculum. This could include exploring key events or changes in certain eras, analyzing primary sources, understanding the causes and effects of certain developments, and so forth. Oftentimes it’s useful to write out each step for each lesson so that the students can understand what to expect.
13. What resources will I need?
In order to make sure that the homeschool history curriculum is effective and enjoyable, it’s important to compile the right resources beforehand. This could involve textbooks, primary sources, websites, museum or library trips, or field trips.
Thinking outside the box can also bring great results – incorporating social media, podcasts or even filmed documentaries into the mix.
14. What assessments will I use to evaluate the students?
Assessment is an important part of measuring the understanding of the students. This could involve asking students to answer online quizzes, writing essays, creating presentations, having discussions, or evaluating a project.
Whichever type of assessment is chosen, it’s important to make sure that it’s tailored to the age group and topic at hand.
15. How can I make the homeschool history curriculum interactive and fun for the students?
Making homeschool history lessons interactive is one of the best ways to keep students engaged, and there are plenty of ways to do so. This could include having students form a classic Greek theater with props, having a mock trial discussing different court cases in history, participating in a social media simulation, or creating a board game inspired by a particular era.
Conclusion
Creating a free homeschool history curriculum can be a daunting task at first, but with proper guidance and a thorough process, it can be done effectively and quickly. It’s important to consider the age group, timeline, primary sources, secondary sources, online resources, assignments, objectives, resources, assessments and interactive activities.
With these 15 questions, the creation of a free homeschool history curriculum should seem like a much simpler task.