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Make High School History Exciting with Journey Through Time

What did you think about history class when you were in high school? If you were like most teenagers, you probably thought it was boring and pointless.  It doesn’t have to be like that, though!  As a devoted history and geography enthusiast I want to show you a better way.  Imagine if you could draw your teen into a world of curiosity and wonder.  What if you could surround them with the sights, sounds, and experiences of people from a different place and time.  If they could live the stories of people their age from all over the world throughout history, how much more would that draw them in?  Now you can do just that!

 

Read on to learn about an amazing new high school curriculum that will let you make history exciting this year, and be sure to get your FREE Sneak Peak!

The Problems with History

History doesn’t have to be boring.  As a society, we make it boring with the way we usually teach it.

The Material is Boring

“That textbook chapter was amazing, ” said no one ever!  Let’s be real, textbooks are dull and uninspiring.  History is usually taught by assigning textbook chapters and the questions that follow.  Are the questions deep and insightful ones that make teens think deeply about the world?  Nope!    To spice things up there might be lectures on the time periods as well.  Neither of these options is going to spark someone’s curiosity and make them want to learn!  But teachers use them anyway, because that’s how it’s always been done.

The Work isn’t Relevant

When you have been evaluated at a job, how has it usually worked?  I’m guessing your boss has probably judged you based on your daily work and the projects you have completed.  You didn’t have to memorize a list of facts and take a multiple choice test, right?  Yet we ask students to do these things in school to ‘prepare them for the future’ even though that the work isn’t relevant or flexible enough to match their needs.

The Focus is on the Wrong Thing

History classes nearly always focus on the wrong thing.  Which is more important, memorizing a list of names and dates, or analyzing information from multiple sources to create something and understanding the people of the world?  It’s pretty clear which of those matters more and it’s not the one that classes typically do.

How Journey Through Time is Different

What if, instead of focusing on textbooks and tests, we used methods that made teens want to learn?  What if, instead, we did something a little more exciting and flexible?  Journey Through Time will do just that for your teen!  If you want to test things out before buying, try out this sneak peak of the curriculum!

Living Books

Living books are like the worms that fishermen use to bait their hooks.  They will lure your teen in and make them curious about what’s in them, which is exactly why all of the books for Journey Through Time are living books!  They’re going to read two historical fiction books and a non-fiction book that will make them want to read and learn more during each unit.  These are far more interesting than textbooks and many feature teens as the main character, increasing the interest value!

Preparation for the Future

Pop quiz, which is more important, filling in test bubbles or sharpening future career skills?  That’s a pretty easy question to answer!  Journey Through Time gives teens the chance to build the skills that will carry them through adulthood.  Each unit has a project that is up to them to design.  They can use those as an amazing opportunity to hone the skills they will need for a future career or ministry opportunity.  They’ll also practice time management and planning as they plan out both unit projects and a final project, and will explore the world of art through their work.

Focus on Culture

Journey Through Time is a study of history with a focus on culture, not just a study of names and dates.  Culture is why we are the way we are.  It’s based on our history, our beliefs, our food, our environment, and so much more.  A lack of caring about other people’s cultures has repeatedly caused problems throughout history.  Let’s put an end to that and start teaching our teens to understand and appreciate the cultures around them, and to get to the heart of why our world is the way it is!

Journey Through Time FAQs

What age is Journey Through Time meant for?

Journey Through Time is a high school course.  I designed it with grades 9-10 in mind, but it could be used at any point in high school.  While it *could* be used at the middle school age, you may need to alter the workload some, and keep in mind the more mature content of some of the books.

Is Journey Through Time just for history?

Journey Through Time is designed to cover a full year of  high school history.  There is also a good deal of work that focuses on language arts skills like speaking, writing, and reading comprehension.  So, with a bit of work to increase what your child writes (like longer reading journal responses), or adding in more ‘public speaking’ to projects, you could also use it to cover most of language arts for the year.

Does my teen need to do all the reading on his/her own?

Nope.  I designed this curriculum to be highly adaptable and flexible.  Your teen could read the books independently, read with you, or even listen while you read them aloud.  Many of the books for the curriculum are also available as audiobooks.

Do I have to score/grade my teen’s work?

Absolutely not.  Whether or not to score/grade is a very personal decision that each family needs to make for themselves.  If you are grading for the purposes of transcripts or an umbrella school, I have included information on how many points each activity is worth as well as a Course Grading page to keep track of everything.

Take Your Child on a Journey Through Time

Stop settling for boring history lessons.  Help your teens explore our history as a planet and develop the skills they’ll need to succeed in life.  Make school exciting this year with Journey Through Time!  Be sure to check out the FREE sneak peek at the curriculum!

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