Why do some history books make children come alive with curiosity… while others feel like lifeless drudgery that everyone forgets five minutes later?
Today we are going to talk about what actually makes a history resource worth your time.
Not the hype.
Not the endless teacher guides and activity books.
Not the pressure to “cover everything.”
Just the simple elements that make history meaningful, memorable, and fascinating.
I’m going to share some of my favorite homeschool history resources—from textbooks and reference books to living books, documentaries, lectures, and fascinating rabbit trails—and also explain why some resources work beautifully while others quietly kill a child’s interest in learning.
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by all the curriculum choices out there, or wondered how to make history come alive in your homeschool without burnout, I think this conversation will encourage you tremendously.
There are so many resources to choose from out there! Here is my humble attempt to cull the best that I know of, but I know many of you have also come across some amazing ones. Please feel free to share in the comments below.
I think this time we will focus on everything but historical fiction, which will take some time, and next time we will focus on historical fiction and all the ways you can go about using it.
Before I begin, I want to emphasize that, as you are doing your research for materials, don’t be lured in by the hype!
Like I always try and emphasize, learning should be simple. Most curriculum has been geared first for the classroom, then modified slightly in an attempt to be of service to homeschoolers. While we appreciate this accommodation, I have found most teacher’s texts, answer books, and activity books to be unnecessary. If you apply these simple ideas to whatever you are studying, you won’t need to bother with all the extras:
- Reading aloud and/or self reading
- Discussion
- Rabbit trailing
- Notebooking
- Other activities as they come along naturally and organically
Here is a quick list that I hope will spark your creativity.
First, let’s talk about reference books.
These are sometimes referred to as “spines,” because they give structure as we go about enjoying gaining knowledge about our world, whether past or present.
You could say these books add in the “Chronos” (and the ones with the Biblical worldview even include some of the Kairos).
Here are just a few:
- A Manual of Ancient History by M. E. Thalheimer. This book was originally written in 1872, before all the craziness had completely set in. It includes the Biblical narrative along-side with the rest of the events of world history, all the way up through Roman history. It is pretty dry reading, but a great reference for adding understanding on different topics.
- Textbooks from major Christian homeschool publishers. These are great because they not only give you a spine to help draw all things together, they also are written from a Christian perspective. My advice is to purchase these second-hand, since you will not be needing any of the answers or teacher’s directions (unless you want to have them). Also, if you get the high school level books, they will be a better reference and include more information. Here is a short list of publishers and titles which seem to be pretty reliable:
- Streams of Civilization books 1 and 2. This is a great treatment of the subject and you can find older versions easily. Also, these books include some information on more modern history as well.
- Abeka and Bob Jones University have come up with some interesting high school history textbooks that you can purchase used quite easily. These also, depending on the edition, can cover information on the 21st century.
- Master Books has some good series, although they haven’t been out long enough to be bought at a less expensive price.
3. Other reference books. These are not always from a Biblical perspective, but they do add interesting illustrations, maps, and other information into the mix. I know there are about a million of these out there, so I will only list a few that I have actual experience with:
- DK history books and atlases (affiliate)
- Usborne history books (affiliate)
Now let’s talk about Charlotte Mason “living book” history narrations. These are the ones which follow the Chronos but include the Kairos in an engaging narrative fashion.
1. The Story of the World series. I have to mention this one because it is so popular, but it does not receive my endorsement. I haven’t used these books myself, but my daughter, Rebekkah, has with her children . She tells me they contain mistakes and biased viewpoints that are not necessarily Christian at all. Here is the opinion of one of my listeners on this series:
We couldn’t get through the first book. My kids felt it was ‘yucky’ and disturbing with the emphasis on legends and myths and Egyptology. Very ‘classical’ with emphasis on all things Greek. Missed SO much of creation account, timeline from Adam to flood, Noah’s sons and their tribes, Tower of Babel and the turning y she migration of different people groups, etc. Like reading a public-school textbook with a meager smattering of Biblical accounts, which were squished right next to cultural myths. Blah
2. Charles C. Coffin books. We have covered these in previous posts, but I believe they are worth a mention here. All from a positive, Christian perspective, and all written in an engaging, narrative manner.
3. The Light and the Glory (affiliate) and From Sea to Shining Sea. These are so interesting they had me engaged for a number of days when I purchased them. This is the thoroughly Christian history of the United States you always wanted to know, but could never find a good source for. Written in a narrative manner, it may be above the heads of your younger children, but worth the read for middle school level and above.
4. This Country of Ours and other books by H. E. Marshall. These are overviews which were written when it wasn’t against the rules to mention God and faith. They would also be Charlotte Mason-approved.
5. The Mystery of History (affiliate). This is the series I would suggest could replace The Story of the World. The books themselves are quite in demand, so there aren’t any really cheap ones out there. One thing to keep in mind is that you won’t need the extra helps and activities, which will reduce the cost of using these materials. Also, this series is chronological as opposed to thematic, meaning you won’t find a section dedicated just to Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome, as the narrative includes the overlap between the two, and also with other cultures along the way.
6. Laurie White’s King Alfred’s English (affiliate). This is a thin book, but one of the most interesting history books my children and I have ever enjoyed together. It is basically a history of the English language, which doesn’t only help with history itself, but also with language, as it gives us the reasons why English is both easier and more difficult than other world languages. She also has a website with all sorts of printables and other resources called The Shorter Word.
Next, let’s talk about the “fun” resources and extra stuff that we can add into the mix. I am going to put in just a few, but I know you mommies out there have plenty more!
- Talks, website, etc. From William Federer. Mr. Federer is a dear Christian man who has spent most of his life studying and analyzing history from a Biblical view point. His lectures are so chock full of enlightening information that you have to listen to them a number of times to catch it all. His books are also interesting to read and share.
- Compass Classroom. This is a homeschool curriculum company which houses numerous of its history lectures right here on YouTube, and you can access them for free.
- How the States God Their Shapes (affiliate). This is a series done around 2011 that looks at US history from a different angle, but covers a lot of fascinating information. You can find a cropped version for free on YouTube, you can purchase the set, or you can watch it where it is currently streaming.
- The Greatest Stories Never Told (affiliate) series by Rick Breyer. Our children found these at the library and they were hooked! I think in some ways these silly books are what lit the fire in them to know more about history. I don’t appreciate the bias or everything that is shared in these, but the stories shared certainly pique one’s interest in finding out more!
- Answers in Genesis. I know we tend to think of this ministry as dealing with creation science, but I have found it is replete with all sorts of history as well, and always from a Biblical perspective. They offer most of their books free to read online, as well, which is a real boon.
- Wall Builders. The founding father-son pair of this ministry, David and Tim Barton, say they have the largest private collection of original documents and other articles from the founding of our country in the United States. They also have their own channel here on YouTube where they present not only American History from a Biblical perspective, but commentary on current events, political movements, etc.
- Christian History Magazine. This is such an amazing resource! It is basically a monthly magazine that runs entirely on donations, and which you can access freely online. The work is well-researched and written and the illustrations and layout are amazing. In the past I was able to download, print, and bind a number of the issues for use in our homeschooling. Among our favorites are issues on JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis, but there are so many more!
- How the Church Fostered Science and Technology
- Plagues and Epidemics (from 2020)
- Faith in Foxholes
- Francis Asbury; Pioneer of Methodism
- Charlemagne
And on and on…
Now, that’s a lot of information! I’m going to be sharing more on different types of novels, etc. in my next post, so be ready!
Until then, you can hear this information in the form of a podcast by going to either my YouTube channel, Mom Delights, or subscribe to my podcast, Mom Delights, on all major streaming services.
