I like that you actually did stuff. You might not have read through the whole thing, but you gave viewers the general idea of what you actually discovered.
the quote you say won you over - I wish I'd been told that in school (i'm almost 58 now and hated history and looking back I feel it was very slanted) I'm thinking about getting these books LOL! for myself - they sure are pricey though!
I used portions of the first volume for my (then) 5th-grader's personal study in Earyl American History (It was by far her favorite resource for that subject). I like the second volume even better, but I am not sure how I can work it in with our other history curriculum for 2023-2024 school year.
History is really a struggle. As a secular homeschooler its hard to find more objective perspectives on history but are still engaging for the kids. I am shied away from some of the tuttle twins because the views in those books don't match our family's values, we havent taken that jump to use it as a learning tool to counter those beliefs, but maybe combining these books with river of voices might offer a more diverse perspective. Thanks for your review.
History is a struggle! It’s impossible to cover everything we want to cover, especially in a way that is engaging for kids. Someone will always be upset that something wasn’t included. I try and make clear with my children that there is ALWAYS another perspective and there is always more to learn. At the end of the day- I want them to be able to consider history objectively and with curiosity. I believe these books help me reach towards that goal.
I saw your most recent video recommending this & was so surprised following your previous Tuttle Twins review. So glad I found this one after somehow missing it when you originally posted it!
@hannahhensley8497 what do you mean? Are you looking for a second review of the set of books they have e on economics? If so- I haven’t changed my opinion on those. Or are you talking about reviewing some of their other materials?
Thank you so much for doing this review. I feel like for this one I really would have to look and see. We gravitate towards secular curriculum only because we are a non-Christian faith-based homeschool. For me at least what I don't want is to shy away from the difficult. One thing I have noticed in recent years are curricula that claim to be offering a more balanced view but seem to be justifying or excusing past behaviors as a result. The concern then is that justifying what happened in the past brings us a step closer to justifying those same ideas/thoughts/behaviors in the present. It's a fine line... And I agree it's really reductionist to look at history as good vs evil, but I still want my history book to call out behaviors that had horrific repurcussions and to know what these (intended and unintended) consequences were. We use Curiosity Chronicles, which does have a more global history approach so I realize it's not for the family looking to go into American history in depth, but Meyers' discussion of history does strike me as very in-depth, which works for us. So I would really want to spend some time with this book... But I will check it out when we do tackle American history next year!
I hope you stick around because at some point I would like to do more videos on getting started in the younger grades. It always seems to take a back seat to what we are doing now (we are currently in grades 7 & 9/10), but I will get to it.
We have these books, and I am working through the first one with my kids. We really like it. We add it to another literature curriculum as a way to really show the ideas that were motivating the past. I think you can tell the authors are libertarian in their political views, and I think that means they are, happily, not going to be leaning traditional left or right as much as libertarian. There was one scene in the 2nd that I noticed that was just like the quintessential libertarian jokes about being stopped by the police: "Am I being detained? Do you have a warrant? Then I am leaving!" Since I also lean libertarian, it just made me laugh!
I’m still on the fence. I love the story approach. I love the way it promotes higher thinking skills. Does it give enough in depth of history? IDK My daughter is 9 and we already have a history curriculum that we are working through and probably have a few more years before we will be done so is this something that will make us dump what we are currently doing to switch. That is where I’m not sure. I will keep it as an option and thank you for the review because I had dismissed it based on it being the Tuttle Twins and not hearing a lot of good things from the secular community on their story books.
It’s always tough to choose when there are multiple good options. I try not to overload the kids, but will be adding this one to our use of History of US
@@HomeschoolHappyHourwe are doing the History of US but at $128 this one would have to replace that one. (We are on book 2) We are also trying to loosely follow the time table for World History, so we can tie in what was happening in the rest of the world to US history during that time. We are also doing US geography. Now that I write it out it sounds like too much. 😂 I guess we will see how it goes and just go at our pace.
@@teresanorris4769 For US Geography I got a huge map on Amazon - it is 6 ft wide! We put it on our wall and identified states as we got to them. My kid has fine motor issues so we used stickers, but its a blank map that can be written on, so if you have a kid that likes to write or draw you could easily put in the mountains and other things like that to really get into it. It's been on our wall for 2 years and has been greatly enjoyed. Highly recommend.
I have been using the Tuttle Twins history as a supplement to our other history. I think it is very in depth in what it is trying to do: talk about the ideas that pushed various events in history. It is not really trying to talk about all the events worth talking about. So I personally, wouldn't do it alone, but I think it is fantastic for adding the WHY behind history.
Hey, I've been a fan of your channel for a while, but as a native person, I was really thrown by you saying that the history of America is euro-centric. You talked about how the history is written by the victors, but I was surprised you didn't extend that courtesy to us. We have a long and proud history that was erased. Additionally, many of America's historical sites were built by black labor. I think that saying the history of America is euro-centric is ignoring the fact that for much of history, only european-american history was valued/preserved. I really respect you and your channel, so I hope that if you read this, that comes across.
Thank you for commenting. I hear you and I think perhaps I didn’t express what I meant clearly. The written history of the FOUNDING of the current American government is euro-centric. I probably should have said of the United States government as opposed to American, as America encompasses 2 continents and numerous countries. Our government was established by people that predominantly came from Europe as opposed to being built by the Native Americans, or people from Africa, Asia, or South America. I don’t mean this to say that as a judgement of good or bad or to erase the history of the diversity of people that make up America as it is today. It does not dismiss the impact that people with various cultural backgrounds have had on our country’s past, or that our country is currently made up of a great diversity of people and cultures. It’s simply a statement of what WAS, not to be confused as a reflection of what is. I think the history of all people should be respected and told. I have and will incorporate historically diverse viewpoints and stories told from the viewpoints of the people they are told about. If you are interested I can put together a video sharing some of these resources as well. I’m also open to suggestions as to books to take a look at. Regarding the Tuttle Twins: These books offer a useful glance at the how’s and why’s behind the foundations of the United States of America. It doesn’t claim “rights” and “wrongs”, it explores ideas and intentions. I don’t know if that clarifies or makes it worse. This would be a good in person discussion.
@@HomeschoolHappyHourU.S. government was established by the white devil who raped and killed their ways into dominance but they are not the founding fathers. They are not the ones who built this country even after they stole it. They murdered the owners and took what they wanted but were not strong enough or intelligent enough to build the country so they went to yet another continent to kidnap stronger, smarter people (ripping them from their families and homes) in order to force them to build what is now the United States for the benefit of the kidnappers.
She said and i quote, "I like how this book talks about the Native Americans because America is not just euro-centric. Many American history books make America euro-centric."
I currently have a variety of videos covering history resources. I hope you are able to find something useful in those. Unfortunately, I have stopped filming for the time being as I am reprioritizing my time. I don’t know if /when I will resume filming.
I like them both for different reasons. Had these been available when my kids were younger, I probably would have used them first and the used History of US as they got older.
Thanks! We are doing more delight directed this year (usually literature based unit studies here) but I want each of my kids to get a solid American history before high school. I think I will have them do this or The Story of US with the Thinking Tree Past Times Newspaper! @@HomeschoolHappyHour
One thing you can do is emphasize liberty. This will make your child a citizen that can protect liberty in a Republic. You can teach the constitution and then follow it through history and you can ask if we are getting more or less free and prosperous as we have abandoned our constitution. I would teach Western Civilization instead of world history. You can analyze the rise and fall of civilizations. This will make your daughter a good steward of liberty and citizenship. If we do not have good government, we will have nothing.
I appreciate you looking at them so I don't have to - although I probably wouldn't have picked it up in the first place or known they existed - like you said! I do find that random mentions of Moses, etc are a problem, but not in a way that we can't address it, but in the way that it results in a story of history told from a Christian worldview and that is something I try very hard to avoid, especially in history. I've studied history quite a bit in my post-secondary education so I'm especially picky and have pretty much been pulling on my own experience and knowledge to teach it - although I did love River of Voices.
That’s the second mention of River of Voices. I’ll have to look at those. As to the religious references. Normally I agree with you. It all depends on context and whether it seems sneaky or just part of what’s happening. For example: if they are talking about the religion of the people that left Europe and how that was part of their motivation to leave- that seems relevant. If they are just trying to indoctrinate through side notes and irrelevant religious ideals being pushed, I get cranky.
I did not observe it as being politically leaning. It does talk about politics, obviously, but it seems balanced. That being said. I will be giving updates as we work our way through the materials.
Have you read them? If so- please tell us what you found in them that was imbalanced or inaccurate. I have not read them cover to cover, so am happy to hear details. If you have not read them- or at least given them a look through, maybe check them out and then let us know what you think. I find them to be both balanced and accurate (to the best of my knowledge). As a libertarian, I think they are a great resource.
Written history can not be propaganda. What a strange thing to say. The parents give examples that explain things such as exploration and trade but idk how that is propaganda, again it IS our history.
@MoreOnPleeez Written history can definitely be used as propaganda if told in a one sided manner or in a manner which omits parts of history. But no, you want to try to sound so intelligent 😂
I like that you actually did stuff. You might not have read through the whole thing, but you gave viewers the general idea of what you actually discovered.
the quote you say won you over - I wish I'd been told that in school (i'm almost 58 now and hated history and looking back I feel it was very slanted) I'm thinking about getting these books LOL! for myself - they sure are pricey though!
I used portions of the first volume for my (then) 5th-grader's personal study in Earyl American History (It was by far her favorite resource for that subject). I like the second volume even better, but I am not sure how I can work it in with our other history curriculum for 2023-2024 school year.
Thank you for sharing your perspective after having used the materials! It can be hard to incorporate all the things we like without overdoing 😜
History is really a struggle. As a secular homeschooler its hard to find more objective perspectives on history but are still engaging for the kids. I am shied away from some of the tuttle twins because the views in those books don't match our family's values, we havent taken that jump to use it as a learning tool to counter those beliefs, but maybe combining these books with river of voices might offer a more diverse perspective. Thanks for your review.
History is a struggle! It’s impossible to cover everything we want to cover, especially in a way that is engaging for kids. Someone will always be upset that something wasn’t included. I try and make clear with my children that there is ALWAYS another perspective and there is always more to learn. At the end of the day- I want them to be able to consider history objectively and with curiosity. I believe these books help me reach towards that goal.
@@HomeschoolHappyHour ❤ this.
I saw your most recent video recommending this & was so surprised following your previous Tuttle Twins review. So glad I found this one after somehow missing it when you originally posted it!
I was surprised too. Different materials though. I tried to look at each objectively.
@@HomeschoolHappyHour would love to see if you have different opinions on any of their books compared to your original view
@hannahhensley8497 what do you mean? Are you looking for a second review of the set of books they have e on economics? If so- I haven’t changed my opinion on those. Or are you talking about reviewing some of their other materials?
Thank you so much for doing this review. I feel like for this one I really would have to look and see. We gravitate towards secular curriculum only because we are a non-Christian faith-based homeschool. For me at least what I don't want is to shy away from the difficult. One thing I have noticed in recent years are curricula that claim to be offering a more balanced view but seem to be justifying or excusing past behaviors as a result. The concern then is that justifying what happened in the past brings us a step closer to justifying those same ideas/thoughts/behaviors in the present. It's a fine line... And I agree it's really reductionist to look at history as good vs evil, but I still want my history book to call out behaviors that had horrific repurcussions and to know what these (intended and unintended) consequences were. We use Curiosity Chronicles, which does have a more global history approach so I realize it's not for the family looking to go into American history in depth, but Meyers' discussion of history does strike me as very in-depth, which works for us. So I would really want to spend some time with this book... But I will check it out when we do tackle American history next year!
I loved Curiosity Chronicles! Sometimes I wish we could set all other subjects aside and just do history. There’s so much to learn there.
💯
Awe… feeling sad we are in the 1850s of US history right now :) and my kids are only getting older.
Right! I wish I’d had more history options when all my kids were younger.
Thank you. I'm researching to get ready for my daughter. We plan to homeschool her. Any advice on homeschooling kindergarten would rule.
I hope you stick around because at some point I would like to do more videos on getting started in the younger grades. It always seems to take a back seat to what we are doing now (we are currently in grades 7 & 9/10), but I will get to it.
We have these books, and I am working through the first one with my kids. We really like it. We add it to another literature curriculum as a way to really show the ideas that were motivating the past.
I think you can tell the authors are libertarian in their political views, and I think that means they are, happily, not going to be leaning traditional left or right as much as libertarian. There was one scene in the 2nd that I noticed that was just like the quintessential libertarian jokes about being stopped by the police: "Am I being detained? Do you have a warrant? Then I am leaving!" Since I also lean libertarian, it just made me laugh!
I’m still on the fence. I love the story approach. I love the way it promotes higher thinking skills. Does it give enough in depth of history? IDK My daughter is 9 and we already have a history curriculum that we are working through and probably have a few more years before we will be done so is this something that will make us dump what we are currently doing to switch. That is where I’m not sure. I will keep it as an option and thank you for the review because I had dismissed it based on it being the Tuttle Twins and not hearing a lot of good things from the secular community on their story books.
It’s always tough to choose when there are multiple good options. I try not to overload the kids, but will be adding this one to our use of History of US
@@HomeschoolHappyHourwe are doing the History of US but at $128 this one would have to replace that one. (We are on book 2) We are also trying to loosely follow the time table for World History, so we can tie in what was happening in the rest of the world to US history during that time.
We are also doing US geography. Now that I write it out it sounds like too much. 😂 I guess we will see how it goes and just go at our pace.
@@teresanorris4769 For US Geography I got a huge map on Amazon - it is 6 ft wide! We put it on our wall and identified states as we got to them. My kid has fine motor issues so we used stickers, but its a blank map that can be written on, so if you have a kid that likes to write or draw you could easily put in the mountains and other things like that to really get into it. It's been on our wall for 2 years and has been greatly enjoyed. Highly recommend.
I have been using the Tuttle Twins history as a supplement to our other history. I think it is very in depth in what it is trying to do: talk about the ideas that pushed various events in history. It is not really trying to talk about all the events worth talking about. So I personally, wouldn't do it alone, but I think it is fantastic for adding the WHY behind history.
Hey, I've been a fan of your channel for a while, but as a native person, I was really thrown by you saying that the history of America is euro-centric. You talked about how the history is written by the victors, but I was surprised you didn't extend that courtesy to us. We have a long and proud history that was erased. Additionally, many of America's historical sites were built by black labor. I think that saying the history of America is euro-centric is ignoring the fact that for much of history, only european-american history was valued/preserved. I really respect you and your channel, so I hope that if you read this, that comes across.
Thank you for commenting. I hear you and I think perhaps I didn’t express what I meant clearly. The written history of the FOUNDING of the current American government is euro-centric. I probably should have said of the United States government as opposed to American, as America encompasses 2 continents and numerous countries. Our government was established by people that predominantly came from Europe as opposed to being built by the Native Americans, or people from Africa, Asia, or South America. I don’t mean this to say that as a judgement of good or bad or to erase the history of the diversity of people that make up America as it is today. It does not dismiss the impact that people with various cultural backgrounds have had on our country’s past, or that our country is currently made up of a great diversity of people and cultures. It’s simply a statement of what WAS, not to be confused as a reflection of what is. I think the history of all people should be respected and told. I have and will incorporate historically diverse viewpoints and stories told from the viewpoints of the people they are told about. If you are interested I can put together a video sharing some of these resources as well. I’m also open to suggestions as to books to take a look at. Regarding the Tuttle Twins: These books offer a useful glance at the how’s and why’s behind the foundations of the United States of America. It doesn’t claim “rights” and “wrongs”, it explores ideas and intentions. I don’t know if that clarifies or makes it worse. This would be a good in person discussion.
@@HomeschoolHappyHourU.S. government was established by the white devil who raped and killed their ways into dominance but they are not the founding fathers. They are not the ones who built this country even after they stole it. They murdered the owners and took what they wanted but were not strong enough or intelligent enough to build the country so they went to yet another continent to kidnap stronger, smarter people (ripping them from their families and homes) in order to force them to build what is now the United States for the benefit of the kidnappers.
She said and i quote, "I like how this book talks about the Native Americans because America is not just euro-centric. Many American history books make America euro-centric."
@@HomeschoolHappyHourI would love to see a video of the resources that show the diversity of American history!
I currently have a variety of videos covering history resources. I hope you are able to find something useful in those. Unfortunately, I have stopped filming for the time being as I am reprioritizing my time. I don’t know if /when I will resume filming.
Do you prefer this or The History of US that you have reviewed in the past? You may not know yet but thought I would ask.
I like them both for different reasons. Had these been available when my kids were younger, I probably would have used them first and the used History of US as they got older.
Thanks! We are doing more delight directed this year (usually literature based unit studies here) but I want each of my kids to get a solid American history before high school. I think I will have them do this or The Story of US with the Thinking Tree Past Times Newspaper! @@HomeschoolHappyHour
What age range is recommended for?
The authors suggest ages 6-12.
One thing you can do is emphasize liberty. This will make your child a citizen that can protect liberty in a Republic. You can teach the constitution and then follow it through history and you can ask if we are getting more or less free and prosperous as we have abandoned our constitution. I would teach Western Civilization instead of world history. You can analyze the rise and fall of civilizations. This will make your daughter a good steward of liberty and citizenship. If we do not have good government, we will have nothing.
I appreciate you looking at them so I don't have to - although I probably wouldn't have picked it up in the first place or known they existed - like you said! I do find that random mentions of Moses, etc are a problem, but not in a way that we can't address it, but in the way that it results in a story of history told from a Christian worldview and that is something I try very hard to avoid, especially in history. I've studied history quite a bit in my post-secondary education so I'm especially picky and have pretty much been pulling on my own experience and knowledge to teach it - although I did love River of Voices.
That’s the second mention of River of Voices. I’ll have to look at those. As to the religious references. Normally I agree with you. It all depends on context and whether it seems sneaky or just part of what’s happening. For example: if they are talking about the religion of the people that left Europe and how that was part of their motivation to leave- that seems relevant. If they are just trying to indoctrinate through side notes and irrelevant religious ideals being pushed, I get cranky.
Is this series very political though?
I did not observe it as being politically leaning. It does talk about politics, obviously, but it seems balanced. That being said. I will be giving updates as we work our way through the materials.
These are not balanced or accurate. Their content right wing propaganda, and I'm surprised to see a secular homeschooler promoting this.
Have you read them? If so- please tell us what you found in them that was imbalanced or inaccurate. I have not read them cover to cover, so am happy to hear details. If you have not read them- or at least given them a look through, maybe check them out and then let us know what you think. I find them to be both balanced and accurate (to the best of my knowledge). As a libertarian, I think they are a great resource.
Written history can not be propaganda. What a strange thing to say. The parents give examples that explain things such as exploration and trade but idk how that is propaganda, again it IS our history.
@MoreOnPleeez Written history can definitely be used as propaganda if told in a one sided manner or in a manner which omits parts of history. But no, you want to try to sound so intelligent 😂