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10 More Spring Study Free Resources for Middle and High School Kids

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

A spring study is the perfect way to get your hands and bodies moving now that spring is here. I have rounded up 10 more spring free unit study resources for middle and high school kids. Also, look at my page homeschool middle school and how to homeschool high school page for more fun tips

Hands-on learning shouldn’t quit after a child finishes elementary school.

No matter the grade level, hands-on learning has a high retention value and making time for it even with older kids has always been worth my time.

10 More Spring Study Free Resources for Middle and High School Kids

Too, I know how hard it can be to find hands-on learning activities for middle and high school grades.

So be sure you grab these 10 free spring unit study resources and download the printables because websites shut down as fast as they seem to spring up (ha, corny pun intended).

Spring Study Resources for Middle and High School

1.
12 Activities To Learn About Photosynthesis.

This first site is from the UK and the reason I’m giving you the heads up is because your kids may not recognize any of the products they use as examples in the student download if you live in the states.

It’s fun to learn though what kids in another part of the world have for sugary food. Otherwise, this is a nice free resource.

Look through all 12 activities, then download the student and teacher’s guide on the right sidebar.

After you get lost in all the wonderful free resources, downloads and hands-on ideas on that page, come back here to grab this next freebie.

2.
Reach for the Sun Unit Study.

This is about plant structure and I included it because it’s one of the resources which you can use for multiple ages of children.

It’s a little different from the rest of the resources I have listed because you have to navigate each section to read the activities and grab each download.

There are colorful graphics and even video.

The game is not free, but the rest of the unit study is so very well done and it makes it easy to implement and teach without much planning.

You navigate the free downloads and activities by clicking on the left sidebar.

3.
Competition Among Organisms Lesson Plan.

Do plants need to compete among themselves in any given environment? Download this free 8 page lesson plan.

From the site: This activity gives you an opportunity to observe the effect on plant growth when plants must compete for nutrients and space. Round up your used milk containers to use for planting.

4.
Geology.

You’ll love this very useful free 62 page download which has free printables like a game board and ideas for making fossils.

Grab some chicken bones, vinegar, dirt and clay to name a few items needed for hands-on activities.

The topics are fossils, plant fossils and vascular and non-vascular plants to name a few.

Also, I couldn’t resist showing you these beautiful hands-on living science books which are created by a homeschool mom.

5.
Biology Educator Guide: Producers Make their Own Food.

This next free download is from web archive but its still a great idea for a long term project.

The topic is about how producers make food and you’ll want to grab soil, 2 healthy plants, craft sticks and ziploc bags to name a few things. This is like a 12 day project of observing plants

6.
USDA Facts Sheets and Plant Guides.

I included this super helpful site because the pdf downloads on each plant makes for a great research topic for an essay.

After all, there are thousands of plant choices to choose from. Grab some art sketch pencils and a journal and your teen could make this a quick and fun science study.

From the site: Fact Sheets provide brief descriptions of a plant, its uses, and cultural recommendations. Plant Guides are similar but more extensive.

7.
University of Kentucky Department of Entomology.

This next site is chock full of ideas.

They have free craft ideas, downloads, stories and art about bugs. It’s an older site and some of the links are not working, but most of them are working. It just has so much that it’s worth your time.

Navigate by both the sidebar and the small print top navigator in order to get all of the ideas.

Be sure you click on the section For Teachers and Parents on the left sidebar.

There is a bug scavenger hunt too which teaches that bugs do have benefits. All of your kids can do that together.

Too, you just have to see the insect art made out of natural materials that I think your middle school kids won’t find baby-ish, but fun.

8.
Plant features.

This is an 11 page download which has illustrations for different types of leaves.

Then, you didn’t think I would include something about spring without finding a history bent did you?

I think you’ll love this lesson plan which is about classifying plants in ancient Greece. In this lesson, you will be taking a look at some features that have been used in the past to classify plants. It’s an 11 page download.

Spring Study Resources

9.
The Amazing Tomato.

Then any unit study worth its weight has to include salsa (okay, okay).

Seriously though, what a fun way to include some edible science in this lesson plan. This is a fun lesson plan which includes how to make salsa and comparing store bought salsa with home made salsa.

10 More Spring Study Free Resources for Middle and High School Kids

It also has ideas for older kids, but I loved it because everybody can join in on the fun. From roots to routes, this is a 4 page download.

10.
Garden Bingo.  

Lastly, this is a free garden bingo game. Just download all the pieces and enjoy the day learning about plants.

I hope some of these ideas can get your bigger kids moving and not dreading their daily work load, but still savoring the fun of hands-on and learning together. I think you’ll love these other round up of ideas and free printables for getting outdoors.

You’ll also love these other resources:

Hugs and love ya,

10 More Spring Study Free Resources for Middle and High School Kids. Grab these free awesome downloads and hands-on ideas to keep your older kids learning. I think your younger kid could join in too. Click here to grab the resources! @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

5 Steps to Choosing Geography Living Books Your Children Will Love

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

To understand how to use a geography living books, you need to step back first and get to the nitty-gritty of what is geography and what is a living book. Both definitions need to intersect.Too, look at my page Homeschool Geography for hands-on and simple ideas and tips.

Visualizing what geography is can have some kids (and moms) moaning because they may think it means just drawing or labeling maps (snore).

Contrary to what some people think, geography is not just a study of maps. That field is cartography.

5 Steps to Choosing Geography Living Books Your Children Will Love! Grab this 5 point checklist so that you choose books that are engaging and worthwhile to read. Click here to read it!

Geography is so much more, it’s about relationships.

The relationship can be people to places, animals to land, earth to air and people to plants to name a few.

Merging Geography with Living Books

Look at expanding the definition of geography to include:

  • the science of the earth.
  • learning about oceans and any area occupied by water.
  • exploring plant life.
  • investigating animal life.
  • studying what is on the earth, up above, and under the earth like the natural resources.
  • understanding people and how they use their natural resources while highlighting their culture.

Geography is learning about our home, which means geography is a bridge to all other fields of study.

It connects math to science, science to history, math to history, and people to the place they call home.

Next, identifying the features of a living book are equally important. Capturing the definition was Charlotte Mason, a 19th century British educator.

Many of her principles are valuable and I’ve implemented them in my many years of homeschooling.

And though I do follow more of a unit study method, many Charlotte Mason methods including the use of twaddle-free living books are part of my unit studies.

What is NOT a Living Book

Pulling the definition up close and analyzing (you know I like the details), it helps sometimes to understand what is not a living book.

Look at these things that are not traits of a living book:

  • A textbook.
  • A dry factual book.
  • Any book created for the sole purpose of meeting today’s educational standards.
  • A book that is dumbed-down meaning that it was intentionally simplified to appeal to more people.
  • It means an unabridged version, but not always. It’s  something I look at, however, when judging the value of a book.
  • It doesn’t always mean it’s a classic, but a lot of times it does.
  • And contrary to some popular beliefs, it’s not always a book where a child feels like he can escape to another place. A romance novel can do that, but that doesn’t mean one that exploits sexual fantasy is a good choice for reading.

The Power of Geography Living Books

Look at these things that are tell-tale signs of a living book.

  • Opposite a textbook is a book written by an author that is passionate about the subject. He either is knowledgeable about the subject because it could be his lifework or it’s personal experience.
  • Instead of presenting dry hard facts, a reader is drawn in through a story, which is always the best way of remembering any set of facts.
  • Instead of writing to meet national standards, a writer may unintentionally offend the politically correct view or standard. Not that we are looking for shock value in a book when we allow our kids to read books that do. But we are opening windows in their mind and stimulating their imagination. This can’t be done when all the thinking is done for a child. However, one common weave is the power to influence children in a positive way.
  • Too, it’s not that we don’t want to embrace the modern world, but older books were written at a time when stunning imagery engages the memory and makes the words memorable.

5-Point Checklist: Geography Living Books

Armed with these two sets of ideals, merging them is essential before you can evaluate if a book is a geography living book.

Look at this 5-point checklist, which gives you a beginning point.

ONE. It should be written in a narrative format.

Like history, which should be written in a narrative format about the people and places your child wants to learn about.

Geography should also be written by a good story-teller who unfolds his plot.

TWO. Emphasis is on the author’s knowledge and enthusiasm.

Instead of textbooks written based on a survey of monetary gain and approved by review committees because they meet standards, a geography living book is written based on enthusiasm, passion and  personal experiences.

Look for clues in the summary or passage.

For example, V.M. Hillyer wrote one of our favorite geography living books for young children, A Child’s Geography of the World and he states: “As I had been a traveler for many years, had visited most of the countries of the Globe, and in actual mileage had been five times the distance around the World, I thought I would write a geography myself.”

THREE. It should encourage your child to make good choices in life.

In addition, geography living books should encourage a child to think not only about the subject at hand, but to make good choices in his life.

Choosing excellence and goodness should become a practice. Is that a lot to ask for from a geography living book?

Look at this passage from the same book, “There is a saying that “Good fences make good neighbors,” but that depends on the neighbors.” Statements like this leads your child to make conclusions as to the type of person or neighbor he wants to be.

FOUR. Dry and boring repeated abstractions and stats are absent.

Learning dry and boring statistics and repeating abstractions instead of events are things that are absent in a geography living book.

Look again at another passage from A Child’s Geography of the World, “To me, as a child, geography was a bugbear of repellent names – Climate and Commerce, Manufactures and Industries, and products, products, PRODUCTS. Geography was a “stomach” geography; the “head” and “heart” were left out.”

How did geography become just a study of export, import, coloring flags and memorizing barley, rye and wheat as the crops produced by a country? (snooze)

FIVE. It lays a foundation of interest in the world around us and a thirst for knowledge.

Similar to any living book, a geography living book, no matter when it was written is one that is alive and relevant today.

The world changes; facts in an old book, which are not true today doesn’t mean the rest of it is useless.

Instead of viewing that as a roadblock, I view it as an opportunity to probe and investigate. Laying a foundation of interest in the world around us and a thirst for knowledge that a child wants to quench in his lifetime should be the goal of a living book.

Classics have an enduring quality that lasts generations. Think about classics that you read in your childhood or that your parent’s read. I couldn’t wait to share with my children classics like Heidi, Raggedy Ann & Andy and The Story of Ferdinand.

Further, we have an inborn need to communicate and converse with conviction through our words and our vocabulary.

For example, the book, Study Is A Hard Work, which I love, the author remarks, “Mental laziness and limited vocabulary are usually bedfellows in the same brain.”

Rich and colorful vocabulary found in older books adds meaning not only to a study of geography, but makes an impression in a child’s mind.

Encapsulating the definition of a geography living book helps me to not forget what my educational standards are as I continue to homeschool and I hope it helps you too.

More Homeschool Geography Activities

Do you have any favorite geography living books?

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High School Elective:Peek at Principles and Precepts of Economics

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

High School Elective. A Peek at Principles and Precepts of Economics Homeschool High School Curriculum @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus
I was given this product for free and I was paid for my time. However, paid for my time does not mean paid off. All opinions are my own and for sure I will always tell you what is on my mind. Not every product will get a positive review. Too, because I carefully sort through numerous offers for reviews,  it usually means that I’m giddy about the product when I do accept it. Read my full disclosure here.

After just graduating high school, one of my most memorable adventures was staying with friends who lived in Belize. They had just purchased a house and planted trees, which produced the most delicious avocados and mangoes. When night came though, they would have to guard their new orchard as some of the Belizeans would jump the fence and raid their fruit. One local man justified the actions of his fellow countrymen by saying, “The fruit was for the whole of we.” Knowing the history of British influence on the dialect, we all understood the meaning of his reply. Whatever work you did in that country was to benefit the whole country. My friends and I got schooled that night about economics from one local view which was very different than what I learned about high school economics. Economics is about learning the history of what shaped people to think about their system of trading. So I was thrilled when I had the chance to teach my high school teen about economics using Principles and Precepts of Economics from Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum. 

When I learned that Principles and Precepts of Economics course is taught through history, I was hooked. Isn’t that what really affects how people from different countries view the economy? The past history and the present and future goals of a country shape today’s modern world. Look here at the scope and sequence of what each book covers so you can get an overview.

Understanding economics then at the high school level needs to begin with the ideas of the founding fathers and Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum (PAC) has done a solid job in presenting a foundation for a country’s trading system while presenting both good and bad ideas.

The course has three components: three soft-cover texts (chapters), three student activity books and a teacher resource book, which we put in a binder for ease of use.

The ease of use for PAC is one of its strongest features for a homeschooled home school teen | Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Look at the 15 topics that come in each chapter (soft-cover text) so you can see the key teaching points and how Principles and Precepts of Economics unfolds.

 15 TOPICS STUDIED IN EACH SOFT BOUND (Chapter) TEXT BOOK.
Chapter 1

►Introduction to Economics
1. Defining Economics
2. An Economy Based on Biblical Principles
3. A Bad Experiment
4. Economics and the American Colonies
5. Tyranny of the Crown
►From Revolution to Prosperity
1. Liberty or Death!
2. War!
3. The Constitution and Bill of Rights
4. Land of Opportunity
5. Prosperity vs New Ideologies
►Modern Economic Issues in America
1. The Progressives
2. Change Comes
3. New Economies Part I
4. New Economies Part II
5. Return to Greatness

Chapter 2

►The Early Years – Seeds of Economic Liberty
1. Fleeing Tyranny in England
2. An Economy Based on Biblical Principles
3. A Bad Experiment
4. Economics and the American Colonies
5. Tyranny of the Crown
►From Revolution to Prosperity
1. Liberty or Death!
2. War!
3. The Constitution and Bill of Rights
4. Land of Opportunity
5. Prosperity vs. New Ideologies
►Modern Economic Issues in America
1. The Progressives
2. Change Comes
3. New Economics Part I
4. New Economics Part II
5. Return to Greatness

Chapter 3

►Family Economics
1. Budgets
2. Banking
3. Insurance
4. Investing
5. Government Considerations
►Starting a Small Business
1. Freedom vs. Punching a Clock
2. Personal Interest + Demand = Profit
3. Resources (Help Is Available)
4. Profit and Loss
5. Use It Wisely
►Education and Economic
1. Considerations
2. College
3. Trade Schools
4. Military Service
5. Other Options

As you can see the Chapter 2 book builds on the history of Chapter 1. The Chapter 3 book we really liked too because it gave practical value to learning economics. For example, Mr. Awesome and I had to make some decisions about a 401K in his upcoming job. After covering Chapter 3, Tiny knew what we were talking about because he really liked the sections about family economics and business ownership.

Let me back up first though because Chapter 1 is a fast and surprisingly comprehensive overview of world history including some religious views and some about the background of the Bible.

This was unexpected by us at first because I’ve used curriculum from PAC before and prefer to add in our own worldview. It is easily done by this curriculum.

Too, we understood the context in which those ideas were being introduced. For example, to understand capitalism is to view it through the eyes of the founding fathers. It was based on individual liberty and belief in inalienable rights bestowed by a Creator.

Through the course it was clear that principles, precepts and different theories were going to be introduced. At this age, I’m wanting to be sure Tiny is introduced to other worldviews.

Chapter 1 covers from Ancient history, including Rome to the Awakening to the Middle Ages. As each world power is introduced, vocabulary words and ideologies are explained.

The layout of the book is what makes the books so easy for a middle or high school student to do independently.

Look below at one 2 page layout.

Self-teaching is promoted because everything the student needs to learn is right on the page without researching a lot of external resources.Vocabulary words are clearly defined through simple, but not busy illustrations which makes the teaching points or message memorable.

Another feature Tiny really enjoyed was the use of video throughout the book.

If you don’t know what QR codes are, I know your teen probably does. That was another unexpected very useful interactive tool we liked.

How to Easily Teach High School Economics

You can download the free QR reader scanner here at iTunes. Note this one is for an iPhone. You can also get one for an iPad which we already had downloaded.

Look at these easy directions below.

High School Elective. A Peek at Principles and Precepts of Economics Homeschool High using QR codes | Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Find the QR code links in the books, use your device to scan the code (tell your teen to clean his screen for the fifteenth time, okay, okay) and then wait for the video to load on your device.This video was one learning about different types of business structures and it was my business-minded teen’s very favorite.

10 Things You Should Know About Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum

Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum (PAC) may be a good fit for your family:

►If your high school student prefers to work independently.
►If your middle school student is ready for high school level work.
►If, like me, you need to keep up with high school credit then this is one-half credit (.5) or semester long program.
►If you have a middle school or high school teen that loves history, then he’ll appreciate covering economics from a history slant.
►If you want to use this as an elective or a required course in social studies.
►If you don’t want to use an online high school. Simply choose which subjects you want your child to do and form your syllabus. Grade and track your child’s grades.
►If your teen gets easily overwhelmed with all the clutter in digital only formats, then the clean and simple black and white illustrations keeps the points being taught straightforward and challenging but clear.
►If you want something affordable and prefer to use consumable products.
►If your teen prefers activities like fill in the blank, matching concepts, marking answers true and false and circling the correct answer.
►If you want to still feed your teen’s mind with character building concepts, he’ll savor the tiny nuggets of motivational sayings or Life Principles at the end of each section.

I do have to let you know about a part I didn’t agree with. Understand too that I realize at the high school senior level parents vary about how much control they want over their young adult’s content.

I still very much feel it’s my job to shape my child’s thinking and I’ve always preferred secular resources so that I can instill my own Biblical content.

One the other hand, I’ve never objected to my teens being exposed to conflicting thoughts and views because my job is to prepare my teens for other views. But I want views to stay as that, just opinions or perspectives.

The authors write on the left side column of the page:

Evolution, as it is taught today, has itself evolved since Darwin published his tome; but the book inspired collectivists to promote their theories. While the intention of this course is not to delve deeply into scientific matters, we need to examine the evolution perspective so you can see its impact on public policy, including economics and politics. (Chapter 1, page 43. Bold emphasis mine.)

Then on the right side column of the same page the authors write:

Evolution’s counterpart, creationism, or intelligent design, was (and is today) ridiculed by collectivists as unscientific, and thus unworthy of inclusion in modern science text and classrooms. However the success of capitalism is a strong argument in support of economics based on individual liberty and belief in inalienable rights bestowed by a Creator.

In reality, both evolution and creationism are unprovable, from a purely scientific standpoint. Science observation and experimentation are necessary parts of the scientific method, neither evolution or creationism can be proved scientifically. If creationism is true, nobody alive today was around to watch it happen, and if evolution is true, no one can live millions of years to observe it happening. Likewise if God created everything in the distant past, we cannot recreate that in the lab. Neither can one recreate evolution in science labs. (Chapter 1, page 43. Bold emphasis mine.)

Whether I agree or not if evolution or creationism cannot be proved scientifically, I would have preferred that the second paragraph on the second column above not be included.

I feel this would have been more in line with the authors’ intention of not delving deeply into scientific matters because I want to be the one helping my teen determine our scientific standpoint.

Overall it was an excellent course for the number of lessons covered and that part didn’t hold us back from covering the rest of the very useful and practical information.

Too, I think you’ll love how all of their courses are useful and practical to use. We’ve had an overall positive experience using them. Look at my post where we used Paradigm Accelerated World History Curriculum.

Then don’t forget to use the coupon code below for such a well-laid out course.

Follow Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum.
Facebook|Twitter|Pinterest|Join their Mailing List

How to purchase it.

►Product Name: Principles and Precepts of Economics. Full course kit which includes texts, activities and teacher’s resource kit.
►Website: Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum – Principles and Precepts of Economics.
►Suitable for grades: 7th to High School.
►Formats: Print version, audio enhanced and digital download.
►Worldview: Secular friendly and easy to implement your own worldview.
►Cost: $59.55 print version.

Also, check out 14 Fun and (maybe Frugal) Homeschool High School Electives, Successful Entrepreneur-3 Best Homeschooled Teen Resources and Homeschool High School–How to Log Hours for High School.

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

5 BEST Books To Create An Around The World Unit Study | Easy Hands-on Ideas

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

It’s possible to create a world unit study with a few great books. Also, look at my page Best Homeschool Unit Studies for more free unit studies.

The best way to learn about other parts of the world is through a book.

A book tells stories full of suspense, adventure and discovery.

Events that happened in a geographical area, at a certain time, or as they unfolded through the life of characters in history engage kids.

5 BEST Books To Create An Around The World Unit Study | Easy Hands-on Ideas

{Warning: Picture overload. This post has tons of pictures so you’ll be scrolling. These books are so beautiful and worth every penny so I want you to see lots of pictures!}

I was given these books for free and I was paid for my time. However, paid for my time does not mean paid off. All opinions are my own and for sure I will always tell you what is on my mind. Not every product will get a positive review. Too, because I carefully sort through numerous offers for reviews, it usually means I’m giddy about the product when I do accept it. Read my full disclosure here.

  • The books are
  • Cleopatra Queen of Egypt,
  • Marco Polo History’s Great Adventurer,
  • Archie’s War – My Scrapbook of The First World War,
  • Into the Unknown – How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea, and Air and
  • John Muir America’s First Environmentalist.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study

Look at the list below and then look at the unit study ideas below as I break down each book.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study

I can’t wait to show you 5 best books to create an around the world unit study easily through stories by Candlewick Press.

The first book Cleopatra Queen of Egypt is for ages 8-12 .

It is for grades 3 -7 which makes it a useful book for teaching multiple ages.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

That is one huge advantage that attracted me to these books.

Strive for a middle age when choosing books.

Why? Because you can create a unit study for multiple ages without being so time intensive when planning.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Moving up or down from a middle point to plan age appropriate activities.

That is less stressful at a middle grade level.

Starting off your adventure, your kids can read about Ancient Egypt.

Then learn about Ancient Rome through the life of Cleopatra.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

I also pulled out a game I had created when we studied Ancient Egypt before.

Look here for the Free Ancient Egypt Mehen Printable Board Game (Hands-on History).

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

What I appreciated most about the book was that it had both positive and negative things to say about the life of Cleopatra.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Whether true or not, many things we’ll never know about her.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

But your kids can learn about life during that time through the pull out maps in the book and lift flaps.

Other topics in the book that you want to cover are Roman numbers for math, Cleopatra’s relatives which were Greek-speaking aristocrats, Egyptian religion, Julius Caesar, Egyptian hairstyles, Egyptian jewelry, festivals and temples.

How to Teach About World Cultures Through Children’s Books

Also, learning about how the Egyptians were accustomed to female pharaohs wielding power, but the Greeks and Romans were not gives your kids a glimpse into the government.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Look at some of these hands-on ideas while learning about Ancient Greece, Ancient Egypt and Ancient Rome. They round out a world unit study.

Grab this free Ancient Lapbook and unit study here.

We studied Greece numerous times and here is a second lapbook for Ancient Greece.

To understand the background of Ancient Egypt also download this free Pharaohs and Queens Ancient Egypt lapbook.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Grab this free Ancient Rome lapbook and make this fun easy Roman helmet and shield.

Just to be sure you have more than enough hands-on history activities to bring the reading of this book alive.

Here are several more Hands-on History Activities for Learning about Ancient Civilizations you don’t want to miss. This post gives you more ideas for other civilizations in this world unit study.

Then on to the next adventure with the book Into the Unknown – How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea, and Air.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

The reason I chose this book is that when you look at the table of contents, it has a mix of 14 different adventurers from Pytheas the Greek to Tenzing Norgay.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

And Edmund Hillary who scaled Mount Everest in 1953 to Umberto Nobile who flies across the Arctic in 1928.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Some kids get bored covering history and geography in a chronological order and need some breathing room to skip to other areas of the world about topics that intrigue them.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

How to Use Children’s Books to Teach History Units

The beauty of this book is that through the courageous and thrilling trips of the explorers, your child can learn about many different places.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Just some ideas to take away from this book are to learn about how Apollo II rockets in space, Leif Ericksson reaches the coast of America and how John Cook maps the Pacific Ocean.

This book too is for ages 8-12.

And through the colorful maps, detailed drawings and double spread pull out page, it was hard for Tiny to put this one down.

Not only can you can bring this book alive by studying the different parts of a ship, your child can learn how explorers found their way using different navigational tools.

From ancient to modern places, your kids have their choice of where to start. Here are some hands-on activities to pique their interest.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Awesome Literature to Teach World History

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Moving on to understand about China and the Silk Road through the eyes of Marco Polo, we loved reading Marco Polo History’s Great Adventurer.

Like the Cleopatra Queen of Egypt book, this one too has beautiful bright fold outs with background information about medieval China.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Additionally, look at my Free Marco Polo Unit Study, Lapbook, and Hands-on Ideas.

One reason I chose this book is because it can be hard to find resources that don’t just focus on Medieval Europe  without including what’s happening in the rest of the world during that time.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Topics like the Maya city of Chichen Itza (by the way, we went there on our honey moon, okay, okay) the Soninke Empire of West Africa and the Silk Road are equally engaging and important.

Yes it was fascinating to read about the discoveries along the way but other topics like understanding the geography also helps your child to appreciate the rugged terrain.

Including deserts, mountains and the silk making process make for fascinating topics while studying about Marco Polo.

Learning about deserts, your child can create desert sand art, make a hygrometer and make a sand clock.

Picture Books Brings Learning to Life

Also, I have a huge Marco Polo unit study where your child can make a mythological map, an interactive extend a timeline book, terracotta warriors, an artful mosaic and salt dough map.

My next choice is Archie’s War – My Scrapbook of The First World War.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

This book is full of comic strips with a collage or scrapbook style.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Although war is not a comical matter, I’ve always struggled with teaching my boys about wars and this book gives a picture of what life would have been like in World War I in an entertaining way.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)

Through letters, drawings and through collages articles from that time period, your kids can appreciate the emotion of the time period.

Also, because it is about World War I, your kids can read about snippets going on in other parts of the world along with an easy timeline.

How rationing begins and how life is never the same again is a message that is gently weaved through the newspaper headlines, letters and diary like quotes throughout the book.

One of the best things I didn’t realize about this book is that some of the things are actual mementos of the time period. This is one period that Tiny and I are wanting to focus more on.

Be sure to grab my free World War II lapbook and learn to make ration cakes as a follow up to this book.

The last book John Muir America’s First Environmentalist is the perfect book for an outdoors adventure.

From Muir’s birthplace in Scotland to Florida and California, John Muir was the ultimate nature adventurer.

Sketching natural journals while learning about the local flora and fauna your child can love nature and appreciate it through his fascinating life.

How to Use Picture Books to Merge Academic Subjects

Learning about Yosemite National Park and Muir’s love to preserve the wilderness, this book has us researching for hours about songbirds, Sequoia, Canada and the Aurora Borealis.

Look at this free spring unit study about John Muir where we did several hands-on activities.

One we did was to learn how ice affects mountains.

If you’re looking to use one book with all of your children to learn about far away places from the comfort of your chair, you’ll swoon over the choices.

We easily have several more unit studies planned.

What do you think? Ready to put together your own world unit study?

How to purchase them.

►Product Names: Cleopatra Queen of Egypt, Marco Polo History’s Great Adventurer, Archie’s War – My Scrapbook of The First World War, Into the Unknown – How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea, and Air and John Muir America’s First Environmentalist.
►Website: Candlewick Press.
►Suitable for Ages:  8 to 12 or grades 3 – 7.

5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities). When you use picture books for multiple ages of children they have a way of bringing homeschool unit studies to life. If you are looking to cover geography and history, grab these books and the easy and fun hands-on homeschool ideas @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

DOUBLE Pinterest Repins in Just One Month (no fancy app needed)

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DOUBLE Pinterest Repins in Just One Month (no fancy app needed - REALLY!) There is one secret tip that works without having to pay for high dollar courses or trying to figure out a fancy algorithm. Click here because you can EASILY do this! @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

When I joined Pinterest I had no idea it would be my number one referrer and still is for many years now. There wasn’t any information or solid tips on how to increase your reach like we have today. In the beginning, finding solutions to how to grow Pinterest to my current 52K followers felt like groping through the unknown. What I’ve learned through it though is to trust my instincts like I’ve done to this point. And I’m giddy because I figured out another secret tip that I can’t wait to share with you. Today, I’m going to tell you how to double pinterest repins in just one month and no you don’t have to buy one more app or take one more high dollar course to learn this secret.

I won’t keep you hanging long, but first you have to see my December stats below to appreciate how stale my repins had become. I’m sure you can relate to my struggle of not only trying to stay ahead of Pinterest but keep up with the other changes on social media.

Too, Pinterest changed to adding Picked for You pins which competes for the pins you want your followers to see. I mean that is why somebody is following you because they want to see your pins right? But that is another thread. The point is there is more competition than ever.

Like most professional bloggers, I started using tailwind and had been using ahalogy when it first came out to schedule my pins. I tried scheduling with both tailwind and ahalogy at the same time and even increased my pins per day but look at the picture below from December.

I just felt like I was spinning my wheels because just scheduling pins alone did not boost my repins.

In December, 2016 I just couldn’t get over the 6K or 7K repins and it was that way for MONTHS. If I took a snippet of each month before December, they would all look similar.

Getting Back to My Roots

So (drum roll please, sorry) instead of following one more fancy algorithm, I simply went back to my roots. I went back to doing what grew my Pinterest fast in the first place which is to pin naturally.

I know it may sound stressful to do one more thing with your limited time when you think you can schedule it. But if you want your repin rate to increase, the key is that you have to still pin organically too.

Especially if Pinterest is your number one referrer, like it is for me, it commands my respect and that means time.

Want to see the results of pinning each week with not really a set schedule? What I mean is that though my pins were scheduled for that week with tailwind and ahalogy like they’ve been for several months before, I didn’t follow a set schedule of pinning naturally. I just pinned.

While I was on my laptop preparing my blog posts or having my morning brew, I pinned one or two pins. In the evening when I’m on, I pinned a few more pins here and there.

Look at the results below. My repin rate went from 76% in December to 177% in January!

And to keep this simple because I always love things explained to me in a not technical Tina fashion, look at how the repin rate went up each week as you can see from my email.

It’s easier to see the growth this way because sometimes the graph is not so user friendly. I started pinning naturally again in January and every week thereafter.

Jan 2  –  6723 repins
Jan 9  –  8330 repins
Jan 16  –  10050 repins
Jan 23  –  11077 repins
Jan 30  –  12760 repins

And February has well over 13k repins as I have continued to pin naturally when I’m on my device.

I just pinned naturally each day. That is the other important key. Be consistent and do it each day. That is really how I grew fast in the beginning by doing something I love and being consistent in sharing high quality content.

If you’re like me, you have tons to do each day as a blogger or social media manager, sot I didn’t repin every pin. My tailwind scheduler did most of the work, but it did not give me the same results as when I pinned along naturally with it.

I hope that tidbit can be a saving grace for you. You don’t have to pin every pin naturally, you just need to pin some of them.

I’ve learned another lesson in managing my own content which is keep doing what I’ve done no matter what fancy scheduler or supposedly scientific research comes along.

Pinterest is about natural engagement. Try it! And see if it doesn’t work. Just remember my pointers, you need to be consistent, still use your favorite scheduler and have fun. Track your repin rate.

Also, check out my other tips about Pinterest on Pinterest Secret – The 3Cs of a Smart Pin. From a Homeschool Mom Who Grew Her Followers to 35K Without Complicated Algorithms and 11 Amazing Tips To Grow Pinterest That You Need to Know NOW.

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

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