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history

Ancient Civilizations Unit – Printable Minibook on Sumer

May 31, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

One of the main reasons I wanted to cover an ancient civilizations unit is because sometimes a history study can get draggy. More important, I wanted to include other ancient civilizations to add to our Ancient Civilizations II unit study.

Focusing on the details of history, can get a bit sluggish because you lose the momentum of the overview.

There are lot of kids and teachers alike that are I-have-to-see-the-big-picture-before-I-get it people.

Me? I love history, but I can get buried in all the details.

I appreciate the big picture too.

It is important to pull up and away and look at the big picture so you understand the major players of ancient history.

Ancient Civilizations Unit

For us, I think after we examine the big picture and come up for air, it gives us another bunny trail to go down. You know what I mean? Often times, I end up with more units or topics than school months to learn about them.

Ancient Civilizations

Too, if you start homeschooling with older children sometimes they just get a glimpse of them in public school.

So, if you’re wanting to cover ancient civilizations, then a unit focusing on great empires or ancient civilizations is key to understanding them.

It is key to keeping history fun and relevant. Although Mesopotamia is an early civilization, it can be confusing to understand about Sumer.

So I made it a separate minibook.

Understanding that Sumer developed in Mesopotamia is the first place to start.

From there it is easier to associate the Sumerian ruler, Sargon, with the time period.

This time I made a minibook focusing more on the Sumerians invented which was a system of writing and irrigation.

Because they were farmers, irrigation was an important livelihood. 

Understanding how irrigation helped them to live farther away from the rivers is an important concept in explaining how they thrived as a civilization.

Sure, it probably is not as glamorous to study about farming and irrigation as maybe studying about mummies, but it is solid; farming and irrigation is at the roots of ancient civilizations.

Ancient Civilization Unit

As usual, I try to give some accompanying facts and as always you don’t have to use them.

Ancient Sumer Printable Minibook

I provide information as I can because we do lapbooks as enrichment and my time is limited.

Also, these minibooks can be glued on pages for notebooking. You decide.

Sometimes we do a lapbook, sometimes the older boys glue the minibook on pages for a notebook.

One curriculum that we are using right now too because I am interested in getting a bird’s eye view on history is Western Civilization Study by Brimwood Press.

The reason I am excited about this one is because in a few short lessons you span several thousands of years of history. I

n fourteen lessons you span 5,000 years. A great teaching tool for getting a sweeping overview of history. We are already loving it. You have to check it out below.

I can’t wait to tell you more as we are so engaged going through it. I hope you enjoy the Sumer book. It makes it easy when you can cover civilizations, hitting the highlights and move on.

Ancient Civilizations Unit

Download the next minibook on Sumer below

Sumer-Ancient-Civilizations-Unit-by-Tina-Robertson.pdf (21 downloads)

Do you find it hard to teach the highlights of history?

Ancient Civilization Unit

Hugs and love ya,

Leave a CommentFiled Under: 1. My FREE Learning Printables {Any Topic}, History Based, My Unit Studies {Free Printables & Hands-on Ideas} Tagged With: ancient, ancient civilizations, Ancient Sumer, freeprintables, history, history resources, historyspine, homeschoolhistory, lapbook, lapbooks

11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

April 22, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Learning about Ancient Egypt should be both fun and interactive during the middle school ages. It’s not time to give up the fun at any age of learning. Today, I have gathered 11 easy hands-on Ancient Egypt projects for middle school.

Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

1. Make Mud Bricks.

Look at this fun Hands-on Ancient Egypt: Israelite Mud Bricks for Kids. With minimal material, most of which you have around the house, your middle school child will love making these mud bricks.

2. Build a LEGO Math Calculator.

Next, look at this math slant project while studying about Ancient Egypt. Ancient Egyptian Mathematics: Build a LEGO Math Calculator is a fun middle school project.

Studying about jewelry from Ancient Egypt doesn’t have to be hard. Look at this Fun Hands-On History: Ancient Egyptian Collar Craft.

11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

3. Create an Ancient Egyptian Collar

One of the most famous forms of jewelry worn by the ancient Egyptians was the Usekh collar. Rich Egyptians often wore these broad necklaces on a daily basis and this collar craft is a fun way to understand about Egyptian necklaces.

Then to add a bit of art and drawing, your middle school child will love Ancient Egypt Civilization (Hands-on History): King Narmer Crown.

4. Mold a painting of the Ancient Egypt Double Crown

After all studying about the double crown and the significance to Ancient Egypt can be hard to understand. This easy hands-on project helps learning facts stick.

Projects for Middle School About Ancient Egypt

5. Play the Snake Game

In addition, I created this fun and Free Ancient Egypt Mehen Printable Board Game (Hands-on History) based on the popular snake game played by the Egyptians.

However, we really loved doing the Project Passport: Ancient Egypt from Home School in the Woods .

Not only did we enjoy many hands-on learning activities, but love learning about Upper and Lower Egypt, the maps and the printable activities. My post Ancient Egypt Homeschool Unit Study – Hands-on and FUN! has numerous activities in Project Passport.

6. Travel Egypt Without Leaving Your Home

11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

Also, add in a few more hands-on fun ideas like this Birdcage Ancient Egypt Go Fish game.

11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

7. Prepare cardboard Egyptian Pillars

And another Ancient Egypt project for middle school is to have your child prepare these beautiful smokin’ hot Egyptian cardboard pillars.

Hands-on Ancient Egypt Middle School Activities

At the end of our unit study co-op our group made these cardboard pillars; your crafty middle school kid will love doing them for a prop or drama your group has.

8. Tie in Ancient Egypt with Astronomy Notebooking Page

Furthermore, some middle school children will love a science tie in with Ancient Egypt like learning about ancient astronomy. Look at my post Exploring Space and Astronomy Free Unit Study for Multiple Ages.

Exploring Space and Astronomy Free Unit Study for Multiple Ages

These notebooking pages are subscriber freebies.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my Exclusive Subscriber’s Only Library which has these notebooking pages in the library.

This is how you get access to these pages quickly.
► 1) Sign up on my list.
► 2) Go to your inbox and confirm your email from the automatic reply I sent you.
►3) Look for the automatic reply giving you the password to the private subscriber’s area. You should have it soon.

Exploring Space and Astronomy Free Unit Study for Multiple Ages

IF you are already a follower/subscriber, PLEASE do NOT email me asking how to find it. You may not want to wait on me replying since I get bombarded with emails.

Find the MOST RECENT email from me and the password and link to the Subscribers Area are ALWAYS at the bottom of every email. Look for the most current email since I change the password frequently.

9. Study Ancient Egypt Alongside Other Ancient Empires.

This next Ancient Egypt project for middle school is to make an in depth study of Ancient Empires. We used Great Empires Activity Study by Home School in the Wood.

Some children need to see the key players or empires of history at one time and need a longer project to retain focus.

Moving too fast studying ancient history and a child may not understand key time periods. It’s important for key history hooks to be made so that all other learning can be tied to history makers.

Great Empires Activity Study by Home School in the Woods covers fourteen empires:

  • Ancient China
  • Ancient Egypt
  • Ancient Greece
  • Ancient Rome
  • Arab-Muslims,
  • English Empire
  • French Empire
  • Mongols
  • Russian Empire
  • Spanish Empire
  • United States and
  • Viking.
  • German Empire
  • Japanese Empire
11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

Another easy activity Hands-On History: The Rosetta Stone and Breaking The Code is really a fun introduction to learning about ancient history.

10. Break the Code of the Rosetta Stone.

If you find that your child doesn’t really know anything about why we know some about ancient history, begin with learning about the Rosetta Stone. Your code breakers will love to learn about breaking the code.

Rosetta Stone Making a Code

As well including your young kids can be tough. So, if you want to include your younger kids or if your middle school child loves to still color, you’ll love this set of Ancient color pages to go along with your studies.

20 Ancient Civilization History Coloring Pages at Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus. You'll love adding these to your unit studies or notebooking.

We have used various museum quality history coloring books through the years that have made a big difference in how my boys understood history in the early years. I think clip art should be as real as possible and based on real events in history.

Learning Ancient History Through Coloring

Instead of me adding titles on pages or naming the coloring pages, this allows you to use the clip art/coloring pages any way you want to. Whether it is a cover page, notebooking page, journal page or just to enrich a topic, you have the flexibility.

Here is what the 20 page download contains. I put a few key words to explain each picture on the page. This way you can use the coloring pages as title pages too on your lapbooks.

Page 3: Ancient Egypt Court,
Page 4: Ancient Egypt Spinning,
Page 5: Ancient Egypt Life of the Royals,
Page 6: Ancient Egypt Battles,
Page 7: Ancient Egypt The Nile,
Page 8: Life Along the River – The Nile,
Page 9: Metal Workers & Crafts of Ancient Egypt,
Page 10: Egyptian Hieroglyphics,
Page 11: Egyptian Queen Cleopatra,

Page 12: Aztecs Floating Gardens
Page 13: Aztecs,
Page 14: Aztec Life,
Page 15: Mayans,
Page 16: Ancient Greece Wedding,
Page 17: Ancient Greek Galley,
Page 18: Ancient Greece Crafts,
Page 19: Ancient Greece Bank,
Page 20: Athens,
Page 21: Spartan Warrior and
Page 22: The Vikings.

Grab your fun copy below!

  • 20 Ancient Civilization History Coloring Pages

    $3.50
    Add to cart

Finally, you know my love for hands-on tools like lapbooks. No, they’re not just for younger children.

Middle school children really benefit from them as well. And the best part is that the lapbook can be as crafty or not as your child wants it to be.

11. Craft a Pharaohs and Queens Ancient Egypt lapbook.

And I really make it easy here for you because I have this free Famous Pharaohs and Queens of Egypt lapbook.

11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

What do you think? Are you ready to tackle these 11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School?

11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School

And be sure you visit these middle school activities:

  • Free Ancient Egypt Mehen Printable Board Game (Hands-on History)
  • Hands-on Ancient Egypt: Israelite Mud Bricks for Kids
  • Fun Hands-On History: Ancient Egyptian Collar Craft
  • Ancient Egyptian Mathematics: Build a LEGO Math Calculator
  • Ancient Egypt Civilization (Hands-on History): King Narmer Crown

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Ancient Civilizations, Hands-On Activities, History Resources Tagged With: ancient, ancient civilizations, ancient egypt, ancientegypt, egypt, hands on history, hands-on, hands-on activities, handsonhomeschooling, history, homeschoolhistory, lapbook, middle school, middleschool

7 Super Fun History Games to Bring the Past to Life

November 3, 2021 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today, I have 7 super fun history games. History – The only class where I actually fell asleep (multiple times!) when I was in school!  Do your kiddos groan and moan about history? 

What is it about history that can make it so boring?  Because, really, history is so full of interesting facts and stories that now I can’t believe how boring I used to think it was!

Let’s change that!  Let’s make history fun and exciting!  Let’s make it (dare I say it?!) your child’s favorite subject! 

It’s a favorite subject around our house and I firmly believe that is because we use so many games in our history lessons!

Fun History Games

7 Super Fun History Games to Bring the Past to Life


I’m going to be sharing 7 super fun history games that you can use in your homeschool to bring the past to life!  Let’s get started!

1) Made for Trade

Time Period: Colonial America

Ages: 7+

Players: 2 to 4
Game Length: 5 to 30 minutes (depending on which version you play)

We have been studying US history this year and Made for Trade has been so fun! 

This is a board game, shop cards, character pawns, dice, and shillings. 

This history game comes with 3 versions to play! The first game is a version of Spoons called Shillings where players try to get five cards from the same shop (blacksmith, potter, silversmith, etc.). 

I was really happy to find instructions for this game because my 5 year old could play this with no help and the kids are becoming familiar with items that were sold in different shops during Colonial America.

The 2nd and 3rd versions of the game are very similar. 

In the first version players work their way around the village buying or trading items from the village shops trying to acquire any 4 objects from the shops. 

Players also have to pay taxes and get paid as they move around the spaces. 

The 3rd version, players are also trying to acquire cards, but this time they are specific items on an inventory card for their character. 

This version also adds in event cards such as a smallpox outbreak that has kids learning even more about American History. 

Made for Trade is a great game to introduce your children to US History!

History Games for Elementary Students

2) Guess in 10: States of America and Countries of the World

Time Period: N/A

Ages: All Ages

Players: 2 to 6

Game Length: 5 minutes to as long as you want!

This game isn’t really history, but more geography.

I included it in my list because it is perfect for families with a wide age range, and besides, we all need to know states and countries! 

Ask up to 10 questions to guess the state of America or country on the game card! There are 50 game cards and 6 clue cards in each game. 

This would be fun for traveling or at the dinner table for some fun dinner time trivia! 

There are other sets, too, like landmarks, animals, underwater, foods around the world, dinosaurs, and more!

3) Brain Box World History

Time Period: All of History

Ages: All Ages

Players: 1 or more players

Game Length: 5 minutes or as long as you want! 

Brain Box World History is a memory game and a history game in one!

Players look at the front of a card for 10 seconds. 

Then, they flip over the card and roll the die. Another player reads the question corresponding to the number on the die. 

If you get it correct, you get to keep the card; if you get the answer wrong, the card goes back in the box. The player with the most cards after 10 minutes (or some agreed upon time) wins! 

There is also a one player game version where a single player can try to get as many cards as he or she can in 10 minutes. 

This is a great way to introduce different events in history!

4) Timeline: Historical Events.

Time Period: All of history

Ages: 8 and up

Players: 2 to 6

Game Length: About 15 minutes

What is it about?

There are so many of the Timeline games and they can all be mixed together for some real fun!

The basic idea of the game is simple – start with a random card and then arrange other historical events either before or after it depending on when they happened in history.

These games are quick, fun, and a great way to learn when events happened.

This is also a great game for introducing lots of events and seeing which ones your children would like to dive deeper into. Other decks include Inventions, more Historical Events, and British history.

The cards come in a tin, like the Spot It, which makes it easy to store or take with you on the go!

Note: If you are looking for a game like this for older children, be sure to check out Chronology. Ages 14+

5)  Professor Noggin: History of the United States

Time Period: US History (various times)

Ages: 7+

Players: 2 to 8

Game Length: About 15 to 30 minutes

Professor Noggin is a trivia type game where players try to collect cards by answering questions correctly. 

There are easy and hard questions on each card. 

When we play, my girls answer the easy questions and I answer the hard questions.  It makes for a pretty even playing field, so fun for everyone! 

On your turn you roll the die and another player reads the corresponding question to you. 

If you get it right you get to keep the card; if you get the history question wrong the card goes back in the pile. 

The questions will be either trivia, true/false, or multiple choice format. 

The first player to collect 10 cards win! There are several versions of Professor Noggin, so you can get whatever topic you are needing: US History, Art History, Medieval Times, Science, Geography, and more!

History Games for Middle and High School Students

6)  The Grizzled

Time Period: World War I

Ages: 14+

Players: 2 to 5

Game Length: About 30 minutes

There are so many games and movies about WWII, but in this game players are immersed in the trenches of WWI.

This is a fully cooperative game (think Pandemic) where players work together to stay alive until Armistice. Each round will face the hardships of war such as blizzards, gas attacks, and trauma.

Soldiers must use strategy and luck to stay alive together!

World War I can be glossed over in a lot of history studies, with so much emphasis put on WWII.

With The Grizzled, players can learn what it was like to try to survive during the miserable trench warfare of The Great War.

Reviewers state that it is simple and straightforward to learn, but the replay value is quite good!

One reviewer stated that he and his wife are at about 50% win rate, so that makes for exciting play! This would be a great game to play with older middle school or high school students.

7)  Freedom

Time Period: Slavery and Civil War

Ages: 13 and up 

Players: 1 to 4 players

Game Length: 60 to 90 minutes

Freedom is a cooperative game where players try to raise funds, free slaves, and end slavery in America.

As they play, players learn about historical figures, political agendas, and important events that occurred between 1800 and 1865.

This game won the 2013 Best Game Quest Awards for Best Coop Game and was nominated for 2014 Origins Award Best Historical Game! 

Freedom would be a great interactive way to cover the time period leading up to the Civil War. Also, look at the huge Civil War lapbook unit study here.

History Games Bring the Past to Life


These games are just the tip of the iceberg, let me tell you!  If you are struggling to get your kiddos to get interested in history, try one (or more!) of these games and see them get hooked! 

7 Super Fun History Games to Bring the Past to Life

I hope you’ve found some useful resources to add to history in your homeschool this year!

Happy learning!

Look at these other fun history learning resources here:

  • 22 Famous Texans Notebooking Pages (editable) For a Fun History Study
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
  • 35 Simple But Powerful American History Homeschool Resources K to 12
  • Daniel Boone – North American Explorer Unit Study and Free Lapbook
  • Amazing Hands-on History Activities for 14 Ancient Empires (free notebook cover too)

Leave a CommentFiled Under: History Resources Tagged With: games, hands on history, hands-on, hands-on activities, handsonhomeschooling, history, history resources, historyspine, homeschoolhistory, middleschool

Famous and Historic Trees Fun Nature and History Homeschool Unit Study

February 27, 2021 | 4 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

The beauty of unit studies is the ability to combine multiple subjects. This famous and historic trees fun study combines nature, history, and geography. Add in some art and music and it’s a memorable unit study.

Famous and Historic Trees

So today, I rounded up some fun resources for creating a famous and historic trees nature and history unit study.

Famous and Historic Trees Fun Nature and History Homeschool Unit Study

First, look at this book we fell in love with which gave us us the kick start to our ideas.

Celebritrees Historic & Famous Trees of the World states its for grades 2 to 4, but this idea can be used for a super great unit study for multiple ages.

Besides, the history and legend of the famous trees in the book gives plenty of chance for a deep unit study.

Also, there are plenty of books about the nature of trees and science and even poetry, but we loved learning about the famous trees of the world.

Although the book only lists 14 famous and historic trees of the world, you could easily add other features to the search besides the oldest, tallest, or biggest trunk.

Science of Trees

Next, add in a bit of science. How are trees defined? Look below at some of their characteristics.

Trees usually have a single stem, or trunk.Trees are woody plants.
Trees are at least 15 feet tall.Trees have a branched-out top called a crown.

Trees clean the air, give shade, cool our house, conserve energy, and attract songbirds. Trees reduce erosion and conserve energy.

Furthermore, look at the information on the historic trees.

Learning about the Methuselah Tree

The Methuselah Tree has lived more than 4,600 years. It is a Bristlecone Pine and it’s located in California.

  • Methuselah Tree Lesson Plan
  • A Bristlecone Pine Named ‘Methuselah’
  • Here is an outline map of California
  • About the Ancient Bristle Cone Pine
  • Read about the Bristle Cone Pine here
  • Learn about California history here

Moon Trees

Stuart Roosa was a former U.S. Forest Service worker who orbited in the command module of the Apollo 14 in 1971. He conducted scientific experiments in lunar orbit. He put hundreds of tree seeds in a packet and took with him to space.

When he got back to earth, the seeds were germinated and are known as “moon trees” and are found all over the U.S. and the world.

  • Read about the Moon Trees here.
  • Where on Earth Did NASA Plant Moon Trees
  • Moon Trees Stand as Living Testaments to First Voyages to Moon
  • Making of a Moon Tree Map

Famous Scythe Tree

This next tree is in Waterloo, New York and the Balm-of-Gilead stands as living monument to a young soldier that went off to fight in the American Civil War.

  • Scythe Tree
  • Read about the Story of the Scythe tree
  • New York word search
  • Here is a mini unit study too about New York.
  • Why is an Upstate NY historian trying to save a really old tree?
  • Map where some animals live in New York
  • New York Outline Map
  • Read more about the Balm of Gilead

Prison Boab Famous Tree

Another tree is the Prison Boab which is located in Australia.

It is a Baobab tree. It has many names. One is the Upside-Down Tree because it’s branches look like roots and it’s also just named Boab.

  • Derby Boab ‘Prison Tree’
  • Read here Inventing a Colonial Dark History: The Derby Boab ‘Prison’ Tree
  • Boab Trees YouTube
  • The Boab Prison Tree
  • Read The First Australians
  • Five-Day Australian Mini-Unit
  • Hands-On Geography: Australia Awesome and Deadly Animal Art

The Tule Tree

El Árbol del Tule (The Tule Tree) is located in Santa María del Tule, Mexico. It is a Montezuma Cypress and it’s estimated to be 1,400 years old.

  • Read about the Taxodium mucronatum tree here
  • Mexico geography
  • Mexico Lapbook
  • Read more about the Montezuma Baldcypress
  • Learn some facts about Mexico from National Geographic

Chapel Oak Famous Tree

Another famous tree is the the Chapel Oak which is located in Allouville-Bellefosse, France.

It is a huge oak with two chapels inside and a spiral staircase. It looks like something out of a fairy tale.

It is one of the biggest and oldest trees in France.

  • Read about the Le Chêne Chapelle (The Chapel Oak)
  • The Peculiar Chapel Of Allouville-Bellefosse
  • Look at this France Unit Study
  • Trees poem
  • Getting to Know France worksheet
  • The Ancient Oak Tree Chapel as Old As France Itself
  • Learn About the Geography of France by Creating A Solar Oven
  • Mighty Oaks from Little Acorns

Ficus Religiosa or The Bodhi Tree

This is a kind of fig tree in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka which is sacred to the Buddhists. They believe Buddha gained “bodhi” or enlightenment while sitting under it and meditating.

  • You can read about the fig tree here.
  • Geography for Kids about Sri Lanka
  • Read here about the characteristics of the tree
  • Map of Sri Lanka

The Famous and Historic General Sherman Tree

In the Sequoia National Park in California is the General Sherman or a giant sequoia.

The giant sequoias are very special because they are among the oldest and largest living things on earth. The General Sherman Tree, found in Sequoia National Park, is the largest living thing on earth. It is 274.9 feet tall, has a circumference (4.5 ft. above the base) of 83.2 feet, a base circumference of 102.6 feet, and a volume of nearly 58,000 cubic feet.

  • Read about the General Sherman here
  • 12 page lesson plan
  • Our Giant Sequoia Forests 12 page beautiful download
  • The largest trees in the world
  • The Giant Sequoia curriculum pdf

MORE Famous and Historic Trees of the World

There are other trees too to read about like

  • Anne Frank’s Chestnut Tree
  • Isaac Newton’s Apple Tree (Woolsthorpe, England)
  • Dueling Oaks in New Orleans, Louisiana
  • The Major Oak, Sherwood Forest, England
  • and the Emancipation Oak (Hampton, Virginia).

Study Tree Art

Add some beautiful art to your study about historic trees. Read about Joseph Farrington and his The Oak Tree. Read about Paul Cezanne and his Forest art.

Also read about Georges Seurat and The Morning Walk.

The Oak Tree by Joseph Farrington
Forest by Paul Cezanne

Also, look at Hands-On Literature Nature Study: Simple Tree Craft.

Tree Poetry

Learning and memorizing poetry about trees could also be copywork or to make nature journals.

Loveliest of Trees, The Cherry Now by A. E. Housman

Loveliest of trees, the cherry now
Is hung with bloom along the bough,
And stands about the woodland ride
Wearing white for Eastertide.

Now, of my threescore years and ten,
Twenty will not come again,
And take from seventy springs a score,
It only leaves me fifty more.

And since to look at things in bloom
Fifty springs are little room,
About the woodlands I will go
To see the cherry hung with snow.


Binsey Poplars by Gerard Manley Hopkins

My aspens dear, whose airy cages quelled,
   Quelled or quenched in leaves the leaping sun,
   All felled, felled, are all felled;
     Of a fresh and following folded rank
                Not spared, not one
                That dandled a sandalled
         Shadow that swam or sank
On meadow and river and wind-wandering weed-winding bank.
   O if we but knew what we do
          When we delve or hew—
     Hack and rack the growing green!
           Since country is so tender
     To touch, her being só slender,
     That, like this sleek and seeing ball
     But a prick will make no eye at all,
     Where we, even where we mean
                To mend her we end her,
           When we hew or delve:
After-comers cannot guess the beauty been.
   Ten or twelve, only ten or twelve
      Strokes of havoc únselve
           The sweet especial scene,
      Rural scene, a rural scene,
      Sweet especial rural scene.


The Way through the Woods by Rudyard Kipling 


They shut the road through the woods
      Seventy years ago.
Weather and rain have undone it again,
      And now you would never know
There was once a road through the woods
      Before they planted the trees.
It is underneath the coppice and heath,
      And the thin anemones.

     Only the keeper sees
That, where the ring-dove broods,
      And the badgers roll at ease,
There was once a road through the woods.

Yet, if you enter the woods
      Of a summer evening late,
When the night-air cools on the trout-ringed pools
      Where the otter whistles his mate,
(They fear not men in the woods,
      Because they see so few.)
You will hear the beat of a horse’s feet,
      And the swish of a skirt in the dew,
      Steadily cantering through
The misty solitudes,
      As though they perfectly knew
      The old lost road through the woods.
But there is no road through the woods.

Famous and Historic Trees of the World Lapbook

Too, I’ve created this fun famous and historic trees lapbook to use with this fun unit study.

Awesome features of my lapbooks.

  • Aimed at elementary to high school.
  • This is a .pdf  instant downloadable product and not a physical product.
  • You are paying for the printables, the lapbook.
  • My lapbooks are created for multiple ages. I aimed for elementary to high school for this lapbook. One of my reasons for aiming this lapbook for the upper grades is that I use a cursive font for the minibooks filled in with information.
  • Most of the minibooks have facts which accompany the minibook and a lot of the minibook are offered two ways. One way where your child uses the facts already provided by the minibook filled in and another way where your child can add his own research and not use the inside pages. Blank pages are provided for your student’s research.
  • You can use any reference materials, books, or online resources to complete the lapbook.
  • I don’t provide links in the lapbooks for filling out the information. This keeps my prices low for my products, but I do try to provide free links on my site as I can.
  • Because I have been a working homeschool mom for more of my journey than not, I need flexibility for using lapbooks. Proving a few facts from the main resource I use is one way I have of saving you time and giving you flexibility in how to use the minibooks.
  • Too, some of your kids may be older and you want them to do more research and some of your kids may be reluctant writers so you may want to mix and match pre-filled minibooks with blank minibooks. Flexibility is the key to my lapbooks.

MY GUARANTEE: To treat you like I want to be treated which means I know at times technical problems may cause glitches, so I will do everything possible to make your experience here pleasant. I value your business and value you as a follower. I stand behind my products because they are actual products I use and benefit from too. Though I cannot refund purchases after you have been given access to them, I will do what I can to be sure you are a pleased customer. Read carefully what you get on your digital download. If you have questions, email me FIRST at tina homeschools AT gmail DOT com.

  • Dynamic Famous and Historic Trees Lapbook for Multiple Ages

    $2.75
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Famous and Historic Trees Fun Nature and History Homeschool Unit Study

More Tree Facts

Also, you’ll love these resources for studying about each of these varieties of trees.

  • Where do trees get their mass from YouTube
  • Parts of tree
  • Benefits of trees
  • Download tree diversity sheets with some fun fact cards
  • 680 Tree Fact Sheets

You’ll love these other studies:

  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
  • 20 Nature-Inspired Kids’ Novels to Nurture Interest In the Outdoors
  • Above & Below: Pond Unit Study, Hands-on Ideas, & Lapbook.
  • Super Seashore Watching Unit Study and Beach Lapbook.
  • Foraging and Feasting Nature Unit Study and Lapbook.
  • Wildflowers Unit Study & Lapbook.
  • From Egg to Sea Turtle Nature Unit Study & Lapbook.
  • Colorful Winter Bird: Northern Cardinal Lapbook & Unit Study.
  • Free Arctic Ground Squirrel Lapbook & Unit Study Resources

Hugs and love ya

4 CommentsFiled Under: Geography, Geography Based, History Based, Lapbook, Lapbooks, My Unit Studies {Free Printables & Hands-on Ideas}, Nature Based Activities Tagged With: geography, hands-on activities, handsonhomeschooling, history, history resources, homeschool geography, homeschoolgeography, homeschoolscience, lapbook, lapbookresources, life science, nature, nature study, science, sciencecurriculum, trees

History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail

January 30, 2021 | 4 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Studying the history of the Texas cowboy, cattle drives, and Chisholm Trail is a fun and fascinating one. Cowboys, cattle drives and the Chisholm Trail all embody the spirit of a Texan.

History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail Free Unit Study

Being born and raised in Texas, I grew up going to rodeos, knowing about cattle drives, and watching wide open spaces of grazing cattle as the norm.

As a native Texan too, my husband grew up with ranching and rodeoing in his life and family. He comes from a family of cowboys. I couldn’t wait to do a unit study focused on the history of the Texas cowboy, cattle drives, and the Chisholm Trail.

History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail

With fond memories, I recall the first time I heard the poem Cattle by Berta Hart Nance (1883-1958).

Other states were carved or born,
Texas grew from hide and horn.

Other states are long and wide,
Texas is a shaggy hide.

Dripping blood and crumpled hair;
Some fat giant flung it there,

Laid the head where valleys drain,
Stretched its rump along the plain.

Other soil is full of stones,
Texans plow up cattle-bones.

Herds are buried on the trail,
Underneath the powdered shale;

Herds that stiffened like the snow,
Where the icy northers go.

Other states have built their halls,
Humming tunes along the walls,

Texans watched the mortar stirred
While they kept the lowing herd.

Stamped on Texan wall and roof
Gleams the sharp and crescent hoof.

High above the hum and stir
Jingle bridle rein and spur.

Other states were carved or born,
Texas grew from hide and horn.

A lot of Texans view their state differently from how other states grew. After the American Civil War, it was cattle which helped to make Texas grow. Also, ranching was a big part of Texas growth.

This study is about the grit, hardiness, and stubbornness early Texans embodied and how they passed it down to our generation.

So in this history of the Texas cowboy, cattle drives, and Chisholm Trail, I’ve rounded up some helpful resources to teach your kids about Texas.

Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail

I aimed at resources for elementary ages to about middle school, but as with all my resources you decide which ages to use them for.

The American Civil War {1861-1865} had almost destroyed the United States, but by 1867 the United States found peace again.

Long-horned cattle, which were introduced in part by the Spanish roamed freely upon the plains.

Ranchers noticed that the longhorn turned out to be particularly well adapted to the harsh and arid conditions in the West. 

So thousands of head of cattle were rounded up from pastures in southern and central Texas and herded hundreds of miles north to Kansas.

Cattle drives were a celebrated event of this time period.

Between fascination with the American legend of a cowboy and a transitional time period in American history this brief, but captivating moment in history attracts learners of any age.

Too, with the invention of refrigerated railroad cars in the 1870’s it also made it possible to ship fresh beef anywhere in the country.

I used the Texas Chisholm Trail by the Texas Historical Commission to use as a guide for this lapbook. It’s a free wonderful educator’s guide, but of course you can use any resource you have.

First, there were at least four cattle drives during the 19th century. They were the The Chisholm Trail, The Goodnight-Loving Trail, The Western Trail and The Shawnee Trail.

The Chisholm Trail has at least 7 names: Abilene Trail, the Cattle Trail, the Eastern Trail, the Great Texas Cattle Trail, the Kansas Trail, McCoy’s Trail and the Texas Chisholm Trail.

Lesson Plans History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail

  • Beef basics. Fun lesson plan about beef products and terms to understand about cattle
  • Make a Brand for Yourself the Cowboy Way
  • Coloring page – longhorn
  • Make Your Cattle Brand
  • The Old Chisolm Trail – Lots of interesting background information and pictures to explain the Chisolm Trail
  • Texas Frontier Timeline
  • Texas Cowboys and Myths 5 page pdf download
  • Hit the Trail – 10 page pdf about cattle trails
  • Ranching Heritage – 10 page pdf with fun trail cards and background information
  • Measure the width of longhorns. 4 page pdf. You’ll love the math lesson
  • Texas Cattle Trails. Great site for history
  • Build a Calf and pictures for different breeds
  • The Cattle Drive and Westward Expansion
  • Cowboys:Vaquero – 6 page pdf about cowboys, cattle trails and glossary
  • Longhorn Cattle – Wonderful background information about the ancestors of Texas longhorns
  • Cowboy Word Search
  • Learn about the King Ranch, one of the oldest ranches in Texas
  • Longhorns of the Big Bend 63 page pdf wonderful and interesting information about Texas and the cattle industry and history of the longhorn
  • The Lone Star State 3 page pdf fun reading about Texas facts
  • What Does a Cowboy Do? Lesson with fun printables about cowboys
  • The Old Chisolm Trail Cowboy Song YouTube
  • Chisholm Trail cattle drive YouTube. In this episode Rick pushes Texas longhorns up the Chisholm Trail to the Ellsworth railhead.
  • Marty Robbins Sings ‘Whoopee Ti Yi Yo.‘ YouTube
  • The Chisholm Trail YouTube. Created for the elementary classroom. This is a basic overview of what the Chisholm trail was, how it was used and the reasons behind the cattle drive.

Texas Size Vocabulary Words

  • Cattle Kingdom – An industry based on cattle ranching that arose on the open range from Texas to Canada during the 1800s.
  • Texas Rangers – Law enforcement to keep the law in frontier Texas.
  • Tejanos – A person of Mexican heritage, but considers Texas home.
  • King Ranch – Ranch in South Texas that is one of the most important cattle operations in the state.
  • brands – identification marks on livestock made with burning irons
  • barbed wire – a wire used in fencing that is made with points, or barbs, placed at intervals to prevent livestock from crossing the fence
  • vaqueros – from vaca (cow) cowboy
  • wrangler – one who herds or cares for livestock on the range
  • XIT Ranch – Ranch established by the Capitol Freehold Land and Investment Company which was funded by investors from Chicago and Great Britain.
  • Longhorn – a hybrid breed of cattle that descended from Spanish and English stock; the main breed used in Texas ranching

Field Trip Ideas for History of Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives and Chisholm Trail

  • You’ll love this page Off the Beaten Path: Drive Up the Chisholm Trail’s Less-Traveled Routes to give you ideas of where to go here in Texas.
  • Landmark Inn – 1850s store
  • Fort Griffin – Fort from 1867 to 1881
  • The Alamo – Well known of course and still a fun place to visit
  • However, another longtime favorite of ours is the Buckhorn Saloon Museum and The Texas Ranger Museum in San Antonio. If you want to learn about cowboy country, you have to visit this one.
  • We love visiting the Barrington Plantation which is the last home of Anson Jones, the last President of the Republic of Texas. They have a fun program for homeschoolers which includes hand-on activity.
  • The Star of the Republic Museum is on the same property as the Barrington Farm.
  • Varner Hogg Plantation. Yes, it’s true Gov. James Hogg named his daughter Ima Hogg.

Hands-on Ideas For a Texas Unit Study

Next, you’ll love a few ideas for some hands-on fun to study about Texas.

  • Make some easy Texas chili.
  • Eat cactus.
  • Easy fun watercolor sunset
  • Love the smushed coke can cowboy and cowgirls and cowboy glyph
  • Study this piece of art, Outlier by Frederic Remington.By the time of the painting most Native Americans had been forced onto reservations. What is the mood of the painting?
  • Then download my lapbook below.
  • Build the Alamo.
  • Make an Armadillo
  • Fun tissue bluebonnet craft
  • Make a tornado in a bottle
  • If a kid has never seen barbed wire which basically ended the open ranges of Texas, make some fun and fake barbed wire here.
  • Candle making with kids

Field Trip to Washington on the Brazos, Star of the Republic Museum, Barrington Farms and Buckhorn Museum/Texas Ranger Museum
(don’t miss any of these places)

  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Star of the Republic Museum
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail 1
    Star of the Republic Museum
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Star of the Republic Museum
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Star of the Republic Museum
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Buckhorn Museum
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Barrington Farms Anson Jones Home Republic of Texas
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Learn about brands
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Barrington Farm
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Texas Rangers
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Chuck Wagon at Buckhorn Museum
  • History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
    Chuck Wagon at Buckhorn Museum San Antonio, Tx

PURCHASE THE LAPBOOK BELOW:

History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail
  • Dynamic History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail Lapbook for Multiple Ages

    $2.75
    Add to cart
History of the Texas Cowboy, Cattle Drives, and Chisholm Trail Free Unit Study

Look at these other fun ideas:

  • Texas Native American History Quick Unit Study (Middle School)
  • How to Build the Alamo: Day 5 Hands-on Learning (Free Texas Unit Study)
  • Free Copywork Cattle A Texas Poem For a Fun Unit Study
  • 35 Simple But Powerful American History Homeschool Resources K to 12
  • Plains Indians. Unit Study & Lapbook
  • Exploring Edible Cactus: Day 4 Hands-on Learning (The Desert)

Hugs and love ya,

4 CommentsFiled Under: Geography, Geography Based, Hands-On Activities, History Based, History Resources, Lapbook, Lapbooks, Middle School Homeschool, My Unit Studies {Free Printables & Hands-on Ideas} Tagged With: american history, geography, hands on history, hands-on, hands-on activities, handson, handsonhomeschooling, history, history resources, historyspine, homeschoolgeography, homeschoolhistory, lapbook, modern history, Texas, texasunit

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