SOTW.

We finished SOTW chapter 1 recently and so far, it's a hit! The narrations went well, Marco is interested, and the activities are fun for the kids. I'm trying to include all the kids while I read the book. Although Anthony is still too young to sit still, he is getting into the coloring pages and activities. Even better for me is that Marco tries to "teach" him the history lesson. He'll say something like, "Anthony...archaeologists had to dig in the earth to look for clues on what people did a long time ago." I love this because it is done with absolutely no prompting from my part!

Marco and Anthony searching for clues in the dirt.

Isabella working on her own digging.

I try to do as many hands on things with the kids as possible as well. It really keeps their interest up and they usually hold discussions between themselves about what they are doing. The kids did their digging in the dirt activity and they talked about what archeology is and what things they would want other people to know about them in the future. I also let Marco and Isabella use the sewing machine (only the foot pedal) to help make a game bag like the one described in the book. They then talked about what animals they would want to catch and put in the bag if they lived out in the wild.

Having fun with newly made game bags.

I feel like history is coming alive for them! During lunch, I've been playing the CD version of the book. It seems to be the only part they are still warming up to. I'm hoping that they'll be able to enjoy it a little more as they get used to it being part of our routine.