Ancient Rome For Kids

Our family has only studied Ancient Rome on a first grade level thus far, but all the books we used would be useful for any child in elementary school, and even beyond.  There is quite a selection of great books on ancient civilizations for kids, but here are the ones we found most useful this year:
 


DK's Eyewitness series never disappoints us; this year we used it primarily for the pictures, but I'm sure it'll become even more valuable to us as my boys get older.  The book also comes with a CD of clip-art that you can use to make your own worksheets.


Ancient Rome! by Kaleidoscope Kids has a lot of fun facts about Ancient Rome, including a look at how many English words are derived from Latin, but we used it primarily for the simple craft projects.  We didn't actually purchase this book, we got it from our library, and that was fine for us.  Of all the books on the list, we used this one the least.


Classical Kids is a book of projects and activities for both Ancient Rome and Greece.  A lot of the projects are very simple, which was great for us but might be a little boring for older kids.  I'd recommend this book for grades 1-3, though I do think I'll use it again in fourth grade.


Life In Ancient Rome is a beautifully detailed coloring book with captions; I will definitely use this all the way through high school.  I photocopied the pages I wanted so that I'll have it to use again with my younger son, and also when we learn about Rome again in the future.  The coloring pages include Roman architecture and landmarks, such as the Colosseum, and also scenes from ancient Roman life.  A true gem, and very inexpensive.  Highly recommended for all!


Sadly out of print, The Orchard Book of Roman Myths is a good book to get from a library.  The book covers fifteen myths from Ancient Rome, including that of Romulus and Remus, as well as several about the Roman gods.  (Familiarity with the Roman deities will come in handy when you study the solar system!)  The pictures are colorful and wonderful; this book is a great introduction to Roman mythology for young children.

Deciding How to Homeschool

My husband and I knew we wanted to homeschool almost from the beginning; by the time our first child was two years old we had decided to educate him ourselves.  Having both worked in the public school system, there wasn't a doubt in our minds that we wanted better for our son, and any other children we might have in the future. Early childhood was easy enough.  We simply spent lots of time reading, singing, doing simple crafts, and learning letters and numbers.  As the time grew near to start a more formal curriculum, however, I started to get nervous.  I wasn't at all sure what I had in mind; I knew I wanted to foster my son's imagination and curiosity, and make learning as exciting and enjoyable as possible for him.  I also wanted him to have a more "rigorous" education than I felt the public schools would provide.  I wanted to challenge him, push him, and give him the sort of solid educational foundation that would carry him through to college.  The internet was awash in homeschooling methods and theories, the most popular of which seemed to be "unschooling".  I liked the idea of following my child's interests and indulging his curiosities, but when I tried to picture sending my unschooled son off to college one day, I was uneasy.  I found it difficult to believe that any kid would develop a curiosity or passion for, say, algebra!  The last thing I wanted was for my son to one day decide he wanted to be a doctor or an engineer, only to discover that he was not prepared for the higher education.  I wanted a program that was both flexible and enjoyable, but also demanding.
Finally, after a lot of frustrating research, I found the first edition of The Well-Trained Mind in my local library.  (This was almost ten years ago, and the book wasn't as well-known and popular as it is today.)  As soon as I started reading, I felt I was on to something.  By the time I finished, I knew I had found what I was looking for and I immediately purchased a copy.  Ever since, The Well-Trained Mind has provided the backbone of our homeschool curriculum, and I recommend it highly to all homeschooling families, no matter your personal educational philosophy.  The book provides an educational outline, from first grade through twelfth, for giving your child a classical education.  Though not a curriculum in and of itself, due to the book's popularity, there are now plenty of companion materials such as workbooks and textbooks if you choose to use them.  The author also suggests many other books for each subject and grade level, and of course parents can choose their own, or add to and subtract from the curriculum as they see fit.  The program is utterly customizable, while still providing a framework that gave me confidence in the foundation I was laying for my son.  I hope your family finds this book as useful as we have!  As for The Well-Trained Mind's companion materials, so far we have used:


and


We intend to continue using Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Bauer's materials for both history and grammar. Click on any of the books above to find out more about them and where you can purchase them. Happy homeschooling!