This curriculum was written to follow Three years of Homeschool Co-op Curriculum in One Place for use in a weekly, 1-hour, homeschool co-op. I originally went through these books with a class of fourth through sixth graders.

Over the course of the year, we learned early US History through the books listed below. Some of the books detail the early settlers’ landings in both Jamestown, VA and Plymouth, MA (A Lion to Guard Us and Pocahontas and the Strangers). Others show life from the Native Americans’ point of view as things began to change (Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims, and Om-kas-toe). The Cabin Faced West, The Bears of Hemlock Mountain, The Courage of Sarah Noble) Detail the hardships and day-to-day life of the early settlers. The Matchlock Gun revisits a true story from the French and Indian War…. Through these and other books, our class got in inside look what was happening in America leading up to the days of George Washington.

IN CLASS, we worked through a weekly copywork and a 5-10-minute grammar exercise on the board (I used a page from Daily Grams each class, and we went through it together). We discussed what they were reading (discussion questions are included in all these lesson plans), and also gave opportunities for the class to read their homework writing assignments. Twice a year, students had the opportunity to dress up and present book reports on a book they had read during the semester.

OUTSIDE CLASS, the students completed the reading and writing assignments.

The GOAL of the CURRICULUM is to help 4-6th graders learn early American History through a collection of memorable stories, while giving the students an outlet for discussion. Weekly grammar and copywork provides extra review for homeschoolers who don’t always focus on these things at home. This could easily count for writing, reading, and history.

Just as the first three years of the Homeschool Coop Curriculum used primarily FIAR books, this 4th year uses mainly Sonlight books from an earlier version of the Sonlight Curriculum. (I do not think they use these books anymore, but they have in the past. All ideas, curriculum, copywork, handouts, etc are my own and can be printed/used/ free of charge.

 Books We Used:

• A Lion to Guard Us by Clyde Bulla
• Pocahontas and the Strangers by Clyde Bulla
• Squanto, Friend of Pilgrims by Clyde Bulla
• The Thanksgiving Story
• The Courage of Sarah Noble
• The Matchlock Gun
• The Bears on Hemlock Mountain
• Om-Kas-Toe
• Sarah Whitcher’s Story

Weekly Lessons Included:

• Weekly Journal Entry on what they read
• Weekly Writing Assignment
• In-Class Discussions
• In-Class Grammar, Geography, and History Timeline review
• Bonus for Additional Reading / Reports
• +  1 Book Reports (each semester)

Things You Will Need for the School Year:

(In addition to the books listed above…

• Prize Box (just cause it makes everything more fun)
• World Map
• Daily Grams 3/4/5 (whatever level you feel the class is at, if you decide to include this component.)
• A good printer (for printing handouts)
• Access to a chalkboard or whiteboard
• Scissors, Gluesticks, enough for the class
• A Timeline is helpful. You can either draw this weekly for review, or keep a paper one that folds out. You can make one. When I taught the class, I just drew one on the board for review when needed. This one, from Christian Book, is a pretty fun fold-out book, if you want something you can just open and close week after week.

Things the Kids Will Need for the School Year:

• A set of the above books
• 2 composition notebooks
  • One for reading responses
  • One for personal writing
• Pencils, Gluesticks and Scissors, if you are not providing these in class

Before Each Class:

• Place Copywork on the Desks (Copywork during the first five minutes is a perfect way to calm the kids down, get them thinking about the story, and gives you space to review the lesson or write the Daily Gram of the Day on the board. Also … don’t most homeschoolers need a little extra writing practice? My kids always have)
• If you’re doing a weekly grammar review (we found it super helpful to review these things outloud and together), go ahead and write 1 days worth of Daily Grams on the board. (For a book like Daily Grams, I would use Day 5, Day 10, Day 15, Day 20 etc for our 1st, 2nd, and 3rd co-op. You could probably also use something like Fix-It Grammar or Easy Grams, I’m just not as familiar with these.
• Ask the kids to take out their notebooks / class materials.

At the End of Each Class:

• Make sure the kids have a copy of the homework (always included with the copywork in the free printable) and encourage them to glue it into their compsition book
• Optional prizes for completed homework

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Lesson Plans

A Lion to Guard Us by Clyde Bulla – Class 1 and 2

Pocahontas and the Strangers by Clyde Bulla – Class 3 and 4

Squanto, Friend of Pilgrims by Clyde Bulla

The Thanksgiving Story

The Courage of Sarah Noble

The Matchlock Gun

The Bears on Hemlock Mountain

Om-Kas-Toe

Sarah Whitcher’s Story

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