Living History

Our girls LOVE history!  They beg for history lessons, and when we are finished with a chapter of Story of the World, they beg for more.  In addition to studying ancient history through Story of the World, we study American History through the American Girl books.  On Saturday mornings, the girls usually watch PBS cartoons, but lately they have chosen to watch historical documentaries on Netflix.  I was concerned about the violence on one of the shows (Alexander the Great), and O(6) looked at me very solemnly and said "Mama, you know there is never a good war and never a bad peace."  Then E(3) said "They have to have wars!"  When I asked why, she said "So they can protect their land."

These girls, at ages 3 and 6, know more about ancient history and American history than I ever learned in school.  Because they love what they are learning, they remember it in a way that I never did since I was taught through reading mind numbing textbooks and listening to boring lectures while taking copious amounts of notes.  I love that through homeschooling we have the freedom to teach history in a way that enables the girls to love and understand this subject at their very young ages.

To further our study and their love of history, we recently took the girls to a Civil War reenactment.  They watched a man make soap, learned how to spin wool, and watched a lady sew on with an antique sewing machine.

They each chose one of these handmade dolls for a souvenir.  O(6)'s doll's name is Molly, and E(3)'s doll's name was Agnes Lee.  However, E(3) immediately changed her doll's name from Agnes Lee to "Old Time Cotton."  (These children never cease to delight and amuse us!)

O(6) was thrilled when her grandparents bought her a pair of fancy, satin gloves which will enable her to re-enact many American Girl scenes with a little more authenticity.  (She even wore them to the grocery store and had a fun time washing them by hand and hanging them on the clothes line).   E(3) was very excited to buy a beeswax candle.  She said "I'm going to name my candle 'Candle'."  Later, when she lost her candle, I heard her calling "Dear Candle!  Where are you, dear Candle?"

We watched a Civil War skirmish, but we didn't stay for long because the cannon fire was VERY loud, and it made E(3) feel nervous and scared.

The girls were thrilled to wear their Victorian dresses made by Cheri at Ashley's Attic to the reenactment, and they received countless compliments on their beautiful dresses.