Christian Homeschool History Curriculum
Its Importance
It is important to have a Christian homeschool history curriculum if you want to teach a biblical worldview. You should start your study with the Bible. Knowing the Bible helps us look at history through biblical eyes. Besides the Bible it is important to look at history of the ancient world. Then we can better understand world and United States history.
The Bible as History
You Christian homeschool history curriculum should start with the Genesis. Genesis is the book of beginning. It tells how God created man and dealt with a nation. The book of Genesis talks about the creation of man, Noah and the flood, the birth of different languages at the Tower of Babel, and the birth of the nation Israel.
Continue reading through the Bible. Exodus is how God took the twelve tribes and made them into a nation. It focuses on Moses and how he sought God's wisdom. Deuteronomy and Leviticus list the laws of Israel.
Joshua through Esther is the history of Israel. The books talk about how the Hebrews conquered Canaan. Read about the judges and kings of the Hebrew nation. The Old Testament also talks about the Babylonian captivity and when Israel rebuilt Jerusalem.
After your have finished reading the Old Testament read the Gospels in the New Testament. Then read about the early church in Acts.
Ancient Egypt, Rome, and Greece
Your Christian homeschool history curriculum should also include a study of ancient Egypt. Egypt was important to the Jewish nation. The Bible records that all three patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob went to Egypt.
The Roman Empire was in the time of Jesus. It would be important to learn about the government structure of the Romans. The Romans had conquered most of Europe and the Middle East. Their influence was felt in most of the world.
Greek thought influenced the world. Many of the people who Paul witnessed to were from Greek towns.
To make ancient history alive it is important to find activities that will interest your children. When we were studying Egypt we made pyramids out of sugar cubes. We also watched the movie Moses by Disney.
When we studied Rome we watched Ben Hur. My children liked the chariot races.When my children were younger we would only show them movie scenes that were appropriate for their age.
Church History
Start your study of church history with the book of Acts. Also read the epistles. When your children are older and can handle tells of persecution read the Book of martyrs. If you are a protestant read about the reformers of the church such as Martin Luther and John Calvin.
Read about famous missionaries. There are books written for children.
Another interesting area of church history is how our Bible came to us. Study how it was determined which books were included in 66 books of the Bible.
World History
Our worldview influences how we interpret world events. It also influences how we name historical eras. Our Christian homeschool history curriculum should reflect our worldview.
Here is an example of two thoughts concerning the period of 500 to 1100 AD. Some people call the period from 500 to 1100 AD the Dark Ages. Other people call the same period the Early Middle Age.
The Dark Ages was a time of religious growth. Also farm tools were developed and made out of iron. The Chinese made the first printing press.
When we study world history we learn that many wars were fought over religious thought. Also many people migrated to other lands for religious freedom.
Christian Thought in United States History
Here is some information to include in your Christian homeschool history curriculum when you study American history.
Some of the first people to migrate to the United States left their home country because of religious persecution. The Pilgrims left England because they wanted to be separate from the Church of England. The Pilgrims were persecuted for their beliefs.
The Puritans also believed that they were to make a Christian nation. The Puritans believed that the people of the nation should be committed to God and to each other.
The Puritans lived out what they believed. When there were droughts or threats of Native American attacks they fasted and prayed. There are records of the droughts stopping and the attacks not happening.
It is also documented that the early towns of New England were examples of democracy. They lived out the Bible and became a community of believers.
Christian Homeschool History Curriculum
There are a lot of books and curriculums that present a Christian worldview. I used the Weaver curriculum. Today there are several other good curriculums to choose from. Here are some that I have found.
Diana Waring has three CD sets that present world history. The three sets are Creation to Christ, Resurrection to Revolution, and Napoleon to Korea. She also has curriculum that goes with the CDs.
Tapestry of Grace uses world history as their core. History is presented chronologically. In Tapestry of Grace the same period of history is presented every four years.
Ruth Beechick has written two ancient history books. Adam and His Kin: Lost History of Their Lives and Times presents Genesis in an easy to read format. Genesis: Finding Our Roots is a historical study of the book of Genesis. It is for children who are in junior high or older to do independently or for a family to do together.
Having a Biblical timeline is also important. I have not had to buy one because the Weaver had timelines in the curriculum. If your curriculum does not provide a timeline there are several books that you can buy.
Christian homeschool history curriculum should start with the Bible so that we can develop a worldview. Then we need to look at ancient and modern history through biblical eyes.
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