History

History CurriculumHistory Resources

As with most things, C.S. Lewis had a unique view of history. For him, the really important bits were the stories—he makes a distinction between actual historical realities and the idealized versions of them handed down which make heroes and villains of mere men and women. It's not that the stories are completely false, but their value is for character-building, not as factual data.

The tales of George Washington's bravery in battle, coolness under pressure, rigorous truthfulness, and unflagging piety may accurately preserve the essence of his temperament and nobility, but not all of them are strictly historical. The point of these stories isn't to impart facts, however, it's to offer an example of goodness for the rest of us to emulate.

Getting the facts right is still important, though. As Christians, we can't afford to have a false understanding of "the old days." Mankind is fallen, and the story of his sojourn on Earth is filled with war, suffering, disease, unfaithfulness, pride and envy; a study of history that omits those elements is both false and useless. False, because it is incomplete, and useless, because it tells us nothing of the human condition or our current situation.

It's a bit of a mystery to us why non-Christians are motivated to study the past. For believers, the end goal isn't just acquisition of facts about events and cultures, it's the instillation of a thoroughly Christian worldview, an understanding of the course of the human endeavour as decreed and guided by God Himself.

The story of Jesus Christ is central. It is the only history story that fulfills the character-building element Lewis looked for, while remaining absolutely true in every detail. Man is fallen and he does struggle against God, but through Christ there is hope of redemption, a chance to connect heaven and earth through the Atonement. Christ is the ultimate example of God's providence.

In the Reformed tradition, God's sovereignty is a very big deal. According to the doctrine of divine decree, God has ordered all things that were, are and will come to be for His own good pleasure and glory. His hand is thus present everywhere, in the privatest private life and the most public and widespread crisis. God is in control, providentially guiding nations, men, and the entire cosmos.

This very doctrine is perhaps what best explains the humanist's interest in history (whether he be atheist, agnostic, pagan). Man's natural bent is to make himself the hero of the story, to show how people can sway the trajectory of all things. God's version is quite different, and the two are naturally in conflict. Resolution may only be found in Christ.

For, while God decrees and guides all things, He has also (paradoxically) decreed man's free will and personal responsibility. Men do change the course of kingdoms, but it is only through God's agency. A proper Christian study of history takes both truths into account, and tells the stories of good guys and bad guys through the light of everything God's Word says about human nature and divine control.

We encourage you to take great comfort and joy in your study of history. Read books, watch movies (carefully noting that a lot of the story is likely to be inaccurate in detail), go on fieldtrips to forts and battlefields and birthplaces. Most of all, talk about these things. The end goal, after all, isn't to know a bunch of trivia, but to understand what God has done and continues to do.

No one knows for sure what the end of history will look like, except that every knee in heaven and on earth will bow to the returned glorious Christ, who comes to judge the living and the dead. What we believe about Him will determine whether that culmination will be filled with joy or loathing (everyone will be terrified). He is the author of history, and its centerpiece; honor Him in your study of it.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Abe's Honest Words
by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by Kadir Nelson
from Disney-Hyperion
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in Biographies (Location: BIO)
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Abraham Lincoln
A Rookie Biography
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Abraham Lincoln: A Man for All the People
by Myra Cohn Livingston, illustrated by Samuel Byrd
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Road Trip: National Parks
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Ada Byron Lovelace and the Thinking Machine
by Laurie Wallmark, illustrated by April Chu
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Africa Is Not A Country
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Ahoy There, Little Polar Bear
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AIO Imagination Station Book #13
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AIO Imagination Station Book #15
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from Focus on the Family
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by Marianne Hering, Paul McCusker
from Focus on the Family
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Alexi's Secret Mission
by Anita Deyneka
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Algonquin
by Natalie M. Rosinsky
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All the Children of the World
by Karen Mezek Leimert
First Edition from Nelsonword Publishing Group
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Alvin Ailey
by Andrea Davis Pinkney; illustrated by Brian Pinkney
from Hyperion Books for Children
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$3.60 (1 in stock)
Amazing Life of Benjamin Franklin
by James Cross Giblin
from Scholastic Inc.
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2001 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
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$6.79 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Amazing Pop-Up Pull-Out Space Shuttle
by David Hawcock
from DK Publishing
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$15.00 (1 in stock)
America in the Time of Abraham Lincoln
by Sally Senzell Isaacs
from Heinemann Library
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
America is....
by Louise W. Borden, illustrated by Stacey Schuett
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America the Beautiful
by Katharine Lee Bates, illustrated by Chris Gall
from Little, Brown & Company
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$2.80 (1 in stock)
America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
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America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
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America: Our Great Country Visuals - Homeschool Edition
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American History for Young Students I
by Michelle Miller
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History Curriculum for 1st-5th grade
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$17.50 (1 in stock)
American History for Young Students II
by Michelle Miller
from TruthQuest History
History Curriculum for 1st-5th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in TruthQuest History (Location: HISCUR-TQ)
$17.50 (1 in stock)
Ancient Civilizations: Greeks!
by Carmella Van Vleet, illustrated by Tom Casteel
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$7.50 (1 in stock)
Ancient Egyptians
History Opens Windows
by Jane Shuter
Revised and Updated from Heinemann-Raintree
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Animals Robert Scott Saw
by Sandra Markle
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Anno's Italy PB
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Aquila's Drinking Gourd
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$3.20 (1 in stock)
Archaeologists Dig For Clues
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Kate Duke
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Art Smart: Spot the Details and Find Out the Facts
Act from Dover Publications
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Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse
by Eric Carle
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Astronauts on the Moon - Hallmark Pop-Up Book
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Auntie Anne
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B is for Beaver
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B is for Bluegrass
Discover America State-by-State
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Baby Blessing
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Bad River Boys
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Balto and the Great Race
Totally True Adventures
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1st Printing from Random House Books for Young Readers
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Beatrice's Goat
by Page McBrier
Reprint from Atheneum
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Ben Franklin
See and Read: Beginning to Read Biography
by Estelle Friedman, illustrated by James Caraway
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
Benjamin Franklin
by Edgar & Ingri d'Aulaire
from Doubleday & Company
Picture Book Biography for Preschool-3rd grade
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Benjamin in the Woods
Wonder Books Easy Reader
by Eleanor Clymer, illustrated by William Russell
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Beyond the Ridge
by Paul Goble
from Aladdin Books
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$2.00 (1 in stock)
Bible Lands Series - 2 volumes
by Martha Fisher, illustrated by Josephine Beachy, Rhoda Shenk, Christy Collins, Arlene Martin
from Rod & Staff Publishers, Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIBR-STU)
$10.50 (1 in stock)
Big Picture Bible Time Line
by Carol Eide - compiled
from Gospel Light Publications
for Grades 1st-6th
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIBR-STU)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Big Red Kangaroo
by Claire Saxby, illustrated by Graham Byrne
from Candlewick Press
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in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Biography of a Rhino
by Alice L. Hopf; illustrated by Kiyo Komoda
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
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$44.00 (1 in stock)
Bird's Eye View: The Natural World
by John Farndon and Paul Boston
from Words & Pictures
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
Blackbeard's Last Fight
by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Leonard Everett Fisher
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Centuries (BC/AD Edition) - Hardcover
from Living Book Press
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$11.00 (1 in stock)
Boy Who Held Back the Sea
by Thomas Locker
from Puffin Books
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Boy Who Loved Math
by Deborah Heiligman, illustrated by LeUyen Pham
from Roaring Brook Press
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$4.80 (1 in stock)
Breaking Into Print
by Stephen Krensky, illustrated by Bonnie Christensen
from Little, Brown & Company
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$7.00 (1 in stock)
Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain
by Verna Aardema, illustrated by Beatriz Vidal
from Dial Books for Young Readers
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Buffalo Bird Girl
by S. D. Nelson
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
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$8.46 $4.80 (4 in stock)
Buttons for General Washington
by Peter & Connie Roop
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
By the Dawn's Early Light
by Steven Kroll
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
in War of 1812 (Location: HISA-19WET)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Canada Geese Quilt
by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock
from Cobblehill Books
Realistic Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
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$4.80 (1 in stock)
Cassie's Journey
by Brett Harvey; illustrated by Deborah Kogan Ray
from Holiday House
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$4.00 (2 in stock)
Castles
Usborne Beginners
by Stephanie Turnbull
from Usborne
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Changing Weather
by Ashlee Klemm, illustrated by Vanessa Toye
from The Good and the Beautiful
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$6.00 (2 in stock)
Charles Darwin's Around-the-World Adventure
by Jennifer Thermes
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
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$6.40 (1 in stock)
Charlie and Trike in the Grand Canyon Adventure
Green Notebook Series
by Ken Ham, Karen Hansel
from Master Books
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$14.39 $9.00 (1 in stock)
Child's Book of Art
by Lucy Micklethwait
from DK Publishing
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$7.00 (2 in stock)
Child's Day
Historic Communities
by Bobbie Kalman & Tammy Everts
from Crabtree Publishing
for 1st-7th grade
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Child's Garden of Verses
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Tasha Tudor
from Simon and Schuster
Poetry for 1st-5th grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$16.99 $11.60 (1 in stock)
Child's Geography Volume V (old)
by Terry Johnson
from Knowledge Quest
for 1st-8th grade
in Old Edition History & Geography (Location: OHIS)
$20.00 $14.00 (1 in stock)
Child's Story of the Child's Book
by Raven
from F. A. Davis Company
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Children from Australia to Zimbabwe
by Anna Rhesa Versola, Maya Ajmera
Revised ed. from Charlesbridge
for 1st-3rd grade
in Diversity & Multicultural Books (Location: HISMC-MUL)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Children Just Like Me
by Anabel Kindersley, Barnabas Kindersley
from DK Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
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$21.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Children Just Like Me: Our Favorite Stories
by Jamila Gavin, illustrated by Amanda Hall, photographs by Barnabas Kindersley
from DK Children
for Nursery-2nd grade
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Children of the Earth and Sky
by Stephen Krensky, Illustrated by James Watling
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Native American History (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Chin Chiang and the Dragon's Dance
by Ian Wallace
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Chinese Mother Goose Rhymes
by Selected and Edited by Robert Wyndham, Illustrated by Ed Young
from Philomel Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Mother Goose & Nursery Rhymes (Location: PIC-MG)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Christian Light Social Studies - 100 Teacher's Guide (with answers)
Sunrise Edition from Christian Light Education
for 1st grade
in Christian Light Social Studies (Location: HISCUR-CLE)
$12.50 (2 in stock)
Christopher Columbus
by Elaine Murray Stone
500 Anv from Tyndale House
Biography for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.20 (1 in stock)
Church History ABCs
by Ned Bustard, Stephen J. Nichols
from Crossway Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
$16.99 $9.00 (1 in stock)
City Book
by Lucille Corcos
from Golden Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Civil War Artist
by Taylor Morrison
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in American Civil War Era (1850-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Clara Barton: Amazing Civil War Nurse
Amazing Americans
by Mary Dodson Wade
from Enslow
for 1st-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Classic Konos Character Curriculum - Obedience
by Jessica Hulcy and Carole Thaxton
from KONOS
for Kindergarten-8th grade
in KONOS Unit Studies (Location: CUR-KON)
$45.00 (1 in stock)
Classic Konos Character Curriculum - Orderliness
by Jessica Hulcy and Carole Thaxton
from KONOS
for Kindergarten-8th grade
in KONOS Unit Studies (Location: CUR-KON)
$40.00 (1 in stock)
Classical Acts and Facts History Cards: Ancient World
from Classical Conversations
for Kindergarten-8th grade
in Classical Acts & Facts Cards (Location: HISCUR-CC)
$28.20 $17.50 (4 in stock)
Classical Acts and Facts History Cards: Modern World
from Classical Conversations
for Kindergarten-8th grade
in Classical Acts & Facts Cards (Location: HISCUR-CC)
$28.20 $17.50 (3 in stock)
Classical Acts and Facts History Cards: New World
from Classical Conversations
for Kindergarten-8th grade
in Classical Acts & Facts Cards (Location: HISCUR-CC)
$28.20 $17.50 (1 in stock)
Classical Acts and Facts Science Cards: Seeking to Know
2nd edition from Classical Conversations
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in Classical Acts & Facts Cards (Location: HISCUR-CC)
$28.20 $17.50 (1 in stock)
Claude Monet: Sunshine and Waterlilies by Steven Packard
Smart About Art
by True Kelley
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-3rd grade
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Coast Mappers
by Taylor Morrison
from Walter Lorraine Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
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$7.00 (1 in stock)
Colonial America
by Donald M. Silver, Patricia J. Wynne
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Colonial America Cooperative Learning Activities
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Colonial Town: Williamsburg
by Bobbie Kalman
Revised from Crabtree Publishing
for 1st-8th grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Color and Learn: Native America
Color & Learn
by Elizabeth Adams
from Educators Press
for Preschool-1st grade
in Native American History (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Coloring Book of Incas, Aztecs & Mayas
from Bellerophon Books
for 1st-5th grade
in Ancient America (Location: HISW-ANAM)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Columbus
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
First BCE from Doubleday & Company
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$28.00 (1 in stock)
Come Look With Me: American Indian Art
by Stephanie Salomon
1st Edition
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Come Look with Me: Enjoying Art with Children
by Gladys S. Blizzard
from Charlesbridge
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$12.00 $10.00 (3 in stock)
Coming On Home Soon
by Jacqueline Woodson
1st edition from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Coming to America
by Betsy Maestro
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
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