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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 is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes 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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Adventures in America - Teacher Guide
by Angela Blau
from Unknown Publisher
in Miscellaneous History Curriculum (Location: HISCUR-MISC)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$11.95
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$6.99
America Grows Up
A History for Peter #2
by Gerald W. Johnson
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-7th grade
in New Nation (1783-1800) (Location: HISA-18NN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
America In Korean War
by KidCaps
from BookCaps
for 3rd-5th grade
in Korean War (1950-1953) (Location: HISA-20KW)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
America Is Born
A History for Peter #1
by Gerald W. Johnson
from Yesterday's Classics
for 7th-12th grade
1960 Newbery Honor Book
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
America Moves Forward
A History for Peter #3
by Gerald W. Johnson
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-7th grade
in New Nation (1783-1800) (Location: HISA-18NN)
American History Stories Volume 1
by Mara L. Pratt
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$11.95
American History Stories Volume 2
by Mara L. Pratt
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$11.95
American History Stories Volume 3
by Mara L. Pratt
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$11.95
American History Stories Volume 4
by Mara L. Pratt
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$11.95
Antoine of Oregon
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Awakening of Europe
Story of the World Series #3
by M. B. Synge
from Yesterday's Classics
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$13.95 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Awakening of Europe
Story of the World Series #3
by M. B. Synge
from Living Book Press
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$9.99
Baktar
by Laurie J. White
from Shorter Word Press
for 3rd-6th grade
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Bears of Blue River
by Charles Major
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-7th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Yesterday's Classics
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
$13.95
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Living Book Press
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
$15.99
Benjamin of Ohio
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Best Bad Thing
by Yoshiko Uchida
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Bismarck and the Foundation of the German Empire
by James Headlam
from CreateSpace
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.99
Black Arrow
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by N. C. Wyeth
from SeaWolf Press
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.95
Black Arrow
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Frances Brundage
from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Bondage of the Will
by Martin Luther, translated by Henry Cole
from Feather Trail Press
for Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Discovery
by M. B. Synge
from Yesterday's Classics
for 7th-12th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$20.95
Borrowed House
Bethlehem Books Young Adult Bookshelf
by Hilda Van Stockum
from Purple House Press
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$13.95
Boys' and Girls' Herodotus
by John S. White
Facsimile Edition from Kessinger Publishing
Ancient History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
British Empire
by Charlotte M. Mason
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Introductory Geography (Location: GEO-INTRO)
$9.99
Buried Cities
by Jennie Hall
from Outlook
for 3rd-6th grade
in Ancient Rome (Location: HISW-ANRO)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Burning of Rome
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$14.95
Calvert of Maryland
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Cedric the Forester
by Bernard Marshall
from CreateSpace
for 6th-8th grade
1922 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Chestry Oak
by Kate Seredy
from Purple House Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.99
Children of the New Forest
by Frederick Marryat
from Yesterday's Classics
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$14.95
Children of the New Forest
by Frederick Marryat
from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.99
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Greeks
by F. J. Gould
from Yesterday's Classics
Greek History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$11.95
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Romans
by F. J. Gould, Reteller
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$11.95
Christopher Columbus: His Story and His Journals
Knowledge Keepers Home Library Series 1492
by Edward Everett Hale and Edward Gaylord Bourne
from Knowledge Keepers
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$12.00 (2 in stock)
Combat Nurses of World War II
Landmark #116
by Wyatt Blassingame
from Purple House Press
for 5th-9th grade
in World War II (1939-1945) (Location: HISA-20WW2)
$13.99
Common Sense
Dover Thrift Editions
by Thomas Paine
from Living Book Press
Political Philosophy for 9th-Adult
in 18th Century Literature (Location: LIT5-18)
David Crockett: His Life and Adventures
by John S. C. Abbott
from CreateSpace
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.99
Days of Elijah
by John Noble
from Lulu.com
for 9th-12th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$19.99
Days of Joseph
by John Noble
from Unknown Publisher
for 9th-12th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Discovery of New Worlds
Story of the World Series #2
by M. B. Synge
from Yesterday's Classics
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$13.95
Discovery of New Worlds
Story of the World Series #2
by M. B. Synge
from Living Book Press
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
Dracula
by Bram Stoker
from SeaWolf Press
for 10th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
Dutch Twins
by Lucy Fitch Perkins
from Eirenikos Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Early Church
by George Hodges
from Yesterday's Classics
for 8th-12th grade
in Church History (Location: XCH-HIS)
$13.95
Famous Men of the Middle Ages
by John H. Haaren & A.B. Poland
from Yesterday's Classics
Historical Reference for 5th - 10th grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
$13.95
Famous Men of the Middle Ages
by John H. Haaren & A.B. Poland
from Feather Trail Press
Historical Reference for 5th - 10th grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
Fifty Famous People
by James Baldwin
from Yesterday's Classics
for 1st-4th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$11.95
Fifty Famous Stories Retold
by James Baldwin
from Yesterday's Classics
for 1st-4th grade
$11.95
Fifty Famous Stories Retold
by James Baldwin
from Living Book Press
for 1st-4th grade
$8.99
Florence Nightingale
by Laura E. Richards
from Yesterday's Classics
Biography for 6th-9th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.95
Four American Inventors
by Frances M. Perry
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-8th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$13.95
Free at Last
by Sara Bullard
from Oxford University
for 3rd-6th grade
in Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968) (Location: HISA-20CIV)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Freighters and Pilgrims
Knowledge Keepers Home Library Series 1865
by Charles E. Young and Sarah Raymond Herndon
from Knowledge Keepers
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Frontier Living
by Edwin Tunis
from Lyons Press
Historical Reference for 7th-10th grade
Newbery Honor Book 1962
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$19.95
Gabriel and the Hour Book
by Evaleen Stein
from Yesterday's Classics
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.95 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Gabriel and the Hour Book
by Evaleen Stein
from Unknown Publisher
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
General Lee: Southern Commander
Knowledge Keepers Home Library Series 1861
by John Esten Cooke, Captain Robert E. Lee, foreword by Nicki Truesdell
from Knowledge Keepers
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
God's Troubadour
by Sophie Jewett
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.95
Golden Age
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Maxfield Parrish
from SeaWolf Press
for 6th-9th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$7.95
Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
1925 edition reprint from Amazon
Realistic Fiction for 9th-12th grade
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Great Gatsby and Winter Dreams
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
from SeaWolf Press
Realistic Fiction for 9th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$7.95
Great Inventors and Their Inventions
by Frank Bachman & Michael McHugh
2019 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 6th grade
in Inventions & Discoveries (Location: SCI-INV)
$9.99
Great Quest
by Charles Boardman Hawes
from CreateSpace
for 5th-8th grade
1922 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.95
Greyfriars Bobby
by Eleanor Atkinson
from Living Book Press
for 6th-Adult
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$9.99
Growth of the British Empire
Story of the World Series #5
by M. B. Synge
from Yesterday's Classics
British History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$13.95 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Growth of the British Empire
Story of the World Series #5
by M. B. Synge
from Living Book Press
British History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$10.99
Hannah of Kentucky
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Hannibal
Makers of History Series
by Jacob Abbott
from Yesterday's Classics
for 7th-12th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
Hans Brinker
by Mary Mapes Dodge
from Living Book Press
Realistic Fiction for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.99
He Went with Champlain
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
He Went with Christopher Columbus
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
He Went with Drake
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
He Went with Hannibal
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
He Went with John Paul Jones
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
He Went with Magellan
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
He Went with Marco Polo
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
He Went with Vasco da Gama
by Louise Andrews Kent
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
Hereward the Wake
by Charles Kingsley
from Living Book Press
for 8th-12th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Heroes
by Charles Kingsley
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-7th grade
$12.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Heroes
by Charles Kingsley
from Living Book Press
for 4th-7th grade
$9.99
Heroes of the Middle Ages
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
$12.95
History of France (color)
by H. E. Marshall
from Living Book Press
for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$29.99
History of Germany (color)
by H. E. Marshall
from Living Book Press
for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$23.99
History of Western Civilization
by William H. McNeill
6th edition from University of Chicago
for 10th-Adult
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$24.00 (1 in stock)
Horsecatcher, The
by Mari Sandoz
First Bison Book from Bison Books
for 6th-10th grade
1958 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.95
How the Heather Looks
by Joan Bodger, illustrated by Mark Lang
Reprint from Living Book Press
for 7th-Adult
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.99
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
for 5th-8th grade
$11.95
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
for 5th-8th grade
$7.99
Illustrated Wreck of the Whaleship Essex
by Owen Chase
200th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
for 9th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$6.95
In Freedom's Cause
by G. A. Henty
from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
In the Days of Alfred the Great
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
In the Days of Queen Elizabeth
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
In the Days of Queen Elizabeth
by Eva March Tappan
from Living Book Press
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
In the Days of Queen Victoria
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
In the Days of Queen Victoria
by Eva March Tappan
from Living Book Press
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.99
In the Days of William the Conqueror
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
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