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 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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Active Filters: 4th grade (Ages 9-10), Hardcover, In-Stock Books & Materials
1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving
by Catherine O'Neill Grace
from National Geographic
for 4th-6th grade
in Pilgrims at Plymouth (Location: HISA-17PIL)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
5,000-Year-Old Puzzle
by Claudia Logan, illustrated by Melissa Sweet
1st edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
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A is for Abigail
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1st edition from Simon and Schuster
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$19.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Abe Lincoln Gets His Chance
by Frances Cavanah
from Rand McNally
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Abraham Lincoln (hardcover)
by Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire; edited by Rea Berg
75th Anniversary from Beautiful Feet Books
Biography for 1st-6th grade
1940 Caldecott Medal winner
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$21.95
Adventures of Perrine
Windermere Readers #10
by Hector Malot, translated by Gil Meynier, adapted by Edith Heal
1954 edition from Rand McNally
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Alamo All Stars
Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #6
by Nathan Hale
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Alexander the Great
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Biography for 4th-6th grade
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All About Niagara Falls
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All Thirteen
by Christina Soontornvat
from Candlewick Press
Daring Rescues for 4th-7th grade
2021 Newbery Honor Book, 2021 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
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$24.99
All-of-a-Kind Family
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #1
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$16.00 (1 in stock)
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All-of-a-Kind Family Series #4
by Sydney Taylor; illustrated by Mary Stevens
from Follett Publishing Co.
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
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$34.00 (1 in stock)
America is Born
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by Gerald W. Johnson (iilustrations by Leonard Everett Fisher)
from William Morrow & Company
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$45.00 (1 in stock)
America's Ethan Allen
by Stewart H. Holbrook; illustrated by Lynd Ward
9th printing from Houghton Mifflin
Picture Book Biography for 4th-6th grade
1950 Caldecott Honor Book
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
America's Lost Dream
by Tom Dooley
from Master Books
American History for 4th-6th grade
in America's Christian Heritage (Location: HISA-CH)
$12.79 $10.00 (2 in stock)
America's Story 2 - Teacher Guide
by Angela O'Dell
from Master Books
for 3rd-5th grade
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$26.39
American Indian Tales and Legends
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
American Moments
by Robert Burleigh, illustrated by Bruce Strachan
from Henry Holt and Company
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$4.50 (1 in stock)
American Plague
by Jim Murphy
from Clarion Books
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2004 Newbery Honor Book, 2004 Robert F. Sibert Medal winner, NCTE Orbi Pictus Award
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$21.99
American Tall Tales
by Mary Pope Osborne, Michael McCurdy
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tales & Fables for 4th-8th grade
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$19.99
Ancient Celts: Archaeology Unlocks the Secrets of the Celts' Past
National Geographic Investigates
by Jen Green
from National Geographic
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Ancient Egypt Revealed
by Ben Morgan, Peter Chrisp, Sue Davidson
1st edition from DK Publishing
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
Ancient Greece
for 2nd-4th grade
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$4.50 (1 in stock)
Ancient Greece
by Peter Connolly, text by Andrew Solway
from Oxford University
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in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Ancient Greek Temple
by John Malam, Mark Bergin
for 3rd-7th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Ancient Rome
Discoveries Series
by Dr. Paul C. Roberts
from Barnes & Noble
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$4.50 (1 in stock)
Ancient World: The Chinese
The Ancient World
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$10.00 (1 in stock)
Anno's China
by Anno
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$19.95
Anno's Italy
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$19.95
Anno's Spain
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from Beautiful Feet Books
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$19.95
Annotated Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, edited by Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina
Annotated from W. W. Norton and Co.
Realistic Fiction for 4th-9th grade
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$35.00
Answering the Cry for Freedom
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$19.99
Appomattox
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$3.50 (1 in stock)
Apprentice
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First American Edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
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$7.00 (1 in stock)
Arabs in the Golden Age
by Mokhtar Moktefi & Veronique Ageorges
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Ark, The
by Margot Benary-Isbert
2021 Revision from Purple House Press
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$23.00
Art & Civilization: Renaissance
by Paul Procter, Rupert Matthews
from Peter Bedrick Books
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$14.00
Art and Civilization: Ancient Greece
Art and Civilization
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from Peter Bedrick Books
Ancient Greek History Reference for 4th-6th grade
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
Art and Civilization: Ancient Rome
Art and Civilization
by Giovanni Di Pasquale & Matilde Bardi
from Peter Bedrick Books
Roman History Reference for 4th-6th grade
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$12.00 (2 in stock)
Art for Children: Renaissance
Art for Children
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from Chelsea House Publishing
Art Appreciation for 4th-6th grade
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Art of the Southeastern Indians
by Shirley Glubok
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Astrid the Unstoppable
by Maria Parr, translated from the Norwegian by Guy Puzey
from Candlewick Press
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Atlas of World History
1st edition from DK Publishing
for 4th-10th grade
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$10.00 (1 in stock)
Australia: Beyond the Black Stump
by Gary Lewis
from Peter Antill-Rose
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Aztecs & Incas
Sightseers Essential Travel Guides to the Past
by Camilla Reid
Har/Map from Kingfisher
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Baby Blessing
by Welleran Poltarnees
from Laughing Elephant
for Kindergarten-Adult
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Bach's Goldberg Variations
by Anna Harwell Celenza & JoAnn E. Kitchel
from Charlesbridge
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Music Appreciation (Location: ELE-MUSAP)
$16.95
Bambi
by Felix Salten, illustrated by Steve Johnson & Lou Fancher
from Charles Scribner's Sons
Animal Stories: Fantasy for 4th-6th grade
in Scribner Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SCRIB)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Beautiful Blue Jay and Other Tales of India
by John W. Spellman, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney
1st edition from Little, Brown & Company
for 3rd-6th grade
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Beautiful Stories of Life
by Cynthia Rylant
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-7th grade
$17.99
Before Columbus
by Charles C. Mann
from Atheneum
for 4th-8th grade
in Ancient America (Location: HISW-ANAM)
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Before Columbus
by Charles C. Mann
from Atheneum
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in Ancient America (Location: HISW-ANAM)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Behave Yourself, Bethany Brant
by Patricia Beatty
from William Morrow & Company
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Benjamin Franklin
by R. Conrad Stein
from Rand McNally
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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$3.00 (2 in stock)
Between the Lines
by Sandra Neil Wallace; illustrated by Bryan Collier
from Simon and Schuster
for 2nd-6th grade
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Bible Timeline Figures CD-ROM
from Geography Matters
for 2nd-6th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Big Annie of Calumet
by Jerry Stanley
1st edition
for 4th-7th grade
in Industrialization & Organized Labor (Location: HISA-19IND)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Big Golden Book of Christopher Columbus and Other Early Adventurers
by Russell Bourne, illustrated by Thomas LaPadula
from Golden Books
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Birchbark House
by Louise Erdrich
from Hyperion/Madison Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
National Book Award Finalist
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Black Elk's Vision
by S. D. Nelson
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
Blades of Freedom
Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #10
by Nathan Hale
from Amulet Books
for 4th-8th grade
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$14.99
Blizzard!
by Jim Murphy
from Scholastic Press
for 4th-6th grade
2001 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
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$8.00 (2 in stock)
Blockade Runners and Ironclads
by Wallace B. Black
from Franklin Watts
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Marvels: Marvels of the Orient
by Richard Halliburton
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-12th grade
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$23.79
Book of Nations
by Rebecca Allen
from Beautiful Feet Books
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$35.00
Book of the American Indians
Brown Paper School USKids History
by Marlene Smith-Baranzini & Howard Egger-Bovet
from Little, Brown & Company
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
Boston
from Crescent Books
for 4th-Adult
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom
by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Michele Wood
from Candlewick Press
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2021 Newbery Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$17.99
Brave Cloelia
by Jane Curry
1st edition from J. Paul Getty Museum
for 4th-6th grade
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$17.95 $12.00 (1 in stock)
Bravo! Brava!
by Anne Siberell
from Oxford University
for 3rd-8th grade
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$24.00 $12.00 (1 in stock)
Brer Rabbit and His Tricks
by Ennis Rees; illustrated by Edward Gorey
from Young Scott Books
for 2nd-4th grade
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Bringing Back the Wolves
by Jude Isabella; illustrated by Kim Smith
from Kids Can Press
for 3rd-6th grade
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
Brooklyn Bridge
by Lynn Curlee
from Atheneum
for 3rd-6th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Brother Hugo and the Bear
by Katy Beebe
from Eerdmans
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$17.99
Brothers in Hope
by Mary Williams, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
from Lee & Low Books
for 1st-4th grade
2006 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award
in Africa (Location: HISMC-AFR)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Bud, Not Buddy
by Christopher Paul Curtis
from Delacorte Press
Realistic Fiction for 4th-6th grade
2000 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
Buffalo Bill
by Frank L. Beals, illustrated by Jack Merryweather
1959 Edition from Wheeler Publishing, Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Buildings of Ancient Greece
by Helen & Richard Leacroft
from William R. Scott Inc.
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Built to Last
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$24.99
Bull Run
by Paul Fleischman
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
By the Bridge of a Thousand Ages
by Myrth Bartlett, illustrations by Alice Marie Bartlett and Arthur D. Roberts
from Willing Publishing Co.
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$60.00 (1 in stock)
By the Shores of Silver Lake
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$18.99 $8.00 (2 in stock)
By the Shores of Silver Lake (Pictorial Cover)
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder; illustrated by Garth Williams
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Cabin Boy to Advent Crusader
by Virgil Robinson, illustrated by Harry Baerg
from Southern Publishing Association
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Caddie Woodlawn
by Carol Ryrie Brink
from Simon and Schuster
Realistic Family Fiction for 3rd-7th grade
1936 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$19.99
Caleb's Choice
from Lodestar Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
California Gold Days
by Helen Bauer
1961 Printing from California State Department of Education
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Canada
Discovering Cultures
by Patricia J. Murphy
from Benchmark Books
for 2nd-4th grade
in Canada (Location: HISMC-CAN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Canada: Our History
by Rick Archbold
First Printing
for 3rd-8th grade
in Canada (Location: HISMC-CAN)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Canterbury Tales
by Barbara Cohen & Trina Schart Hyman
from William Morrow & Company
Medieval Literature for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$17.50 (1 in stock)
Capital
1st edition from Atheneum
for 3rd-6th grade
in Landmarks & Symbols of the United States (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Carl Larsson's A Home
by Carl Larsson and Lennart Rudstrom
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 3rd-Adult
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$10.00 (1 in stock)
Carrie's War
by Nina Bawden
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for 3rd-6th grade
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Castles
by Denise and Claude Millet
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Scholastic First Discovery Books (Location: SCIREF-1ST)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Castles
by Miranda Smith
from Kingfisher
for 2nd-4th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$7.00 (2 in stock)
Cathedral
by David Macaulay
First Edition from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Cathedral
by David Macaulay
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$19.95
Cathie Stuart
by Nora Tully MacAlvay
1958 2nd Printing from Viking Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Caught
Missing #05
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
from Simon and Schuster
for 4th-7th grade
in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
$7.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Celtic Fairy Tales
by Neil Philip, illustrated by Isabelle Brent
from Viking Press
for 3rd-8th grade
in Short Story Anthologies for Kids (Location: FIC-ANTH)
$12.00 (2 in stock)
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