09 January 2008

Book of Centuries

I mentioned to MissKate that I plan to use my Book of Centuries while we read 1421 (since there doesn't seem to be any objections), and she wanted to know what it is. So I was telling her about it, and it seems to me that maybe Emma & FifeMOM would like to build one too if we're going to read very many history books. I learned about Books of Centuries from some homeschooling stuff. Here's an explanation and a link to a place where you can print out some prefab pages. I did some things a little differently than the file they offer on this site: I started moving by 50 years at a time starting in 1500, since starting about then there's more recorded history and events start happening closer together. But it's basically the same thing. It's pretty fun to be able to see things like the traditional date of the founding of the Japanese empire (660BC) is on the same page as Lehi leaving Jerusalem (600BC) because they happened very close to the same time. Could make for some very interesting speculations. Anyway.

A Book of Centuries is like a timeline in a notebook. As its name suggests, each two-page spread in the book is devoted to one hundred years — a century — of history. Each student creates his or her own book, recording historical events and names of importance, along with pictures, poems, quotes, and anything else that makes the book individual. You can also add written narrations, illustrations from the Internet, or titles of books you’ve read that are set in that time period.

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