This week we completed a quick unit on the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Below are the resources we used.
Our Constitution Rocks, by Juliette Turner - this is a resource we own, and I think it's a pretty great book. I'd like my older kids to read it eventually, but it was too much to get through in one week, so it stayed on the shelf. The story of its creation is pretty great, though.
Shhh!! We're Writing the Constitution by Jean Fritz - another great one by Ms. Fritz. Did you know that the residents of Philadelphia were so concerned about being quiet during the Grand Convention that they covered the cobblestone streets in front of Independence Hall with gravel? I love the fun tidbits of information that Fritz always includes in her work.
...If You Were There When They Signed the Consitution by Elizabeth Levy and Joan Holub - this is another series of books we really enjoy. It's a question/answer style of writing. We read this late in the week and were able to skip over a fair amount that had already been covered in other books. At 70+ pages, this one is long!
We the People: The Story of Our Constitution by Lynn Cheney - Lynn Cheney has written a series of children's books about American history. We've enjoyed them so far. They're a bit wordy, but they're always beautifully illustrated. I did feel like this one didn't do as great a job at explaining the finer points in the legislative branch, but that's hard to do in a children's book.
We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States by David Catrow - I like how this book breaks down the big words, and explains those big ideas. This is short and sweet.
The Bill of Rights (True Books: American History) by Christine Taylor-Butler - a thorough presentation of all of those individual rights that are so important!
Rather than do a big, elaborate poster of the three branches of government, we did a simple one on the white board and called it good. Cameron will be completing a workbook to finish out the year. That will cover his social studies/civics requirement for the year.
No comments:
Post a Comment