If you read my blog, you know we are a homeschooling family. I am proud of that. I'm proud that I have the opportunity to try some of the greatest products available and decide on our curriculum each year. I can find the best products for my kids (and their learning style) and I can use products that support our values. My oldest loves to read and he also enjoys watching videos. I think he enjoys videos more so I wanted to get him some
educational videos to help him learn about history. Logan is nine and most of the videos I found were not really appropriate for school. Don't get me wrong, they were very informative and I would allow him to watch these videos. We are fans of The History Channel and Discovery! I really thought that while he would enjoy the videos and even retain some information, they would be distracting and harder for him to follow.
The grown up videos went into too much detail for our lessons and left too many unanswered questions. When I learned about videos offered by
Learn Our History, I was really curious and I wanted to watch them.
From their site:
Governor Mike Huckabee's 'Learn Our History' was developed under the direction of leading historians and educators. This fascinating, original series of animated videos features the a group of time traveling friends who create an incredible time machine that whisks them back in time to experience history in the making. With Learn Our History, your kids gain an understanding of important concepts and how those concepts play a role in our everyday lives. From understanding the role of government and taxes to national security, democracy and more, your children will learn to appreciate what it means to be an American and how fortunate they are to live in the the home of the brave and the land of the free.
This series has many lessons for children, including:
•The need to stand up to bullies
•The importance of self-respect and respect for others -including their elders
•Belief in democratic values such as freedom and equality
•Faith in God as a key principle in America’s development and greatness
I would have begged or bought the series (I really wanted them) but I was lucky enough to have them sent to me for review. I am a fan and supporter of Gov.
Mike Huckabee so I trusted the content of these videos to help teach my children.
Logan learned a lot watching these videos. He asked very few questions because the DVDs were so informative and basically hit all the main points while offering enough details to satisfy his curiosity. The characters captured his attention and held it through each of the videos. Personally, I enjoyed watching the videos with him (and my 4 year old Sam) even though some things were a little silly. But hey, I'm in my thirties and this is made for children! There is a bully that is very loud and insulting, but I can understand the point of having him in the story. The other characters teach children how to handle these situations with grace. We learned about The Mayflower and The First Thanksgiving, Columbus And The Great Discovery, The Birth Of A Revolution, Winning Our Freedom, The Declaration Of Independence, and Election Day. The DVDs had great audio/video quality. As a homeschooling mom, I would love the option to purchase a printed workbook or activity book to go along with each video. Other than that, I can't think of anything I would change or add. They do offer downloadable curriculum supplements with each title—timelines, biographies, quizzes, word games, etc. When you become a customer, you're given access to a customer-specific site, where you can download this great content. In addition, you can
stream the videos on any internet-connected device (desktop, laptop, iPad, iPhone, iPod, Android devices, etc.).So, if you leave the DVD in the minivan and the kids are really itching to watch the videos, they can always go to the
Learn Our History web site and watch them as many times as they want!
With this being an election year, children are more likely to ask questions about the election process. Right now, you can get a
free DVD to help educate your child about primaries, caucuses, nominating conventions, debates, and the Electoral College. This DVD is free because Mike Huckabee believes the topic is so important, every child should have access to this DVD, which makes it fun and easy to learn how we elect our president. Gov. Huckabee even makes a special animated appearance in the video! Visit
learnourhistory.com for more information. You don't have to homeschool to appreciate these lessons. They are perfect for reinforcing lessons learned in any school!
Disclosure: These DVDs were sent for review. My opinions were not influenced in any way. Purchase your videos from
learnourhistory.com!
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