Originally we were going to start our history rotation over by studying the ancients. Evelyn was 6 the last time we did that time period so she remembers none of it. But... Well I just wasn't very excited about it. I wanted to do something different so I decided to do NH history and then decided that we might as well study all of the New England states... one at a time. After all, that is something unique about our corner of the world. Our little states are all linked together even if we do have some not-so-decent nicknames for each other.
A couple of things I have learned while compiling book lists and projects for our New England study:
1. It is stunning how many people/websites state that NY, NJ and even PA are part of New England...huh? That will NOT be a problem for my kids.
2. The chocolate chip cookie originated in Massachusetts (sweet!)
A couple of things I already knew about New England:
1. So many amazing authors came from here- there's going to be some great reading this year!
2. The account of this area is incredibly rich and fascinating. Growing up I enjoyed listening to my grandmother, who loved history, tell tales of my ancestors and the history of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine. It was far superior to any history class I ever took. I wish my kids had been able to hear her. Hopefully I can pass along a smidgen of the stories she shared with me.
So here we are, beginning with Massachusetts, because that seems the right place to start. This week we did some reading and made salt dough maps of Massachusetts. We labeled some basic landmarks.
