Geography- The Middle East

As a supplement to our Classical Conversations studies, I decided to start a more in-depth World Geography study with N. Our first "stop" is the Middle East. This is not an organize unit study but more of a pulling of resources from different sources and reading them as we are able.

So far, this is what we have read:

The King and the Three Thieves (A Persian Tale)- Balouch
The Librarian of Basra (A True Story from Iraq- Winter
Silly Chicken (Pakistan)- Kahn
Tunjur! Tunjur!(A Palestinian Folktale)- (McDonald)
Lugalbanda, the Boy who Got Caught Up in a War (Ancient Iraq)- Henderson

Ancient Greece Reading

We are doing Classical Conversations Cycle 1 this year.This cycle covers Ancient History. As a complement we have been reading some picture books on Ancient Greece and Greek mythology. A. is following along as far as his Challenge A schedule allows him. I am going to compile here the books we have read on this topic:

(N)(A)King Midas and the Golden Touch (Craft)
(N)Cupid and Psyche (Craft)
(N)The Librarian who Measured the Earth (Lasky)
(N)Wise Guy:The Life and Philosophy of Socrates (Usher)
(N)Persephone (Clayton)
(N)(A)Pegasus (Mayer)
(N)The section on Greece from the Usborne book of World History

October Reading

We have continued with our reading about the Civil War. This is going to be the last of the Civil War books since Nicolas informed me, "Mom, I am tired of reading about war". And frankly, I am tired too.

This is the final Civil War books for both A. and N. :

(N)Just a Few Words Mr. Lincoln (Fritz)
(N)Journey to Freedom (Wright)
(A)Civil War Spy (Van Lew)
(A)The Visual Dictionary of the Civil War (Eyewitness)
(Me)Soldier's Heart
(N)Billy and the Rebel (Ready to Read series)
(N)A Picture of Robert E. Lee (Adler)
(Me)Stonewall (Fritz)

Non Civil War books read in October so far:

(N)St. Francis of Assisi (Kennedy)
(A)Train to Somewhere (Bunting)-orphan trains
(A)Ancient Egypt (Langley)

American History Through Picture Books

N. and I have been reading our way through American History via picture books. Rather than listing them on the side bars, I am just going to jot down here the ones we have read. I haven't been good at keeping up a list so if I remember some more I'll come back and edit this post. We are now up to the Civil War.

Here is the list:

Settling of the West, Frontier and Pioneer Life:

Dandelions (Bunting)
Wagons West (Farrar)
Cassie's Journey (Brett)
Dakota Dougout (Turner)
A Fourth of July in the Plains (Turner)
Grandma's Essie's Covered Wagon (Williams)

Civil War

Abraham Lincoln (Venezia)
A Picture Book of Harriet Tubman (Adler)
A Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln (Adler)
Freedom River (Rappaport)
When Harriet Met Sourjourner (Clinton)
Wagon Train (Kalman)
Almost to Freedom (Nelson)
The Gettysburg Address (Ill. by McCurdy)
Ghost of the Civil War (Harness)
Daily Life on Southern Plantation (Erickson)
Duel of the Ironclads (O'Brien)
Secrets of a Civil War Submarine (Walker)
The Last Brother (Noble)
Abe Lincoln Remembers (Turner)
Follow the Drinking Gourd (winter)
The Blue and the Gray (Bunting)
Frederick Douglas and the Last Day of Slavery (Miller)
Barefoot: Escape on the Underground Railroad
Ox Cart Man (Hall)
Birdie's Lighthouse (Hopkinson)
Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt (Hopkinson)
Now Let me Fly (Johnson)
The Wagon (Johnston)
The Bobbin Girl (McCully)
Popcorn at the Palace (McCully)
The Lighthouse Keeper's Daughter (Olson)
Pink and Say (Polacco)
Journey to Freedom (Wright)


I know there are a bunch more we read about the Westward Expansion. I just have to find the titles so I can keep a list all in one place.