American History: Pre-History to 1773
Here's a brief summary of the story you never got in high school, college, or grad school. Neither did I. But your kids can get it, and maybe they'll fill you in -- as long as you don't get tired of saying, "I've never heard that. Are you sure?"
This is lesson 176 of my American history course in the Ron Paul Curriculum. It begins the final week of the course.
The first five lessons are here:
This course should be taken at the same time as my course in the history of American literature. The first five lessons are here:
My course uses no textbook. If you want to kill a student's interest in history, use a textbook. I have written about this: "How NOT to Teach American History." It is here:
I use primary source documents, maps, economics statistics charts, population statistics, YouTube videos, documentaries, articles by historians, a long list of major inventions after 1800, and a daily 25-minute lecture. If your homeschool program does not include a daily lecture, it is incomplete. You are working too hard, and the student is not working hard enough.
Students write two major term papers: one on the Constitutional Convention and the other on the events leading to Pearl Harbor.
At the end of the course, they are prepared to pass either the Advanced Placement exam in American history or the two CLEP exams. If they pass, they satisfy the requirement of a one-year American history course in college: six semester credits.
In the final week, I substitute longer lectures for daily readings.