I’ve been teaching Ancient History through art and literature in my co-op class this year. You’ll find the hands on art projects to go with these books in my Art Around the Ancient World series. I purposely wanted to stay away from historical fiction for this list; my focus has been on stories that either take place in ancient times or that are folktales or myths from an ancient civilization. They were quite challenging to find. But I’m very happy with the list that resulted!

A Living Book List for Ancient History

I wanted the children to get a feel for the culture and civilization just from these stories. I wanted books appropriate for 3rd to 5th graders that I could read in a class period (so no chapter books) and still have time for maps, timeline and the projects. I wanted the stories to have literary value- not an empty picture book but a living story! The children have been enjoying these stories quite a bit. After or during our reading, I talk about about different literary forms and genres, oral traditions, mythology and more. These books can be read aloud together as a family, between siblings, or independently.

Nomads/ Hunters and Gatherers-

This was a delightfully story that presented classic conflict, climax and a resolution story. In fact, the story presents a delightful pattern of repeated conflict. We used it in our own homeschool for a mini unit and field trip on the ice age. A fun art activity to go with it is to create your own cave and rock paintings.

The First Dog

Sumerians, Assyrians & Babylonians

This story was a wonderful choice for Mesopotamia. It was the perfect story to introduce literary themes. We spent a bit of time on this area discussing cuneiform and later on other art and artifacts from Assyria and Babylon.  We made some outstanding art projects for the cradle of civilization. For Sumeria we made cylinder seals and for Assyria and Babylon we made glue paintings to look like Ancient Near East metalworking. 

Gilgamesh the King (The Gilgamesh Trilogy)

Ancient Egypt-

For Egypt you’ll have many books to choose from. Why this book? Because I loved the nature of it. It’s simple charm was delightful and the children could easily relate to a cat who just wanted to be a cat. We discussed Ancient Egyptian art, hieroglyphs and beliefs and rituals. Art projects for Egypt to come. Saving the best for last!

Temple Cat

Ancient Israel-

Most of the children already knew their bible stories so it was a great reference for the ancient world around Israel. Already familiar with the story, it provided a context for laying out the areas and civilization around the Israelites. The book is a good retelling of this familiar story. We especially enjoyed the art work in the book and it’s design. There is also a book on Moses by the same author called The Moses Basket. We didn’t have time to read it, but it looked just as good.

The Coat of Many Colors

Ancient China-

This book is a great choice for Ancient China.  We didn’t actually read this book in our co-op but I have looked at it and if time had provided it would have been my first choice. My substitute taught a class on Tangrams for China. And if you prefer to go that route an excellent book is The Warlord’s Puzzle or if you can’t find that one, Grandfather Tang’s Story .

The Master Swordsman & the Magic Doorway: Two Legends from Ancient China

 West Africa-

West Africa was fun to cover. We talked about oral traditions of the Ancient West Africans and many other civilizations. With no ancient writing, history knows little about these people. But they have such a rich culture that is evident in their folklore and tales. Anansi the spider is just one of many tales. The children liked the personification of Anansi and his children and the book offered lots of literary components to discuss. We made Akuaba Doll Scratch Art  for our project.

Anansi the Spider: A Tale from the Ashanti

Minoan & Mycenaean-

This was the Greek myth I chose for the Minoan civilization. Of course I chose it because of it taking place on Crete but it also followed nicely after our Phoenician study.  We discussed myths and legends and made Minotaur masks!

The Hero and the Minotaur

 Medes and Persians-

I’m not sure how far back this legend really goes, but since the main focus of my class is on literature, I felt it would certainly represent the culture and be a wonderful selection. I was right. My first look at this book from author Tomi dePaola did not disappoint.  I can’t wait to do the to do the weaving project I’ve planned with my class.

The Legend of the Persian Carpet

Ancient Greece-

An old favorite from homeschooling my older children. It’s important to add a bit of living math into the line up! The perfect book for a study on the golden Age of Greece.

What’s Your Angle, Pythagoras?

Mauryan Empire- Ancient India

Demi has some really wonderful books. I could have also used her book on Budda for this class. But since I plan to talk about the spice trade and for the project do a spice jar activity, I thought it would be good to also include a story from Hinduism. We will also look at artifacts from History of the World in 1,000 Objects (pgs. 98-99). Another book that I highly recommend by Demi for it’s beauty and content is Mother Teresa. 

The Fantastic Adventures of Krishna

Ancient America- Nazca

While this book doesn’t come directly from the Olmec or the Nazca, it certainly does represent the people of the Amazon. I love the art work which works well to complement the art project I have planned for a Nazca Line Art Activity.

 Jabutí the Tortoise: A Trickster Tale from the Amazon

Ancient Rome-

I haven’t gotten this book yet but it’s on my wish list! Isn’t the cover amazing! And the illustrations inside make a perfect compliment to my Roman Mosaic Art Lesson. It’s also a great book to show how the Ancient world changed over time with Egypt now being under foreign rule. Throughout my course I’ve been pointing the kids back and forth to the areas and people we have already learned about. A timeline is in order here and that’s next on my do list!

 Cleopatra

What living stories are the top of your book list for Ancient History?

The post Living Book List for Ancient History appeared first on Dymphna's Song.

10 Kids Books for Art History Lovers!

Enter to win $25 in Usborne books at the end of this post!

Is there something about famous paintings that your kids just can’t get enough of? Here are 10 books that will inspire young artists and teach them about the famous creative minds throughout history!

Art History Books for Preschool & Kindergarten

Even the youngest children can learn to appreciate great works of art. They just need some books and activities that are engaging and give them some simple techniques to practice.

1. My First Art Coloring Book

With creative projects and stickers, this book is the perfect way to introduce young children to the world’s most famous artists and their work. From Monet to Matisse and more, each page engages children with a coloring activity along side the most popular paintings in history.

2. My First Art Sticker Book

Promote creative thinking and reasoning skill by letting children create their own scenes and collages with beautiful stickers inspired by famous works of art!

3. Art Treasury Book

This book includes famous European paintings, Japanese prints, African masks and more! Each is followed by a project inspired by the work and includes a mini-bio of the artist for a great art history mini-lesson.

4. Lift-the-Flap Art Book

This is the easiest way to get young children excited about art! Let them uncover the secrets of how famous works were made, uncover hidden clues and explore art like you’ve never done before! This book is also internet references for more information about the art and techniques featured!

Art History Books for Elementary

5. Famous Paintings

These cards will help children become experts in identifying 30 famous paintings. They’ll learn all about the artists and the history behind the painting.

6. Famous Artists Sticker Book

The reason sticker books are so effective is that they engage the children in the creation of the book! This one is filled with interesting facts about history’s biggest names in art.

7. Mexican Patterns to Color

Not your ordinary coloring book, the patterns are taken from thousands of years of Mexican art and include information on the history of art in Mexico. A Celtic version is also available!

8. Art Sticker Book

Over 100 different stickers from over 100 of the most popular paintings in the National Gallery’s Collection, this book includes details about the artists and history behind the paintings.

Art History Books for Young Adults

9. The Usborne Book of Famous Paintings

A beautiful and simple display of the 35 most notorious paintings explained in an engaging way and internet linked for expanded study. This is a Best Seller!

10. The Usborne Book of Famous Artists

A creative timeline of each artist’s life is displayed below his most popular works. Artists include: da Vinci, Durer, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Picasso, and more! This book is internet linked for even more information!

You may also like: Art Around the Ancient World Series!

Usborne Giveaway and LIVE Facebook Party!

Enter to win $25 in Usborne books! Enter the Rafflecopter below and join us for a LIVE Facebook Party on February 4th at 8:30 PM CST!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The post 10 Kids Books for Art History Lovers! appeared first on Dymphna's Song.

Phoenician Study

Timeline Figures and Notebook Pages for Phoenicia

I have created some simple Phoenician timeline figures. This short PDF also includes a few blank writing pages that could be used for various writing assignments or mini reports.  I’m overall pleased with how they came out but I’d love to hear feedback as it would greatly help me with the development of my Art Around the Ancient World series. I hope to make a much larger packet of Free Timeline figures for it as well!

 Phoenician Timeline Figures and Notebook Pages

Books About Phoenicians for Kids

Books were a bit hard to find that were solely about Phoenicia. I found an interesting mythology book on the Phoenicians and Canannites but didn’t include it for religious reasons. Normally, I don’t have any problem including mythology in our homeschool- especially as a literary form. You’ll see lots of literature selections on mythology from the Greeks to the Goths here.  But I found that this particular book was not Christian friendly. Generally, however, I think mythology when presented correctly is a wonderful addition to any homeschool program.

Watch this very timely Google + Event from Bright Ideas Press if you’d like to hear more on the topic!

On the other hand, two books on the Phoenicians that I can whole heartedly recommend are:

1.  Ancient Israelites and Their Neighbors: An Activity Guide– This book is really wonderful and has tons of terrific hands on activities for a full program supplement as well as for putting your own study together.
2.  Phonecians (Ancient Civilizations -Rourke)– This book is a great text option. I recommend it for elementary or a one, or maybe two, day read for middle school. It could also be a great resource or reference book that is simple but includes the main info you’d want as far as dates and historical info.
3. Also Related:
   The Young Carthaginian : A Story of The Times of Hannibal – We haven’t read this one ourselves but it came well recommended to me for older children and as a historical fiction selection.

Teaching Resources on the Phoenicians:

This is by no means a complete list but is a good start and I’ll be adding more as I find them helpful!

Interactive Quiz on Phoenicia for Story of the World Chapter 15
Interactive Vocabulary on Phoenicia
Tina’s Dynamic Homeschool- Phoenician Lapbook
Phoenician lesson plans with printable copywork 
Short, Quick and Easy Explanation of Murex Dye Process
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Phoenicia.org

This post has been part of my Art Around the Ancient World Series.

The following lists each lesson by civilization, what each lesson’s focus will be, and the media/project tutorial.  (These are subject to change.)

• Prehistory– Cave Paintings- Painting the Ancient Way
• Sumerians – Ancient Writing -Cylinder Seals in Clay
• Egypt – Egyptian Art and Hieroglyphs- Multi Media/ Egyptian People Coming Soon!
• Assyrians and Babylonians – Glue Painting- Babylonian Art Lesson for Kids
• Phoenicians– Ancient Dyes– Batik Bags [Follow the 5 Day Series.]
• West Africa– Akuaba Wooden Doll- Scratch Art
• Minoan and Mycenaean– Early Greek Masks-Paper Mache Masks
• Persians– Persian Carpets and Decor- Paper Weaving
• China- Tangrams– Tessellating Birds
• Greece- Etruscan Vases- TBA
• Rome- Mosaics- TBA

Be sure to follow my Pinterest board too! The possibilities are epic!
Follow Stephanie @ Harrington Harmonies’s board Education | Art Around the Ancient World on Pinterest.

The post Phoenician Timeline Figures, Books and Resources appeared first on Dymphna's Song.