You know how you feel when your favorite coffee shop has a Barista handing out little samples of a seasonal drink that you love and then they offer you a free drink for your next visit? But, then it get's better...they say you can come in every day and get a free drink for the whole next year! Yeah, okay that last part has actually never ever happened, but it would be way cool right? Well that potential feeling of excitement is exactly how I felt when I received the email to review the homeschool video collection from Drive Thru History Adventures.
Sound Familiar to you? I have reviewed Drive Thru History before and we adore the Host, Dave Stotts. He brings History alive and takes you on the most exciting educational field trips to the past. So, what is Drive Thru History Adventure? Basically they have taken Drive Thru History videos and developed an amazing curriculum around them and put it all in one place online for you and your entire family.
This online subscription is a blessing and includes Adventures TV so you can STREAM the videos on an app available through the Apple App store and Google Play for most devices. Adventures TV has more videos, chats with Dave about current events and behind the scenes. This has already proven to be the method of choice for Kaden to work on History. Yesterday he told me in the morning he had already watched his video for the day before even going to the bathroom. Great Son, terrific enthusiasm to start the day off right! :) I will admit I have the App downloaded onto my phone too.
The curriculum is designed with the Highschool student in mind, but even Kaden, who just turned 11 has been able to use and understand the curriculum. Very few things needed to be modified and I have to admit I was very impressed with the material. So let me get into the meat of everything offered. Right now they offer Bible History (18 weeks going through the Gospels ~ Acts to Revelations coming later this year) American History (12 weeks on early American History) Ancient History (12 weeks on early Greece, Rome, and Asia Minor) We have already watched American and the Bible History previously, but Kaden was really interested in going back over what he had already watched again with the curriculum now. I knew this was something he really wanted to do, so I kind of let him pick and choose and just do his thing. If this would have been Mahala though I would have needed to make sure we followed some sort of schedule each week.
Basically we start off at the Dashboard, I truly appreciate the simplicity of this website and how easy it is to find where you need to go... clean and simple. I log on and always check Dave's update videos and see what's being said on the Private FB Group. I don't go on often to FB so it's nice that I can see the feed on my Dashboard too. Kaden and I both enjoy the short extra videos called Side Roads. Recently we watched the History behind both Groundhog day and St. Valentine's Day. The next click is of course the Curriculum tab, choosing which Adventure to go on. Since we have jumped all around I will give you a brief look at all three.
The Bible History is remarkable, to be able to go to these places in the Bible is breathtaking. I know I will never be able to go over there and see it with my own eyes, but the cinematography is wonderful. With each Episode you start out with the video, roughly 30 minutes followed by a quote, some impressive photos from the video and a summary. I love having a summary, because I don't know about you but sometimes after watching my brain is just full! Having a short review provided takes a load off of me and gets us going in the right direction for our discussion. Dave provides the Bible Reading right there on the site along with a Side Road for further investigation and the Discussion Questions. Because Kaden is 11 with Special Needs we do this together orally. But, Dave provides everything from the Quote to the Discussion Questions in a worksheet conveniently located at the bottom....even one for us with the answers. The final portion of the lesson is the Dig Deeper section that provides additional information and articles regarding the current topic your lesson was just on. I'll be honest I have only done a few of them myself and passed it on over to Kaden. For him the Dig Deepers that have a video are the most fun. For instance the one about Roman Coins was one of his favorites to further investigate. This actually might have sparked a coin collection....thanks Dave! :) He also enjoyed reading about the discovery of the Jesus boat, the Dig Deeper section is phenomenal and filled with many hours of additional discovery.
The American and Ancient History courses are laid out very similar to the Bible History, the only difference is instead of Bible reading you find Suggested Reading. So far in American History we have read a letter from Christopher Columbus to Ferdinand and Isabella some famous Sermons, notes from Washington and even a copy of the Constitution. In the Ancient History course I was able to expose Kaden for the first time to excerpts from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. Some other readings are from Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, we haven't touched on much of the Ancient History Course yet.
I know that was a lot, I just truly enjoyed this curriculum so much, I wished it would have been here for my oldest when he was home learning. I want to add one more reason why I love using this curriculum in my home. It is a spectrum of learning in one lesson... I'm talking about Art, Geography, the People, the Culture all tied into each History lesson. It's a true marvel and I wouldn't want to teach History to Kaden without it....period.
Make sure you head over today and Connect with Drive Thru History Adventures today with Social Media!
***Right now they are offering a set of the The Gospels DVD to those who join with an annual subscription. Head over Now to start your Adventure!! Drive Thru History Adventures is also offering 20% off for readers of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine. (check page 19)
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