How to Create a Family Tree History Lesson!
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Here lately, the children have been extremely interested, excited, and ecstatic about who is in our family tree!
I was able to trace my fathers roots all the way back through Joseph and Mary and Bible history, due to the fact there is a lot of royalty in his family. (We ourselves are just an ordinary homeschool family 😂)
Upon learning such exciting news that her ancestors were kings and queens,my daughter has been parading around the house her princess costume😂. It has been rather amusing.
Another thing that was really interesting was the stories that had you could read about different people in your family’s history. A man in our family tree was in the Revolutionary War, so his profile had a story about how he was almost captured by Indians!
It definitely has been a fun learning experience!
Which leads me to my point…..
THE BEST LEARNING EXPERIENCES ARE NOT FOUND IN A TEXTBOOK!!!!
GASP! Could it be true that the genius inventors of the public school text books are missing the mark on what it takes to make a 3 1/2’ tall historian?
Yep.
So many children, and adults as well, hate history. Is this by accident? No, it is not.
The Public School has been rewriting history for close to 100 years, and along the way creating a distain for the rich heritage of our country. Let’s break the erosion of history down.
Back in the early days of American Schools, the Bible was incorporated in a lot of instruction. Even some schools used the Bible for copy work to learn to write. Children were taught to respect the wisdom and instruction of the elderly, and to lean on this instruction while plotting the course of their future. Appreciation for the great men and women who founded our country was instilled in young minds and hearts. When my father was a child (1940s), Prayer and Bible reading was still a vital part of the classroom (which also trains children to be moral and realize they will give account for their actions to a higher Power), dangers of big government were embraced, and patriotism and pride in who they were as an American were exalted.
BUT IN 1963 THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL OF EVERYTHING GOOD BEGAN.
This started with the removing of prayer and Bible reading in the classroom. (This is where all decay in every society starts.) Then new, “modern” philosophies crept in-
- the doctrine of evolution- yes, I consider it a doctrine, to which the end goal of this theory is to erase accountability to God for ones actions
- free sex- planned parenthood
- a twisted concept of independence- don’t need parents
- guns, drugs, and alcohol use in the school classrooms
- distain for teachers and those in authority
- the need to move the police into the public schools
- gender confusion, since there are no absolutes (sadly suicide is high in these precious young people
- distain for history (most current trend is the critical race theory).
BUT WHY IS HISTORY IMPORTANT???
AHHH so glad you asked!
History is what keeps America free, young people pure, and neighborhoods safe.
By learning history we realize
- That we have to give an account to God for our deeds
- The value of human life
- The dangers of Communism and Socialism
- The reward of being sacrificial and charitable
- The need to respect our elderly and parents
- The consequences of wrong actions
- Who we are, and where we are going.
We have covered the necessity of history, but how do we communicate this to our children, and create a love for history in them?
Especially if even the mention of the 7 letter learn creates groans and moans and sudden illnesses.
First, we must be enthusiastic about history ourselves! Using the list above, we can take time to study and reflect on these points and why they are important in our lives.
But another fun way to create a love for history is
CREATE A FAMILY TREE!
Children are naturally egocentric. That creates a great resource when trying to get them to learn something they find boring or difficult.
A typical history book contains parts of world history and American history. Guess what?
SO DOES YOUR FAMILY TREE!!
Do you have Egyptian in your roots? You can do a unit study on the lives on the Ancient Egyptians! This also works for China, African, or wherever your ancestors came from!
Do you have ancestors from a communist or socialist country? This a great opportunity to learn about the dangers of these types of governments! (Did you know that China, Korea, and Russia were once christian nations???)
Maybe you have ancestors that fought in the Revolutionary War or Civil War.
Though my children have a love and appreciation for history, learning about their family tree has made history more intriguing!
Using your family tree helps children see where they belong in history, how it is relevant to them, and why it is important that they learn about the past.
Teaching history for the sake of teaching history makes history irrelevant to the present, and this makes it more appropriate for a bed time story than the enrichment of young minds.
Lessons learned are more appt to stay in long term memory as well.
The app I am using to trace our family tree is actually called “Family Tree”! And it is free! It also gives you history details about some of your ancestors lives!
Here soon, I will have printable in my shop to help you with your journey in history! Check back often!!
