History Year 1 will be released in March 2025. We plan to release History Years 2–4 periodically about every six months thereafter.

For each year of history, your family will need one Course Set, which includes the Course Book, The Big Book of History Stories, Maps & Images book, and the Time Tunnel Review Cards. The Time Tunnel Review Cards are used in all four years of this History curriculum, so you only need to purchase them once per family.

Each child will also need their own copy of the Student Explorer that corresponds with their grade and a History Time Line Book, which they will use in all four years of this curriculum. A History Activity Book is also available, so younger children in grades K–2 can join in as they complete history-related activities alongside their older siblings.

The beginning of each lesson indicates if extra supplies are needed. The curriculum requires minimal supplies, but it may be helpful to check 1–2 lessons in advance so that you have time to gather any that are necessary. All extra supplies that are needed in the course are also listed in the front matter of the History Course Book.

The completely redesigned Course Book is now full color and guides parents through the easy-to-follow, interactive lessons. Using outstanding feedback from pilot families, lessons have been optimized for more engaging and thoughtful learning! 

The beloved The Big Book of History Stories is now included in every year of history! Including some of your well loved favorites and also many brand-new, original stories, these  collections of fiction and nonfiction living stories accompany some of the lessons to bring the children into the lives and events of the people in the time period being taught. Each story features beautiful full-color illustrations as well as an optional audio recording.

The Maps & Images book is full of illustrated and real-life images of the events, people, and places talked about in the lessons, along with maps of the locations in the world where these events happened. Punch-out cards used for matching games and more are also found in the Maps & Images book.

Time Tunnel Review Cards span all four years of this curriculum. The 85 Time Tunnel Review Cards provide a fun, colorful way to review important people and events discussed in the course. Every few lessons the Course Book will prompt the parent to review with the children the cards that cover topics discussed in previous lessons. An instruction booklet is also included that provides fun ideas for review activities and games.

Student Explorers Grades 3–6 and Grades 7–8 are now sold as physical books and help children apply the information learned in the lessons in a tangible way. The Student Explorer Grades 7–8 also includes lesson extensions that expand the lessons for older students. Each child will need their own Student Explorer.

The History Time Line Book spans all four years of this curriculum, and each child will need their own copy. Every few lessons the Course Book will direct each child to place a colorful, detailed sticker onto their own time line or to find events on the time line.

A History Activity Book is an optional resource available for younger children in grades K–2 so they can join in and complete history-related activities alongside their older siblings.

Answer keys for the written activities in the Student Explorers are available for free in PDF format on the Good and Beautiful website or the Good and Beautiful Homeschool app.

The new courses loosely follow the outlines of the previous courses. However, lessons have been revised, rewritten, or entirely replaced with content that is more applicable, diverse, and engaging. New lessons and stories have also been added to cover content that was inadequately discussed or omitted in previous courses.

We recommend starting history when your oldest child is in third grade. Children younger than third grade may enjoy listening to the lessons along with their older siblings.

We suggest teaching the history course at a rate of two lessons per week. Each course year of the curriculum should take about one school year to complete. 

Each lesson should take an average of 20–30 minutes to complete, with an additional 10–15 minutes for students completing the grades 7–8 extensions. The number of lessons in each year of the curriculum is: 

Year 1: 60 lessons

Year 2: 56 lessons

Year 3: 60 lessons

Year 4: 60 lessons

The sample pages for each course year currently available include a full table of contents. As a more general overview, the major topics covered in the curriculum are shown below. 

Year 1 History includes the following topics:

• Ancient History
• The Middle Ages & the Renaissance
• The French and Indian War through the Revolutionary War
• The Victorian Era, The History of Flight, and The Cold War Era

Year 2 History includes the following topics:

• Ancient Greece and Ancient Asia
• Vikings, Exploration, and Pre-Columbian America
• Colonial America and The US Constitution
• History of US Education, WWI through the Great Depression

Year 3 History includes the following topics:

• Ancient Mesopotamia, Ancient Israel
• Ancient Africa, Native North Americans
• Westward Expansion, Industrialization
• World War II

Year 4 history includes the following topics:

• Ancient Rome
• The Reformation, The History of the Bible
• Slavery, the Civil War 
• The Civil Rights Movement, Post World War II

Each course year (Years 1–4) covers ancient history through modern history, but each one stops in different places and time periods for more in-depth exploration. The four years of the curriculum can be completed in any order. When topics are mentioned in multiple years, relevant lessons include brief summaries of information covered in the previous year(s). However, we recommend starting with Year 1 for ease.

Many customers have told us that even though they have previously covered some of the same periods in history, their children enjoy revisiting them again with this approach. Our experience has shown that it is effective for children to see the whole sweep of history and how it fits together with each year. In addition, children enjoy this approach as they can become disengaged when a year-long course focuses on the same time period, especially when learning ancient history. 

Yes! Multiple Student Explorer activities throughout the courses contain games, puzzles, and hands-on crafts. Some lessons also include group crafts or recipes that students can complete together. The Time Tunnel Review Cards also include many activities to help students review and retain information learned earlier in the courses.

There are no formal quizzes or tests. However, some activities in the Student Explorers contain reviews that test students’ understanding of information from either the lesson or extension they have just completed or a number of previous lessons. Some “Let’s Connect” questions in the Course Book lessons also invite students to remember and analyze the information covered in individual lessons and across the course.

We have many families from around the world using our History curriculum. However, it is important to note that each year will include units that focus on US history. Families outside the US may want to supplement with the history of their home or current country. They may also choose to do all the US history units, skip some of the lessons or units on US history, or quickly go through them.

The Course Book and Maps & Images book are primarily nonconsumable but do include a few items that are consumable, such as punch-out cards or other items used for activities. These components can be altered in order to be reused, and each family can decide how to do so (for example, laminating cards for future use). The Big Book of History Stories is nonconsumable. Student Explorers, the History Time Line Book, and the History Activity Bookare consumable.

We do not shy away from discussing these important issues. We believe that people of all ethnicities and races have contributed to the greatness of our world—a greatness that lies in our ability to recognize wrongs and correct them. For topics that may be sensitive for our youngest learners, we have provided a Hard & True Facts section in some lessons that the teacher or parent can review before presenting the information to the child. This gives the parent/teacher the opportunity to determine if the information presented is a topic they are prepared to share with their child.

The courses present a balanced, analytical view of people in history, such as Christopher Columbus and the Founding Fathers, with an emphasis on facts. Lessons include information about using primary sources and carefully evaluating secondary sources. Learning to evaluate the validity of sources and being careful about historical bias is an important aspect of research that students of history should understand.

The religious beliefs and practices of civilizations play a vital role in their cultures and the decisions of individuals. Where relevant, the courses briefly explain the beliefs held by ancient civilizations that influenced their daily lives as well as important historical events, such as the development of science and philosophy, the practice of the Olympic Games, and the writing and influence of literary works, such as the Iliad and the Odyssey. No Greek myths are retold, and if mentioned, the characters from them, including Greek heroes, deities, and mythical creatures, are presented either as fictional or as aspects of the religious beliefs held by the ancient Greeks. This practice is used for all non-Christian religions discussed throughout the curriculum.

The Good and the Beautiful is committed to providing high-quality, trustworthy content. All facts presented in this curriculum have been carefully and thoroughly researched and all sources are approved by the project director. All aspects of the curriculum have also undergone an extensive and thorough fact-checking process to ensure each fact is backed up by multiple reputable, reliable sources. We utilize highly credible sources, such as primary sources, books by reputable authors who are experts in their fields, official websites for museums, national societies, historical sites, reputable encyclopedias, and periodicals.

The Big Book of History Stories contains read-aloud stories to accompany some of the lessons in this course. These living stories are intended to bring the children into the lives and events of the people in the time period being taught. Each story features beautiful full-color illustrations as well as an optional audio recording to follow along with. Though families do not need to add historical reading to accompany each course, we will have a suggested read-aloud list for each year upon the release of the course.

Each child will need their own copy of the new History Time Line Book, which spans all four years of this History curriculum. The book contains two elements: stickers and events. The “Items Needed” section at the start of each lesson will include the History Time Line Book if it is used in that lesson. The lesson text will indicate when children should place a given sticker in their History Time Line Books, and this is sometimes accompanied by an activity or discussion question. Time Line Events, which are optional, are indicated by an icon in the lesson text. If desired, when this icon appears, the parent or instructor may tell the children to find the listed event in their History Time Line Books. Each sticker or event also has an entry in the glossary section in the back of the History Time Line Book with additional information.

The instruction in the new History curriculum is created for grades 3–8 and is not robust enough for high school. If you wish to adapt these courses for high school, you will need to review the sample pages to determine how to best meet the needs of your student.