June 29, 2022 – The Importance of History & Liberty

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Mercy Every Minute

Deborah Wuehler, TOS Senior Editor

Sweet Land of Liberty?

I remember as a young child in the 1960s, I would have to repeat The Pledge of Allegiance with my right hand over my heart every morning during first and second grade in Virginia. We even had special class time to learn patriotic songs. I learned all the words of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee,” “God Bless America,” “America the Beautiful,” “The Star Spangled Banner,” and others. By the time I was in third grade, patriotism was no longer taught, and the Ten Commandments no longer hung on our walls. From that time until I graduated high school, American education went from successful to pretty horrible just in my own education timeline.

We see very clearly the current consequences to the decisions made in the past, and our nation has suffered greatly because of them. We have lost many freedoms over these years. The importance of teaching history is to learn from it so our children and the next generations don’t have to repeat it.

These articles from The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine are a good reminder of that:

Living in Liberty by Diana Waring
Jeopardy and Liberty by Michelle Miller Howard
The Unalienable Right to Liberty by David Gibbs III

We must continue to pray for our nation, for there is the hope of freedom for a nation that honors God.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD” (Psalm 33:12).

As you teach your children the importance of history and liberty, you may want to learn a patriotic song together or study and memorize The Pledge of Allegiance. You can print a copy for your own homeschool wall or bulletin board here: Pledge of Allegiance Printable

It would be a great idea to use this as copywork as well, which will greatly aid in its memorization:

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands: one Nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.”

May we teach our children to pledge their allegiance to the God who gave us this great country. For a country (or a child) without allegiance to God, is a country (or a child) on the path to destruction. Let’s keep on the path that leads to life as we teach our children to give all of their allegiance to the Author of life Himself.

With you on the path,

~Deborah

The Importance of History and Liberty

Amy Pak • Home School in the Woods

There is a saying, “Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” Really? YES!

It is crucial that we understand the patterns of the past, whether mistakes made or heroic actions. With so much to learn since the beginning of time, it’s hard to put together the puzzle of topics, people, and eras and have them make sense. Time and place are abstract concepts, and if a child can’t grasp where and when a topic of history is occurring, how will he be able to understand it or visualize patterns?

Without learning from stories past, we not only take for granted what we have attained, we risk losing the liberties we’ve fought so hard to establish. History is FULL of stories of people and events, of culture, conquest, tragedy, and victory! By not learning about the events and outcomes, as well as people who made a difference, we invite the same mistakes all over again, or miss a chance to be inspired by someone’s deeds to step up and be an influence.

But how do we make history enticing and make sense to young children? It is often viewed as boring—like a skipping stone touching on subjects but never delving in for a child to really get to know the characters. By using crucial resources such as timelines and mapping, the child places the “when” and “where” in history, giving them a firm jumping point to better comprehend the topic of study.

At Home School in the Woods, it’s been our mission for the past twenty years to ignite in children a love of learning history by providing visual and hands-on resources such as timelines, maps, lapbooks, activity-based history studies, and so much more. Check out our newest “Essential Timeline Library”!

https://www.homeschoolinthewoods.com

History isn’t boring, textbooks are. Connect with your kids through living books that make history engaging & memorable. Shop Beautiful Feet Books today at www.bfbooks.com.

To brighten your homeschool even more, we are offering our loyal THM subscribers a year of homeschooling resources absolutely FREE. To access your free year, simply use code: THM22 to purchase a one-year membership to SchoolhouseTeachers.com for only $189 (reg. $269.97), and you will receive a second year completely free! You will not be charged again until 2024, and you will still have the deeply discounted rate of $189 locked in annually. New members only.

Todd Wilson

Familyman Ministries

Why Care About History?

My oldest son is a history guy. He loves history and got his degree in history. He works in the IT industry now but still loves reading about battles, ideas, and events.

I don’t know if he remembers this moment years ago, but I remember it vividly. He asked me as he was headed towards a history degree, “Dad, who really cares if I know about history and what general fought in which war, and all the whys behind the conflicts?”

It’s a question that is put forth to all history majors. I remember saying, “Because history is the truth! The world may try to erase it, cover it over, or rewrite it, but the truth is the truth, and it needs to be studied, remembered, and shouted from the rooftops.”

Since then, Ben has reminded me of the truth of history. When we were in the midst of COVID-19, he’d remind me of the truth of history. When the world seems so bleak and evil, he reminds me that this isn’t the first civilization to thumb its nose in God’s face.

History is truth. It may be a little harder to get a job with a history degree, but if you have a child whose bent is history, remind him or her how vital it is.

Be Real,
Todd

About the author

Todd Wilson is a husband, dad, grandpa, writer, homeschool conference speaker, and former pastor. Todd’s humor and down to earth realness have made him a favorite speaker all across the country and a guest on Focus on the Family. As founder of The Familyman and The Smiling Homeschooler, his passion and mission are to remind moms and dads of what’s most important through weekly emails, podcasts, seminars, and books that encourage parents. Todd, and his wife Debbie, homeschool four of their eight children (the other four are homeschool graduates) in northern Indiana and travel America in the Familyman Mobile. You can read more at www.familymanweb.com.

Diana Waring

dianawaring.com

The Importance of History

For two minutes, let’s catch a peek at the BIG backstory of history—and why it’s REALLY important!

About the author

Diana Waring is one of the pioneers of homeschooling. For more than three decades, homeschoolers around the world have been encouraged and inspired by her authenticity, transparent stories, and gentle humor. She is the author and publisher of the History Revealed world history curriculum, She has also created, in collaboration with Dr. Kathy Koch, the 8 Kinds of Smart DVD for families. In addition, she teaches students online, blogs, writes occasionally for The Homeschool Minute, sings at the drop of a hat, laughs with her husband, and fervently follows the Lord.

Study more about the United States of America and its history with the American History in Picture Books course for elementary students on SchoolhouseTeachers.com. Journey back in time to learn about Native Americans, Colonial Times, and more!