History In The Home

This year we have been studying the American history timeline starting with Leif the Lucky. It's mostly a foundation- these tiny ears may not hear it all nor remember it all. Was I taught this in second or third grade? I don't remember. I'm so thankful to learn it all over again.

So, I was thinking of some of the things the pioneers did and thought these were ways to instill a few bits of history in the wrinkles of their brains.

1. Captain John Smith said to the people of Jamestown, "if you don't work, you don't eat".
        So I thought I'd give each child a chore and they have to complete it before supper in order to eat.

2. Smith also poured cold water down the sleeve of anyone who complained about the work.
       So every complaint or grunt or sigh or rolling of the eyes gets a ice cube down their shirt.

3. The pioneers and Indians didn't have a store to go to, so they had to be creative and use what they had.
      So instead of running to the store when they think the NEED something, they have to find a way to    accommodate their need.  Sometimes this is done by recycling or finding something from nature.

4.  Like the Pilgrims, we all have hard times yet we can always find something to be thankful for.
       So when one of these girls start thinking that her life has to be the worst ever, we list five thanksgivings.

5.  Everything had to be made from scratch.
       So we try to make things from scratch like butter and bread. The less processed, the better in this situation. However, *sigh* I'm thankful for flour, harvested and ground. And we complain about how busy we are now....

And that's as far as we've gotten. Re-learning this bit of history reminds me of all I have to be thankful for.