An Integrated Curriculum

The goal of education is the student himself, to form his mind and his character in such a way that he can live his whole life, so far as possible, in a way that is consistent with the truth about himself as a human being created in the image and likeness of God. 

We're very excited to be using Connecting with History as the backbone of our year! It's an INTEGRATED curriculum that includes history, theology, literature, and geography. There's plenty of reading, (living books and source material), discussion, and engaging project work. There are topics from art, math, and science incorporated too! (We will have separate, complete curriculums for math and science.)

Here's an overview:
Connecting With History, Volume One focuses on the "cradle of civilization" while following the outline of Old Testament salvation history. Cultures studied include: the Israelites, Mesopotamian cultures (Sumerians, Hittites, Babylonians, Phoenicians), Egypt, Greece, and the Roman Republic. By integrating world history within the framework of the Old Testament and salvation history, our goal is to convey the truth that religious history and world history are not separate. Each of the civilizations included in this volume is mentioned in the Bible.

Although the Bible is not a history text, it contains historical events and real people who lived at specific times and places within world history and each had a mission and purpose within God's plan. By reading history texts alongside the Old Testament, students discover the many people and events that bridge the gap between secular and religious history. For example, while studying the conquests of Alexander the Great, students will read portions of the book of Maccabees in which Alexander is mentioned. Through encountering these historical connections your student will discover that history contains a cohesive narrative, a plan, and a purpose.

Connecting with History also emphasizes that each one of us is living in a time and place within history for a reason and a purpose within God's plan for salvation. Through thoughtful and open-ended discussion questions, we lead each student to reflect on what God is calling them to be and to do in their own lives.

The Volume One syllabus includes an introductory week and ten thematic units.

Unit 1 History of the Early World Pre-History
Unit 2 The Patriarchs 2000-1700 B.C. Mesopotamia - Sumer
Unit 3 Egypt and Exodus 1700-1280 B.C Egypt - (optional: Nubia)
Unit 4 Desert Wanderings 1280-1240 B.C. Phoenicians
Unit 5 Conquest and Judges 1240-1050 Canaanites, Hittites
Unit 6 The Royal Kingdom 1050-930 B.C. Philistines
Unit 7 The Divided Kingdom 930-722 B.C. Assyrians, Minoans, Mycenaeans, Early Rome
Unit 8 The Exile 722-540 B.C. Babylon, Greece, Rome
Unit 9 The Return 540-167 B.C. Persia, Greece, Rome
Unit 10 Maccabean Revolt 167-1 B.C. Roman Republic

Each of the ten units corresponds to The Bible Timeline program from Jeff Cavins' The Bible Timeline series.