Teacher Created Resources' Thematic Units are available in four levels, Early Childhood, Primary, Intermediate, and Challenging. They are literature-based lesson plans for studying various topics. A diverse field of topics is covered, but samples of the range of titles available that pertain to only world history are Explorers, Ancient Egypt, Ancient Rome, Ancient China, Ancient India, Ancient Japan, Ancient Middle East, Medieval Times, Industrial Revolution, Archaeology, Ancient Greece, Renaissance, World War I, World War II, Holocaust, and Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas. Parents should choose among the titles available, since some such as Self-Esteem, Peace, or Native Americans might reflect a non-Christian worldview. Like much secular material, it might be necessary to leave out a few objectionable parts from some of these units. But Teacher Created Resources' prices are generally low enough that you won't mind doing that.
Most books are also available in ebook format for the same price, downloadable from the publisher's website. Reviews of a few examples follow.
Medieval Times Thematic Unit
Three novels plus poetry and ballads are the foundation of this thematic approach to medieval history. Novels studied are Robin Hood of Sherwood Forest, Adam of the Road, and The Door in the Wall.
Lesson plans are provided along with other suggestions to make the book easy-to-use. Medieval Times is the theme, yet studies cross the curriculum, touching on math, science, language arts, art, music, and life skills, as much as they do social studies/history. Obviously, this is not comprehensive coverage of history, but it uses a method that works well to involve reluctant learners. Reproducible worksheets are included along with complete instructions on all activities. Some activities are classroom oriented but many will work well in the home school.
Civil War Thematic Unit
This reproducible book uses whole language methods to study all subject areas with the Civil War as the theme. Two novels are the foundation: Charley Skedaddle and Behind Rebel Lines. Activities cover language arts, math, science, social studies, art, music, and life skills. Lesson plans and teaching suggestions are included as well as a few worksheets and an answer key. This is essentially unit study, packaged on a much smaller scale than KONOS, Tapestry of Grace, or others. Many activities are classroom oriented and must either be skipped or adapted for home use. There are also some minor content problems. Appropriate for upper elementary grades.
Immigration Thematic Unit
This whole-language approach to the topic of immigration centers around four books: Do People Grow on Family Trees?, Molly's Pilgrim, How Many Days to America? A Thanksgiving Story, and Hello, My Name is Scrambled Eggs. Immigration is a teacher's guide with reproducible pages for student activities geared for intermediate level students (middle to upper elementary). Classroom design and politically correct orientation make some of the material awkward or unusable, but there are plenty of ideas to draw from to help children develop a better understanding of the immigrant experience both in history and at the present time. The first book studied involves children in investigations of their own family history, a very worthwhile activity for building personal connections with topics studied in history, geography, and social studies.
Revolutionary War Thematic Unit
This reproducible book uses whole language methods to study all subject areas with the Revolutionary War as the theme. See the description of Civil War Thematic Unit above for the format description. Novels studied are Johnny Tremain and The Fighting Ground.
