These Amazing Books Bring American History to Life
Peter Crabtree and
Bobbie Kalman are responsible for some of the most appealing American history books for children of all ages that I've ever seen. I first became aware of these
books while I was in the business of selling educational books for
children. They are not boring, like textbooks. They are designed to
make children want to pick them up and read them. When I sold these
at home school conventions, even the parents loved reading them. These books sold themselves as soon as people looked inside of them. I
myself learned much from them.
The Early Settler Series
Educator Bobbie Kalman wrote most of these books. The first series she produced was called
the Early Settler Series. It is now mostly out of print,
but copies are available on Amazon. As you can see by the cover art on this title,
the art is nostalgic in style. The books look old fashioned. There are lots of illustrations to enhance the text.
The reading level is about third or fourth grade and up. The illustrations will not be considered too young by older children.
These books sold very well for me. Titles include Early
Christmas, Early Stores and Markets, Early Loggers and the Sawmill,
Early Travel, Early Village Life, Food for the Settler, Early
Schools, Early Family Home, Early Settler Children, Early Settler
Storybook, Early Artisans, Early Pleasures and Pastimes, Early Farm
Life, Early City Life, and Early Health and Medicine.The link above should lead you to all available titles. A complete collection will show children exactly what life was like for the earliest settlers of what is now the United States.
The Historic Communities Series
Bobbie Kalman's next
series, Historic Communities, made some changes in format. These books
look more modern. Wherever possible they are illustrated with
photographs from living history museums and towns. If you've ever
been to Williamsburg or Sturbridge Village, these books will make you
feel like you are there again. There are several photographs and /
or color illustrations on each two-page spread. Each book 32-page book also has a glossary to explain unfamiliar words and
an index to make it easy for readers to find what they are looking for. These books are visually designed for children as young as first grade, but I would expect most children would need to be at a second or third grade level to read them independently.
Let's use an
example: A Colonial Town Williamsburg. This book gives
an overview of the history of Williamsburg followed by a beautiful
pictorial map illustrating the buildings and their locations. The
reader then gets a photographic tour of some sights that would have
been common to the colonists. These include shops and taverns and
the garden areas that were often behind them. We see children getting water from a well, since there was no indoor plumbing. We see
a ladder on the roof for putting out chimney fires. We see a slave
boy grooming a horse and we learn why horses were important to the
colonists.
In the next parts of
the book we visit the buildings: the Governor's Palace, the public
buildings, Bruton Parish Church, The College of William and Mary, the
apothecary, the windmill, and the shops. We not only see photographs,
but we learn the purpose of each building and why it was important to
the community. As the courthouse is shown, we learn about colonial
justice and punishments. In relationship to the apothecary we learn
about colonial health care and treatments. We learn how the windmill
works.
We meet the people
of Williamsburg, from the gentry down to the slaves and get a feel
for their places in the community. We see a harness maker at work in
his shop. At the end we learn about Project Williamsburg and how
students are involved.
Each book in the
Historic Communities series introduces readers to a rich
pictorial presentation of some aspect of early American colonial
life. Each book allows children to step hundreds of years back in
history and see what a child's day was like, which games children
played, how food was produced and cooked, what people wore, what a
school day was like, and more. Here is a brief summary of selected
titles.
You can see all the titles available for sale on Amazon.
A Child's Day: Ever
wondered what chores the early settler children did, or what they did
in their spare time if they had any? How were their schools, foods,
and clothing different from those of children today? Color
photographs and original artwork bring these children from earlier
times to life.
Classroom Games:
Even back in early classrooms, teachers used games to help their
students learn spelling and creative writing, arithmetic and science,
geography, art, history, drama and reciting, good behavior, and
music. They even had scavenger hunts back then. Besides games still
played in classrooms today, such as spelling bees, students played
word games, alphabet games, arithmetic games, and more. In outdoor
classrooms, students made gardens and nature crafts. The games in
this book are easily transferable to today's classrooms, where they
can still make learning fun
Colonial Crafts:
Watch the artisans and craftsmen at work in colonial times. Visit the
workshops of the wheelwright, the cooper, the founder, the shoemaker,
the milliner, the gunsmith, and many more. Discover how these people
were trained through the apprenticeship program.
Colonial Life: Meet
the hard-working members of a colonial community. Learn about the
importance of family relationships and discover the importance of
religion and education to these people. Watch plantation life and see
the plight of the slaves. Observe how people traveled and spent their
leisure time.
Customs and
Traditions: This is one of my favorites. It explains how the early
settlers preserved history, predicted the weather, cooked and ate,
welcomed a new baby, and celebrated courtships, weddings, holidays,
and the harvest.
Fort Life: Forts
played a vital role in the New World because they offered protection.
Learn about the different types of forts, the parts of the fort and
how they functioned, and what went in in the lives of the families
who lived in the forts.
The General Store:
The general store was the hub of a town's life. It's where people
went to buy their supplies, sniff the marvelous aromas, and see the
colors of bright, new fabrics. It was a place for people to dream,
make deals, gossip, and socialize. The photographs and illustrations
will make you feel you are there.
Home Crafts: In this
book you will see, step by step, how the early settlers made candles
and soap, carded and spun wool, dyed cloth, and sewed samples. The
color photographs really make you feel as though you were watching.
In The Barn: See
all the activity that went on in the barns of busy settler farms.
Watch as cows are milked, hogs get their slop, and the stalls get
cleaned. Share in the work and fun of a barn-raising. See how the
chores changed with the seasons.
The Kitchen: When
you've read this book you will feel you've visited a colonial home,
and entered the kitchen where the family spent a good deal of its
time. You will see the fireplace, the tools and utensils surrounding
it, and the chores that were done there (baking bread, churning
butter, etc.)
Life on a
Plantation: Watch the daily activities of plantation owners and their
slaves. Compare their lifestyles. Readers will see life in the "big
house," in the slave quarters, and in the cotton, rice, and
tobacco fields. The customs and festivals of the estate are also
explained.
A One-Room School:
The first priority of any early settler community was building a
school. This book explains what these one-room schools were like,
what they taught, how students studied when books were scarce, how
students were disciplined, and what went on during recess.
Pioneer Projects: In
this book you will find step-by-step instructions for children and
parents who want to make pioneer crafts. There are also instructions
for making a model of a settler town.
Settler Sayings:
This is another of my favorites. Ever wondered why we say such things
as "flash in the pan" or getting down to brass tacks"?
This book explains how some of these old saying have their roots in
the day-to-day lives of the early settlers.
Other titles this
series include
The Gristmill, Visiting a Village, Tools and Gadgets,
Old Time Toys, Children's Clothing of the 1800's, The Victorian Home,
Spanish Missions, 19th Century Girls and Women, 18th
Century Clothing, 19th Century Clothing, Victorian
Christmas, Colonial Home, Travel in the Early Days, Pioneer Recipes,
and
Schoolyard Games.
You can find all Historic Communities titles in print (and maybe some that aren't) by following this link.
I highly recommend
the books in these two series to parents who want to take their
children to see places important in our country's early history. I found that using books to prepare my own children for living history museums and other historic places helped them to understand what they were seeing and got them thinking about which questions they wants to ask docents when they had the opportunity.
These books are also
great resources for children educated at home or in schools, who might not be able to visit historic sites in person as we did. Videos may also be helpful, but they move quickly. Books allow children good long looks at what most interests them. These should be in every elementary school library. Because of their low reading level and visual impact, these books are also ideal for reluctant or low-level readers in upper grades.
If you would like to show your children how the early settlers and colonists lived in America, don't miss these.
Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”
