(by 4 people)
Develop your child's love for history as you undertake a hands-on exploration of the Dark and Middle Ages. There are many exciting themes relating to this time period and a wealth of excellent literature written about it. On this page you will find links to a wide variety of projects, ideas, and resources to enhance your studies of Medieval history.
If you are looking for a history text to use as a spine for your studies, I highly recommend The Mystery of History II by Linda Hobar. I have already gone through this book twice with my older children and will be using it again next year with the younger ones. This series is very easy to use, even with children of several different ages, and is interesting and fact packed.
You can also find several older books available for free online. The Discovery of New Worlds by M.B. Synge is a very good one.
Mystery of History Vol 2 (Mystery of History)
Amazon Price: $36.46 (as of 12/04/2008)
Finally! A chronological history curriculum which integrates Church and "secular" history. This book is fun to read and easy to use. We have really enjoyed the whole series.
A Viking is one of the Norse (Scandinavian) explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided and colonized wide areas of Europe from the late eighth to the early eleventh century. These Norsemen used their famed longships to travel as far east as Constantinople and the Volga River in Russia, and as far west as Iceland, Greenland, and Newfoundland. This period of Viking expansion is known as the Viking Age, and forms a major part of the medieval history of Scandinavia, the British Isles and Europe in general. (Read the rest of this article on Wikipedia.)
Viking Bread
The first recorded Viking attack: Lindisfarne. [English]
3D papercraft
Viking Mural
coloring page
The Vikings
Activities and a Viking game
Running a Household In the Viking Era
recipes and more
Meet the Vikings
crafts, combat, and more
Viking and Anglo-Saxon Foods
recipes
The Vikings
links and worksheets
The Vikings
unit
Viking Tales
free online book
Stories of the Viking
free online book
Viking Puppets
Print, cut, and fold! Cute stand-up paper puppets.
The social and economic system which characterized most European societies in the Middle Ages goes by the name of feudalism. The system, in its most basic essence, is the granting of land in return for military service.
The center of the feudal system in medieval Europe was the king, and a medieval king was, above everything else, a warrior. From the 9th to the 14th centuries-the heyday of feudalism-the most important element in making war was the armored and mounted knight. To maintain a retinue of knights was, however, very expensive. In return for providing the king with warriors, tenants-in-chief were granted large holding of land. A grant of land was known as a "feud" or a "fief": hence the term "feudalism". The tenants-in-chief (commonly called barons in England) received their lands directly from the king and, in turn, leased parts of their estates to the knights, who in their turn gave leases to yeomen. (Read the rest of this article on Wikipedia.)
Great Read Alouds
These are a few books we love!
The Squire's Tale (The Squire's Tales)
This is the first of a series. My 8 year old daughter and 9 and 10 year old boys loved them. They read the whole set. Even now, a year later, they still look for new releases on trips to the library.
Amazon Price: $10.88 (as of 12/04/2008)
Arthur, High King of Britain
We really enjoyed this version of the King Arthur stories "as told to a modern day boy by Arthur himself." Michael Morpurgo is a great storyteller.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/04/2008)
by John H. Haaren
Attractive biographical sketches of thirty-five of the most prominent characters in the history of the Middle Ages, from the barbarian invasions to the invention of the printing press. Each story is told in a clear, simple manner, and is well calculated to awaken and stimulate the youthful imagination.
When Knights Were Bold
By Eva March Tappan
"Spirited and interesting picture of life in castles and manors, monasteries and towns during the Middle Ages. The description of the customs of knights is especially full." You could even base a complete unit study on this book.
Chapter 1 "Page, Squire, and Knight"
tri-fold
Chapter 2 "The Knight's Arms and Armor"
Armour Diagrams
worksheet
Chapter 3 "Jousts and Tournaments"
symbols and their meanings (clipart)
make your own coat of arms
Medieval Law and Order
Chapter 4 "How To Capture A Castle"
castle types flap book
Defending A Castle
Attacking a Castle
War Machines
How Trebuchets Work
build a catapult
mousetrap catapult project
Chapter 5 "Daily Life In The Castle"
build a cardboard castle
castle model
coloring pages
more coloring pages
Medieval Feast:
foul food
Medieval Cookery Booklet
Jesters:
info
learn to juggle & make your own balls
jester's hat
jester jumping jack
Medieval Games:
Fox and Geese & Nine Man's Morris
More Medieval Games (without the boards)
Chapter 6 "Life On A Manor"
feudal booklet
feudal pyramid
Medieval people mini-books
The Poor Peasant
Working For The Lord
Village Life & blank map
The Lifestyle of Medieval Peasants
Cruck Houses
Looking For More Hands-On Activities?
Here is a great resource
Knights & Castles: 50 Hands-On Activities to Experience the Middle Ages (Kaleidoscope Kids)
Amazon Price: $11.01 (as of 12/04/2008)
This book has many great project ideas including how to play chess and how to build a catapult as well as some interesting background information.
Pretzels
A fun and educational snack
The History of the PretzelAs early as 610AD at a monastery somewhere in Southern France or Northern Italy. Monks used scraps of dough and formed them into strips to represent a child's arms folded in prayer. The three empty holes represented the Christian Trinity. The monks called it a Pretiola, Latin for little reward. (Pretzels are believed to have been first given to children as a reward for learning to say their prayers correctly.) From there, the pretiola transformed into the Italian word, brachiola, or "little arms." The popularity of the brachiola journeyed beyond France and Italy to where it really found favor, in Austria and Germany, where it became known as the Bretzel. Since pretzels didn't contain any ingredients that weren't eaten during the pre-Easter season - eggs, milk, butter, lard - the pretzel became a popular Lenten food throughout the Middle Ages.
Pretzel Recipe
(Give each child their ingredients and allow them to mix their own batch.)
* 1/2 tsp. yeast* 3 Tbsp. water, warm
* 1/2 tsp. sugar
* 1/2 cup flour
Stir yeast and water until dissolved. Add sugar and flour. Stir, knead on lightly floured surface. Cut into four (4) equal pieces. Roll into snake shapes (about 12 inches long), fold into pretzel shapes. Place on greased cookie sheets. Brush pretzels with beaten egg white. Sprinkle with course salt (optional). Bake at 425 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.
How To Shape Pretzels
Learn About Illumination
Marguerite Makes a Book
Amazon Price: $14.96 (as of 12/04/2008)
This book has the most beautiful illustrations. The simple story line is easy to follow, yet provides a great overview of the process of creating illuminated manuscripts.
After reading this book, you may want to learn more about how illuminated manuscripts were made. You may even want to try it for yourself.
Informational Wesites
For further study
- Book List, Crafts, Timelines, Maps
- A chronological list of historical literature & crafts for elementary to high school social studies. Also timelines, maps, & history internet links.
- Mr. Dowling's Passport To the Middle Ages
- lots of info
There are many free or inexpensive pages available online.
- Notebook Cover
- PDF file for download
- Various Forms
- Covering the Fall of Rome to the United States Constitution
- Medieval World Combo
- This set of 513 notebooking pages is an absolute must if you are studying the Middle Ages! Have your child create a timeline notebook or narrate their lessons using these notebook pages.
- Daily Life In the Dark Ages to Alfred the Great
- Sixty-eight pages covering twenty-one topics. This set includes notebook pages for each lesson and activity/ worksheet type pages for each lesson, plus some coloring pages.
- Medieval Blackline Maps
- Now you can have hundreds of historical outline maps at your finger tips. Save yourself countless hours scouring the internet for the perfect map for your history lesson!
- Castle Diary
- unit study with notebook pages and other printables
If you've enjoyed this lens, please do us the favor of leaving a comment!
eclecticeducation wrote...
Great job! This has some great resources. Thanks!
Posted November 16, 2008
