“Well, we have been seeing flowers for years – but our children haven’t. Flowers are still new and wonderful to them, and it’s the fault of grown-ups if every new flower they see ceases to delight them.”
~ Charlotte Mason, volume 1 page 53

“They must be left to themselves for a good part of the day to take in their own impressions of nature’s beauty. There’s nothing worse than children being deprived of every moment to wonder and dream within their own minds because teachers and adults are constantly talking at them, not leaving them a moment’s peace. Yet, the mother must not miss this opportunity of being outdoors to train the children to have seeing eyes, hearing ears and seeds of truth deposited into their minds to grow and blossom on their own in the secret chambers of their imaginations.”
~ Charlotte Mason, volume 1, page 45

Ms M was very interested in the Second World War and we kept reading books related to it – fiction and non-fiction – for the longest time. I was going to write summaries and/or reviews, but I am in a blue funk because my digi-cam has gone wonky.

So here is a list of books we like… reviews will come later in shaa Allah… when my good humour is restored…

Reference

• Eyewitness: World War II (Eyewitness Books) by DK Publishing
• Navajo Code Talkers by Nathan Aaseng
• The Usborne Introduction to The Second World War: Internet-linked (Hardcover)
  by Paul Dowswell
• Unsung Heroes of World War II: The Story of the Navajo Code Talkers by Deanne Durrett
• World War II for Kids: A History with 21 Activities (For Kids series) (Paperback)
  by Richard Panchyk

Stories/Chapter Books by Michael Morpurgo

• Alone on a Wide Wide Sea
• Billy the Kid
• Friend or Foe
• I Believe In Unicorns
• Kensuke’s Kingdom
• The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips
• The Mozart Question
• Waiting for Anya

Other Chapter Books

• Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
• Goodnight Mr Tom by Michelle Magorian
• Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
• The Eternal Spring of Mr. Ito by Sheila Garrigue
• The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss
• War Boy: A Country Childhod by Michael Foreman
• When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park

Picture Books, etc.

• Always Remember Me: How One Family Survived World War II by Marisabina Russo
• Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming
• Home of the Brave by Allen Say
• Passage to Freedom: The Sugihara Story by Ken Mochizuki
• The Butterfly by Patrcia Polacco
• The Bracelet by Yoshiko Uchida
• The Cats in Krasinski Square by Karen Hesse
• The Greatest Skating Race: A World War II Story from the Netherlands by Louise Borden
• The Lily Cupboard by Shulamith Levey Oppenheim
• The Little Ships: The Heroic Rescue at Dunkirk in World War II by Louise Borden
• The Unbreakable Code by Sara Hoagland Hunter
• Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop
• Willy and Max by Willy and Max: A Holocaust Story by Amy Littlesugar

Ms M looks but isn’t the girly sort. She likes pretty scarves and pins, princessy dresses, flowers and lace. She also loves learning about spies and the World Wars. She was heavily into snakes at one point and never got queasy watching Venom ER and Austin Stevens at my mum’s.

She went craaaazy over pirates – no, not the Johnny Depp kind, thank you very much… the real ones! We read all about pirates, baked pirate cookies, attended a pirate party, put together a Jolly Roger and also made a pirate ship out of Hama beads. We also got a lovely surprise from the family behind Islamic Unit Studies – a pirate colouring book with stickers! You gotta love the blogging community :)

Some books we read:

Here are some links that you might find useful… I am still trying to download the book from WOWIO – if anyone in the US can help me, I’d appreciate it!

• All About Pirates – a comprehensive educational directory and homework helper that provides a wide variety of resources on Pirates.
• Bartholomew Roberts – one of the most successful pirates in history.
• Calico Jack – Academic Kids
• Cyberink: Pirates!
• Education World ® : Lesson Planning: Ahoy, Mates! Here Lie a Dozen Pirate Treasures!
• Best of Legends – some info on Blackbeard, Captain Sir Francis Drake, Gráinne O’Malley, Captain William Kidd
• Lesson Plans – A Pirate’s Life – from National Geographic
• Lesson Plan 1 on pirates from Suite 101
• Lesson Plan 2 from Suite 101
• Lesson Plan 3 from Suite 101
• Lesson Plan 4 from Suite 101
• Pirate Diary – unit study resources from Homeschool Share
• Pirate Image Archive
• Pirates in the Park – unit study resources from Homeschool Share
• Pirates : Life at sea : Maritime, sea & ships : Fact files : Learning : National Maritime Museum
• Pirates Homepage
• Pirates of Colonial Times – A to Z Home’s Cool Homeschooling History
• Pirates! Fact & Legend
• Pyrates Providence
• The New England Pirate Museum – Who’s Who
• The Pirate’s Realm – Calico Jack, Jack Rackham, Calico Jack Rackham – The life of pirate Jack Rackham: Charles Vane and Woodes Rogers, Mary Read, Anne Bonny, from New Providence to Deadman’s Cay, the whole ‘Calico’ Jack Rackham story.
• Thomas Tew
• Kids Craft Weekly – Issue 33 – Pirates!
• Pirate’s Treasure Map Free Coloring Printable Sheet – free printable pirate coloring page features a pirate ship, treasure island & pirate flag drawing for coloring or children’s party decorations & craft work.
• Pirate’s Face Printable Free Coloring Page Sheet
• Quest for a Pirate
• Pirates & Privateers: The History of Maritime Piracy – Links
• Pirates of the Caribbean, in Fact and Fiction – an historical look at Piracy; not to be confused with Disney’s theme park attractions or movie. What you will find is information on piracy based on historical accounts and popular myths.
• Pirate Theme Page at EnchantedLearning.com
• Treasure Chest Craft – Enchanted Learning Software – a simple-to-make pirate’s treasure chest made from a shoebox
• WOWIO: Pirates: An Illustrated History