Series: English Heritage Series.
Subject Areas: History.
Ages: 5 6 7 8 9 10.

Let me give you a crash course on using Usborne Books – you can select almost any Usborne title and do this, but this particular new title is perfect for it!

Whenever a child is fascinated by a particular subject (like knights) or a time period (like Medieval times) use that fascination for all it’s worth. Here are some typical assignments I might give for The Official Knight’s Handbook:
-- Read one chapter a day.
-- Write down new vocabulary words that are in that day’s reading and add the definitions; for example: “courageous”, “swoon”, “crucial” from chapter one. In chapter three you could use “trebuchet”, “perilous”, and “crusade”.
-- Choose one topic in each chapter to write a few sentences about, so that the student practices writing skills. In chapter one this could be “Tell me about the two main parts of chivalry.” In other chapters you could have the student describe types of castles, or write about the kinds of weapons knights use.
-- Review the meaning of homonyms (words that have the same sound, and often the same spelling, but differ in meaning) and look at “night” and “knight”.
-- Look for other rhyming words in the book, such as horses and courses. Talk about how they are spelled and practice spelling out loud.
-- Make your own coat of arms (ideas are given in the book).

By using the book this way, you just covered reading, history, vocabulary, spelling, writing, and art! And children enjoy the process of learning because it’s an area they want to know about. Children love to learn when it’s fun, and this is why I love Usborne books! By the way, this book is hilarious, full of dry humor.

After this book, you can move on to other great Usborne titles: Knights and Castles from the Time Traveler Series, See Inside Castles, Knights (Internet Referenced), Knights (Internet Linked), Stories of Knights and more. There is even a 10 week course on this time period called Ten Terrific Weeks - Adventures of Knighthood Set.

Purchase

Of Interest To: Librarians and Media Specialists, Homeschoolers, Parents, Teachers