American Girl Curriculum - Girls of American History Unit 9 1812 War of 1812-Caroline® - Co-op/School License

A story of trials, survival and triumphs - This series of books follows a young girl during the War of 1812.  She struggles to hang on to hope as she learns lessons and makes brave decisions. Strong male characters include her father and a friend.

Making history engaging for students is possibly one of the most difficult tasks for teachers.  How do we overcome that?  Two key things are critical for accomplishing this task.  First, it must be relatable in someway, and secondly, it needs to offer learning opportunities for multiple learning styles.  Girls of American History uses the popular American Girl book series.  This instantly makes history relatable, as the main characters are school age children, families and strong male characters. 

Girls of American History uses multisensory learning, which follows a pattern of Do It, Write It, Say It, Read It, See It.  Multisensory learning is great for every kind of learner - because each learner gets to experience learning the way they are most comfortable - but they also have the opportunity to learn through other senses.  Studies and research have shown that learning material through multiple senses helps children to retain information better.

The experiences practiced in multisensory learning allow each student to participate in ways that help them understand and retain best.  Boys and girls learn together and help each other with projects such as making a model ship, making butter, having discussions about the story, historical information, as well as positive character traits such as confidence, obedience, etc.

Schooling multiple ages together, in a co-op setting for example, is very manageable.  And, with the continuity of the same subject matter for literature and history, as well as crafts and field trip experiences, opportunities for discussion are plentiful and help build a love of learning.

Field trips are plentiful and include touring a weather station, going sledding, visiting a museum and more. This six week unit study using the American Girl® Caroline® series books is also great for doing school in a large class setting,  or a smaller co-op environment.  At the enf ot the unit - have your own End of War Celebration party to showcase what has been studied!

There are two options for the required readers for this unit.  American Girl orignally printed the Caroline® stories in a six book set. These stories have been reformatted into a three book set called "Beforever".  Either book set will work for this curriculum.

This is a fantastic unit, filled with information about a war often forgotten and misunderstood. This was an important time in history for Americans, Canadians and the British. This is a great unit for character development and discussion. This unit will be enjoyed by both boys and girls, as the curriculum utilizes ship building, knot making and many other fun and educational activities. Field trips include, museums, sailing, fishing, and more. Biography opportunities include James Madison, Francis Scott Key and Laura Secord.

**Crafts are not included in the purchase of the curriculum, but resources and instruction as to what crafts to purchase are included.  Some units do include free craft templates.Co-op/School License allows permission for the purchasing school allow as many teachers to teach this curriculum to as many groups and classes as they like.  There is no expiration.  The school may not make copies for parents, or other schools/co-ops.  The file remains the property of the purchasing school only.