Busy moms trying to fit in all the subjects each day understandably look for places to cut corners, and the poor Timeline Book is one of those homeschool activities that sometimes finds itself on the chopping block.
This post is a defense of keeping a notebook timeline, namely The Timeline Book you can get here. Sonlight moms chimed in to share photos, stories, and tips that will hopefully persuade you of the value in keeping a timeline notebook and give you the tricks you need to make it happen in your homeschool schedule.
Is The Timeline Book Worth It?
Tabitha H. shares her thoughts and some inspiring timeline photos.
"One question I see a lot is, 'Is The Timeline Book worth it?' Well, I certainly think it is.
When we flip open the book to add a note about Alfred the Great, we are also reminded about what was happening in China at that same time. It’s probably an event we remember reading about but when we put the two figures side by side we have the realization that. “Oh, so that was happening while this was happening.”
The Timeline Book makes history a living subject. We will be adding to this timeline for eight more years as we continue working through Sonlight History / Bible / Literature programs. I can’t wait to see the final result!
Below are photos of our well-used timeline book (used through HBL A, B, and half of C). We are guilty of adding extra information above and beyond what the Instructor's Guide and timeline figures show. We make it our own!
The color pictures of Egypt were from some free resources I printed when we were learning about Egypt. And we pasted in a few story cards from Story of the World (a supplement we add)."
Color Code the Timeline Figures by HBL
Rachel T. offers a smart tip and photos to illustrate
"We don't add extras, but we have color coded our figures by Core*. The kids love seeing the figures from their previous homeschool years mixed with the current one. At the front of each timeline notebook, each child keeps a key indicating which color goes with which program of study."
*Rachel refers to Cores which are currently called History / Bible / Literature.
The current terminology is now History / Bible / Literature (not Core).
Add Pages and Use Highlighters in Your Timeline Notebook
Jeanette H. shows how she keeps cramming more figures into her crowded Timeline Notebook used from History / Bible / Literature A through F.
"We were running into room issues and I wanted to make sure we could see each timeline figure clearly. So we highlight the dates and also add pages into the notebook."
Turn Your Timeline Neglect Into a History Review Game!
What if you forgot to put the timeline figures into The Timeline Book? Now it's weeks later. What should you do?
Amy L. has some great advice.
"If you haven't been keeping up week by week, you can always consider spending a day at the end of the year to do a mass sticker extravaganza. Cut out all of the timeline figures, put them face down, and draw them up one by one. The person who picks it tells what they remember. It's like a little review for the whole year. Then you affix it into The Timeline Book. This process takes a while, but it gets done (even if The Timeline Book itself hasn't been done for a long time)."
Remember that your Instructor's Guide notes indicate which timeline figures go with each lesson, but the stickers are dated. So even if you don't want to go back through all the parent notes, you can still get the stickers in the right places in your Timeline.
To find out more about Sonlight's unmatched book-based homeschool programs that integrate timeline assignments into the history, order a complimentary copy of your catalog today.
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