Lifepac History & Geography Homeschool Curriculum: Grade 4

In my opinion this curriculum is slow to start with but eventually might live up to what it claims.I have two daughters 4th grade and 5th grade who are homeschooled and use this curriculum with both of them.I ordered it based on the online reviews of Alpha and Omega Lifepac History and Geography given by homeschooling families. The curriculum claims that it helps to educate students on the world around them via the study of history, cultures and the environment. The Mini Books are called Lifepacs and each can be from 40-70 pages long. The recommended 1 year progression is approx three pages per day according to the teachers manual. All reviews, tests and questions are included with the lifepac itself and the answers and a secondary quiz for each book is provided in the teachers manual.Lifepac 1- Our EarthWhile the initial book is supposed to be an overview of the world before introducing each of the individual subject areas, I feel like it fell short of that expectation. The initial book is an overview of the Physical Geography of the Earth with a few page emphasis on World Exploration, Trade Routes, Ocean Exploration thrown in. I am not sure I liked the few pages being thrown in I think I would just have preferred to have a little better Physical Geography book initially and then a whole book on Exploration of the Earth, going back now I am not sure there was a lot of retention of the Exploration information. What I did about it: I added a more information on Exploration and some videos of the world and then moved on.Lifepac 2- Seaport Cities:Features: Hong Kong, Sydney, London, and Istanbul. This is a very brief overview of these cities, giving information about the history, what people do there, and important sites, some historical and regional terms are included. The transition between this book and the first book i think is poor there is no shift your just suddenly studying Seaport Cities. I added some books about each of the different cities, we watched videos and did lots of discussion during this lifepac.We are currently on book number 3 Desert Lands:This one has been our favorite so far: It stays within what the curriculum claimed and provides not only history, environmental, but also culture of the desert regions of the world. I have not added anything to the curriculum and am looking forward to the rest of the lifepacs if they continue finally along #3's path.Lifepac Titles:Our EarthSeaport citiesDesert landsGrasslandsTropical rain forestsThe polar regionsMountain countriesIsland countriesNorth AmericaOur world in reviewI realize that it could completely change and become an amazing curriculum but I wanted to write a review early so that others who are looking at using it could review what our experience with the curriculum is to date.

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