"Government" the subject

[ann e]

How does one make this more exciting? I have one kid and we're doing Notgrass. I groaned when I found we're only 1/2 way through. Good grief this is drudgery. Do I sit and count the days till it's over or is there something that would be fun with understanding?

[Kendra AU]

Ann, I can't help with how to make Notgrass more exciting because I'm not a fan of that particular curriculum. Having said that there is an online {free} class for it over at virtualhomeschoolgroup.org you could look at which would relieve you of the duty?

[ann e]

LOL on relieving me of duty. I may check it, since it's free. Thanks.

[Paige P]

Anne, no need to laugh about being relieved of duty -- there are definitely some things worth it (math dvds are a life-saver!).

[Rebe]

We really enjoyed the Uncle Eric's books from Bluestocking Press. They have some that would go along with a Government course. Political parties, etc. Much more entertaining reading than Notgrass, but also extremely informative! Maybe you could condense or skip parts of Notgrass and replace them with something more interesting?

Also, a field trip to your state capital is a great addition and could also replace some of the dry reading if you follow up with a written assignment or evaluation of the trip. Or even a local alderman's meeting.

[Heather W]

Ah government. The course that is tough because the world view of the author is wildly on display. We have used Notgrass. I didn't think I could stomach it a second time. It's so amazingly dull. And then so amazing at telling my student what to think. It provides a lot of discussion, but at a cost. I also have the Uncle Eric books and those are entertaining but also opinionated.

So, the second time, I'm doing the following:

• use notgrass for the nuts and bolts stuff and the primary documents- less on the foundation stuff which is found in lots of other places including history courses
• use Cliff Quick Review Notes- for most of the nuts and bolts of how government works
• require once a month project/papers on a topic- including summarizing a major supreme court case and its ramifications on our culture (think Brown v Board of Education, etc)
• current events- to keep up with government in action today which can easily keep a student busy

We'll do something similar for Economics next semester.

[Robin in Colorado]

We use a jumble here. Notgrass a bit, and Uncle Eric a bit, but also life experiences (we have spent more than a little time at the state capitol, and we spend time discussing things, and they see me on the phone with legislators, and on and on...), but one of the more fun things we've done is use "Our Presidents Rock" and "Our Constitution Rocks" by Juliette Turner. We use those as jumping-off places for discussion, research, and more.

[ann e]

Anne, no need to laugh about being relieved of duty -- there are definitely some things worth it (math dvds are a life-saver!).

Math DVD's are the best thing since sliced-bread!!!

[ann e]

Ah government. The course that is tough because the world view of the author is wildly on display. We have used Notgrass. I didn't think I could stomach it a second time. It's so amazingly dull. And then so amazing at telling my student what to think. It provides a lot of discussion, but at a cost. I also have the Uncle Eric books and those are entertaining but also opinionated.

So, the second time, I'm doing the following:

• use notgrass for the nuts and bolts stuff and the primary documents- less on the foundation stuff which is found in lots of other places including history courses
• use Cliff Quick Review Notes- for most of the nuts and bolts of how government works
• require once a month project/papers on a topic- including summarizing a major supreme court case and its ramifications on our culture (think Brown v Board of Education, etc)
• current events- to keep up with government in action today which can easily keep a student busy

We'll do something similar for Economics next semester.

This has to be the funniest post ever! LOL on amazingly dull. Amen to that! I do like your project topic idea, but frankly, I don't know enough about Government to even come up with such a topic. Truth be told, I just want it over with. It would be nice if I could figure out the basic "needs" and just add in some current events as I also like that idea. But it all seems overwhelming to me. I'm going to check out those Cliff Quick Review Notes. Thanks for those ideas.

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks, Robin. I think once I figure out the basics, I can go from there, maybe even dump the rest. Uncle Eric may be a good idea.

We use a jumble here. Notgrass a bit, and Uncle Eric a bit, but also life experiences (we have spent more than a little time at the state capitol, and we spend time discussing things, and they see me on the phone with legislators, and on and on...), but one of the more fun things we've done is use "Our Presidents Rock" and "Our Constitution Rocks" by Juliette Turner. We use those as jumping-off places for discussion, research, and more.

[ann e]

We really enjoyed the Uncle Eric's books from Bluestocking Press. They have some that would go along with a Government course. Political parties, etc. Much more entertaining reading than Notgrass, but also extremely informative! Maybe you could condense or skip parts of Notgrass and replace them with something more interesting?

Also, a field trip to your state capital is a great addition and could also replace some of the dry reading if you follow up with a written assignment or evaluation of the trip. Or even a local alderman's meeting.

Oh heavens, please don't make me go to a local meeting!

These are all good ideas though. Maybe I should hand it over to my DH. He likes this type of thing. LOL.