Experience American Times and Innovation . . .

Full Program with Presidential Resources - #AC2 - $584 Value for $475
Reduced Program without Presidential Resources - #AC22 - $552 Value for $443

Delve into our American culture, from the struggle of the Civil War, and how it changed our national identity, to the toppling of the twin towers on September 11th, and how this has changed today’s world. Along the way, you’ll discover the westward-moving, invention-creating, city-building, store-establishing, business-making, future-loving, fad-introducing American people that created a new American culture.

As you journey along, you’ll enjoy the many learning experiences that will help your student get to know our American culture. They’ll conduct secret missions, help with the war effort, be a robber baron for a day, sing cowboy songs, live the pioneer life, design a city tenement, host a 50’s night, and create their own newfangled fad!

Not only will your student love the hands-on activities we’ve scheduled for you, they’ll also create their own American culture magazine for their “Make-Your-Own” pages this year. They’ll create articles and headlines on the key events and cultural changes going on around America. Students will also get to study later American painters, and discover the lives of the presidents who served America

Best of all, the books in this program are just outstanding! One book takes you into the inner workings of the financial world during the Great Depression, while another transports you to Lincoln’s side as he uses the latest Civil War-era technology. Still another gains you inside access to World War II spying, and another title puts you in Dallas on the day President Kennedy was shot. You’ll want to venture inside these books!

Features you'll love in the American Culture Program Guide:

• Parent helps that are practical and help you “learn together” with your student
• 36-week schedule laid out so clearly, you’ll “open and go” every day
• Fantastic activities and related learning opportunities that are perfect for middlers
• Introductory pages for each week that help you explain cultural information to students
• Supply lists for activities that will help you plan your year
• Rating system that ranks the ease of use or supplies needed for an activity
• Click here to see a sample of this program guide.

Decide Which Option is Right for Your Family!

The Full American Culture Program
Your family will delve into our American culture and experience the life and times of the last American century. Students will also complete their state geography study and get to know all our former presidents. Together with the other resources, you are purchasing a truly complete program. We feel most parents will be happy with the integration we have
planned and the effortless way everything comes together.

The Reduced American Culture Program
This program might be a better choice if you have a student who needs to focus their attention on other areas of academic development and you'd rather bypass the state/presidential study for now. It might also be a better choice if you have a student who is at the youngest end of the recommended age group and struggles a little academically. It may help to know that the state geography and presidents study isn't harder material, but it does add more content. Therefore, a student who needs to put time and attention into developing another portion of their academic life may be better off with a trimmer program.

American Culture Resources

Highlights of Your American Culture Guidebook
AC2-101 - $80 - Free with Package Purchase

Simple and Ready-to-Go!
You’ll find this program guide is laid out so simply - just open and begin! Each of your 36 school weeks is laid out to reduce your paperwork! Each week also includes activity ideas, geography and timeline work, important advice on how to teach concepts, web search ideas, and much more!

Supply List for Activities
By parent request, we’ve put together a supply list in your guidebook so you can plan your activities ahead of time, and gather any supplies (other than routine items) you need.

Student Independent Work Schedules
Each week, your student will have a schedule all their own to complete the work they need to do on their own. No more writing out “homework” schedules!

Rating System for Activities
Activities have a rating on their supplies & skill level so you’ll always know what will work for you.

Notebooking Resource

"Make-Your-Own" American Culture Magazine | AC2-151 | $15
Create magazine headlines, stories, puzzles, letters to the editor and more for the big events in recent American history -such as Antietam, the Oklahoma land rush, D-Day battles, presidential assassinations, and the moon landing.  Click here to see a sample of this resource.

History Resources
The Road to Civil War to the Toppling of the Towers

Your students will love this year's book choices. Amazing books have intriguing photographs, marvelous drawings, and stories that will draw them into the culture and experiences of Americans from every walk of life. They'll follow important developmental milestones in America's industry, and discover background on innovations such as mass production, the elevator, subway systems, dams and bridges, and so much more! It's a year that will help them understand later American history and our American culture!

Civil War for Kids AC2-201 | $17
Year by year, watch the Civil War unfold as you complete activities such as planning your own reconnaissance mission. You'll follow all the major battles and regions of conflict, as well as learning about life during the war: a soldier's life in camp, survival in prison camps, hospitals and medical care, and the struggle of families to survive back home.

Mr. Lincoln's High-Tech War | AC2-202 | $19
Fascinating narrative shows Lincoln as our nation’s first hands-on Commander-in-Chief, whose appreciation for the power of technology played a critical role in the North’s Civil War victory over the less developed South. Learn how the North used the idea of total war and up-to-date technology to win this bitter conflict.

Sweeping Into the West | AC2-203 | $19
Follow the course of our country in the wake of the Civil War. Journey through the upheaval and difficulties ... Later chapters cover the West: the Homestead Act, cattle.

The Central Pacific Railroad | AC2-204 | $6
Follow the tracks being laid across the plains to create the First Transcontinental Railroad.

Shutting Out the Sky | AC2-205 | $18
Through the stories of five immigrants, the world of New York City's tenements comes alive with descriptions of the newcomers' struggles and triumphs as they acclimate to life in America.

Chicago History for Kids | AC2-206 | $15
Travel through Chicago's varied history as you try your hand at projects like making a miniature glacier or a Ferris wheel, or planning a fire-escape route.

Building the New York Subway | AC2-207 | $6
Go underground to see below city streets into an underground labyrinth of transportation tunnels.

Remarkable, Rough-Riding Life of Theodore Roosevelt | AC2-209 | $17
Fabulous illustrations take you inside empire in America, and the life of the one-of-a-kind Teddy.

Ground-Breaking, Chance-Taking Life of George Washington Carver | AC2-208 | $17
Learn more about science and invention as you discover amazing facts about this inventor and American educator.

World War I | AC2-210 | $16
Excellent pictures will help students understand this conflict. This volume helps explain the war's origins in Europe, and the political events that made such a conflict all but inevitable. Then, it will take you inside life on the front, in the trenches, on patrol, in tanks and zeppelins, and on the sea. Photographs show uniforms and weapons, daily life at home and abroad, and how everyday people were affected by the fighting.

Louis Armstrong & the Jazz Age | AC2-211 | $6
After World War I, people felt a renewed optimism about the future. Musicians gave Americans a new type of music that fit this optimism -- jazz.

Six Days in October | AC2-212 | $20
This fast-paced account of the Stock Market Crash of 1929 puts a human face on the crisis, and also serves as a useful primer of financial basics. Wonderful!

Hoping for Rain | AC2-213 | $7
Live through the dust bowls that whipped through the Plains states. Discover how the farming techniques of the early century combined with a drought to produce one of the most devastating geological events of the century.

World War II for Kids | AC2-214 | $15
Follow the course of the war and get in on some of the action with activities that will take you right there. Go inside Hitler's advances and the responses of the Allies. Be there at the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the invasion of France on D-Day. Students will love the marvelous activities in which they'll explore rationing, staging a radio adventure program, knowing military ranks and military lingo, and more!

Great World War II Projects | AC2-215 | $15
Learn about America's World War II culture -- on the front lines and the home front. Plus, activities allow you to build WWII spotter planes, signal lights, victory pins and more.

The Civil Rights Movement in America | AC2-216 | $6
Walk along with civil rights leaders and watch African Americans' struggle for equal rights and equal recognition under the law.

Kennedy Assassinated! The World Mourns | AC2-217 | $18
A minute-by-minute chronicle of what happened that momentous afternoon . . . as the world reacted with shock and disbelief to word of the President's death in Dallas. Historic news photographs accompany the gripping story.

10,000 Days of Thunder | AC2-218 | $25
Beginning with an affecting introduction, the author then shares a history of communism and the origins of the Vietnam War. Following this, the American involvement in Vietnam is traced in numerous two- to four-page sections dealing with various aspects of the conflict, such as the Viet Cong, the Ho Chi Minh Trail, and the draft.

Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon | AC2-219 | $20
How do you go from walking on the earth one day and skipping amongst the stars the next? What this book does is take kids through the entire Apollo 11 experience from the perspective of those who worked on the project. Fantastic detail on what it took to successfully put men on the moon!

September 11, 2001: Attack on New York City | AC2-220 | $11
The tragic events of 9/11 are told through the experiences of a married couple who worked in the World Trade Towers, one of whom was lost; a blind man and his dog, both of whom escaped; and firefighters, office workers, and Mayor Giuliani.
 

On Hand in History with Adventure Reading

The Long Winter | AC2-301 | $ 9
A gripping account of the Ingalls family's struggle to survive during a blizzard-filled winter on the prairie. This story, one of Laura Ingalls Wilder's finest, spends the winter with the Ingalls, following the harrowing tale of their small town's dwindling supplies and the crushing news that the supply train would not make it through until spring. Amazing!

Little Town on the Prairie | AC2-302 | $9
Laura's story continues as new folks settle the town, including a man named Almanzo Wilder, and his sister -- an ineffective schoolteacher who takes a dislike to Laura.

The Trouble Begins at 8 | AC2-303 | $ 19
A marvelous biography of Samuel Clemens and the stories he created using the pseudonym Mark Twain. The gifted author Sid Fleishmann succeeds in turning this into a romping tale of wonderful episodes in the writer's life.

Bread and Roses, Too | AC2-304 | $ 7
Rosa's mother is singing again, but she's singing union songs out on the streets -- she's joined the strike against corrupt mill owners, and Rosa is terrified. Then, she and other children in the middle of the strike are offered an opportunity to live with strangers in Vermont. Should she go?

Quake: Disaster in San Francisco | AC2-305 | $ 8
It is 1906, and 13-year-old Jacob Kaufman, who lives in San Francisco with his father and little sister, is outside when a major earthquake shakes the city, cracking streets and toppling buildings. After Jacob and his dog save the life of San, a Chinese boy, the two join together to search for their families and for food and temporary shelter. Though San occasionally faces racial hostility, the boys meet many strangers who help them through the difficult days.

Letters from Rifka | AC2-306 | $ 7
Twelve-year-old Rifka's journey from a Jewish community in the Ukraine to Ellis Island is anything but smooth sailing. Modeled on the author's great-aunt, Rifka surmounts one obstacle after another in this riveting novel. First she outwits a band of Russian soldiers, enabling her family to escape to Poland. But her journey is not yet over.

All-Of-a-Kind Family | AC2-307 | $ 7

Hoodwinked! | AC2-308 | $ 15
Students will relish this account of the spy techniques used by the Allies in World War II. See how fake tanks, coded messages, and misinformation deceived the enemy and helped win the war.

Rascal | AC2-309 | $ 6
This touching story of a boy and his raccoon is both heartwarming and hilarious. You'll enjoy following their fun adventures and developing relationship.
 

Art History: Picture Study

Later American Painters Picture Studies | AC2-501 | $29
Meet six American painters whose work is outstanding and memorable -- Mary Cassatt, James McNeill Whistler, Charles M. Russell, Grant Wood, Norman Rockwell, and Jackson Pollock. Students will learn about each artist by looking at included full-color reproductions of their work and learn to appreciate it with interactive picture study activities and questions.
 

Bible Study Resource

Christian Cultural Values for Kids | AC2-401 | $19
Your student will discover and evaluate values such as seeing all people created by God, nurturing contentment, or their personal work ethic as they encounter how American cultural values through history, such as racism, materialism, and greed have affected our country.  Click here to see a sample of this book.

Culturally-Rich Activity Resource

American Can Do It! Activity Book | AC2-251 | $29
Learn about all things American! Discover cultural information about how American ideas were invented, built, created and more by Americans who brought them to life. You'll also discover cultural information about the different periods in later American history, getting to know what was fun, hip and happening! All along the way, activities are included that will help your student get a feel for the times. Click here to see a sample of this book.
 

Presidential Resources
(These three resources not included in reduced program.)
 

Our Country's Presidents | AC2-601 | $25
Learn about each president's background, and their term in office. Discover the important decisions each made, and the events he encountered (or created) while in the White House.

Presidential Elections & Other Cool Facts | AC2-602 | $7
Discover how our American elections work and how the process affects our democratic way of life.

 

Get Your Questions about American Culture Answered!
Return to the top of the page, and click on the "FAQ" button on the graphic. It will take you to a page where you'll find answers to questions like these:

What additional resources are necessary to the program?
What consumables are needed for extra students?
Which language arts programs coordinate with American Culture?
What kinds of activities does American Culture include?
And lots more!