Unboxing “History Unboxed”

June 14, 2020

history-unboxed

Are you looking for a way to add hands-on activities to your Build Your Library curriculum (BYL)? Then you may want to check out History Unboxed (HU). I was sent one of their kits to review and I’m excited to share some information with you!

Hands-on activities have always been a struggle in our homeschool. That’s what makes History Unboxed such a great add-on to Build Your Library — their goal is to spark a deep love of history and they endeavor to lift up voices that aren’t usually heard. This is the perfect resource for letting your children dig deeper into a topic of interest, or explore a time period that you may not have given much thought to before! You are provided all the tools you need to complete fun and exciting activities that will enhance your history studies.

History Unboxed have a wide selection of kits that cover a range of cultures and time periods within Ancients, Middle Ages, and American History. They offer a subscription where you can get several kits grouped together based on a time period. But you can also purchase individual boxes à la carte. This is perfect if you just need a few kits to supplement a particular topic. Also of note, each box can be customized by age levels. They have elementary-age (kids, ages 5-9), middle grades (teen, ages 10-15), and high school (young adult, ages 16+). You also have the option of a sibling add-on if you are homeschooling multiple children.

Unboxed

You can watch my video below to see what you get in their (teen) American Revolution kit. My Hamilton obsessed 11-year-old is very excited about the activities in this kit.  And it contained an actual quill! I think I’m more excited about writing something with a feather quill than anything else!

History Unboxed is running a special for Build Your Library customers – if you use the code BYLHU you can take 10% off your subscription or individual kit purchases for the month of June (the code expires after June 30, 2020)

If you are interested in adding some of their exciting hands-on kits along with your Build Your Library lessons, here’s a rundown of what History Unboxed kits could go with which levels:

Level 1 / Level 8 / Level 10

BYL Level 1, 8, and 10 cover the Ancients time period. Many different HU kits could be a great supplement throughout your studies, whether you want to deep dive a civilization like the Australian Aborigines or a ruler like Alexander the Great:

  • Jomon (very early hunter-gatherers)
  • Australian Aborigines
  • Uruk
  • Egypt
  • Babylon
  • Pharaohs
  • Phoenicians
  • Olmecs
  • Athens
  • Alexander the Great
  • China (Qin Dynasty)
  • Julius Caesar
  • Pompeii

Level 2 / Level 8 / Level 10

BYL Levels 2, 8, and 10 cover the Middle Ages. These span the entire world from the Mesoamerican Mayans to the Ming Dynasty in China, and many in between. You will likely find a HU kit from the list below that would pique your interest:

  • Islamic Empire
  • Byzantine Empire
  • Vikings
  • Mali
  • Japan (Age of Samurai)
  • Mayans
  • Anglo Saxons
  • Charlemagne
  • Mongols (Genghis Khan)
  • Ming Dynasty

Level 3 / Level 4 / Level 5 / Level 6 / Level 12

BYL Levels 3, 4, 5, 6, 12 cover various periods of American History. From the earliest founding of America up to the Civil War, you may find a HU kit that interests your children.

  • Mali (HU starts with the founding cultures of America, and included Mali as a representation of West Africa pre-Transatlantic Slave Trade)
  • Powhatan
  • European Explorers
  • St. Augustine
  • Jamestown
  • Plymouth
  • French & Indian War
  • American Revolution
  • Missions (California)
  • Lewis & Clark
  • Going West (Gold Rush, Trail of Tears, westward migration)
  • Civil War

Level 7

BYL Level 7 is a world geography course, so these kits might be fun additions to enhance your study of different countries and cultures:

  • Australian Aborigines
  • Olmecs
  • Mali
  • Japan
  • Ming Dynasty

Level 9 / Prehistory Unit Study

Both Level 9 and the Prehistory Unit cover prehistoric periods. While they don’t have many offerings for that period of time, this early hunter-gatherer kit would be a great addition to those courses.

  • Jomon (Early Hunter-Gatherers)

Build Your Library is full of great literature that brings history and science alive.  The History Unboxed kits are great supplementary activities to further your academic studies.

Have you tried History Unboxed kits in your homeschool? Let us know in the comments below!

 


Emily Cook is the author and creator of the secular homeschool curriculum Build Your Library, a literature-based K-12 program infused with the teachings of Charlotte Mason. She writes full year lesson plans as well as shorter topical unit studies. Emily has been homeschooling her four children in Southern NH for 21 years. She is passionate about reading aloud to children of all ages and loves to share her love of literature with others. She and her family also makes incredibly dorky videos about homeschooling, books and more on Youtube at ARRRGH! Schooling. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. You can also check out her author page on Amazon.

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Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a small commission if you make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you.

 

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