Story of the World & Mystery of History

At last co-op, I got the opportunity to review 2 history curriculums: Story of the World, and Mystery of History. I'll share my thoughts on these two books...

Story of the World, book 1: the wording was so simple & easy to understand. The progression is taught chronologically, not by culture. So first the book talks about Egypt, then Mesopotamia, then China...all in its earliest days, then it goes back to Egypt (Middle kingdom), Mesopotamia, China (etc.) in a later period, and then back through all the cultures again in their later periods. Greece & Rome are introduced at their appropriate time in history, as well. So you get a good picture of what the entire WORLD looked like at one time, not just one culture. The only drawback to this is that, if you wanted to treat history as a unit study (or do a project like lapbooking) I'm not sure how you would do it, since you don't learn about a culture in one big chunk. So if you were lapbooking SOTW, you would have to start a lapbook on Egypt, put it on hold, start a lapbook on Meso, put it on hold, etc. and gradually add to each one as you revisit the culture. Unless there is a better way to do this? However, SOTW is perfect for using to make your own timeline.

Mystery of History: the wording is a little more complicated than SOTW. Also, it feels more like a textbook. It teaches history chronologically, as well (like SOTW), but teaches it according to the order in the Bible. So first, Creation, then Mesopotamia (& Abraham & his family), etc. I can't remember where this history ends. A lot of people really like MOH, I keep hearing rave reviews about it. I honestly just didn't like it as well as SOTW - it is probably better for older students (though I have heard of 7 year olds using the program successfully).

I'm really considering Story of the World for our history curriculum next year (1st grade). I haven't decided if I will buy the workbook that goes along with it (I haven't seen that yet). I really just want history to be enjoyable. I may just treat it as a story without any added bells and whistles. Haven't decided yet...