TOS Review: TruthQuest History Guides

From the website: " TruthQuest History is a deep and rich literature-based history study…but with a difference. You will not learn the story of mankind; you will learn the lovestory of mankind. You will not focus on the rise and fall of human civilizations; you will focus on the arrow-straight line of God's unchanging existence, power, love, truth, and plan for civilization. You will not simply 'meet the culture' or 'get the facts;' you will probe the truths of history so deeply that your students will be equipped to change their world! "

TruthQuest History has history guides available from 1st grade all the way though High School.  You can find a list of products sold by clicking here.  Different guides offered include: Beginnings (Creation/Old Testament/Ancients/Egypt), Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Middle Ages, Renaissance/Reformation/Exploration, Age of Revolution I (US/Europe 1600-1800), Age of Revolution II (US/Europe 1800-1865), Age of Revolution III (US/Europe 1865-2000), American History For Young Students I (Exploration-1800),  American History For Young Students II (1800-1865), and American History For Young Students III (1865-2000.)  There are PDF table of contents and  sample chapters available for each guide.  Companion products from A Journey Through Learning are also available for each guide.  We received the PDF version of Age of Revolution III to use and review.

Table of Contents

Sample Section

Optional Spine Resources

Price $34.95 print, $29.95 for PDF

The Age of Revolution III TruthQuest History guide was written for grades 5-12, but it can be use with younger siblings with parental cautions for some sensitive topics.  Even if you chose not to read the guide with younger siblings, they still can "stay on the same page" in history with their older siblings because the guide includes book resources for all ages!  Yep!  If you have children in different levels elementary through high school you will find books listed for all the different ages so families can learn and study the same topics together.  While we are on the subject of books, I have to say that learning history through real living books is wonderful and the book lists that go along with the Truthquest History Guide is awesome!!!  The resources list for this guide was over 50 pages long!  Along with the list comes a lot of freedom because you can pick and choose which resources work best for your family, ones you already might own or can find at the library.  Can't find any of the resources listed for the topic you are working on?  No worries!  The author stresses that you are NOT to stress about finding specific books.  You can use whatever books on the topic that you can find.  

I thought that the commentary in the guide was really well done.  There is enough background information given to get your students interested and excited about studying the upcoming topic.  The commentary is written in a very friendly, conversational tone.  The focus in this guide (as in all the history guides from TruthQuest) is not about what people do, but instead about what God says and does first and what people believe and do in response.  I was amazed at how complete the guide is!  I urge you to click on the link to the Table of Contents since I cannot possibly list everything covered here.

There are 5 ThinkWrite Projects (with suggested answers listed in the appendix) that your child will work on as they go through the guide that will help think deeper about the topics they are learning.  The first one helps students organize God's timeless truths and the world's modern lies in the following areas:  religion, value of human life, government and law, economics, education, psychology and sociology, art and literature, science and nature, and music.  The ThinkWrite exercises do not tell your children what to think, but instead allow them to do deep thinking and arrive at a conclusion.

The TruthQuest History guides have a lot of freedom.  You can use the resources you want.  You can expand on topics your child is in love with.  You have the ability to skip topics you don't want to cover.  You can keep all of your children working together as a family.  For some, it may be a bit too much freedom.  There is no suggested schedule to follow.  There are no discussion questions or tests.  While I personally am fine with no tests, I found that I was very overwhelmed because there was no schedule to follow.  I am a pretty relaxed homeschooler, but I like a guide to be able to guide me through about how much to do for how long.   

To see what other crew mates had to say click here.

Disclaimer: As part of the TOS Crew, I received a complimentary PDF download of The Age of Revolution III TruthQuest History Guide for the purpose of writing a fair and honest review.  I received no other compensation.