Just to make my life easier (and yours too, probably), I’ve collected all the books we will/ have read per time period. This is perfect for those who are homeschooling according to the classical method (we use Catholic Schoolhouse) or want to supplement when learning certain time periods.

We found many of these books through our local library but if you decide to purchase them I hope you will use the Amazon affiliate links listed below to support my work (at no extra cost to you)! All of these are books my kids and I have read and recommend. I hope you enjoy this reading list!

This reading list includes:

  • Magic School Bus books
  • Dear America Series
  • Magic Treehouse Series
  • American Girl books
  • My Name Is series
  • Landmark Series
  • My America Series American Stories Series
  • Childhood of Famous Americans series
  • and recommendations from The Well-Trained Mind

Many of these links are affiliate links which help to support this blog, at no cost to you.

NOTE: Bookmark/ Pin this page to use again in the future! I will be updating it regularly!

Work on Throughout the Year

First of all, I preview the Blog Post Directory at Catholicschoolhouse.com for crafts and lesson ideas. Our family always does the saint activity packet and usually 1 or 2 other activities for the list. It’s just so much good stuff! Want to learn more about Catholic Schoolhouse? Join the Facebook Group here.

The Story of Civilization Volume 4: the audiobook is great for kids to listen to while working on related crafts. Here is how The Story of Civilization Volume 4 cd lines up with Catholic Schoolhouse Weeks.

Liberty Kids videos: We love these videos and they help visual learners to better understand American history! (Check out if your local library has them or if you have access to Hoopla, you may find it there!)

American Geography:

I also want my kids to know the names of all the presidents so they listen to the above video and this video several times per week:

This post is broken down by week according to the Catholic Schoolhouse curriculum but if you don’t use this curriculum you can still follow along… it’s all chronological and only relating to U.S. History!

Get More Tips & Tricks directly to your inbox!

Week 1

Native Americans

Explore Native American Cultures!

Draw Write Now Book 3: Native Americans, North America, Pilgrims

The Usborne Book of Living Long Ago: Everyday Life through the Ages (ask around and order it through an Usborne rep instead of Amazon because it’s way overpriced there)

Kaya: American Girl Series

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha: The Lily of the Mohawks

Weetamoo: Heart of the Pocassets

Indian Tribes of North America Coloring Book

A Kid’s Guide to Native American History and Activities

Pocahontas: Heroes of American History

Explorers

Draw Write Now Book 2: Christopher Columbus, Autumn Harvest, Weather

I Wonder Why Columbus Crossed the Ocean and Other Questions About Explorers

Meet Christopher Columbus: part of the acclaimed Landmark book series

Around the World in a Hundred Years: From Henry the Navigator to Magellan

Where do you think you’re going, Christopher Columbus?

Exploration of North America Coloring Book

Who in the world was the forgotten explorer?

Zoology

Several zoos have live web cams if you’re not able to get to a zoo on your own. Here is the San Diego Zoo!

Study the animal’s habitat with this game from Smithsonian

The library is full of animal books. I stick to the nonfiction section and let kids choose what animals they’re interested in learning about. We covered porpoises this week!

Who would win? book series

Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life

Food Chain Frenzy Magic School Bus

Music

Sebastian Bach, The Boy from Thuringia

Week 2

Continue reading the Explorers Books from Week 1 plus..

Explorers of the New World: Discover the Golden Age of Exploration

Life in America’s First Cities

Zoology

Watch some videos from Meigs Point Nature Center or try to catch some frogs at a pond!

Frog vs Toad worksheet

Nouns

Week 3

Pilgrims & First Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving on Thursday: part of the Magic Tree House Series with fact tracker book Pilgrims

The Landing of the Pilgrims: part of the Landmark book series

Samuel Eaton’s Day: A Day in the Life of A Pilgrim Boy

A Journey to the New World: The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple

The Adventurous Life of Myles Standish and the Amazing-but-true Survival Story of the Plymouth Colony

Sarah Morton’s Day: A Day in the Life of A Pilgrim Girl

You Wouldn’t Want to Sail on the Mayflower!

Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims

Zoology

Check out this tour of the Smithsonian Museum Ocean exhibit: https://naturalhistory2.si.edu/vt3/NMNH/z_tour-076.html

Watch Disney’s Oceans on Netflix

The Great Shark Escape Magic School Bus

Ocean Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of the World under the Sea

Sea Creatures A Nonfiction Companion to the Original Magic School Bus Series

Get a pet fish 😉

Week 4

Early Colonies

You wouldn’t want to be an American Colonist!

Felicity American Girl Series

Our Colonial Year

Early American Trades Coloring Book or Life in Colonial America Coloring Book

The Story of the Thirteen Colonies

Pioneer Days: Discover the past with fun projects, games, activities, and recipes

Abigail Adams: Girl of Colonial Days (Childhood of Famous Americans)

The True Story of Pocahontas

A Lion to Guard Us

Visit Colonial Williamsburg and take a virtual field trip!

Benjamin Franklin

Ben Franklin of Old Philadelphia: part of the Landmark book series

John, Paul, George & Ben

Ben Franklin in Old Philadelphia

Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin

The Amazing Life of Benjamin Franklin

The Remarkable Benjamin Franklin

French & Indian War

Madeleine Takes Command

Struggle for a Continent: The French and Indian Wars

Look to the Hills: The Diary of Lozette Moreau, a French Slave Girl

The Last of the Mohicans (Classic Starts)

Daniel Boone

Who was Daniel Boone?

Daniel Boone: Young Hunter and Tracker (Childhood of Famous Americans)

The Trailblazing Life of Daniel Boone And How Early Americans Took to the Road

Zoology

Penguin Puzzle The Magic School Bus

How to draw birds by John Muir Laws

Art

Pronouns

Week 5

California Missions

Boston Tea Party

You Wouldn’t want to be at the Boston Tea Party!

What Was the Boston Tea Party?

Watch Liberty Kids videos (available on hoopla and through your library)

Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence: The Words that made America

Understanding the Declaration of Independence

What Is the Declaration of Independence?

Revolutionary War

Take a quiz on what Revolutionary historical person you’re most like

Amerian Revolution history museum tour

The American Revolution: part of the Landmark book series

Revolutionary War on Wednesday Magic Treehouse book with Fact Tracker American Revolution

George the Drummer Boy

Sam, the Minuteman

The Story of the American Revolution Coloring Book

The Secret Soldier, story of Debra Sampson

If you lived at the time of the American Revolution

Paul Revere, Patriot, Heroes of American History

Saving the Liberty Bell

Gingerbread for Liberty!

A Picture Book of Paul Revere

A Picture Book of Patrick Henry

Where was Patrick Henry on the 29th of May?

The Winter of Red Snow: The Revolutionary War Diary of Abigail Jane Stewart

Dear America: Cannons at Dawn

Love Thy Neighbor: The Tory Diary of Prudence Emerson

Zoology

The Magic School Bus Presents Insects

The Magic School Bus Inside a Beehive

Verbs

Week 6

George Washington

Draw Write Now Book 5: United States, From Sea to Sea, Moving Forward

Meet George Washington: part of the Landmark book series

I Am George Washington

History’s All Stars: Betsy Ross

Dear Mr. Washington

Constitution

A More Perfect Union: The Story of our Constitution

What is the Constitution?

Zoology

Other Books to Read During this Time Period

The Story of the Great Republic

A Picture Book of John and Abigail Adams

Worst of Friends

Those Rebels, John & Tom

John Adams Speaks for Freedom

Davy Crockett: Young Rifleman

What’s the Big Deal About First Ladies?

Liberty Bell Virtual Tour

Standing in the Light: The Captive Diary of Catharine Carey Logan, Delaware Valley

Little House on the Prarie Series

Betsy Ross and the Silver Thimble

Sitting Bull: Dakota Boy

Sacagawea: American Pathfinder

Paul Revere: Boston Patriot

Molly Pitcher: True Patriot

Women Explorers, Book Perils, Pistols, and Petticoats

Flags Over America, Book A Star-spangled Story

Just to make my life easier (and yours too, probably), I’ve collected all the books we will/ have read per time period. This is perfect for those who are homeschooling according to the classical method (we use Catholic Schoolhouse) or want to supplement when learning certain time periods.

We found many of these books through our local library but if you decide to purchase them I hope you will use the Amazon affiliate links listed below to support my work (at no extra cost to you)! All of these are books my kids and I have read and recommend. I hope you enjoy this reading list!

This reading list includes:

  • Magic School Bus books
  • Dear America Series
  • Magic Treehouse Series
  • American Girl books
  • My Name Is series
  • Landmark Series
  • My America Series American Stories Series
  • Childhood of Famous Americans series
  • and recommendations from The Well-Trained Mind

Many of these links are affiliate links which help to support this blog, at no cost to you.

NOTE: Bookmark/ Pin this page to use again in the future! I will be updating it regularly!

Work on Throughout the Year

First of all, I preview the Blog Post Directory at Catholicschoolhouse.com for crafts and lesson ideas. Our family always does the saint activity packet and usually 1 or 2 other activities for the list. It’s just so much good stuff! Want to learn more about Catholic Schoolhouse? Join the Facebook Group here.

The Story of Civilization Volume 4: the audiobook is great for kids to listen to while working on related crafts. Here is how The Story of Civilization Volume 4 cd lines up with Catholic Schoolhouse Weeks.

Liberty Kids videos: We love these videos and they help visual learners to better understand American history! (Check out if your local library has them or if you have access to Hoopla, you may find it there!)

American Geography:

I also want my kids to know the names of all the presidents so they listen to the above video and this video several times per week:

This post is broken down by week according to the Catholic Schoolhouse curriculum but if you don’t use this curriculum you can still follow along… it’s all chronological and only relating to U.S. History!

Get More Tips & Tricks directly to your inbox!

Week 1

Native Americans

Explore Native American Cultures!

Draw Write Now Book 3: Native Americans, North America, Pilgrims

The Usborne Book of Living Long Ago: Everyday Life through the Ages (ask around and order it through an Usborne rep instead of Amazon because it’s way overpriced there)

Kaya: American Girl Series

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha: The Lily of the Mohawks

Weetamoo: Heart of the Pocassets

Indian Tribes of North America Coloring Book

A Kid’s Guide to Native American History and Activities

Pocahontas: Heroes of American History

Explorers

Draw Write Now Book 2: Christopher Columbus, Autumn Harvest, Weather

I Wonder Why Columbus Crossed the Ocean and Other Questions About Explorers

Meet Christopher Columbus: part of the acclaimed Landmark book series

Around the World in a Hundred Years: From Henry the Navigator to Magellan

Where do you think you’re going, Christopher Columbus?

Exploration of North America Coloring Book

Who in the world was the forgotten explorer?

Zoology

Several zoos have live web cams if you’re not able to get to a zoo on your own. Here is the San Diego Zoo!

Study the animal’s habitat with this game from Smithsonian

The library is full of animal books. I stick to the nonfiction section and let kids choose what animals they’re interested in learning about. We covered porpoises this week!

Who would win? book series

Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life

Food Chain Frenzy Magic School Bus

Music

Sebastian Bach, The Boy from Thuringia

Week 2

Continue reading the Explorers Books from Week 1 plus..

Explorers of the New World: Discover the Golden Age of Exploration

Life in America’s First Cities

Zoology

Watch some videos from Meigs Point Nature Center or try to catch some frogs at a pond!

Frog vs Toad worksheet

Nouns

Week 3

Pilgrims & First Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving on Thursday: part of the Magic Tree House Series with fact tracker book Pilgrims

The Landing of the Pilgrims: part of the Landmark book series

Samuel Eaton’s Day: A Day in the Life of A Pilgrim Boy

A Journey to the New World: The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple

The Adventurous Life of Myles Standish and the Amazing-but-true Survival Story of the Plymouth Colony

Sarah Morton’s Day: A Day in the Life of A Pilgrim Girl

You Wouldn’t Want to Sail on the Mayflower!

Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims

Zoology

Check out this tour of the Smithsonian Museum Ocean exhibit: https://naturalhistory2.si.edu/vt3/NMNH/z_tour-076.html

Watch Disney’s Oceans on Netflix

The Great Shark Escape Magic School Bus

Ocean Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of the World under the Sea

Sea Creatures A Nonfiction Companion to the Original Magic School Bus Series

Get a pet fish 😉

Week 4

Early Colonies

You wouldn’t want to be an American Colonist!

Felicity American Girl Series

Our Colonial Year

Early American Trades Coloring Book or Life in Colonial America Coloring Book

The Story of the Thirteen Colonies

Pioneer Days: Discover the past with fun projects, games, activities, and recipes

Abigail Adams: Girl of Colonial Days (Childhood of Famous Americans)

The True Story of Pocahontas

A Lion to Guard Us

Visit Colonial Williamsburg and take a virtual field trip!

Benjamin Franklin

Ben Franklin of Old Philadelphia: part of the Landmark book series

John, Paul, George & Ben

Ben Franklin in Old Philadelphia

Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin

The Amazing Life of Benjamin Franklin

The Remarkable Benjamin Franklin

French & Indian War

Madeleine Takes Command

Struggle for a Continent: The French and Indian Wars

Look to the Hills: The Diary of Lozette Moreau, a French Slave Girl

Daniel Boone

Who was Daniel Boone?

Daniel Boone: Young Hunter and Tracker (Childhood of Famous Americans)

The Trailblazing Life of Daniel Boone And How Early Americans Took to the Road

Zoology

Penguin Puzzle The Magic School Bus

How to draw birds by John Muir Laws

Art

Pronouns

Week 5

California Missions

Boston Tea Party

You Wouldn’t want to be at the Boston Tea Party!

What Was the Boston Tea Party?

Watch Liberty Kids videos (available on hoopla and through your library)

Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence: The Words that made America

Understanding the Declaration of Independence

What Is the Declaration of Independence?

Revolutionary War

Take a quiz on what Revolutionary historical person you’re most like

Amerian Revolution history museum tour

The American Revolution: part of the Landmark book series

Revolutionary War on Wednesday Magic Treehouse book with Fact Tracker American Revolution

George the Drummer Boy

Sam, the Minuteman

The Story of the American Revolution Coloring Book

The Secret Soldier, story of Debra Sampson

If you lived at the time of the American Revolution

Paul Revere, Patriot, Heroes of American History

Saving the Liberty Bell

Gingerbread for Liberty!

A Picture Book of Paul Revere

A Picture Book of Patrick Henry

Where was Patrick Henry on the 29th of May?

The Winter of Red Snow: The Revolutionary War Diary of Abigail Jane Stewart

Dear America: Cannons at Dawn

Love Thy Neighbor: The Tory Diary of Prudence Emerson

Zoology

The Magic School Bus Presents Insects

The Magic School Bus Inside a Beehive

Verbs

Week 6

George Washington

Draw Write Now Book 5: United States, From Sea to Sea, Moving Forward

Meet George Washington: part of the Landmark book series

I Am George Washington

History’s All Stars: Betsy Ross

Dear Mr. Washington

Constitution

A More Perfect Union: The Story of our Constitution

What is the Constitution?

Zoology

Other Books to Read During this Time Period

The Story of the Great Republic

A Picture Book of John and Abigail Adams

Worst of Friends

Those Rebels, John & Tom

John Adams Speaks for Freedom

Davy Crockett: Young Rifleman

What’s the Big Deal About First Ladies?

Liberty Bell Virtual Tour

Standing in the Light: The Captive Diary of Catharine Carey Logan, Delaware Valley

Little House on the Prarie Series

Betsy Ross and the Silver Thimble

Sitting Bull: Dakota Boy

Sacagawea: American Pathfinder

Paul Revere: Boston Patriot

Molly Pitcher: True Patriot

Women Explorers, Book Perils, Pistols, and Petticoats

Flags Over America, Book A Star-spangled Story