[.ca] Ancient Times (ISBN 097141291X)

This is a winner for our family:
Despite reading a few bad reviews for this activity book, I decided to purchase it because I feel I'm lacking in creativity when it comes to making history fun with hands-on projects. I wasn't impressed with the price until I received the book. I now consider this a very valuable resource and definitely worth the money. The first half of the book is a chapter-by-chapter resource list that includes discussion questions, narration samples, art projects, related literature list and additional history reading suggestions. The second half of the book is a collection of student pages including map work, coloring and activity pages. I am positive that many resourceful people could manage SOTW without this activity guide. However, I am grateful for this book. I am sure we would have been missing out on so much if I had relied on SOTW alone, or if I had attempted to pull such resources together on my own.

A very bland and boring "story" of history:
This author left out entire civilizations in this book - why? A "Story of the World" - at least any book claiming this title - should include the real story. One of the most important events in the history of the world for a person of any religious background is/was creation! This is left out of the book. This history is told in a childlike way with lots of little stories. The stories are a bit much and will bore the average child older than five years old. In all, this is a very, very simple view of history and should not be used for any parent wishing to really teach history to their children.

A lovely introduction for children to world history:
"Story of the World: Ancient Times" turned my six-year-old daughter into a certified history buff. It's a wonderful chronological, narrative approach to ancient history, and our family appreciates the generally secular tone, which allows us to add supplemental books supporting our family's beliefs. We used the book along with the accompanying activity guide, which includes blackline maps and coloring pages, as well as crafts, games, and supplemental reading lists to delve deeper into the subjects presented in "Story of the World: Ancient Times."

A little disappointing:
Perhaps this book is a good resource for kids six and under, but my kids (ages 4, 6, 7, and 9) found it less enthralling than many other resources we have used. It gives adequate and comprehensive coverage of the historical period, but lacks meat, isn't a particularly engaging book. I have been somewhat of a fan of Susan Wise Bauer, but found this book disappointing.