I recently found a book called "The Story of Singapore" on my bookshelf.  I didn't even realize I had it as it was a part of a set of reference books I had been given second hand, and I thought they were all the same series of books.  Anyway, when I realized I had it, I decided to read through it with the children to help them learn the history of the nation of their birth and citizenship.

It's been wonderful!  I have learned so much.  The book is written in a series of short stories, only 1-2 pages long.  So far we've learned about the early people of Singapore, how Singapore got its name, its long history of problems with pirates, tigers, and coolie catchers who kidnapped Chinese workers and brought them here against their will to work in hard manual labor, how Sir Stamford Raffles established the first British settlement here in the 1800's, and about some of the Chinese culture that remains a strong influence here til today.

It was exciting as we read that Thomas Stamford Raffles had to go to work as a young boy to support his mother and sisters when his father died, and how he educated himself by reading and studying long into the night after he finished work.  Dancing Queen said, "Wow, Mom, he was a homeschooler too!"  Both she and Roboboy admired his determination and hard work, studying and supporting his family. 

I tell you, this book is a treasure!  I would not have had the faintest idea how to teach Singapore history, except in the barest and broadest of strokes.  I am only familiar with the general history of Singapore's official 40 years as a nation, but this book goes back to a far earlier time.  I think we all look forward to social studies time every day now.

As we continue to work our way through this book, both children are creating a Singapore notebook, in which they are retelling some of their favorite stories, illustrating them as well.  We've also included a map of Singapore, and a drawing of the Singapore flag, with a description of what the symbols on the flag mean.

To add to our history/geography lessons, I've created a game with our world map.  I write out questions on blank index cards, and the children have to try to find the location of the place described.  I ask a wide variety of questions of different difficulty levels, such as, "Where would you find the Eiffel Tower?", "What country lies on the Tropic of Cancer, between 120 degrees East and 130 degrees east longitude?", "What country was the setting for the book 'King Solomon's Mines'?", and "In which country was chocolate first discovered?"  We cover topics of history, geography, flags, animal science, literature, etc.  We always have a great time poring over the map whenever we play, and their knowledge base broadens each time.

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