We all love a good story! Living History Threads harnesses the power of stories to teach elementary students to love history!

Living History Threads is a comprehensive, story-based history and geography curriculum for grades one through four. Threads focuses on the events, people, and places that constitute the essential knowledge of historical studies. These “threads” of history, established in the elementary years, are woven together, interpreted, and analyzed in later years to create the fabric of a rich historical understanding.

Living History Threads is crafted to fit the values and needs of Anabaptist schools, focusing on our place in God’s story and God’s kingdom. It is designed to be accessible for beginning teachers and adaptable for more experienced teachers, providing high quality instruction and rich content at an affordable price.

From the Classroom

“All my students vote history as their favorite class – thanks to the Living History Threads curriculum! They love the stories! The history facts seem to be riveted in their memories better with this style of curriculum.”

– Darlene

How Does Threads Work?

Reading to students is the heart of Living History Threads. A typical lesson starts with a brief review of key facts from previous lessons, including recitations of chants that cement information in students’ minds. Many lessons include a dedicated geography time in which students learn to identify a country, continent, ocean, or other geographical feature. The Teacher’s Guide provides clear instructions to guide the teacher through these activities.

The bulk of class time is dedicated to reading a story aloud to students. The Teacher’s Guide provides guidance on introducing the story and suggestions for emphasizing important content through questions and discussion. Instructions are provided for engaging with maps and timelines throughout the lesson, while picture flashcards or posters provide visuals for key characters, events, and places. Class periods end with wrap-up discussions and review questions to reinforce key content.

Living History Threads lessons typically take 30-35 minutes in first and second grade, and 40-45 minutes in third and fourth grade.

What Do the Different Levels Mean?

Living History Threads is intended for use in grades 1-4. The different levels are listed below:

Level 1|2 (one-two) is designed for grades 1 and 2.

Level 2|1 (two-one) is designed for grades 1 and 2.

Level 3|4 (three-four) is designed for grades 3 and 4.

Level 4|3 (four-three) is designed for grades 3 and 4.

There is no difference in difficulty between Levels 1|2 and 2|1, and either one can be done first. The same is true for Levels 3|4 and 4|3. The curriculum was intentionally designed this way to enable a two-year rotation in multi-grade classrooms, but it can just as easily be used in single-grade classrooms.

Living History Threads is followed by Living History Weavings in grades 5-6. We do not have plans to extend the curriculum beyond grade 6.

What Is Included?

Materials for Living History Threads fall into three categories:

Teacher Materials

Teacher materials are published by Faith Builders Resource Group, and include Teacher’s Guides, wall-mounted timelines, classroom maps, and flashcards (grades 1 and 2) or picture posters (grades 3 and 4).

Read-aloud Books

The heart of the curriculum, these books are selected from various publishers for with a focus on historical accuracy, age-appropriateness, and interest for students. The first- and second-grade levels include about 30 titles, while the third- and fourth-grade levels include roughly 60 titles.

Student Materials

In all levels, each student will need access to desk maps for geography exercises. These maps can be reused year after year. In addition, each level includes one to four student booklets which tell important stories from church history or guide students in learning about the history of their own church or community. These booklets are intended for students to keep, and will need to be reordered every year.