Pioneer Sampler....

The kids enjoyed Pioneer Sampler by Barbara Greenwood.  This book tells of the daily life of a pioneer family, the Robertsons, in 1840, on a backwoods farm.  Greenwood weaves together fact and fiction beginning with the first signs of spring and ending with a New Year celebration.  Each chapter starts with the fictionalized story of an event in the Robertson's life, then ends with facts describing how the pioneers really handled those day to day events, such as cooking food, making maple syrup, butchering a hog, harvesting crops, building a new house, etc.  There are recipes and instructions for sample activities, giving the reader an opportunity for hands on learning.

At 240 pages, Pioneer Sampler is not a single setting read.  Though we did not partake in the added activities, we did savor the reading over a month's time.   Heather Collins three color illustrations are a perfect compliment, giving detail without taking away from Greenwood's story.  I think Pioneer Sampler is a great supplement to any history program or you could use it as a spine for a unit study approach.