Ancient History & More: Homeschool Video Curriculum with Drive Thru History Adventures
We have been expanding our look at Ancient History thanks to a one-year subscription to Drive Thru History Adventures as part of the Homeschool Review Crew. We love the resource so much, that we are affiliates with the program. That means we may earn a commission for purchases made through links in this post at no charge to you.
Over the years of homeschooling, I had heard about Drive Thru History.
My older boys were exposed to some of the American History videos in a homeschool co-op class.
And, last year we were privileged to review The Gospels.
With my 9th grader doing World History this year, I saw this review opportunity as the perfect time to dig into Ancient History beyond his books.
About Drive Thru History Adventures
Drive Thru History Adventures is a one-stop for families to access all of the following:
- Bible History (18 weeks on the Gospels)
- American History (12 weeks on early American history)
- Ancient History (12 weeks on early Greece, Rome and Asia Minor)
All of the videos have been previously released on DVD.
The curriculum that accompanies the videos has been developed for ages 12 and up.
From the Curriculum tab, you pick which of the three courses to visit.
Each one lists the episodes.
When in a specific episode, you find all the additional curriculum resources below the video.
Dave Scott and his team have taken their original products and expanded them to offer additional resources that turn the video sequence into a curriculum base.
This included photos/illustrations, excerpts for reading, and questions to assess their learning from each episode.
And as a help to the parent, there is an answer guide for the worksheets.
There are also posts and videos that fit with the overall theme of deepening our faith and understanding through the study of history.
You can find it all under the Resources Tab.
When someone subscribes to Drive Thru History Adventures, they are able to stream all of the videos through the Adventures TV section.
It is through a separate login with Adventures TV that you can take the videos in the road via an iOs or Android app. (The app is free, but content requires a subscription to Drive Thru History Adventures.)
Video Introduction to Drive Thru History Adventures
Check out Dave sharing more about this incredible resource:
Ancient History Adventures
For this review, we have been delving into Ancient History.
My 9th-grade son has already done this portion of time through his World History book.
However, I know that this series digs deeper into the areas of Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome and Asia Minor than his curriculum provides.
Here’s the list of Ancient History episodes from the curriculum page.
When logged into the program, clicking on the desired episode will bring you to the page with the video and resources specific to that episode.
Our Thoughts on Drive Thru History Adventures
I am seriously impressed with the breadth of resources included in Drive Thru History Adventures.
Dave Scott could have created this resource with just the 3 video series plus a little bit to flesh things out into a curriculum.
However, he goes beyond that with continual posts that tie in with the topics from those 3 series.
Once you are subscribed, you will receive a weekly email highlighting what is new on the site.
Below is a screenshot from part of that email.
The most recent information is also visible on your dashboard when first logged into the site.
The beauty of this site is that the entire family can learn something from it.
Younger students may just watch alongside while the older kids go through the accompanying questions and resources.
You can always use the worksheets as a launching pad for younger students as well.
I’d just go for discussing the questions instead of trying to have them write out answers.
In all of the episodes, you get a mix of Dave’s quirky sense of humor along with a lot of information that includes not only facts but information that goes deeper.
Some of the ancient history segments were tied to modern day or sometimes other periods of history.
Limitations of This Resource
Now, for the limitations…
While The Gospels footage was filmed more recently, both American History and Ancient History were filmed more than a decade ago.
My kids could definitely tell it as watching the Ancient History videos on our 4K TV made it obvious.
Even though the footage showed its age, the content was still fantastic.
Secondly, for someone with a high school student, you may need to add to the curriculum to create a half-credit course.
For us, this wasn’t an issue as we have a textbook as our base.
You can use this resource for your base, just be prepared to add to it for any high school students in your home.
How We Use Drive Thru History Adventures
I’ll admit to forgetting about the iOS app during the review period. I am going to grab it for my boys to do more independent viewing later.
However, I have opted to watch the episodes together as a family unit.
To do this, I connect my laptop to our TV and stream through it. That way we have personal space and a good view of the video. (I can try to set up our Smart TV to be automatically logged into Adventures TV, but lost patience trying to enter the username and password correctly.)
The questions found in the worksheets and on each episode’s page are done orally.
This allows my 8-year-old (2nd grade) to participate and share what he was learning. And, it takes less time than waiting for my 9th-grade son to write out answers on a worksheet and give it to me for grading.
Final Takeaway
Two thumbs up for this resource!
If you are planning to dive into any of the three topics covered, definitely give Drive Thru History Adventures a look for your family.
Special for Our Readers
There are TWO things I wanted to share which can make this the perfect time to join.
First, a set of The Gospels on DVD ($89.99 value) will be gifted to all new annual subscribers ($124.99) to Drive Thru History Adventures.
Secondly, Drive Thru History Adventures is offering 20% for readers of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine.
How to subscribe:
Go to Drive Thru History Adventures (it will open the specials page in a new tab for you.)
Come back here to be directed to the Winter 2017/2018 issue of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine where you can flip through to find the code on page 17.
Go back to the tab for Drive Thru History Adventures to complete your purchase using the discount code.
Doing this costs $99.92 and provides you with a year to access all 3 Drive Thru History series PLUS The Gospels on DVD ($89.99 value.)
Don’t just take my word for how we found this to be. Visit Drive Thru History Adventures post on the Homeschool Review Crew website to see what other homeschooling parents thought about this resource.
