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Summary: A Reader from Florida
Review: I've read all the "Famous Men" books to my nine year old and we've enjoyed them all. The Famous Men books are written in narrative form with a brief overview of different time periods in history. Our favorite was Famous Men of the Renaissance and Reformation.
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Summary: Very interesting for young minds
Review: My 5th grader can't seem to put it down. It is filled with classical paintings (though in black and white) and on one there is some nudity, as there ususally was in the paintings of history. We covered that up with a black marker, but on the whole it is very tastefully done. For learning the history of Greece it makes a great supplement.
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Summary: Biography makes ancient history accessible to youngsters.
Review: There is a whole world of history waiting for elementary-aged students in the "Famous Men" series. Rob Shearer, the editor who put this 1904 book back into print, wonders at the common practice of focusing on American History for years while cramming World History into one year. He believes American History cannot be understood without a knowledge of World History. The author's original preface in 1904 states: "In order to attract and hold attention, each conspicuous feature of history...should have an individual for its center. The child identifies himself with the person placed before him. It is not Romulus...or Alexander that the child has in mind when he reads, but himself, acting under the prescribed conditions." There are 31 chapters, many of them short enough to read in one sitting. Your child will thrill with pride at Leonidas and his 1,000 brave men who stood against 2 million Persians at Thermopylae. Your child will be enobled to read about how Pericles "went among the people, calming and cheering them, and attending faithfully to the affairs of the government" during a horrible plague that took his son, sister, friends, and eventually himself. Your child will admire Demosthenes' determination to overcome his problems to become a great orator. Famous Men of Greece is a valuable part of a child's education in World History. Have him narrate each story or record the person in his book of centuries to place these stories more firmly in his mind.
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Summary: Very interesting for young minds
Review: This book and the companion book by Mrs. Shearer are a fantastic introduction to this period in Greek history and Greek mythology for children. Right at the very start of the book, the children study the physical geography of Greece, and make a salt-dough map of greece and the surrounding area. Chapter 1 and 2 are a very brief (age appropriate) retelling of Greek religion covering Deucalion and the Flood (the greek flood story) and the story of Cadmus and the Dragon's Teeth. Chapters 3-6 are about legendary figures who the Greeks believed to be real people. Chapter 7, 8, and 9 are about the Trojan War, covering Agamemnon, Achilles, and Odysseus. While also legendary, there is some basis in fact that the Trojan War actually did take place, so we don't know how much of Homer's epic is true and whether or not these were real people. Chapter 10 is about Lycurgus (who wrote the constitution for the city-state of Sparta. Chapter 11 is about the political leaders in Athens, Draco and Solon. Chapters 12 through 31 cover some of the important people from the history of classical Greece. We have not only used, but thoroughly enjoyed, this book and its companion, Greenleaf Guide to the Famous Men of Greece, as well as all of the other curriculum in this series. It's rare today to find such good, solid history and mythology which is both engaging and appropriate for children. We can't recommend it highly enough! We just LOVE this series!
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Summary: Absolutely Wonderful Book for Teaching Children !!!
Review: This book and the companion book by Mrs. Shearer are a fantastic introduction to this period in Greek history and Greek mythology for children. Right at the very start of the book, the children study the physical geography of Greece, and make a salt-dough map of greece and the surrounding area. Chapter 1 and 2 are a very brief (age appropriate) retelling of Greek religion covering Deucalion and the Flood (the greek flood story) and the story of Cadmus and the Dragon's Teeth. Chapters 3-6 are about legendary figures who the Greeks believed to be real people. Chapter 7, 8, and 9 are about the Trojan War, covering Agamemnon, Achilles, and Odysseus. While also legendary, there is some basis in fact that the Trojan War actually did take place, so we don't know how much of Homer's epic is true and whether or not these were real people. Chapter 10 is about Lycurgus (who wrote the constitution for the city-state of Sparta. Chapter 11 is about the political leaders in Athens, Draco and Solon. Chapters 12 through 31 cover some of the important people from the history of classical Greece. We have not only used, but thoroughly enjoyed, this book and its companion, Greenleaf Guide to the Famous Men of Greece, as well as all of the other curriculum in this series. It's rare today to find such good, solid history and mythology which is both engaging and appropriate for children. We can't recommend it highly enough! We just LOVE this series!
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Summary: Comprehensive Review for Younger Readers
Review: This textbook was written by and for the public schools of New York. It does not discuss the famous men of Greece except for a few minor biographies near the end of the text. Instead it deals with the great adventures of Greek mythology. Certainly a subject to attract the attention of young readers. The best book on the subject, however, is The Wonder Book and Tanglewood Tales by Nathanial Hawthorne.
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Summary: Famous Men of Greece
Review: This work is part of the "Famous Men" series brilliantly done by Greenleaf Press. Each book has a focus of a particular time period with short biographies, and stories of those times. Some are legendary, but many of the legends do have basis in fact. We are not full-fledged historians, either by academic training or career pursuit, but have found these books to be a thrill to define the culture and thought of the time period. The primary challenge has been to keep the books in hand, as the kids love them and "borrow" them. It is fun since the stories are short and can be acted out, or built with Legos, or enjoyed in any learning style. They are also easy to use, with questions for each lesson which you can discuss. For younger children(3rd-6th grades)it is a new experince, older children(7th-12th grades) like the adult style of learning via discussion. In our experience, it can be helpful to get the small group of books that comes each "Famous Men" book, which will give you more information (and neat things to do)in that time period.Each book is a treat both visually and in the text.
Rating:
Summary: Famous Men of Greece
Review: This work is part of the "Famous Men" series brilliantly done by Greenleaf Press. Each book has a focus of a particular time period with short biographies, and stories of those times. Some are legendary, but many of the legends do have basis in fact. We are not full-fledged historians, either by academic training or career pursuit, but have found these books to be a thrill to define the culture and thought of the time period. The primary challenge has been to keep the books in hand, as the kids love them and "borrow" them. It is fun since the stories are short and can be acted out, or built with Legos, or enjoyed in any learning style. They are also easy to use, with questions for each lesson which you can discuss. For younger children(3rd-6th grades)it is a new experince, older children(7th-12th grades) like the adult style of learning via discussion. In our experience, it can be helpful to get the small group of books that comes each "Famous Men" book, which will give you more information (and neat things to do)in that time period.Each book is a treat both visually and in the text.
Rating:
Summary: Famous Men of Greece
Review: This work is part of the "Famous Men" series brilliantly done by Greenleaf Press. Each book has a focus of a particular time period with short biographies, and stories of those times. Some are legendary, but many of the legends do have basis in fact. We are not full-fledged historians, either by academic training or career pursuit, but have found these books to be a thrill to define the culture and thought of the time period. The primary challenge has been to keep the books in hand, as the kids love them and "borrow" them. It is fun since the stories are short and can be acted out, or built with Legos, or enjoyed in any learning style. They are also easy to use, with questions for each lesson which you can discuss. For younger children(3rd-6th grades)it is a new experince, older children(7th-12th grades) like the adult style of learning via discussion. In our experience, it can be helpful to get the small group of books that comes each "Famous Men" book, which will give you more information (and neat things to do)in that time period.Each book is a treat both visually and in the text.
Rating:
Summary: Great series for history studies!!!
Review: We are a homeschooling family and we have thoroughly enjoyed the "Famous Men" series for our world history studies. I highly recommend it! The "Famous Men" books are core texts and the study guides have helpful questions, vocabulary words, project ideas and recommendations of other great books to expand the study. The "Famous Men" books were written in 1904. Greenleaf Press has republished them and written study guides to go with them. Contrary to the insinuation in a previous review, the "Famous Men" books are not in use in the New York public school system unless an individual teacher chooses to provide her students with a classical education. Frankly, we chuckled at the pornography charge of the previous review. It is a bit of a stretch.
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