A Fun Way To Learn The Life of Douglas MacArthur

Heroes of History- Douglas MacArthur with accompanying study guide from YWAM Publishing–A Review

What Is It?

I was very excited to get the opportunity to review Heroes of History- Douglas MacArthur, a biography of Douglas MacArthur out of the Heroes of History series, with an accompanying study guide, from YWAM Publishing as he is a hero in our household.

If you are not familiar with YWAM Publishing’s biographies for children, you need to know that these are not stuffy boring biographies. They take you into the life and mind of a famous person. You get to learn details about their life and achievements that you might already know, but lots that will be new to you and your child.

This book, together with accompanying study guide are part of a series called Heroes of History. 

Each chapter is fairly short and easily readable by children aged 12 and up. As a teen or adult, it is easy to finish this book in an afternoon. If you choose to read the book aloud, however, each chapter takes about 15 to 20 minutes. You can read the book aloud in a total of 6 hours, making it ideal to add additional depth to history of literature you are already studying in your homeschool.

Will It Enhance Your Homeschool?

You will learn about the childhood and events that made Douglas MacArthur the tremendous leader and military hero that he became as an adult. Your child will also discover details of General MacArthur’s military career during World War II, and gain an overall appreciation for that man who was so famous for the phrase, “I will return.”

This product makes an excellent supplement for studies of World War II, or military strategy by middle schoolers. The publishers also position the book, combined with the unit study as a core curriculum for your child, but I think that this would only work for the elementary years.

What Comes With This Product?

The Heroes of History- Douglas MacArthur book comes with a study guide provided as a software download that allows you to expand your child’s study of the man and his military accomplishments.

The Book

Title: Douglas MacArthur: What Greater Honor

Authors: Janet & Geoff Benge

Publisher: Emerald Books (Emerald Books publishes the Heroes of History biography series by Janet and Geoff Benge and the companion unit study curriculum guides.)

Pages: 224

Recommended Age Level: 10 years and up (great for teens)

Contents: The book has 17 chapters and includes maps as well as a bibliography for further reading.

An Accompanying Study Guide:

Suggested ways to use the study guide include:

• Social Studies activities including geography and government.
• Language Arts lessons in reading comprehension and writing.
• Encouraging Character Development in your own child through lessons highlighting the courage, bravery, and faith of Douglas MacArthur.

Study Guide Contents Overview

The study guide is delivered as a html file download that you navigate using an offline web browser. The study guide for the Douglas MacArthur biography includes the following sections:

• Douglas MacArthur : a biographical sketch
• Curriculum Unit Study Information
  • Guides for Small Groups, Classroom, and Homeschool Instruction
    • Homeschool Instruction Guide Outline (a 24 page PDF)
      • Introduction
      • Using Heroes of History Biographies and Unit Studies in Your Homeschool
      • Adaptations for the Parent’s Role (adapting the material for parent- versus student-directed learning)
      • Teaching Social Studies with Unit Study Curriculum Guides
      • Teaching Language Arts with Unit Study Curriculum Guides

      • Conclusion

        

  • Unit Study – Part 1 (84-page PDF, answer key included)
    • Topics Covered
      Art
      Creative writing
      Drama
      Essay writing
      Geography
      History
      Reading comprehension
      Public speaking
  • Unit Study – Part 2 (This 6 Page PDF contains the actual Reproducible Documents)
    • Douglas MacArthur Fact Sheet with fill-in-the-blanks for a range of facts
    • Blank Country Maps of Japan & Korea, Philippines, New Guinea & Australia, Asia & Central/Western Pacific, and The United States
    • Blank Timeline with list of important events in the life of Douglas MacArthur to add to the dated timeline)
• Bonus Materials (This takes you to the same online html page of YWAM Publishing entitled Heroes Series – Bonus Section. In addition to the Meet the Authors, Reader Reviews, there are sections with a huge variety of material)
  • Word Puzzles
  • Crossword Puzzles
  • Coloring Pages
  • And a host of other extras
• More Heroes (This takes you to YWAM Publishing’s online store to shop for other Heroes books.)
  • For a list of other available biographies (taken from the study guide materials) see the list below.
• Emerald Books (This explains the company that produces the Heros of History books which YWAM distributes.)

Many Formats Makes the Story Adaptable for Many Learning Styles

The contents and story are available as an audio book, eBook, and physical paperback to accommodate a wide range of learning styles and reading abilities. No matter how your child learns best, learning the story of Douglas MacArthur will be a fun and engaging activity!

Suggested Use

The publishers suggest you use both the book and the accompanying study guide. This would work very well with younger children, however I found that my teenage son preferred to read and discuss the book without the unit study. I did use the study guide to direct the discussions with him after he read sections of the text, however.

Time Required To Teach The Biography

Preparation Time: 30-45 minutes (read study guide material and make notes)

Teaching Time: 15-30 minutes per session (The time here depends on whether you use the study guide as suggested, adapt it into an oral post reading discussion, or opt to only read the biography.)

Student Activity Time: 30-60 minutes (This is the time to complete activities if you use the study guide and expand the biography into a unit study)

Did We Like It?

Yes! Based partly on a classic named American Caesar by William Manchester, this biography covers the basic important features of Douglas MacArthur’s life.

It was a little disconcerting for my son that the authors, Janet and Geoff Benge, add fictional details throughout the book and present them in a manner that could lead a child to think they were true. For instance at the start of the story, the story begins, “The engine of the PT boat throbbed as Douglas MacArthur looked back at the outline of the island of Corregidor disappearing in to the darkness. Douglas’s wife and four-year-old son were sitting tensely beside him Douglas sighed anxiously.” As my son pointed out, the authors are interjecting behaviors and thoughts onto Douglas MacArthur as if he were a fictional character but presenting the text as non-fiction. This is fine for  little children, but if you have a teenager focused on details like mine, the book may not be for you.

General Features

• Made for Homeschoolers
• Easy to Adapt To Your Homeschool
• Adapts to Teach Multiple Children (Multiple Ages)
• Accessible to Children with Dylsexia / Dysgraphia
• Works with Gifted Children

Works with these Age Ranges

• Elementary (4-6)
• Middle Years (6-8)
• High School (9-12)

Good For These Educational Styles

• Classical
• Traditional (like public school)
• Eclectic
• Unschooling
• Unit Study
• Charlotte Mason

Subjects Covered

• Reading
• Writing
• Social Studies / Geography / History

For Kids Who Like

• Discussion
• Unit Studies