Homeschool Unit Studies with Magic Tree House Books
Unit studies always look like so much fun, but building your own unit study can be a really daunting task. I’ve made it easy for you to use unit studies to teach history, science, geography, and more with your homeschoolers this year.
Homeschool Unit Studies with Magic Tree House Books
These kid friendly and easy on mom unit studies are built around the exciting Magic Treehouse book series by Mary Pope Osborne.
I just know your kids are going to love these books and the activities I’ve pulled together in 30 week long unit studies for homeschool. Want to learn more about what’s included and how to use the Passport to Adventures curriculum with your kids? Keep reading to discover all the fun!
What’s Included in a Magic Treehouse Unit Study?
These interest led unit studies are based on Mary Pope Osborne’s Magic Treehouse book series. Each week long unit study includes a buffet of learning resources and activities to choose from including art tutorials, games, videos, book suggestions, and printables to follow each of the first 29 books. Here’s what’s included in the program:
1. Teacher’s Manual
In the teacher’s manual, you’ll find a table of contents including the titles of each Magic Treehouse book you’ll study during Passport to Adventures. I’ve also included a list of resource suggestions including books, videos, activities, games, field trip ideas, and research project topics. Finally, the bulk of the teacher’s manual includes an easy to follow unit study with a buffet of topics for each of the 30 topics (29 books plus an author study) including a checklist and information list for every book topic. These are your lesson plans for each week. Actually, I have left them less structured to allow you more flexibility. If you want to complete all the lessons for a unit study in one day, go for it!
2. Student Notebook
I often get asked what grade level are Magic Treehouse books? The books are easy to read for early independent readers ages 7-10. However, you can read Magic Treehouse books aloud for the Passport to Adventures unit studies. In fact, I’ve designed this curriculum for use with lots of different ages, so it’s perfect for sibling groups.
There are 4 different student notebook options in Passport to Adventures to make this curriculum easy to use with children of varying ages and abilities. Each student notebook includes a checklist to follow, a map to color as you go, and age appropriate learning pages for your kids to follow including:
- A compare and contrast worksheet for the main characters
- Coloring pages to keep your youngest learners engaged
- Tracing pages with space for drawing pictures too
- Manuscript copywork with drawing space
- Cursive copywork with space for drawing too
3. Timeline Cards
Also included are timeline cards for each Magic Treehouse book which you can hang to display or spread out on the floor, whatever works for you. These cards order the events in the book(s) for your early learners to begin to understand the historic timeline of events. I’ve also included cards with events but no specific time period. These blank cards are perfect for helping your kids develop research skills as they work to make educated guesses about when these events might have happened.
4. Race to the Magic Treehouse Game
Each unit includes a related game suggestion that’s lots of fun for your little learners. However, if you’re looking for a fun and simple game or perhaps you’re unable to get the game suggested in the manual, try this Magic Treehouse game. This game is simple for kids to play. Children only need to roll the die and move forward. The first person to the finish line wins the game.
More Fun Learning with Magic Treehouse Fact Tracker
For even more learning fun, consider the Magic Treehouse Fact Tracker series. This non-fiction series lines up perfectly with the books and provides a companion your kids can use to learn all kinds of interesting facts about the science and history they’re learning with the Magic Treehouse books. There are 28 Magic Treehouse Fact Tracker books by Will Osborne that can be used to help add even more learning and activities to your week long unit studies in Passport to Adventures.
Which Magic Treehouse book are you most excited about exploring with the Passport to Adventures program? We definitely have our favorites!
