Mystery of History Volume 2, Quarter 1 Lesson Plans for Middle and High School

history, homeschool, Homeschool Curriculum, Mystery of History

This is how we used Mystery of History Volume 2 in our homeschool with my teens and tweens, ages 11-16. You can read the introductory post here, and download a printable at the end of this post, as well as my free copywork PDF.

There are three different Drive Thru History programs referenced: Holy Land, Ancients, and Ends of the Earth. Ends of the Earth is about the spread of Christianity around the world. Over this Quarter, you could watch episodes 1-5 at any point. You could also watch Acts to Revelation during the first 5 lessons. They are available to purchase on DVD, or to stream as individual episodes on Amazon Prime Video or ChristianBook.com. They make excellent visual extentions to these lessons!

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Books listed in this plan include:

Church History
1. The Church History by Eusebius – primary history text
1. The Story of Christianity – This is a great book for parents who would like to know more or brush up on church history, and for teens as well!
1. The Works of Josephus – primary history text
1. Foxe’s Book of Martyrs – important historic work, and important to church history.
1. Trial and Triumph – Great as an alternative to Fox, especially for younger teens or tweens.
1. Confessions by Saint Augustine – primary church history work.
British History
1. History of the British Speaking Peoples by Winston Churchill (the Audible narrator is excellent!) -One of my favorite books of British history, this is a 4-volume set. In this Quarter, we will read from Book 1: The Birth of Britain.
1. Anglo Saxon Chronicle – primary history text
1. History of Britain (DK) – fun visual guide to British history
Others books
1. Draw and Write Through History: Greece and Rome – fun for all ages! Easy drawing instructions to recreate many places and people from history.
1. Beric the Briton by G. A. Henty – historical fiction about the Roman invasion of England, it takes place in England and in Rome at the time of Nero, and deals with the persecution of Christians.
1. Martyr of the Catacombs – a gripping story of the life of Christians in a time of persecution.
1. Treasury of Saints and Martyrs – recommended in the Companion Guide, and great for the younger students.
1. Ancient History from Primary Sources (Optional, but really fun for someone who wants to dig deeper!)
1. Great Civilizations of the East – recommended in the Companion Guide
1. But Don’t All Religions Lead to God? – great addition to your apologetics book list!
1. Handbook of Today’s Religions by Josh McDowell – very helpful for understanding the different religions

With my teens and tweens, I focus on two areas: primary sources and apologetics.

As much as possible I want to use original sources to show the ancient writings that we still refer to today. That’s why you’ll see me recommend and reference Eusebius, Josephus, etc. It’s great to read about these men and what they wrote; it’s even better to open a book of their writings, peruse it, read a bit here and there, and even copy some of the words.

Mystery of History Volume 2 Lesson Plans

In Volume 1, Christian apologetics gets a wonderful foundation. In Volume 2, it builds on the entire Old Testament and the life of Jesus by exploring Paul’s writings and the growth of the church and spread of the gospel. This is important because the secular world (schools, social media, entertainment) try to paint the church and God’s followers as many things: backwards, evil, murderous, and more. Our children need to know the truth. Yes, Christians have made many mistakes (we are human, after all). But that’s not the whole picture. Volume II of Mystery of History does a wonderful job of giving that whole picture.

As I go through each lesson, I look at the suggested reading for each lesson (Companion Guide) and choose resources that lend historical truth to both of these goals.

Mystery of History Volume 2 Lesson Plans for Middle and High School

The lessons plans for Quarter 1

Pentecost and the First Followers of Jesus
- Drive Thru History Holy Land Volume 4, Episode 1 “Temple Mount/Stoning”
- Drive Thru History Ancients, Asia Minor 1-4, “Ancient Christians Cappadocia
- Read Acts 1-7
- The Story of Christianity Chapters 1-3
- Institute for Excellence in Writing: Ancient History Writing Lessons 22-25
- Notebooking page OR Copywork Acts 2:2-4
- Optional activities for Lesson 1
- Timeline: Pentecost 33 A.D.
- SomeWHERE in Time (Map activities 1, 2, & 3)
“Saul, Who Also is Called Paul”
- Drive Thru History Ancients, Greece 2-4 (Life of Paul), Greece 3-1 (Lay of the Land), Greece 3-6 (New Testament History)
- Read Act 13-29
- The Story of Christianity Chapter 4
- Notebooking page OR Copywork Acts 13:9
- Optional activities for Lesson 2
- Timeline: Saul/”Paul” 35 A.D.
- Map activity 4
Paul’s Missionary Journeys
- Drive Thru History Ancients, Turkey 3-6, Greece 1-2, 1-4, 2-5, 2-6, and 3-2
- Go over the footnotes for Lesson 3 in the Student Reader
- The Story of Christianity Chapter 5
- Notebooking page OR Copywork Acts 23:11
- Optional activities for Lesson 3 (we did 3B2 and 3C1 and 2)
- Consider watching the movie “I, Paul”
- Timeline Paul’s Missionary Journeys 46-66 A.D.
- Map activity 5

Do Week 1 Exercise

4. Nero

Institute for Excellence in Writing: Ancient History Writing Lessons 26-27
Drive Thru History Ancients: Greece 3-5, Rome 2-1 and 2-2, Asia Minor 1-5
Draw and Write Through History Ancient Greece and Rome: draw the Colosseum and/or a gladiator
YouTube: Catacombs in Rome
Notebooking page
Consider reading Beric the Briton by G. A. Henty (get my study guide here)
Optional activities for Lesson 4 (we did 4B and 4C 1&3)
Timeline: Nero 37-68 A.D.
Map activity 1

5. Martyrs of the Early Church

Drive Thru History Ancients: Turkey 1-3 and 1-4, Rome 1-4 and 2-3
If you haven’t already, assign a drawing of the Colosseum in Rome
We watched the short video about Richard Wurmbrand and Voice of the Martyrs and we have a free subscription to their magazine. This is a perfect time to introduce martyrs and to pray for them.
Notebooking page OR Copy work: Matthew 5:10-12 and “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” (Tertullian)
Consider reading Foxe’s Christian Martyrs of the World (Foxe’s Book of Martyrs). We read portions of it over this entire quarter.
Consider reading Martyr of the Catacombs: A Tale of Ancient Rome; excellent historical fiction. I read this as a teenager and have never forgotten it.
We read portions of The Treasury of Saints & Martyrs.
Read the Story of Christianity Chapter 6
Timeline: Martyrs of the Early Church 64-280 A.D.
Map activity 2.
Optional activities for Lesson 5.